Richard T. Kelly – författare

A spectre is haunting world cinema - the spectre of a Danish 'new wave' led by mercurial director Lars Von Trier. In 1995, when Von Trier and three comrades issued a 10-point 'Vow of Chastity' for the making of simpler, more truthful movies, cynics in the film business refused to take it seriously. Five years on, the international success of the raw, uncompromising 'Dogme95' films - Festen, The Idiots, Mifune, The King is Alive - has fired a volley of shots across the bows of a staid and bloated industry. Richard Kelly's investigation of the Dogme95 movement is a piece of 'gonzo journalism' in which Kelly sallies forth in search of the Dogme brothers and their accomplices, seeking to hammer out the truth from the lies in this austere and anarchic piece of cinematic mischief.

An unusually brilliant generation of film-makers emerged from British television drama in the 1960-70s - none more formidable than Alan Clarke. Yet Clarke enjoyed only a vague renown among the public, even though some of his most incendiary productions - Scum, The Firm, Made in Britain - attracted great controversy. But he was greatly admired by his fellow professionals: 'He became the best of all of us', Stephen Frears observed after Clarke's untimely death in 1990.In his work Clarke explored working-class lives and left-wing themes with unflinching directness and humour. He forged alliances with gifted writers and producers, and his facility for encouraging stunning performaces (from Gary Oldman, Tim Roth, Ray Winstone) made him a hero amongst actors. As a man, Clarke's wit, vigour and generosity were legendary. Yet he retained a privacy which made him enigmatic and imbued his work with much of its austere radiance. This volume is a tribute to Clarke, made out of the thoughts and memories of those who worked with him and knew him best, and includes a celebatory essay by eminent critic, David Thomson.

Three respected Scottish doctors - psychiatrist Steve Hartford, paediatric surgeon Grey Lochran and cosmetic surgeon Robert Forrest - have been close friends since their Edinburgh boyhoods, and now live handsomely in suburban London. But for each, midlife has brought certain discontents, especially for Forrest, a reformed womaniser who broods over his fading looks and the departure of his beautiful younger girlfriend. When Dr Forrest goes missing one summer evening and fails to return, Lochran and Hartford are alarmed by the thought of what might have befallen their friend. The police can find no evidence of foul play, but the two doctors resolve to conduct their own investigation. Soon, however, Lochran and Hartford find themselves bedevilled by bizarre, unnerving events, and the attentions of menacing strangers. Robert Forrest, they come to realise, has remained closer than they could ever have imagined...

In 1996, just before the rise of New Labour, Reverend Gore returns to his native Newcastle charged with planting a new church in one of the city's rougher estates. As he settles into the local community, he becomes involved with Stevie, a local 'security consultant', Lindy, a street-wise single mother, and Martin, an ambitious local Labour MP. But these relationships draw Gore into a moral crisis in this extraordinary debut novel, driven by sharp social observation, darkly desperate humour and an undercurrent of impending violence.

As Home Secretary, David Blaylock oversees the police, border control and the struggle against domestic terrorism. Some say the job is impossible; Blaylock insists he is tough enough.Constantly in his mind is the threat of an attack on Britain's streets. But over the course of one autumn, Blaylock finds that the danger is much more personal . . .

'The knives are out for you, always. But that is the mission you accepted, David. So you have to face the knives, with fortitude. Just as we ask of the great British public...'As Home Secretary in Her Majesty's Government, David Blaylock's daily work involves the control of Britain's borders, the oversight of her police force, and the struggle against domestic terror threats. Some say the job is impossible; Blaylock insists he is tough enough. But around Westminster the gossip-mongers say his fiery temper is a liability.An ex-soldier from a modest background, Blaylock has a life-story that the public respects. Privately, though, he carries pain and remorse - over some grievous things he saw in the army, and his estrangement from an ex-wife and three children for whom he still cares. A solitary figure in a high-pressure world, with no place to call home, Blaylock is never sure whom he can trust or whether his decisions are the right ones. Constantly in his mind is the danger of an attack on Britain's streets. But over the course of one fraught autumn Blaylock finds that danger moving menacingly closer to his own person.

