Enjoy Life

Christmas books - gift ideas

Christmas book gift ideas, selected by Simon Evans

BOOK OF THE MONTH 

Dip My Brain In Joy: A Life with Neil Innes, by Yvonne Innes

The shark-infested waters of show business are no place for good people; too often they get chewed up, spat out and discarded by the predators who circle there.

Neil Innes was one of the good people; a brilliant musician, song-writer, comedian, actor and raconteur, he too often fell prey to the nasties of his chosen business, people he had once thought of as close friends.

What kept Neil going through the hard times – and there were quite a few of those, as this wonderful biography by his widow makes clear – was his zest for life, ability to see the good in other people, and the sheer joy he took in creating and performing.

Yvonne was married to Neil for more than 50 years, and was with him the night he died, in 2019. She shared the highs – success with the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, touring and filming with Monty Python (he lays a strong claim to being the Seventh Python), and co-creating the brilliant Beatles parody group, The Rutles – and subsequent disappointments.

Sadly most of the latter revolve around Eric Idle, with whom he had forged a strong creative and personal relationship as far back as the late Sixties, when both had appeared in the TV series Do Not Adjust Your Set. Neil worked closely with Idle on the post-Python TV series Rutland Weekend Television, from which The Rutles idea first came, and when The Rutles TV film All You Need Is Cash was commissioned Neil contributed songs that managed to sound like The Beatles without becoming outright parodies.

He also contributed songs to the Monty Python film Holy Grail, some of which would later turn up in Eric Idle’s musical Spamalot.

In later years Neil would have expected to have made a reasonable income from both of these money-spinners. That he didn’t is, it seems, in part down to Idle. (Neil’s great friend, the ex-Beatle George Harrison said of the warring Rutles, “you’re supposed to be sending us up not emulating us.”)

The final humiliation came when Neil was snubbed by the Pythons for their series of shows at the O2 in 2014. He was utterly devastated, Yvonne says, but responded in the only way he knew, carrying on touring, writing and recording. Which he was doing right up to his death.

Neil left £10,000 in his Will, astonishing given the rich legacy he left behind, but such is show business. His real legacy is a catalogue of often bittersweet, timeless songs and joyous memories of those who ever had the good fortune to see him perform live or meet him in person. He was, as his former Bonzos partner Viv Stanshall once said, a rare man.

Published by Nine Eight Books Price £22 Pages 254 ISBN 9781785121692

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There and Back (W&N, £30), is the fourth volume of Michael Palin’s diaries, covering the years 1999 to 2009, but while the previous three volumes all had discernible over-arching themes this collection is rather more indistinct, this being a period in the ex-Python’s career when he felt free to explore new avenues. The diaries are as wonderful as ever, ranging over the four travel documentaries he presented during this period, as well as family gatherings, theatre visits, Python-related encounters and the occasional celebrity gathering where Michael usually feels less than comfortable (he describes a visit to David Frost’s summer party as akin to a visit to Madame Tussaud’s)…

The Blue Hour (Doubleday, £22) is the latest thriller from Paula Hawkins, whose first book, The Girl On The Train, was an instant best-seller. This may well be her best yet, a contemplation on loneliness, betrayal and artistic expression that hooks the reader with the mystery at its core, starting with a sculpture that may or may not contain human bone…

Received wisdom is that Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles peak was during the Seventies, when he produced the Band On The Run album, but in Off the Ground (Reaktion, £20), JR Moores makes a compelling case for the Nineties as Macca’s most artistically creative decade, a period in which he not only explored classical, dance and folk but also briefly reactivated The Beatles for The Anthology project and produced some of his most beguiling LPs…

Set between The Spy Who Came In From The Cold and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, Karla’s Choice, by Nick Harkaway (Viking, £22) is the missing link in the late John Le Carre’s Smiley series of novels, something of a holy grail for fans of the great spy master. Written by Le Carre’s son it is true to the spirit of the original run of novels, rich in atmosphere and possessing much of the same relaxed, slow-burning narrative style. It’s a joy to once more be acquainted with Esterhase, Haydon, Guillam and the rest and to have Smiley once more on the trail of an apparently elusive quarry…

Constantly engrossing and full of shocks and surprises, The Neighbour’s Secret, by Sharon Bolton (Orion, £22) is another great read from this masterful thriller writer, and Killing Time (Constable, £20) is the latest in the Cotswolds-set Agatha Raisin novels, this time finding the intrepid sleuth working on a series of burglaries that take a violent turn, with devastating results for Agatha…

The late Christine McVie was known to her Fleetwood Mac bandmates as ‘mother’, and with good reason, as not only was she the glue that kept this often fractious group together but she was also its creative engine room, especially during the Rumours glory years. Songbird (John Blake, £22) is an excellent, fully-rounded biography of this sometimes troubled musician, written by her friend, acclaimed rock writer Lesley Ann Jones…

The latest in Bloomsbury’s ‘33 and a third’ series, which provide in-depth analysis of classic albums, focuses on Kate Bush’s ground-breaking Hounds of Love album, from 1985 (Bloomsbury Academic, £9.99). Author Leah Kardos provides historical context, track-by-track musical insights and a consideration of the album’s enduring influence…

There are plenty of memories to be found in Tim Worthington’s The Golden Age of Children’s TV (Black and White publishing, £22), an entertaining look back at the programmes that kept youngsters entertained in that period between getting home from school and sitting down to beans on toast in front of the news. With a particular focus on the period from the Sixties to the Eighties it’s great fun…

With the men missing in action, the festive season promises to be an anxious time at Fenthorpe for Pearl, Thea and Jenny in Christmas for the Bomber Girls (Canelo, £9.99), the latest in Vicki Beeby’s Bomber Command Girls series, and the beloved Woolworths Erith store faces closure in A Christmas Wish At Woolworths (Pan, £8.99), the 1953-set next instalment in Elaine Everest’s warmly nostalgic series…

Alfred Hitchcock All the Films, by Bernard Benoliel, Gilles Esposito, Murielle Joudet and Jean-Francois Rauger (Black Dog and Leventhal, £50), draws upon years of research to tell behind-the-scenes stories of how the films of this cinematic master were conceived and produced. Spanning more than six decades, and illustrated by hundreds of vivid photographs, the book details the many creative processes involved in the making of the movies, including details of the direction of some of cinema’s most memorable scenes. Hitchcock's classic TV series is also covered, along with his short films…

Celebrating All Creatures Great and Small (Michael O’Mara Books, £25) is the official companion to the heart-warming revival of the classic series. Featuring 200 photographs, an in-depth look at the characters and locations, the book also includes a foreword by Rose Page, the daughter of James Herriot…

Terry Deary, author of the popular Horrible Histories series of children’s books, brings his characteristic wit and humour to an adult readership with A History of Britain in Ten Enemies (Bantam, £20), an entertaining look back at the key moments in British history, from the Romans to the threat of German invasion during the Second World War

A Few Words In Defence of our Country, by Robert Hilburn (Constable, £25), is the definitive biography of the great singer-songwriter Randy Newman, and Camp!, by Paul Baker (Footnote Press, £10.99) is a wide-ranging study of the important role camp has play

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