Sandi Toksvig

NOW IN PAPERBACK - THE FUNNY, WISE AND BRILLIANT NOVEL FROM THE STAR OF QIPAPERBACK PUBLICITION BACKED BY A MAJOR PERFORMANCE TOUR'Warm, witty and wise . . . the perfect balm for these turbulent times' GRAHAM NORTONAfter much searching, the happily married young couple, Amber and Stevie think they have found the perfect spot in Grimaldi Square. Despite the rundown pub across the way, the overgrown garden and a decidedly nosy neighbour, number 4 is the house of their dreams. Stevie, a woman who has never left anything to chance, has planned everything so nothing can spoil their happiness. But upstairs in their new home, seated on an old red sofa is the woman they bought the place from - eighty-year-old foul-mouthed, straight-talking, wise-cracking Dorothy - who has decided that she's not going anywhere. It turns out that Dorothy will be only the first in a line of life-changing surprises.Friends of Dorothy is a touching, funny novel about a family that is not biological, but logical; a story close to Sandi Toksvig's heart.Readers can't get enough of Friends of Dorothy:'Superb. Buy this book . . . Enjoyed it so much that I feel like starting at the beginning again' ?????'I absolutely adored this book! I hope to be half as hilarious as Dorothy when I reach my 70s' ?????'I literally read this in 24 hours and really could not put it down' ?????'It's a rare thing to find a novel that's warm and funny, but in no way cheesy or predictable . . . can't wait to re-read!' ?????'A great big warm hug of a book' ?????'I would give this six stars if I could' ?????

Questions introduced by quiz royalty Sandi Toksvig.Get ready for the ULTIMATE family face-off this Christmas with Kids vs Adults, the brilliant brain-busting quiz book where kids go head-to-head with the grown-ups to decide who REALLY knows it all! This book is flippable! Every page is split in half, with questions for kids at the top and questions for the adults the other way around at the bottom – which makes for easy passing back-and-forth.What's the national animal of the USA?Who was the Greek goddess of wisdom?New-born babies can't see colours. True or false?Can you beat the grown-ups? This is the perfect Christmas quizzing book for all the family – packed with trivia questions for kids and adults, fun facts and games that will provide hours of fun and keep you reaching for this book year after year.With 12 rounds featuring everything from music, TV and film to science, sport and celebrations, there's something for everyone in this quizz-tastic game book! Each page has extra ideas to improve your gameplay and off-book challenges that mean the experience will be different, and fun, every time you play. This book is sure to be a family favourite!

Contemporary, funny, wise and witty on LGBT+ fun, games - and prejudice - this is an uplit novel by one of the nation's most famous and beloved.

The funny, wise and brilliant new novel from the star of QI and the author of Between the Stops - an instant Sunday Times bestseller'Warm, witty and wise . . . the perfect balm for these turbulent times' GRAHAM NORTONAfter much searching, the happily married young couple, Amber and Stevie think they have found the perfect spot in Grimaldi Square. Despite the rundown pub across the way, the overgrown garden and a decidedly nosy neighbour, number 4 is the house of their dreams. Stevie, a woman who has never left anything to chance, has planned everything so nothing can spoil their happiness. But upstairs in their new home, seated on an old red sofa is the woman they bought the place from - eighty-year-old foul-mouthed, straight-talking, wise-cracking Dorothy - who has decided that she's not going anywhere. It turns out that Dorothy will be only the first in a line of life-changing surprises. Friends of Dorothy is a touching, funny novel about a family that is not biological, but logical; a story close to Sandi Toksvig's heart.Readers can't get enough of Friends of Dorothy!'Superb. Buy this book . . . Enjoyed it so much that I feel like starting at the beginning again' ?????'I absolutely adored this book! I hope to be half as hilarious as Dorothy when I reach my 70s' ????? 'I literally read this in 24 hours and really could not put it down' ?????'It's a rare thing to find a novel that's warm and funny, but in no way cheesy or predictable . . . can't wait to re-read!' ?????'A great big warm hug of a book' ?????'I would give this six stars if I could' ?????

