Signed Edition with an exclusive additional chapter focusing on Hengist and Horsa- a standard edition is also available
Discover who we are and how we got here by pre-ordering comedian and student of history David Mitchell's Unruly: A History of England's Kings and Queens - a thoughtful,funny exploration of the founding fathers and mothers of England,and subsequently Britain.
Think you know the Kings and Queens of England Think again.
In Unruly,David Mitchell explores how early England's monarchs,while acting as feared rulers firmly guiding their subjects'destinies,were in reality a bunch of lucky sods who were mostly as silly and weird in real life as they appear to us today in their portraits.
Taking us right back to King Arthur (spoiler: he didn't exist),David tells the founding story of post-Roman England right up to the reign of Elizabeth I (as the monarchy began to lose its power). It's a tale of narcissists,inadequate self-control,excessive beheadings,middle-management insurrection,uncivil wars,and at least one total Cnut,as the English evolved from having their crops nicked with menaces by the thug with the largest armed gang to bowing and paying taxes to a divinely anointed King.
How this happened,who it happened to and why the hell it matters in twenty-first-century Britain are all questions David answers with brilliance,wit and the full erudition of a man who once studied history - and is damned if he'll let it off the hook for the mess it's made of everything.
A serious book by a very funny man,Unruly is for anyone who has ever wondered how we got here - and who is to blame.
Publisher: Penguin Books LtdISBN: 2928377213329Number of pages: 432Dimensions: 240 x 156 mm
David Mitchell: The Waterstones Interview
Description
No matter how you feel about them,there's no doubt that the Royal Family still play a crucial role in our national identity - but how did we get to where we are And how much do we really know about the Kings and Queens of our past. We sat down with comedian and writer David Mitchell to discover why the early Kings were just successful bullies,why royal succession is a bit like losing your mobile phone,and why Magna Carta is important for many reasons,but doesn't get you off wearing a face mask or paying your council tax.
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