Sharpe's Victory


Rachel Murrell - 1997
    The series is scheduled to appear on A&E in the U.S. this fall. "Sharpe's Victory" relates the stories of all 14 films with on-set anecdotes and detailed historical information on Sharpe's battles and the military world leading up to Waterloo.130 color and b&w illustrations.

Have a Bleedin Guess - the story of Hex Enduction Hour


Paul Hanley - 2019
    Even the circumstances of its recording, purportedly in an abandoned cinema and a cave formed from Icelandic lava, have achieved legendary status among their ever-loyal fanbase. Have a Bleedin Guess tells the story of the album, including how each song was written, performed and recorded. It also includes new interviews with key players. Author Paul Hanley, who was one of The Fall's two drummers when Hex was created, is uniquely placed to discuss the album's impact, both when it was released and in the ensuing years.

Bali: Heaven and Hell


Phil Jarratt - 2014
    Bali: Heaven and Hellis a tale begging to be told - a story of survival in the face of genocide, natural disaster, terrorism, cultural imperialism and corruption on a grand scale. Go behind the smiling face presented to generations of tourists and expats with Phil Jarratt, the award-winning author of over 20 books including Surfing Australia: A Complete History of Surfboard Riding in Australia and That Summer at Boomerang. Phil has first-hand experience of the glorious island at the morning of the world, having spent the past 40 years falling in and out of love with our favourite holiday destination.Jarratt weaves a page-turning story of treachery, deceit, debauchery and wholesale slaughter, set against the idyllic backdrop of a paradise on Earth, then cleverly segues into a modern-day tale of jaw-dropping surf, karma, sexual abandon, and a fusion of East and West that created the modern tourist hot spot.David Hill, Chairman, National Geographic Channels US

The Crown: Truth & Fiction: An Expert Analysis of Netflix Series, THE CROWN


Hugo Vickers - 2017
    And so he has decided to put his thoughts down on paper. In THE CROWN: TRUTH & FICTION, Vickers writes that he does not approve of THE CROWN because 'it depicts real life people in situations which are partly true and partly false, and unfortunately most viewers take it all as gospel truth.'  He accepts that fiction can be a device to illuminate true events, but points out that it can be used to create dangerous, and lasting, false impressions too. THE CROWN has been a highly successful series, watched with intense interest across the globe.  The settings and costumes are of high quality, the acting is good, and it all looks convincing.  Peter Morgan is an intelligent writer, author of the film THE QUEEN, and the stage production of THE AUDIENCE.  The real Queen has previously inspired great performances from actresses such as Prunella Scales and Helen Mirren, and Claire Foy portrays her beautifully. As Vickers writes, 'THE CROWN has done a great job in reminding a younger generation that the Queen and Prince Philip were once young themselves.' One of the devices used in Series 2 is to take two straightforward themes which did happen and clash them against each other to create something which did not.  For example, in Episode 8, yes, the Queen and Prince Philip entertained the Kennedys at Buckingham Palace (on 5 June 1961), and yes, the Queen visited Nkrumah in Ghana (between 9 and 20 November 1961), but the Queen did not go to Ghana for the trivial reason that she wished to pull one over on Mrs Kennedy – she went there to ensure that Ghana remained part of the Commonwealth. Much has been written about the massive budget for this series and the attention to detail.   THE CROWN: TRUTH & FICTION identifies quite a number of mistakes, especially in respect of Orders and decorations.  Having worked on films himself, Hugo Vickers knows how hard it is to make sure these details are correct, and how sometimes shortcuts have to be taken.  But it is not that difficult to get the details right, and so he points out some of these errors.  But these are trivial things in comparison to the things shown as having happened, when they did not. The cruelest and most undeserved victim of the series is Prince Philip, here portrayed as a fractious, bumptious Jack the Lad, very much the villain.  Watching the series, Hugo Vickers concludes that he failed to find the man who, in 1962, was advancing Anglo-German relations through remarks such as, ‘It may be difficult for people to see any virtue in forgiving one’s enemies, but let them reflect that it is much more likely to achieve a better future than stoking the fires of hatred and suspicion.’  This fictional Prince Philip is little more than a self-centred philanderer.  The real Prince Philip told his biographer, Tim Heald: ‘I certainly believe in the need for a “free” press, but there is a difference between freedom and licence and between the honest pursuit of the truth and the cynical pursuit of thoughtless – even vindictive sensationalism.’ THE CROWN: TRUTH & FICTION delivers a sharp message to filmwriters, producers, and their historical advisers: Fiction should help us understand the truth, not pervert it.