The Great British Dream Factory

Britain's empire has gone. We no longer matter as we once did. And yet there is still one area in which we can legitimately claim superpower status- our popular culture. It is extraordinary to think that one British writer, J. K. Rowling, has sold more than 400 million books; that Doctor Whois watched in almost every developed country in the world; that James Bond has been the central character in the longest-running film series in history; that The Lord of the Ringsis...
More Description

Britain's empire has gone. We no longer matter as we once did. And yet there is still one area in which we can legitimately claim superpower status- our popular culture. It is extraordinary to think that one British writer, J. K. Rowling, has sold more than 400 million books; that Doctor Whois watched in almost every developed country in the world; that James Bond has been the central character in the longest-running film series in history; that The Lord of the Ringsis the second best-selling novel ever written (behind only A Tale of Two Cities); that the Beatles are still the best-selling musical group of all time; and that only Shakespeare and the Bible have sold more books than Agatha Christie. To put it simply, no country on earth, relative to its size, has contributed more to the modern imagination. This is a book about the success and the meaning of Britain's modern popular culture, from Bond and the Beatles to Catherine Cookson and Coronation Street, from Harry Potter, heavy metal and Kate Bush to Damien Hirst, Downton Abbeyand Grand Theft Auto. Dominic Sandbrook's superbly rich, entertaining and thought-provoking book makes it clear that The Great British Dream Factory is a very strange and wonderful place indeed. Praise forState of Emergency- The Way We Were, Britain, 1970-1974'Hugely entertaining, always compelling, often hilarious.' Simon Sebag Montefiore'Magisterial . . . for me a Proustian experience.' London Review of Books'Thrilling panoramic . . . he vividly re-creates the texture of everyday life in a thousand telling details.' Francis Wheen'Superb . . . Anyone who was there should read it- and so should anyone who was not.' Literary ReviewSeasons in the Sun- The Battle for Britain, 1974-89'Glorious, sometimes hilarious . . . full of delights.' Financial Times'Entertaining, engaging, masterful, a joy . . . as a storyteller, Sandbrook is superb.' Sunday Telegraph'Sandbrook has rummaged deep into the cultural life of the era to remind us how rich it was, from Bowie to Dennis Potter, Martin Amis to William Golding. The Times'While Sandbrook punctures some of our favourite myths . . . what makes this book such a pleasure is the sheer, unashamed nostalgia it evokes.' Daily Telegraph