Product Description

Enough! For far too long, Lancashire has languished under the grimy pall of smoke and muck and mills and mines, enveloped in outdated condescensions, smothered by the easy dismissals that put down the north of England as just 'up there' and 'grim'. Thank you very much George Orwell, Monty Python and every London cabbie. But Lancashire is not up there. Lancs is actually situated in the centre of the British Isles. And far from being grim, it is a place of wit and wonder, romance and surprise, a land of exotic influence whose people have always looked outward to sophistications and influences beyond frontiers and seas. Indeed, French writer Honore de Balzac recognised these affinities and yearnings in the Lancashire people when he had one of his characters declare that 'Lancashire is the county where women die of love.' Mock if you like, but then think about it: where is the magnificent thoroughfare that inspired the boulevards of Paris? Where did they go to film "Brief Encounter", the most romantic British film ever made? Where did the young Shakespeare dream of and draw on for his inspired imaginings? Join Charles Nevin, "Fleet Street" journalist and humorist, as he returns to his roots and reveals all this and more. Discover the true Camelot and the beauty that is rugby league. See where Lancastrians go to die, but first visit Lost Lancashire and its great twin cities, Manchester and Liverpool. Mull over why Britain's greatest comics, from Laurel to Coogan, Formby to Vegas, Dodd to Kay, Fields to Wood, Morecambe and Dawson, have all come from Lancs. Mere coincidence? Give over, and read on ...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #78756 in Books
• Published on: 2006-04-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

The Independent, March 31, 2006
Everyone with the slightest glimmerings of a sense of humour will adore this book. Christopher Hirst

Independent on Sunday, April 16, 2006
'Absolutely wonderful'

Daily Mail, May 13, 2006
'Delightfully jaunty and amusing.' Carla McKay

Customer Reviews

Lancashire where women die of love
An affectionate portrait of a marvellouscounty. Lots of interesting facts which even I(a self confessed lancastriaphile) did not know.

A must for all exiled northerners-one read and they will be beating a path back up the M6 to a county which the author clearly loves

Wit, warmth & wonder
Reading Charles Nevin's enchanting Lancashire, Where Women Die of Love is like spending several hours in endlessly diverting and delightful company. It is a book with as rare personality about it, as if the author were at your elbow guiding you this way and that through Lancashire turbulent past and present. Nevin has an unerring eye for the odd, the curious and the downright bizarre, but his sketches of people and places are suffused with wamth and humour. It is not too much to say that Lancashire,Where Women Die of Love is every bit as idiosyncratic as the country he so brilliantly describes

Little-know author moves centrestage
In an age of tedious conformity where it is, to a large extent, assumed that what we hold dear is not only best but not open to serious challenge, how invigorating it is to come across something refreshingly novel ( pun intended ) and articulate.
Like everyone else, I do tend to stick by my old personal favourites - Stephen King, Dickens, Rankin etc - so discovering someone new does still represent a joyous, if infrequent, event.
Nevin is well-versed in the art of the written word having spent his adult life churning out witty prose for a variety of publications ( Independent on Sunday, Guardian etc )...that's to say he knows his way around a dictionary.
He's damned good, too.
This book positvely oozes nostalgia as it lilts along like a classic Kinks single from the mid-sixties.....it's warm, affectionate, witty, stylish and comforting in a warm blanket sort of a way.
In short, it is one of those little gems which falls into the " best-kept secret " category.
I recommend this book without a hint of reservation.