Product Description

David Dickinson is a household name, the king of the catchphrase, undisputed darling of daytime TV and a rising star. He's a respected antiques expert and exudes a taste for the finer things in life. But the road to his success has not been as smooth as his patter and he's learnt a lot at the school of hard knocks. In his autobiography David tells how he grew up in a working class district of Manchester, and reveals how he discovered at age 12 that he was adopted. David also describes his early foray into wheeling and dealing in the garment industry in Manchester, as well as his stint in Manchester's notorious prison, Strangeways. David was first introduced to showbiz when he travelled the world as the manager of his international cabaret star wife, Lorne. In his book David describes some of the remarkable people they met on their travels, and discloses the dark and dangerous side of showbiz he had no idea existed. Finally, after building himself a reputation as an antiques dealer to the rich and famous with an eye for treasures, a chance meeting with a TV exec at a barbecue began David's journey to primetime TV on "Bargain Hunt", and in his autobiography David shares some of his experiences of sudden celebrity.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #142788 in Books
• Published on: 2004-04-08
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Customer Reviews

Just as entertaining as the man himself
I feel ashamed that I presumed the main content of David's book would focus around Bargain Hunt and his sudden rise to TV fame. How wrong could I be? In fact, it's only the last three chapters of this wonderful autobiography that mention Bargain Hunt at all.

The book is sometimes witty, charming and full of charisma like David's personality we see on the screen... but at other times there are tears, drama, and a string of compelling events that have shaped him throughout his amazing life. From his adventures around the world in antiques, showbiz and high society through to disovering his adoption and fond memories of a working-class childhood, this book was an absolute pleasure from start to finish. I would highly recommend it.

Thoroughly enjoyable
If you think that this autobiography is going to be all about Bargain Hunt you are very wrong. In fact, Bargain Hunt is only mentioned in the last couple of chapters. I am a big fan of David Dickinson and love Bargain Hunt so was intrigued to read about his life so far. And what a life it has been - this man has led a very full and colourful life and tells his tales in a very warm and genuine way. He deals with his adoption in a very pragmatic way and I am full of admiration for him. I would urge those of you who may not appreciate his particular style of presenting or his personality to read this book so that you too can understand why 'The Duke' deserves all of his recent success.

David Dickinson -the Duke dazzles in his autobiography.
I really enjoyed 'David Dickinson,The Duke, What a Bobby Dazzler!'I found it entertaining and enthralling and David Dickinson has certainly lead an interesting life and he's lived life to the full. At first on picking up his autobiography I assumed I was going to be reading a brash life story on his life both before and after his Bargain Hunt fame. But he handles beautifully the story of his adoption and how he came to terms with this and his reconcilation with his blood family too. I also enjoyed and was thorougly entertained by his tales of his wife's career as an entertainer and singer on the international cabaret circuit. I now watch Bargain Hunt fully appreciative of David Dickinson's talents and I realise there is certainly something special about this particular Bobby Dazzler! This is one of the best celebrity autobiographies in such a long time. Here's to the Duke!