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Dundas Despotism
by Michael FryThis is the first comprehensive biography of Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville (1742–1811), and his son Robert, 2nd Viscount Melville (1771–1851). Aided by other members of their family, they ruled Scotland from the 1770s to the 1830s in a period of government later dubbed ‘the Dundas Despotism’.Using a mass of primary and secondary material culled from England, Scotland, Ireland and the United States, Michael Fry challenges the traditional view that theirs was a corrupt and authoritarian regime. He shows that both father and son sought to achieve good government within the accepted political conventions of the age, and that many of the principles they set out to apply were owed directly to Scottish Enlightenment ideas. The Dundases were also of fundamental importance in drawing Scotland more fully into the United Kingdom, and enabling the Union of 1707 to work. This is a sparkling reassessment of a crucial period of Scottish British and imperial history.
Duncan Grant: A Biography
by Frances SpaldingThe life of the painter and designer Duncan Grant spanned great changes in society and art, from Edwardian Britain to the 1970s, from Alma-Tadema to Gilbert and George. This authoritive biography combines an engrossing narrative with an invaluable assessment of Grant's individual achievement and his place within Bloomsbury and in the wider development of British art. 'Spalding's skill is to sketch out the intricate emotional web against the bright bold untouchable figure of the artist. . . Her achievement is to let that sense of a man living with his craft shine through on every page: the result is an exceptionally honest and warm portrait. ' Financial Times
Dunblane: Never Forget
by Dr Mick NorthMick North's daughter Sophie was one of the children killed in the massacre at Dunblane Primary School. Dunblane: Never Forget is a personal account of Mick's life before and after the massacre and includes a critical assessement of the events that led to the tragedy and those that have followed. He begins by recalling his arrival in Stirling and how he and Barbara moved to Dunblane while awaiting the birth of their only child. A few months later Barbara was diagnosed with cancer and the family had to deal with her terminal illness. After the death of Barbara, father and daughter became an inseparable team until that dreadful day in 1996. North writes about how he and the other families dealt with public sympathy, the anti-handgun campaign, the memorial service, the television programmes, newspaper interviews and the creation of the Dunblane Memorial Garden. He describes how it felt to attend a public inquiry into the murder of his child, criticises the local police force and details the ambivalent attitude of the Dunblane community.
The Dun Cow Rib: A Very Natural Childhood
by Sir John Lister-KayeJohn Lister-Kaye has spent a lifetime exploring, protecting and celebrating the British landscape and its creatures. His memoir The Dun Cow Rib is the story of a boy's awakening to the wonders of the natural world. Lister-Kaye's joyous childhood holidays - spent scrambling through hedges and ditches after birds and small beasts, keeping pigeons in the loft and tracking foxes around the edge of the garden - were the perfect apprenticeship for his two lifelong passions: exploring the wonders of nature, and writing about them. Threaded through his adventures - from moving to the Scottish Highlands to work with Gavin Maxwell, to founding the famous Aigas Field Centre - is an elegy to his remarkable mother, and a wise and affectionate celebration of Britain's natural landscape.
The Duke of Windsor's War
by Michael BlochDrawing on unique sources, Michael Bloch describes the career of the Duke of Windsor during the Second World War.As a military liaison officer in France during 1939-40, he issued warnings which, had they been heeded, might have avoided the defeat of France;as Governor of the Bahamas 1940-45, he succeeded in what was regarded as one of the most difficult posts in the British Empire.But at the same time he and his wife (to marry whom he had given up a throne) had a second war to contend with - against King George VI and Queen Elizabeth who were determined to treat them as outcasts.This book caused a furore on publication, being the first work to give a detailed account of the bitter relations between the ex-King and his family.
Duke Ellington's America
by Harvey G. CohenFew American artists in any medium have enjoyed the international and lasting cultural impact of Duke Ellington. From jazz standards such as “Mood Indigo” and “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” to his longer, more orchestral suites, to his leadership of the stellar big band he toured and performed with for decades after most big bands folded, Ellington represented a singular, pathbreaking force in music over the course of a half-century. At the same time, as one of the most prominent black public figures in history, Ellington demonstrated leadership on questions of civil rights, equality, and America’s role in the world. With Duke Ellington’s America, Harvey G. Cohen paints a vivid picture of Ellington’s life and times, taking him from his youth in the black middle class enclave of Washington, D.C., to the heights of worldwide acclaim. Mining extensive archives, many never before available, plus new interviews with Ellington’s friends, family, band members, and business associates, Cohen illuminates his constantly evolving approach to composition, performance, and the music business—as well as issues of race, equality and religion. Ellington’s own voice, meanwhile, animates the book throughout, giving Duke Ellington’s America an intimacy and immediacy unmatched by any previous account. By far the most thorough and nuanced portrait yet of this towering figure, Duke Ellington’s America highlights Ellington’s importance as a figure in American history as well as in American music.
