Kirjahaku

'In a world of colourless corporate leaders, Ryanair's aggressive, mouthy chief executive provides catnip for journalists. Cooper, an award-winning Irish writer and reporter, makes the most of the opportunity to dissect his colourful subject' Book of the Month, The Financial Times Michael O'Leary lifts the veil on the wildly successful and wildly controversial Ryanair CEO. Based on extensive research - including with close associates of O'Leary - the book examines O'Leary's personality, beliefs and obsessions and describes how these have moulded the business he runs. Written by a multi-award-winning journalist and broadcaster, with a thirty-year career covering business and current affairs, it is a fascinating insight into the business behind the man, and the man behind the business.'Fascinating book ... very comprehensive' Eamon Dunphy, The Stand'An indispensable guide for anyone who wants to understand not just where Michael O'Leary and Ryanair are coming from, but where they are going' Sunday Business Post'A frequently enlightening unauthorised biography ... entertaining' Irish Independent

An Irish epic, The Maximalist documents in unflinching detail and with great subtlety the meteoric rise and slow unravelling of an Irish icon. ‘Biography of the Year.’ The Sunday Times ‘Biography of the Year.’ Sunday Business Post ‘Well-written and well-timed. Mr O’Reilly — all of him — is all here.’ The Financial Times ‘Exhilarating.’ The Irish Examiner ‘A thorough and dramatic account of a life that encompasses sport, business, media, speculation and family drama.’ The Sunday Independent ‘Brilliantly researched and scrupulously balanced … A compellingly psychological portrait that will surely be the last word on its subject for a long time.’ The Sunday Business Post ‘A discerning and intriguing analysis of both O’Reilly’s ascent to billionaire and his crash to bankruptcy.’ The Irish Mail on Sunday

Leading journalist Matt Cooper examines the key players behind the scenes of Irish property ownership – who really controls the valuable land where we live, work and play and how did they acquire it? Who are the new foreign investors and why are they buying property and land in Ireland? What does it mean for ordinary citizens when the ownership of shopping centres, wind farms, forestry and data centres comes from outside? Comprehensively researched and filled with riveting detail, this compelling account of the Irish property landscape is about our offices, hotels and pubs and the power of those wealthy enough to accumulate these properties. This eye-opening book is a must-read for anyone interested in Ireland and who really owns it. ‘It's not possible to understand Irish society, politics or the economy without knowing who owns land and property. Brilliantly researched and written with verve, clarity and narrative punch, Matt Cooper's study is the essential guide to the ground beneath our feet and the roofs above our heads.’ Fintan O’Toole ‘Land is essential for homes, and in this book Matt Cooper provides a vital interrogation of who owns and controls it and how it is impacting on the housing crisis, a must read for anyone interested in understanding Ireland's housing crisis’ Rory Hearne

The operations of Aldershot & District and Thames Valley Omnibus Company were merged in 1972 to become Alder Valley under National Bus Company ownership. In the run-up to privatisation the two halves were split again; the Berks Bucks Bus Company was the official name of Alder Valley North, which was formed in 1986 and traded as The Bee Line. The book covers the geographic area of this operator but is not a specific history of the company. Starting in Berkshire’s county town of Reading and traveling to destinations such as Newbury, Windsor and Maidenhead, the reader is then taken into Buckinghamshire travelling through High Wycombe and Aylesbury to Milton Keynes. Both counties have a very varied transport history, particularly in the post-deregulation era. This book gives a colourful snapshot of the area from 1986 through to the new millennium. Many of the vehicle types and liveries, and even some operators, featured here are no longer with us today.

Heralded as one of the best examples in the bus and coach industry of deregulation working in almost textbook fashion, Oxford has enjoyed an excellent and dynamic transport system. This historic city, famed for its university colleges and ‘dreaming spires’, had City of Oxford Motor Services (COMS) as its established bus operator. Under National Bus Company ownership the operations of South Midland were added and the name was changed to Oxford South Midland. Separated prior to privatisation, South Midland would take the county depots and Oxford the city and interurban network. However, both would continue to operate coach services to London via the M40 motorway or along the Thames Valley. This book also looks at a selection of other operators running in the county, as well as those of neighbouring counties such as Northamptonshire and Warwickshire. The Stagecoach Group gained a significant presence in the area. Photographs included here were captured between 1986 and 2010 and feature numerous vehicle types, liveries and operators.

Following the deregulation of the bus industry in 1986, the transport scene in Northampton didn’t alter as drastically as in some other UK towns and cities. There was, however, a series of gradual changes as the ‘green’ buses of Northamptonshire gradually disappeared. With the cavernous Greyfriars bus station featuring throughout, this collection of previously unpublished photographs explores this interesting period between deregulation and the modern bus scene.

