Stuart Maconie

'He is as funny as Bryson and as wise as Orwell' Observer It was the spirit of our finest hour, the backbone of our post-war greatness, and it promoted some of the boldest and most brilliant schemes this isle has ever produced: it was the Welfare State, and it made you and I. But now it's under threat, and we need to save it. In this timely and provocative book, Stuart Maconie tells Britain’s Welfare State story through his own history of growing up as a northern working class boy. What was so bad about properly funded hospitals, decent working conditions and affordable houses? And what was so wrong about student grants, free eye tests and council houses? And where did it all go so wrong? Stuart looks toward Britain’s future, making an emotional case for believing in more than profit and loss; and championing a just, fairer society.

A Story of Britain and How to Save it

The Nanny State Made Me

The Story of Modern Britain in 50 Records

The People's Songs

A northerner in exile, stateless and confused, hearing rumors of Harvey Nichols in Leeds and Maseratis in Wilmslow, the author goes in search of The North. Delving into his own past, it is a riotously funny journey in search of where the cliches end and the truth begins. He travels from Wigan Pier to Blackpool Tower, the Bigg Market in Newcastle to the daffodil-laden Lake District in search of his own Northern Soul, encountering along the way an exotic cast of characters while he battles with his own identity.

In Search of the North

Pies and Prejudice

Cider with Roadies is the true story of a boy's obsessive relationship with pop. A life lived through music from Stuart's audience with the Beatles (aged 3); his confessions as a pubescent prog rocker; a youthful gymnastic dalliance with northern soul; the radical effects of punk on his politics, homework and trouser dimensions; playing in crap bands and failing to impress girls; writing for the NME by accident; living the sex, drugs (chiefly lager in a plastic glass) and rock and roll lifestyle; discovering the tawdry truth behind the glamour and knowing when to ditch it all for what really matters. From Stuart's four minutes in a leisure centre with MC Hammer to four days in a small van with Napalm Death it's a life-affirming journey through the land where ordinary life and pop come together to make music.

Cider with Roadies

Blur 3862 Days

A Northerner in exile, Stuart Maconie goes on a journey in search of the North, attempting to discover where the clichés end and the truth begins. He travels from Wigan Pier to Blackpool Tower and Newcastle's Bigg Market to the Lake District to find his own Northern Soul, encountering along the way an exotic cast of chippy Scousers, pie-eating woollybacks, topless Geordies, mad-for-it Mancs, Yorkshire nationalists and brothers in southern exile. The bestselling Pies and Prejudice is a hugely enjoyable journey around the north of England.

In search of the North

Is Middle England about tradition and decency or closed minds and bigotry? Is it maypoles and evensong, or flooded market towns and binge drinkers in the park? Stands the church clock still at ten to three, and is there honey still for tea? And is Slough really as bad as Ricky Gervais and John Betjeman make out?

Adventures on the High Teas

Three and half weeks. Three hundred miles. I saw roaring arterial highway and silent lanes, candlelit cathedrals and angry men in bad pubs. The Britain of 1936 was a land of beef paste sandwiches and drill halls. Now we are nation of vaping and nail salons, pulled pork and salted caramel. In the autumn of 1936, some 200 men from the Tyneside town of Jarrow marched 300 miles to London in protest against the destruction of their towns and industries. Precisely 80 years on, Stuart Maconie, walks from north to south retracing the route of the emblematic Jarrow Crusade. Traveling down the country's spine, Maconie moves through a land that is, in some ways, very much the same as the England of the 30s with its political turbulence, austerity, north/south divide, food banks and of course, football mania. Yet in other ways, it is completely unrecognizable. Maconie visits the great cities as well as the sleepy hamlets, quiet lanes and roaring motorways. He meets those with stories to tell and whose voices build a funny, complex and entertaining tale of Britain, then and now.

A Journey Through Britain Then and Now

Long Road from Jarrow

The Sunday Times Bestseller 'A tribute and a rallying call' - Guardian Three and half weeks. Three hundred miles. I saw roaring arterial highway and silent lanes, candlelit cathedrals and angry men in bad pubs. The Britain of 1936 was a land of beef paste sandwiches and drill halls. Now we are nation of vaping and nail salons, pulled pork and salted caramel. In the autumn of 1936, some 200 men from the Tyneside town of Jarrow marched 300 miles to London in protest against the destruction of their towns and industries. Precisely 80 years on, Stuart Maconie, walks from north to south retracing the route of the emblematic Jarrow Crusade. Travelling down the country’s spine, Maconie moves through a land that is, in some ways, very much the same as the England of the 30s with its political turbulence, austerity, north/south divide, food banks and of course, football mania. Yet in other ways, it is completely unrecognisable. Maconie visits the great cities as well as the sleepy hamlets, quiet lanes and roaring motorways. He meets those with stories to tell and whose voices build a funny, complex and entertaining tale of Britain, then and now.

A journey through Britain then and now

In Hope and Glory Stuart Maconie goes in search of the days that shaped the Britain we live in today. Taking one event from each decade of the 20th century, he visits the places where history happened and still echoes down the years. Stuart goes to Orgreave and Windsor, Wembley and Wootton Bassett, assembling a unique cast of Britons from Sir Edmund Hillary to Sid Vicious along the way. It’s quite a trip, full of sex and violence and the occasional scone and jigsaw. From pop stars to politicians, Suffragettes to punks, this is a journey around Britain in search of who we are.