Duke Ellington's America
by Harvey G. CohenFew American artists in any medium have enjoyed the international and lasting cultural impact of Duke Ellington. From jazz standards such as “Mood Indigo” and “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” to his longer, more orchestral suites, to his leadership of the stellar big band he toured and performed with for decades after most big bands folded, Ellington represented a singular, pathbreaking force in music over the course of a half-century. At the same time, as one of the most prominent black public figures in history, Ellington demonstrated leadership on questions of civil rights, equality, and America’s role in the world. With Duke Ellington’s America, Harvey G. Cohen paints a vivid picture of Ellington’s life and times, taking him from his youth in the black middle class enclave of Washington, D.C., to the heights of worldwide acclaim. Mining extensive archives, many never before available, plus new interviews with Ellington’s friends, family, band members, and business associates, Cohen illuminates his constantly evolving approach to composition, performance, and the music business—as well as issues of race, equality and religion. Ellington’s own voice, meanwhile, animates the book throughout, giving Duke Ellington’s America an intimacy and immediacy unmatched by any previous account. By far the most thorough and nuanced portrait yet of this towering figure, Duke Ellington’s America highlights Ellington’s importance as a figure in American history as well as in American music.
Duke Ellington's America
by Harvey G. CohenFew American artists in any medium have enjoyed the international and lasting cultural impact of Duke Ellington. From jazz standards such as “Mood Indigo” and “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” to his longer, more orchestral suites, to his leadership of the stellar big band he toured and performed with for decades after most big bands folded, Ellington represented a singular, pathbreaking force in music over the course of a half-century. At the same time, as one of the most prominent black public figures in history, Ellington demonstrated leadership on questions of civil rights, equality, and America’s role in the world. With Duke Ellington’s America, Harvey G. Cohen paints a vivid picture of Ellington’s life and times, taking him from his youth in the black middle class enclave of Washington, D.C., to the heights of worldwide acclaim. Mining extensive archives, many never before available, plus new interviews with Ellington’s friends, family, band members, and business associates, Cohen illuminates his constantly evolving approach to composition, performance, and the music business—as well as issues of race, equality and religion. Ellington’s own voice, meanwhile, animates the book throughout, giving Duke Ellington’s America an intimacy and immediacy unmatched by any previous account. By far the most thorough and nuanced portrait yet of this towering figure, Duke Ellington’s America highlights Ellington’s importance as a figure in American history as well as in American music.
The Duke: Portrait Of Prince Phillip
by Tim HealdTHE DUKE is the biography of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II, a celebrity in his own right and yet an enigma still, even after 60 years in the public eye. What is he really like? Bombastic, autocratic, say his critics. Colourful, stimulating, say his admirers.Tim Heald was given a unique opportunity to find out for himself. Not for twenty years had a biographer been allowed such access to talk to Prince Philip and watch him at work - still very much a man in a hurry, still speaking and questioning on an astonishing variety of subjects and treading the most impossible tightrope between the breezy informality which he first introduced to the royal family and the parade-ground traditions which he has had to accept. And members of the royal family - among them the Queen Mother, Princes Margaret, Princess Anne and his only surviving sister, Princess Sophie - also share with Heald their thoughts on the man who started life as Philip of Greece, one of a royal family who were deposed and exiled while he was still an infant. Many other witnesses reveal for the first time the Prince Philip they know. His early days in exile, at schools in France, in England and in Germany - where he had first-hand experience of the 'unpleasant habits' of the Nazis, and then in Scotland at the newly founded Gordonstoun. His service with distinction in the Royal Navy during World War Two. His engagement in 1947 to Princess Elizabeth, twenty-one-year-old daughter of King George VI. As TIm Heald observes, Prince Philip swiftly emerged as very much his own man, winning over one or two doubters within the Court who might have preferred a home-grown aristocrat as husband to the future Queen. Written with the co-operation of Buckingham Palace, THE DUKE is a brilliantly informed portrait of a life that has been independent of, but fully supportive to the Queen.
