Ever since John Logie Baird first publicly demonstrated this now all-pervasive medium in his small Soho laboratory, the history of television has been littered with remarkable but true tales of the unexpected. Ranging from bizarre stories of actors’ shenanigans to strange but true executive and marketing decisions, and covering over one hundred shows, series and episodes from both behind and in front of the camera in British and American television studios, 'Television's Strangest Moments' is the ultimate tome of TV trivia. Why did the quintessential English sleuth The Saint drive a Swedish car? What happened when Michael Aspel met Nora Batty on the set of the 1960s drama-documentary 'The War Game'? Why is the Halloween chiller 'Ghostwatch' still unofficially banned by the BBC? From live TV suicide to Ricky Martin's disastrous candid camera-style episode involving a young female fan and several cans of dog food, 'Television's Strangest Moments' will keep you hooked when there's nothing worth watching on the box.
The author, a computer science professor diagnosed with terminal cancer, explores his life, the lessons that he has learned, how he has worked to achieve his childhood dreams, and the effect of his diagnosis on him and his family.
A blazingly intelligent first book of essays from the award-winning author of Open City and Every Day Is for the Thief NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Time • The Guardian • Harper's Bazaar • San Francisco Chronicle • The Atlantic • Financial Times • Kirkus Finalist for the PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay and PEN/Jean Stein Book Award With this collection of more than fifty pieces on politics, photography, travel, history, and literature, Teju Cole solidifies his place as one of today’s most powerful and original voices. On page after page, deploying prose dense with beauty and ideas, he finds fresh and potent ways to interpret art, people, and historical moments, taking in subjects from Virginia Woolf, Shakespeare, and W. G. Sebald to Instagram, Barack Obama, and Boko Haram. Cole brings us new considerations of James Baldwin in the age of Black Lives Matter; the African American photographer Roy DeCarava, who, forced to shoot with film calibrated exclusively for white skin tones, found his way to a startling and true depiction of black subjects; and (in an essay that inspired both praise and pushback when it first appeared) the White Savior Industrial Complex, the system by which African nations are sentimentally aided by an America “developed on pillage.” Persuasive and provocative, erudite yet accessible, Known and Strange Things is an opportunity to live within Teju Cole’s wide-ranging enthusiasms, curiosities, and passions, and a chance to see the world in surprising and affecting new frames. Praise for Known and Strange Things “On every level of engagement and critique, Known and Strange Things is an essential and scintillating journey.”—Claudia Rankine, The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice) “A heady mix of wit, nostalgia, pathos, and a genuine desire to untangle the world, or at the least, to bask in its unending riddles.”—The Atlantic “Brilliant . . . [Known and Strange Things] reveals Cole’s extraordinary talent and his capacious mind.”—Time “[Known and Strange Things] showcases the magnificent breadth of subjects [Cole] is able to plumb with . . . passion and eloquence.”—Harper’s Bazaar “[Cole is] one of the most vibrant voices in contemporary writing.”—LA Times “Cole has fulfilled the dazzling promise of his novels Every Day Is for the Thief and Open City. He ranges over his interests with voracious keenness, laser-sharp prose, an open heart and a clear eye.”—The Guardian “Remarkably probing essays . . . Cole is one of only a very few lavishing his focused attention on that most approachable (and perhaps therefore most overlooked) art form, photography.”—Chicago Tribune “There’s almost no subject Cole can’t come at from a startling angle. . . . His [is a] prickly, eclectic, roaming mind.”—The Boston Globe “[Cole] brings a subtle, layered perspective to all he encounters.”—Vanity Fair “In page after page, Cole upholds the sterling virtue of good writing combined with emotional and intellectual engagement.”—The New Statesman “[Known and Strange Things possesses] a passion for justice, a deep sympathy for the poor and the powerless around the world, and a fiery moral outrage.”—Poets and Writers
Frequently it is suggested that the ‘golden age' of television was during the period 1950-1960. It is true that television almost ruined Hollywood's fortunes during this period. But if this was the authentic golden age, then it was an age of black and white, somewhat limited creativity, poor reception, lack of competition (except in the United States) and – by and large – public service broadcasting. However, if we take 1950 as a generic ‘starting point' for modern television broadcasting, then we talk about a kind of prehistoric stage of the medium – in which it remained for the best part of three decades. The younger days of broadcasting were the 1980s; the time when commercial television started on a large scale and, in this youth, was getting younger in terms of programming. Luxembourg-based SES Astra appeared on the scene at exactly this time. Astra was instrumental in the dramatic developments in television that we have witnessed since then. This is the story we want to tell in this book. Without satellite technology and the success of satellite reception, without the resulting mass-market penetration of television sets and general economic prosperity we would not have the necessary base ingredients to make the great leap forward into digital, into HDTV, 3D-television, and the prospects of Ultra High Definition now in sight.
The individuals you will encounter here are unique but believable. Follow the trail of mystery and curiosity to the inevitable but surprising end. Albert doesn't just sell magazines, he can see answers for the downtrodden. Mr. Jiggs is a four legged deity with a sense of humor. Meet a florist with a taste for blood.
The title says it all: Never a Dull Moment. I hope everyone enjoys reading this book of poems. I also hope that you may like it and that there may not be a dull moment in your life. Just stay in Christ.
Afterlife expert and bestselling author Jacky Newcomb knows that the spirit world is real. Thousands of people have experienced contact from the departed or seen the afterlife themselves. After collecting these experiences for 12 years, Jacky answers key questions in Heaven, like: - What happens to the soul once the body dies? - Do our experiences on earth and our beliefs affect the next part of the journey? - Did our loved ones make it safely to heaven? - Can we communicate with the departed? In Heaven, Jacky Newcomb will bring peace, reassurance and hope to everyone who has ever wondered about life after death. Jacky Newcomb is the UK's leading expert on the afterlife, having dedicated her life to the subject. She is a Sunday Times bestselling author with numerous awards to her name, a regular columnist forTake A Break's Fate & Fortune magazine, and is a regular on ITV's This Morning, Lorraine Kelly' show and C5 Live with Gabby Logan.
A disturbingly original novel by the author of Antichrist Superstar: The Musical. The story of two men and their battle for one identity. Hallucinations. Or maybe they aren't. Visions. Or perhaps glimpses into ultimate reality. What do we want as a human race? And are there humans who are more so than others? Not a book for the timid, occasional reader nor for a good time on a lazy Sunday afternoon, Bizarre Love Triangle is just what it's title suggests. A novel that is bizarre, about what love means and concerning three people.
The Author has a unique, artistic and romantic mind, with a special way of seeing and describing the world, and this time a very special way of travelling, with no plan, no map, no idea, therefore thinking what could possibly go wrong? He describes a journey he took through parts of Asia on a small budget fuelled with big dreams, following instincts and longing to find the legendary Shangrilla, timeless valleys, and revelations for inner growth. With Chorma's smile still warm in his heart, he sets off walking down a forbidden road through Tibet, hoping to reach Lhasa. The travel Gods answered his prayers as they often do when you ask, but he forgot to say exactly how he wished to get there! His writing style and artistic imagination will take you spiralling down infinite thoughts, hillarious situations and potential oblivion, sometimes floating, sometimes soaring, but always eventually appearing in wonderland drinking tea with the mad hatter himself. You will not want to put it down, just like travelling, eager to see what is just around the next corner?