Extraordinary Escapes uncovers the hidden treasures that the UK has to offer, featuring unique and characterful holiday homes from the hit Channel 4 series, plus many more. These incredible getaways showcase England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, including some of the most stunning areas of Suffolk, Kent, the Cotswolds, Devon, Cornwall and Norfolk.Explore amazing homes around the country, with a guide to the landscape, history and architecture of each one. Whether you're seeking a rural idyll or a remote romantic retreat, the beautifully designed and lovingly restored properties in the book include a Scottish castle, a converted lighthouse, cosy treehouses and an artist's mill.With a foreword by Sandi Toksvig, Extraordinary Escapes will evoke memories of childhood holidays and reinforce the benefits of slow living, glorious natural surroundings and mindful travel, inspiring you to look closer to home for that truly special escape.

'Fierce, funny and long overdue - I read this book out loud to anyone who'd listen.' Adam Kay'Toksvig's Almanac is intended merely as a starting point for your own discoveries. Find a fabulous (or infamous) woman mentioned and, please, go looking for more of her story. The names mentioned are merely temptations. Amuse-bouches for the mind, if you like. How I would have loved to have written out in detail each tale there is to be told, but then this book would have been too heavy to lift.'Let Sandi Toksvig guide you on an eclectic meander through the calendar, illuminating neglected corners of history to tell tales of the fascinating figures you didn't learn about at school.From revolutionary women to serial killers, pirate nuns to pioneering civil rights activists, doctors to dancing girls, artists to astronauts, these pages commemorate women from all around the world who were pushed to the margins of historical record. Amuse your bouche with:Belle Star, American Bandit QueenLady Murasaki, author of the world's first novelMadame Ching, the most successful pirate of all timeMaud Wagner, the first female tattoo artistBegum Samru, Indian dancer and ruler who led an army of mercenariesInês de Castro, crowned Queen Consort of Portugal six years after her deathIda B. Wells, activist, suffragist, journalist and co-founder of the NAACPEleanor G. Holm, disqualified from the 1936 Berlin Olympics for drinking too much champagneThese stories are interspersed with helpful tips for the year, such as the month in which one is most likely to be eaten by a wolf, and the best time to sharpen your sickle. Explore a host of annual events worth travelling for, from the Olney Pancake Race in Wiltshire to the Danish Herring Festival, or who would want to miss Serbia's World Testicle Cooking Championship?As witty and entertaining as it is instructive, Toksvig's Almanac is an essential companion to each day of the year.

Pre-order Sandi Toksvig's new novel FRIENDS OF DOROTHY now - coming in September 2024The long-awaited memoir from one of Britain's best-loved characters - presenter of QI, former host of The Great British Bake Off'Wise and kind... part celebration, part confession... it will make you miss your stop' Observer'A fun-filled, fact-packed, memorable ride' Sunday Times 'Life-affirming and addictive' Sunday ExpressBetween the Stops is a sort of a memoir, my sort. It's about a bus trip really, because it's my view from the Number 12 bus. From a brief history of lady gangsters at Elephant and Castle to anecdotes about boarding school, this is the long-awaited memoir from one of Britain's best-loved characters. Presenter of QI, former host of The Great British Bake Off, writer, broadcaster, activist and comic on stage, screen and radio for nearly forty years: this is an autobiography with a difference - as only Sandi Toksvig can tell it. A funny and moving trip through memories, musings and the many delights on the number 12 route, Between the Stops is also an inspiration to us all to get off our phones, look up and talk to each other because as Sandi says: 'some of the greatest trips lie on our own doorstep'.

11-year-old Slim Hannigan and her family left their home in Ireland to travel to America - in search of a better life. It has been so long and such a journey that Slim Hannigan and the rest of her family can't even imagine what home looks like anymore.