The Duke: 100 Chapters in the Life of Prince Philip
by Ian Lloyd'A fascinating account of Prince Philip as seen from every conceivable angle. Ian Lloyd demonstrates that there is much we didn't know about this much-loved – and at times controversial – royal consort' Majesty magazine The Archbishop of Canterbury called him ‘bloody rude’, courtiers feared he was ‘a foreign interloper out for the goodies’, daughter-in-law Sarah Ferguson found him ‘very frightening’ and the Queen Mother labelled him ‘the Hun’. Journalists have continually portrayed him as a gaffe-prone serial philanderer, with European outlets going way off-piste and claiming he has fathered 24 illegitimate children and even had a fling with a former French president. Prince Philip says ‘the impression the public has got is unfair’, though he doesn't go to great lengths to defend himself. There is no self-serving autobiography and his interviews with broadcasters or writers are done grudgingly. The Duke sets out to explore the man behind the various myths, drawing on interviews with relations, friends and courtiers, as well as Prince Philip's own words. Ian Lloyd brings to life some rare aspects of his character, from a love of poetry and religion to his fondness for Duke Ellington and his fascination with UFOs. Lloyd also explains why for over seven decades the Duke of Edinburgh has been the Queen's ‘strength and stay’ – and why he is regarded by many as a national treasure.
Duke: The Life and Times of Duke Ellington
by Terry TeachoutThe story of the man who became a music legend. Edward Kennedy 'Duke' Ellington was arguably the greatest jazz composer of the twentieth century—and an impenetrably enigmatic personality whom no one, not even his closest friends, claimed to understand. His music, too, was powerful and entirely original. Andre Prévin compared him to Stravinsky and Prokofiev, Percy Grainger to Bach and Delius. But in fact he was very much his own man. The grandson of a slave, Ellington dropped out of high school to become a musical showman of incomparable suavity, as comfortable in Carnegie Hall as in the nightclubs where he honed his famous style. When he raised his fingers, the music that blazed out had its own unique richness and range. He wrote hundreds of compositions, many of which remain beloved standards, and sought inspiration in an endless string of transient lovers, concealing himself behind a smiling mask of flowery language and ironic charm. In this revealing biography, Terry Teachout skillfully peels away the countless layers of Ellington's evasion to tell the unvarnished truth about a creative genius and musical pioneer.
The Duff Cooper Diaries: 1915-1951
by Lord John Julius NorwichThe long awaited and highly revealing diaries of the politician, diplomat, and socialite (married to Lady Diana Cooper)Duff Cooper was a first-rate witness of just about every significant event from 1914 to 1950. His diary includes some magnificent set pieces - as a young soldier at the end of WWI, as a politician during the General Strike of 1926, as King Edward VIII's friend at the time of the Abdication, and from Paris after the liberation in 1944, when he became British ambassador. If Duff Cooper's name has dimmed in the 50 years since his death, publication of these diaries will bring him to the fore once again. His family have long resisted publication - indeed Duff Cooper's nephew, the publisher Rupert Hart-Davis, was so shocked by the sexual revelations that he suggested to John Julius Norwich that it might be best for all concerned if they were burnt. Now, superbly edited by John Julius Norwich, who familial link ensures all kinds of additional information as footnotes, these diaries join the ranks.
Duel: Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, And The Future Of America
by Thomas FlemingA vivid narrative history of Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, and their infamous duelDuel is a remarkable retelling of the fatal 1804 duel between former Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton and Vice President Aaron Burr. Thomas Fleming takes the reader into the post-revolutionary world of the early nineteenth century, a chaotic and fragile time in the young country as well as a time of tremendous global instability. The success of the French Revolution and the proclamation of Napoleon as First Consul for Life had enormous impact on men like Hamilton and Burr, feeding their own political fantasies at a time of perceived Federal government weakness and corrosion. Their hunger for fame spawned antagonisms that wreaked havoc on themselves and their families and threatened to destabilize the fragile young American republic. From that poisonous brew came the tangle of regret and anger and ambition that drove the two men to their murderous confrontation in Weehawken, New Jersey. This is popular narrative history at its most authoritative, and authoritative history at its most readable--a must for readers interested in Hamilton, Burr, and America's early history.
