Sunday Telegraph book deal that compromised a murder trial

Sebastian Faulks gave his former Sunday Telegraph boss, John Thompson, a warm send-off in his tribute yesterday, "A nurturing force in the final days of Fleet Street".It reinforced the picture drawn of Thompson in the more formal Daily Telegraph obituary following Thompson's death, aged 93, on 24 November.Thompson, who edited the Sunday Telegraph for 10 years from 1976, was mild of manner and ran a kindly regime but had "an inner steel", wrote Faulks. This characteristic was necessary, as both Faulks and the obituary pointed out, because of the difficulties he faced in producing a paper in Fleet Street's final days of continual union disputes.Faulks pointed out that it was difficult to know Thompson well because "he was a diffident man who did not invite intimacy." It reminded me of a description of him by Henry Porter as "retiring to the point of joining a trappist order." But Faulks and the Telegraph's obituarist overlooked Thompson's most extraordinary, and disastrous, decision as an editor. In 1978, the Sunday Telegraph negotiated the serialisation of an autobiography by a former Liberal MP, Peter Bessell, who was a chief prosecution witness in the trial of Jeremy Thorpe, his party's leader. Thorpe was accused of conspiring to murder a male model, Norman Scott, who was said to have blackmailed him over their alleged gay relationship.Two months after Thorpe was charged, Thompson agreed a contract with Bessell which stated that he would receive £50,000 for extracts... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Self-published title shortlisted for business book prize

A self-published title has been included in the shortlist for the CMI Management Book of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Books Drop 11% at Hastings

Revenue at Hastings Entertainment fell 6.7% in the third quarter ended October 31, 2013, to $94.7 million, but its net loss was trimmed to $6.2 million from $8.0 million in last year’s third quarter. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Michelle Knight writing book on being held captive by Ariel Castro

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[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-11-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Six-figure deal for 900-page first novel

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[ The Guardian | 2013-11-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Observer's books of the year

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[ The Guardian | 2013-11-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Guardian | 2013-11-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Prolific TV creator Shonda Rhimes will write 'part memoir, part inspiration' book (+video)

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[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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James McBride, George Packer are National Book Awards winners

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[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How the National Book Awards Got it Right

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Will US Publishers Risk Dealing with a Russian Ebook Service?

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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National Book Awards go to James McBride, George Packer

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[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Who will win at the National Book Awards?

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[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ BBC News | 2013-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bewitching first novel by ex-accountant casts £1m spell on world of books

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[ The Guardian | 2013-11-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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