John Humphrys Books

The first book - personal, practical and ethical - to deal with death and dying well by a popular Radio 4 Today presenter alongside a high-profile GP

'The bombshell book everyone is talking about' DAILY MAIL 'A radio genius ... the maestro of the show' EVENING STANDARD

"John Humphrys has been a journalist for forty years - starting as a cub reporter on a tiny weekly newspaper and ending as one of the most respected broadcasters of his generation. He uses his experience to set in context the changes that have taken place in Britain over those years and to ask whether we, as a nation, are happy with the result. In many ways, he believes, we are not." "Devil's Advocate asks some very awkward questions. It also issues a challenge - if we aren't happy with the way things are in Britain today, what are we going to do about it?"--BOOK JACKET

Tackles the big question through the author's own personal journey and argues that doubt is the only credible belief.

It was a moment of mad impulse when John Humphrys decided to buy a semi-derelict cottage and a building site on a plot of land overlooking the Aegean. A few minutes' gazing out over the most glorious bay he had ever seen was all it took to persuade him. After all, his son Christopher - a professional musician fluent in Greek - was already raising his family there so he would help build the beautiful villa that John dreamed of. What could possibly go wrong? Everything. John was to spend much of the next four years regretting his moment of madness. Some of it had its comic side. He learned to cope with the escaped peacock that took over his lemon grove and even a colony of rats that took over the cottage. Some of the humans proved trickier: the old man demanding payment for olive trees in the middle of John's own land; the unfriendly neighbour who tried to barricade him in and the friendly neighbour who dragged his lovely old fishing boat onto the beach and set fire to it after a row with his wife. And, of course, the builders. If you have ever struggled with builders, read this and be grateful. John learned a lot about Greece in a short time. He grew to love and lament the country and its people, but was never for a moment bored by them. And Christopher learned a bit more about John. Their shared experience revived keen memories for him of growing up with a father for whom patience was never the strongest virtue... Here father and son tell a story by turns hilarious and revealing about a country that intrigues and infuriates in equal measure.

From the huge response to Lost for Words, it's clear that many of us share John's strong feelings about the use and misuse of the English language. Not because we want to split hairs (or infinitives) but because how we use words reveals so much about the way we see the world. Here John takes a sharp look at phrases and expressions in current use to expose the often hidden attitudes that lie behind them -- from the schoolroom to the boardroom, from Westminster to the weather forecast. Questioning our assumptions, puncturing our illusions and illuminating the way we live now, Brave New Words is a small book that speaks volumes.

From empty cliche to meaningless jargon, dangling participle to sentences without verbs, the English language is reeling. It is under attack from all sides. Politicians dupe us with deliberately evasive language. Bosses worry about impacting the bottom line while they think out of the box. Academics talk obscure mumbo jumbo. Journalists and broadcasters, who should know better, lazily collaborate. John Humphrys wittily and powerfully exposes the depths to which our beautiful language has sunk and offers many examples of the most common atrocities. He also dispenses some sensible guidance on how to use simple, clear and honest language. Above all, he shows us how to be on the alert for the widespread abuse - especially by politicians - and the power of the English language.

Now in its 48th edition, the Handbook is an authoritative annual compendium of Britain, providing an up-to-date account of all the latest policy developments in the UK.