'Action-packed and panoramic.' Observer'Magnificent . . . there won't be a finer piece of Scottish fiction published this year.' Big Issue 'A galloping and impressively wide-ranging read.' Herald (Scotland) 'Gripping.' Times Literary Supplement 1956, the Scottish Highlands: Aaron and Robbie, a schoolmaster's son and a farmer's boy, are fast friends with a shared passion for diving, but very divergent ideas of what they will do with their lives.Meanwhile, Mark and Ally, bright pupils at Edinburgh's grandest private school, are aspiring to make change in the world - one through high finance, the other on the political stage.And Joseph, heir to an Aberdeen trawler-fishing dynasty, is brooding over whether his true ambitions are set higher than his father's succession plan.For each of them, the discovery of oil under the North Sea will make their dreams achievable. But behind the promise and temptation of 'black gold,' there is a price to be paid; and they will discover that oil can overthrow relationships, turn friends into foes, and even put lives in peril.

'So compelling.' Guardian 'I loved it.' Sunday Times 'Magnificent.' Big Issue The discovery of 'black gold' in the North Sea transforms all it touches - including the dreams of five very different individuals. Joe and Ally each aspire to make their fortunes in business. Mark believes oil can cause political change. Aaron wishes to write his name into scientific history. Robbie only hopes for a better chance in life. But every wish incurs a price, and the desires spurred by oil will turn old friends into foes - even putting lives in peril.'Gripping . . . In Kelly's hands, the unfolding of the hunt for oil off the Scottish coast takes on the momentum of a thriller.' Herald (Scotland)

'So compelling.' Guardian 'I loved it.' Sunday Times 'Magnificent.' Big Issue The discovery of 'black gold' in the North Sea transforms all it touches - including the dreams of five very different individuals. Joe and Ally each aspire to make their fortunes in business. Mark believes oil can cause political change. Aaron wishes to write his name into scientific history. Robbie only hopes for a better chance in life. But every wish incurs a price, and the desires spurred by oil will turn old friends into foes - even putting lives in peril.'Gripping . . . In Kelly's hands, the unfolding of the hunt for oil off the Scottish coast takes on the momentum of a thriller.' Herald (Scotland)

A COMPELLING JOINT BIOGRAPHY OF TWO MEN WHOSE FOOTBALL CAREERS SO OFTEN OVERLAPPED. In May 1977, Kevin Keegan, the self-made son of a Yorkshire miner, helped inspire Liverpool to their first European Cup triumph. By then, the Kop hero had already decided to move abroad, joining Hamburg in a lucrative deal. His replacement, the man who would take over his No 7 jersey, was Kenny Dalglish, who joined from his hometown club Celtic. It was a daunting challenge, but the Scot would go on to achieve even greater things for the Anfield team than his distinguished predecessor. From then on, their careers would intertwine for almost 40 years.  In this superb biography, Richard T Kelly looks at how the two men personified different styles as both player and manager. Keegan was all-action on the field, and as a manager became a heart-on-the sleeve inspirational figure. He rose to manage his country and as a 'Geordie messiah' came within a whisker of winning the league title at Newcastle United. Dalglish, meanwhile, pulled the strings on the pitch, and stepped up smoothly to take the reins at Liverpool, winning the Double in his first sesason in charge in 1986. Then came the horrors of Hillsborough, and Dalglish had to move on. At Blackburn, his pragmatic style, backed by Jack Walker's millions, earned him another league title. Both men would subsequently return to the clubs where they were most loved - Liverpool and Newcastle - but found that the game had changed, and they could no longer conjure the same magic. Keegan and Dalglish is a brilliant book that goes beyond the stories of the two men to ask broader questions about the changing nature of the game, andthe challenges that our sporting heroes have to face every day.