The Duel: Castlereagh, Canning and Deadly Cabinet Rivalry
by Giles HuntThe fateful duel of 1809 between Lord Castlereagh and George Canning is one of the great puzzles of 19th-century British politics. What made these two titans of the political scene - close colleagues and highly effective members of the Cabinet - draw arms against each other? Canning was Foreign Secretary while Castlereagh was Secretary of State for War and the Colonies: what were they thinking on that ominous morning and what was important enough to provoke two Cabinet ministers to such extraordinary behaviour?This detailed history of the famous duel is the first to examine fully the careers of these two great men and the political conflicts that brought them to fire shots at each other on Putney Heath. Drawing on previously overlooked private papers, Giles Hunt traces what happened on that eventful day and the consequences for British politics. Castlereagh is traditionally depicted as an old-fashioned Tory reactionary, Canning as a brilliant but ambitious liberal. The trigger for Castlereagh's challenge came when Canning threatened to resign unless the Prime Minister made certain changes in the government - including removing Castlereagh from his ministerial position. Surely proof that Castlereagh was more than justified in challenging his villainous colleague. Yet Giles Hunt has uncovered evidence which casts a different light on Canning's character, revealing a man of honour and a politician of principle. Canning was also the only member of the Cabinet with no connection to a peerage and Hunt explores the part notions of class and snobbery have played in popular perceptions of both men. The Duel unpacks the complex characters of these influential men and examines the roots of the political and personal rivalry which led them to face each other with pistols early in the morning of 21st September 1809 for one of the strangest and most significant duels of history.
Dudley Moore: An Intimate Portrait
by Rena FruchterRena Fruchter was Dudley's concert piano partner, and the friend who looked after him in the final years of his life until his death at the age of 66. This is her intimate portrait of the extraordinarily brilliant, complex character that was Dudley Moore. During the last ten years of his life Dudley changed. He stepped off the podium and into real life. Physically life was difficult, professionally it was turbulent, but during his final years he blossomed, and in the midst of his illness from the debilitating effects of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, he found peace. Rena writes beautifully of Dudley's final years but also takes us back through his life story - conveying his inimitable talent, humour and vibrancy; evoking the atmosphere of a working-class upbringing in 1940s Britain, life in 1950s London and his relationship with Peter Cook, and the excesses of 1980s LA. With style and precision she unravels his personality, looks back at his childhood and career, weaving a moving and compelling story of a unique man.
The Dude and the Zen Master
by Bernie Glassman Jeff BridgesJeff Bridges is one of the world's most popular actors and his unforgettable performance as The Dude in Coen Brothers film, The Big Lebowski, made him a cult hero. His remarkable career as an actor, performer and songwriter has brought him an Oscar, a Golden Globe and a Critics Choice award. Away from the spotlight, Bridges is a dedicated practitioner of Zen Buddhism and for more than a decade has been close friends with Zen leader Bernie Glassman. It is Glassman who has helped guide Bridges' lessons on the path to enlightenment and the two have spent many hours discussing life, love, the movies, creativity, happiness and death. With wit, charm and profound insight, Bridges and Glassman discover the Zen in iconic scenes and lines from The Big Lebowski. With honesty and humour, Bridges explores how his Zen practice and his life experience inform one another as he discusses his loving relationship with his parents, his marriage, his highly successful career and his warm connection with his fans.
Duct Tape and Daddy Issues: Phone-Sex Worker Tells All (Wordcatcher Real Life Stories and Biographies)
by Dee DickensCONFESSIONS OF A PHONE-SEX GIRL What is a poor student to do when the summer holidays are looming, she's totally broke and even the local supermarket won't hire her? In this case she straps herself in, gets out her best sexy voice and goes to work on a phone sex line. Join Dee and her alter-egos on a journey of discovery - of herself, her customers and of the vagaries of the kind of man who rings sex lines. Meet Matthew,who has many questionsabout bottoms; Dave, who missed his vocationas a doctor; and Stan, who ruins shoes in a way you will not believe!
Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands
by Kate Beaton'An exceptionally beautiful book' Carmen Maria Machado, author of In the Dream House 'A vast and complex tapestry that captures the humanity of people... it shimmers with grace.' Alison Bechdel, author of Fun HomeBefore there was Kate Beaton, New York Times bestselling cartoonist of Hark A Vagrant, there was Katie Beaton of the Cape Breton Beatons, a tight-knit seaside community. After university, Katie heads out west to take advantage of Alberta's oil rush, part of the long tradition of East Coast Canadians who seek gainful employment elsewhere when they can't find it in the homeland they love so much. With the singular goal of paying off her student loans, what the journey will actually cost Katie will be far more than she anticipates.Arriving in Fort McMurray, Katie finds work in the lucrative camps owned and operated by the world's largest oil companies. As one of the few women among thousands of men, the culture shock is palpable. It does not hit home until she moves to a spartan, isolated worksite for higher pay. Katie encounters the harsh reality of life in the oil sands where trauma is an everyday occurrence yet never discussed. For young Katie, her wounds may never heal. Beaton's natural cartooning prowess is on full display as she draws colossal machinery and mammoth vehicles set against a sublime Albertan backdrop of wildlife, Northern Lights, and Rocky Mountains. Her first full length graphic narrative, Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands is an untold story of Canada: a country that prides itself on its egalitarian ethos and natural beauty while simultaneously exploiting both the riches of its land and the humanity of its people.
