Outrageous Fortune: Growing Up at Leeds Castle - Couverture rigide

Russell, Anthony

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 1250006015 ISBN 13 : 9781250006011

Editeur : St Martins Pr, 2013

Synopsis

Leeds Castle, once home to kings and queens, was a place of spectacular opulence and luxury, and it was here that Anthony Russell spent his childhood; a childhood beyond the reaches of ordinary imagination. Away from the extravagance, the embrace of his nanny and the strong but distant love of his mother, Anthony's childhood was often lonely and fraught with the pressures of upholding the 'Castle Way', unwritten rules that were, perhaps, not the best preparation for life outside the castle walls. The polite reserve of his sheltered existence was inevitably ruptured by the arrival of the 1960s, with its new music, mores, and social freedoms; things both alluring and alarming to a young man who had spent his youth in splendid isolation. Uniquely entertaining, Outrageous Fortune is an extraordinary memoir, an accessible and personable account of how the 'other half ' lives, and a real-life Downton Abbey. As he documents his life at Leeds Castle, Anthony Russell gives us a vivid and intimate glimpse into a fascinating world gone by.

A propos du livre

Revue de presse

It takes time for a book to be accepted as a classic, but I am sure Anthony Russell's will be. The book might have been entitled, with a nod to Russell's grandmother s friend Noël Coward, 'Poor Little Rich Boy' for who else has had the experience of being brought up in unimaginable luxury while not receiving lavish attention? And who, if he had that experience, would be capable of writing about it a little masterpiece like Outrageous Fortune? I see this as the debut of a very significant writer. --Bevis Hillier

[A] memoir which engages and delights in equal measure. --Victoria Wallace

A few years ago, while filming the DVD for my Castles in the Air concert at Leeds Castle, I decided to stay at the castle overnight and invited my family and friends to join me for dinner in the huge dining room there. I wanted us to get a glimpse of a way of life from a bygone era. How I wish I had read Outrageous Fortune before that night! This book is full of humorous and interesting personalities and anecdotes that made the castle and its past come alive! Ducks being launched down a ramp and into the lake. Parrots being flown into England in first class. Even a virgin birth! Anthony not only brings the castle's past to life, but also shows the humanity of aristocracy. --Sir Cliff Richard

The book provides a fascinating insight into the upper-class social scene of the era, and provides an opportunity to hear from someone at the heart of the castle's remarkable history. --Kent on Sunday

A well-observed memoir... Most memorable is his depiction of the court members at Christmas. --The New York Times

Biographie de l'auteur

ANTHONY RUSSELL was educated at Stowe School, Bucks. For more than five hundred years his family has served kings and queens of England as ministers, privy counsellors, generals, and a Prime Minister. He was raised at Leeds Castle, Kent, where his childhood was revolved around the feudal world of Lady Baillie, his very rich and aristocratic grandmother. A writer, musician and composer, he currently divides his time between Los Angeles, California, and France.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: St Martins Pr
• Date d'édition: 2013
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1250006015
• ISBN 13: 9781250006011
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 306
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible