Whole Story Audio Books

Price: £24.99

A uniquely British book, revealing something of the nature of Britain; and how our history, culture and lives are deeply intertwined with the joys and demons of drink. This booze-addled, pork-scratching-fuelled trip makes a hilarious and uniquely British travelogue.

Synopsis

According to G K Chesterton, the act of getting to and from a pub is central to an understanding of British life and landscape. With around 60,000 to choose from, he may have had a point. So bon viveur, pub singer and author Ian Marchant set off with photographer Perry Venus on a gruelling month long British pub crawl, to go to and from a lot of pubs in order to test Chesterton's hypothesis.

Ian and Perry set off from the Turk's Head on the Isles of Scilly, the most south-westerly pub in Britain and by way of Plymouth, Glastonbury, Winchester, Kensal Green, Wales, Walsall, Burton, Skegness, Lancaster, Gretna Green, Glasgow, Jura and Duff Gardens, ended up in the most north-easterly place you can go for a drink, the Baa Bar at RAF Saxa Vord, on Unst, in the Shetlands, where they breached national security.

Along the way they unearth the origins of gin and tonic, find out how pork-scratchings are made and how to make moonshine at an illegal still in the Welsh hills.

About The Author

Ian Marchant has written two novels, In Southern Waters and The Battle for Dole Acre. He has run a second-hand bookshop, and is a comedian, singer, song-writer and performer. Parallel Lines was his first work of non-fiction.

Reviews and Press Quotes

Lynne Truss

“This book is funny, clever, informative and as sound as a pound... buy this man a pint, somebody.”

Sunday Times

“Marchant's comic view of boozing is a delight.”

The Daily Mirror

“The greatest pub crawl ever recorded... Full of wonderful anecdotes, extraordinary characters and more absurd facts than any pub quiz would throw up.”

The Daily Telegraph

“Marchant is just the kind of bloke you'd like to meet down the pub: a great talker, a conversationalist whenever things dull over.”

The Guardian

“I didn't want it to end... It's a big, fat affirmation of life, and Lord knows, we can all do with one of them from time to time.”

The Sunday Times

“Marchant's comic view of boozing is a delight.”

Times

“Marvellous... hugely entertaining.”

Customer Reviews

Fritz, Chorleywood

5 out of 5

“The Longest Crawl is a fantastic piece of work and I can highly recommend it in audio form since Ian Marchant is such a colourful story teller.

For several nights in a row my wife and I would sit together in front of the CD player, like I imagine people used to gather around a radio to listen to serials back in the 30s.

I really like the audio version because this book is something to be shared with friends, like a good night out.”

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