The Duchess Who Dared: The Life of Margaret, Duchess of Argyll
by Charles CastleThe extraordinary story behind A Very British Scandal, starring Claire Foy and Paul Bettany Margaret was debutante of the year, the beautiful fairy-tale heiress immortalised in Cole Porter's 'You're The Top' - who ended up penniless and ostracised from her own family. Legal actions coloured her life - her divorce from the Duke of Argyll was one of the longest, costliest and most notorious in British legal history. Her diaries, and photographs of her with an anonymous naked man, were used in evidence. This sparkling biography draws on exclusive interviews with the late Duchess to lift the lid off her extraordinary story, and her scandalous lifestyle. The Duchess Who Dared is a fascinating chronicle of a complex, charming and surprisingly modern woman.
The Duchess (Text Only)
by Amanda ForemanA tale of decadence and excess, great houses and wild parties, love and sexual intrigue, this biography of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, casts an astonishing new light on the nobility of eighteenth-century England.
Duchess of York: The Selected Letters of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: Part 2 (Counting One's Blessings #2)
by William Shawcross‘Enchanting, often moving and sometimes hilarious’ Daily Mail Full of wit, hilarity, acute observation and a deeply held sense of duty, the Queen Mother’s letters give readers a vivid insight into the person behind the public face. Here, in her own words, is the young woman who, after a long courtship and two refusals, accepted the Duke of York’s proposal and, as his Duchess, brought a sense of ease and fun into the public and private lives of the Royal Family. We see her delight in her beloved daughters and her real anguish when she and her husband realized that he would become King because his brother Edward VIII was determined to abdicate. ‘The warm personality and humour of the late, much-loved Queen Mother shines through in her letters, as does her affection for all, whether below or above stairs’ Scotsman ‘Recaptures her effervescent charm, and the simple fact that she was a good egg’ Spectator ‘How one warms to her!’ Evening Standard
The Duchess of Windsor: The Intimate Correspondence Of The Duke And Duchess Of Windsor
by Michael BlochMichael Bloch's biography of the woman Edward VIII renounced kingship to marry drew on his previous publication of their intimate corespondence, and presented a picture of her which was often startlingly at variance with previous accounts.It brings vividly to life the qualities which captivated her royal suitor, and caused some surprise by speculating that much of the mystery of her life might be explained by an element of gender confusion.
The Duchess of Windsor: A Memoir
by Diana Mitford, Lady Mosley (Diana Mosley)An intimate of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Diana Mosley was a frequent guest at their parties in Paris, or at 'the Moulin' in Orsay, where they were neighbours. Written in her inimitable style Diana Mosley paints a remarkable portrait of her friend that is also realistic with regards to her flaws. What was it about her that utterly captivated the heir to the throne and made him renounce it when he became King? It is this question which Diana Mosley seeks to answer and which she is perhaps better qualified to answer than anyone else, given her marriage to Sir Oswald Mosley, Leader of the British Fascists.
The Duchess of Cambridge: A Decade Of Modern Royal Style
by Bethan HoltThrust into the global spotlight on her engagement to Prince William, Kate wore a sapphire blue wrap dress by London-based label Issa that promptly sold out. It was the first step in Kate's evolution to become the modern royal style icon she is today – the Duchess of Cambridge.In the decade since, Kate has become the Duchess of Cambridge, a future Queen and a mother of three. Her outfits range from high street to haute couture, with women worldwide fascinated by her style and eager to copy it. The Duchess has used her clothing to make diplomatic gestures, to send messages of solidarity and to show respect. One day, her wardrobe underscores her status as a senior royal; the next it's all about being just like any 30-something Mum. But thanks to an explosion of 24/7 news coverage and social media, her choices are analysed more closely than those of any royal before. In this book, Bethan Holt marks the tenth anniversary of Kate’s royal life by taking readers on a highly illustrated journey through the Duchess’s style evolution.