During the 1990s and 2000s the bus and coach scene across the Midlands evolved at a much greater rate than that of the preceding decades. From 1986 the subsidiaries of the National Bus Company were privatised along with several municipally owned companies across the region, the largest of which was the bus operations of West Midlands PTE. Independent companies came to try their hand by setting up new routes or networks and were joined by some established coach operators wishing to exploit new opportunities. This book looks at numerous coaching operations as they criss-cross this centrally located region, with established National Express services being joined by new ventures such as Stagecoach-owned Megabus. The region largely covers the area once served by Midland Red, with many operators, bus types and liveries to be seen, along with changing road layouts, bus stations and transport infrastructure. During this period tram systems returned to both Nottingham and Birmingham with bus services altered and adapted. Through a wealth of fascinating images and informative captions, Matt Cooper documents the transition from the post-privatisation era to the modern day.

The principal bus operator on the Isle of Wight is Southern Vectis, the name a nod to the Romans who once inhabited the island. In more recent times, from the reign of Queen Victoria, the popularity of the island increased – as did the provision for transport. Dr Beeching’s axe saw that the once extensive rail network on the island was reduced to just 9 miles of mainline track after 1966. This remains the same today with Island Line serving eight stations between Ryde Pier and Shanklin. This presented bus and coach companies with the opportunity to expand their operations to fill the gaps. Matt Cooper explores operations on the island from the late 1990s before venturing across the Solent to the mainland to look at bus and coach operators running along the central South Coast. Loosely covering the area between Dorset and Sussex, the operators within it are as varied as the vehicle types to be seen. Both the ‘tourist trail’ and the routes travelled regularly by local residents are documented. With a superb array of images, this book will be of interest to South Coast bus enthusiasts and will hopefully inspire visits to this beautiful part of the country.

The real story behind Dunnes Stores, the most quintessentially Irish shop of all, and the family drama behind itThis is the story of the extraordinary family behind one of Ireland's most famous businesses, Dunnes Stores, over three generations and covering nearly 80 years of retailing but going back as far as the 19th century. With drama worthy of the popular TV drama Succession, a real-life Irish family drama shows the children of a dominant founder argue as to who should run the supermarket empire after his death and take the money from it, and how they dealt or not, with addictions and ill health, including alcoholism.This is the story of excess, success and failure.

Matt Cooper is a senior English major at Wichita State University and lives in El Dorado, Kansas. He has written for the WSU Sunflower Newspaper and has studied at Butler Community College and Kansai Gaidai University.

"Do or die. It is as simple as it sounds. Surviving rural Kansas is difficult, provisions are scarce and so are the supporters. To cross the threshold makes one a target for turmoil and a lifetime to create under the weight of expectations. This book is Cooper's vessel between the ruins of the American dream to someplace, somewhere a bit more livable."- Hevel Havalim, Carcinogen Racehorse Bassist, Error Collections CEO and Psychologist"This collection of poems is a raw transmission which burst from the guts of Matt Cooper. He has gathered it all and rejects nothing; not pain and not the violent storms that assail the heart. These are alchemised into poetry and shared in an unapologetic affirmation of life. Cooper sees through the knots and cruelties which block us. Forget the clock Lessons in the heart are available here and now. Past encounters yield new understandings and dialogue regardless of time and distance. Life is not a game which ends. It is a lottery where every move bleeds into the next unveiling new dimensions and where ultimately nothing is discarded." -Shaune Larder of Kansai Gaidai University, Osaka Japan "I've been a fan of Matthew Cooper's work ever since he let his inner freak out. There are poems here that are, like Matt, badass with a side of 16 oz. Pabst Blue Ribbon grenades. He's a WSU student where he's one of those Garrison Keillor-like English majors. He dreams of one day having a family in Japan, but for now he lives in Newton, Kansas, where he's an inspired voice for the working person just trying to make it through."-Jeff Guy, Kansas Writer and Journalist"With a kind of everyday mysticism that is akin to Jason Isbell ("Last of My Kind"), Matt Cooper sings on the page as if, like Robert Johnson, he's made a deal with the devil for his gift." -Kevin Rabas, Poet Laureate of Kansas, 2017-2019, More Than Words

Matt Cooper captures the transition from the post-deregulation era to that which exists today across the South West of England and Wales.

The story of the elite who led Ireland from bust to boom ... and back to bust again Having money and not having it; making it and losing it; using it and misusing it; giving it and taking it ... this is the story of Ireland during the boom, described in jaw-dropping detail in Who Really Runs Ireland? Leading journalist Matt Cooper identifies the most influential people in Ireland during the Celtic Tiger era, describes how they interacted with each other to mutual benefit, and reveals who were the few to retain their power amid the debris arising from the bursting of the Irish economic bubble. 'Highly accessible and akin to a good thriller ... fascinating ... compelling' Sunday Tribune 'Hugely entertaining as well as instructive' Irish Independent 'Impressive and eminently readable' Irish Times 'An eye-opener ... you might be driven to tears of rage' David McCullagh, RTE 'The detail is riveting ... and a lot of it illuminating'Irish Examiner 'The scale of Cooper's research is highly impressive ... an in-depth reference guide to folly and hubris' Sunday Business Post 'Complex but surprisingly reader-friendly ... a rattling, and frequently horrifying, read' Hot Press 'Superbly readable and insightful ... a must-have' Irish Mail on Sunday