A People’s History of Modern Britain

Hope and Glory

"Factory, mine and mill. Industry, toil and grime. Its manufacturing roots mean we still see the North of England as a hard working place. But, more than possibly anywhere else, the North has always known how to get dressed up, take itself out on the town and have a good time. After all, working and playing hard is its specialty, and Stuart Maconie is in search of what, exactly, this entails what it tells us about the North today. Following tip offs and rumour, Stuart takes trip to forgotten corners and locals' haunts. From the tapas bars of Halifax to the caravan parks of Berwick Upon Tweed, from a Westhoughton bowling green to Manchester's curry mile, via dog tracks and art galleries, dance floors and high fells, Stuart compares the new and old North, with some surprising results. The Pie at Night could be seen as a companion to the bestselling Pies and Prejudice, but it is not a sequel. After all, this is a new decade and the North is changing faster than ever. This is a revealing and digressive journey and a State of the North address, delivered from barstool, terrace, dress circle and hillside."--Publisher's description.

Nights Out in the North

The Pie at Night

In this hilarious and heart-warming collection of essays, the bestselling author reflects on a life spent exploring the British countryside on foot. From the splendor of the Pennines and the Lake District to the drama of the Dorset coast; from the canals of the Midlands to wildest Scotland, this book is an attempt to explain a passion for walking and the delights it can bring. Culled from Stuart Maconie’s monthly column in Country Walking, it’s full of the beautiful places, magical moments and wonderful characters he has encountered on his travels. It discusses such intrepid adventures as taking on the famous “Wainwright” fells of the Lake District, walking Hadrian’s Wall with colleague Mark Radcliffe, and why the most important things to carry in a rucksack are a transistor radio and a small bottle of red wine. Praise for Stuart Maconie “Maconie makes a jovial, self-deprecating narrator. Sharp and funny.” —The Guardian “He is as funny as Bryson and as wise as Orwell.” —The Observer “Stuart Maconie is the best thing to come out of Wigan since the A58 to Bolton.” —Peter Kay “An heir to Alan Bennett . . . stirring and rather wonderful.” —The Sunday Times

How Country Walking Can Change Your Life

Never Mind the Quantocks

Just where and what is “Middle England?” Is Slough really as bad as Ricky Gervais makes out? From Shakespeare to Midsomer Murders, Stuart Maconie goes in search of the truth, with plenty of stop-offs for tea and pastries.

In Search of Middle England

J.b. Priestley

English Journey

The official story of the most significant British band of the 90s. Now updated with fresh interviews including insights into lead singer Damon's new act, Gorillaz, that is sweeping awards on both sides of the Atlantic. This is the story of bitter rows with record companies, farcical feuds with Oasis, fist fights with each other, struggles with the bottle, foundering romances and a love-hate relationship with America. Drawing on the hours of exclusive interviews he has done with the band since their early days, Stuart Maconie offers a gripping insight into this intense, hedonistic quartet. Updated with fresh interviews including insights into Damon's award-winning new act Gorillaz. The official story of Blur, told through exclusive interviews.

The Official History

Blur: 3862 Days

Factory, mine and mill. Industry, toil and grime. Its manufacturing roots mean we still see the North of England as a hardworking place. But, more than possibly anywhere else, the North has always known how to get dressed up, take itself out on the town and have a good time. After all, working and playing hard is its specialty, and Stuart Maconie is in search of what, exactly, this entails what it tells us about the North today. Following tip offs and rumour, Stuart takes trip to forgotten corners and locals’ haunts. From the tapas bars of Halifax to the caravan parks of Berwick Upon Tweed, from a Westhoughton bowling green to Manchester’s curry mile, via dog tracks and art galleries, dance floors and high fells, Stuart compares the new and old North, with some surprising results. The Pie at Night could be seen as a companion to the bestselling Pies and Prejudice, but it is not a sequel. After all, this is a new decade and the North is changing faster than ever. This is a revealing and digressive journey and a State of the North address, delivered from barstool, terrace, dress circle and hillside.

In Search of the North at Play

The Pie At Night

Cider With Roadies

Factory, mine, and mill. Industry, toil, and grime. Its manufacturing roots mean we still see the North of England as a hardworking place. But, more than possibly anywhere else, the North has always known how to get dressed up, take itself out on the town, and have a good time. After all, working and playing hard is its specialty, and Stuart Maconie is in search of what, exactly, this entails what it tells us about the North today. Following tip offs and rumor, Stuart takes trip to forgotten corners and locals' haunts. From the tapas bars of Halifax to the caravan parks of Berwick Upon Tweed, from a Westhoughton bowling green to Manchester's curry mile, via dog tracks and art galleries, dance floors, and high fells, Stuart compares the new and old North, with some surprising results. The Pie at Night could be seen as a companion to the bestselling Pies and Prejudice, but it is not a sequel. After all, this is a new decade and the North is changing faster than ever. This is a revealing and digressive journey and a State of the North address, delivered from barstool, terrace, dress circle, and hillside.

Stuart Maconie

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