How unbelievably dull my life was. I did everything I was supposed to. I was such a good girl. I lived in the house he chose and cleaned a dead woman’s furniture. I bought hats, who the hell wears a hat? And all the time I wanted to scream because I was so bored.On one dark and stormy night in the upper day room of the Silver Retirement Home, five elderly women are trading stories of their remarkable (or sometimes unremarkable) lives. With the storm floods rising and no rescue team in sight, the ladies are faced with the sudden realisation that in order to survive they are going to have to do what they have done for their entire lives – do it themselves!Silver Lining is a hilarious comedy by Sandi Toksvig. It tells the tale of a group of extraordinary yet forgotten women, who come together one treacherous night to recreate The Great Escape – senior-citizen style.It received its world premiere at the Rose Theatre, Kingston, on 3 February 2017 in a production by English Touring Theatre and Rose Theatre, Kingston.

Because of the potato me and my family left our home and travelled 6,000 miles to find a new life . But things change overnight, and suddenly they find themselves facing hunger and danger like they have never known . Can one brave girl keep her family together no matter what is thrown at them .

No one learns "etiquette" anymore (except by embarrassing trial and error). But manners are more than a dusty tradition: Done right, they make life easier--for everyone That's why Sandi Toksvig highlights decency rather than convention in this entertaining guide, with: Spot-On Advice: "Remember--you don't have to answer the phone, so don't do it if you don't have time to be polite." Fascinating Trivia: "It is very rude to clear the plate of someone who hasn't finished. In fact, the Romans believed doing so would bring about the diner's sudden death." And Her Characteristic Wit: "Focusing on the people you share a meal with is both a pleasure and a necessity. Get to know your family members; you might even like them." Be the most decently behaved person in the room, and the most interesting: Master The Tricky Art of Co-Existing

My brother stood up so quickly he almost knocked Mama over. "Why aren't you doing something? Do you know what the British are calling us? Hitler's canary I've heard it on the radio, on the BBC. They say he has us in a cage and we just sit and sing any tune he wants." I knew I should be afraid, but I didn't know yet what of: the Germans? The British? The French? We were theater people. We didn't get involved in these things. It had nothing to do with us. Bamse is used to drama--his mother is a famous actress and his best friend, Anton, is one of the most daring boys in all of Denmark. Should he follow his father's advice and not stir up trouble--or follow his daring brother into the Resistance and take part in the most demanding role of his life? Note: The character's name means "Teddy" in Danish and is pronounced "Bum Sir."]

One minute you are taking your child to school, the next they're turning into a young adult. It may seem like only months since you were first filling your child's lunch box, but the school career moves with such momentum that it isn't long before they are facing the challenges of further education, job hunting and living independently. This new book will help you to encourage self-reliance in your nearly grown children and prepare them for independence in the real world.It also shows how you can prepare for a time when your child's excitement at the prospect of leaving school, going to university or just living on their own leaves you feeling passed over and obsessed by detail they see as unimportant. How do you start to think about what to do with the rest of your life - picking up on ambitions, both personal and professional, and prioritising your own friends and interests?And how do you handle the situation when, as is increasingly common, children later decide to return home to live? This book addresses current issues such as boomerang kids, sofa syndrome and how to motivate, money management for a generation disinclined to save, the hotel of Mum and Dad, and much more.Later! is an empathetic guide to making sense of life at a time when all the ground rules need to be reconsidered, if not renegotiated. Packed with strategies, exercises and question-and-answer sections, Later! is user-friendly and entirely practical. It considers the hopes and plans of parents and children alike and, in the process, demonstrates how to 'move on' while sustaining a supportive, happy relationship.

How do you get rid of unwanted guests? What do you do if there's a racket in the quiet carriage? How should you eat peas, and behave in queues? How to behave, like how to punctuate, is an aspect of life that many are no longer taught - and getting it wrong is the stuff of comedy at best and humiliation at worst. Thankfully, Sandi Toksvig has come to the rescue with her entertaining guide to modern manners,with tips on what to do whether you're talking to a bore, or forgot their name in the first place. (Just call them 'darling'.) The award-winning Radio 4 broadcaster and writer offers guidance on the social pitfalls of every phase of life, from christenings to condolence letters. With characteristic wit and perceptiveness, and revealing the trickiest of her encounters along the way, she highlights decency rather than convention and provides an essential guide to twenty-first century behaviour. Now this down-to-earth, hilarious guide is available in perfect pocket-sized paperback size.