Rory Cellan-Jones – författare

'Delightfully insightful and intensely readable [...] There is an energy and drama to Rory’s writing which nonetheless leaves space for us, the reader, to make up our minds' – Stephen FryThe inside story of how tech became personal and pernicious, from the BBC's technology correspondent.We live at a time when billions have access to unbelievably powerful technology. The most extraordinary tool that has been invented in the last century, the smartphone, is forcing radical changes in the way we live and work - and unlike previous technologies it is in the hands of just about everyone. Coupled with the rise of social media, this has ushered in a new era of deeply personal technology, where individuals now have the ability to work, create and communicate on their own terms, rather than wait for permission from giant corporations or governments. At least that is the optimistic view.This book takes readers on an entertaining ride through this turbulent era, as related by an author with a ringside seat to the key moments of the technology revolution. We remember the excitement and wonder that came with the arrival of Apple's iPhone with all the promise it offered. We see tech empires rise and fall as these devices send shockwaves through every industry and leave the corporate titans of the analogue era floundering in their wake. We see that early utopianism about the potential of the mobile social revolution to transform society for the better fade, as criminals, bullies and predators poison the well of social media. And we hear from those at the forefront of the tech revolution, including Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk, Tim Berners-Lee, Martha Lane-Fox and Jimmy Wales, to gain their unique insights and predictions for what may be to come.Always On immerses the reader in the most important story of our times – the dramatic impact of hyperconnectivity, the smartphone and social media on everything from our democracy to our employment and our health. The final section of the book draws on the author’s own personal experience with technology and medicine, considering how COVID-19 made us look again to computing in our battle to confront the greatest challenge of modern times.

Rory Cellan-Jones traces the roots of social networking from the counterculture of the 197s through early bulletin board systems such as California''s The WELL and the first networks on the World Wide Web, finding out how a geeky hobby became a mass phenomenon. He discovers how Facebook became the world''s biggest social network, looks at the sites of the future and asks where the phenomenon is heading. His interviewees include Lee Felsenstein, co-founder of Community Memory, Larry Brilliant, co-founder of The WELL, Andrew Weinrich, founder of SixDegrees.com, Jonathan Abrams, co-founder of Friendster, Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and CEO of Facebook, Chris DeWolfe, co-founder of MySpace, Michael and Xochi Birch, co-founders of Bebo, Wayne Ting, co-founder of Campus Network, David Kirkpatrick, author of The Facebook Effect, Biz Stone, co-founder of Twitter, Dennis Crowley, co-founder of Foursquare and Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn.

''Delightfully insightful and intensely readable [...] There is an energy and drama to Rory''s writing which nonetheless leaves space for us, the reader, to make up our minds'' – Stephen FryThe inside story of how tech became personal and pernicious, from the BBC''s technology correspondent.We live at a time when billions have access to unbelievably powerful technology. The most extraordinary tool that has been invented in the last century, the smartphone, is forcing radical changes in the way we live and work - and unlike previous technologies it is in the hands of just about everyone. Coupled with the rise of social media, this has ushered in a new era of deeply personal technology, where individuals now have the ability to work, create and communicate on their own terms, rather than wait for permission from giant corporations or governments. At least that is the optimistic view.This book takes readers on an entertaining ride through this turbulent era, as related by an author with a ringside seat to the key moments of the technology revolution. We remember the excitement and wonder that came with the arrival of Apple''s iPhone with all the promise it offered. We see tech empires rise and fall as these devices send shockwaves through every industry and leave the corporate titans of the analogue era floundering in their wake. We see that early utopianism about the potential of the mobile social revolution to transform society for the better fade, as criminals, bullies and predators poison the well of social media. And we hear from those at the forefront of the tech revolution, including Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk, Tim Berners-Lee, Martha Lane-Fox and Jimmy Wales, to gain their unique insights and predictions for what may be to come.Always On immerses the reader in the most important story of our times – the dramatic impact of hyperconnectivity, the smartphone and social media on everything from our democracy to our employment and our health. The final section of the book draws on the author''s own personal experience with technology and medicine, considering how COVID-19 made us look again to computing in our battle to confront the greatest challenge of modern times.

''Delightfully insightful and intensely readable [...] There is an energy and drama to Rory''s writing which nonetheless leaves space for us, the reader, to make up our minds'' – Stephen FryThe inside story of how tech became personal and pernicious, from the BBC''s technology correspondent.We live at a time when billions have access to unbelievably powerful technology. The most extraordinary tool that has been invented in the last century, the smartphone, is forcing radical changes in the way we live and work - and unlike previous technologies it is in the hands of just about everyone. Coupled with the rise of social media, this has ushered in a new era of deeply personal technology, where individuals now have the ability to work, create and communicate on their own terms, rather than wait for permission from giant corporations or governments. At least that is the optimistic view.This book takes readers on an entertaining ride through this turbulent era, as related by an author with a ringside seat to the key moments of the technology revolution. We remember the excitement and wonder that came with the arrival of Apple''s iPhone with all the promise it offered. We see tech empires rise and fall as these devices send shockwaves through every industry and leave the corporate titans of the analogue era floundering in their wake. We see that early utopianism about the potential of the mobile social revolution to transform society for the better fade, as criminals, bullies and predators poison the well of social media. And we hear from those at the forefront of the tech revolution, including Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk, Tim Berners-Lee, Martha Lane-Fox and Jimmy Wales, to gain their unique insights and predictions for what may be to come.Always On immerses the reader in the most important story of our times – the dramatic impact of hyperconnectivity, the smartphone and social media on everything from our democracy to our employment and our health. The final section of the book draws on the author''s own personal experience with technology and medicine, considering how COVID-19 made us look again to computing in our battle to confront the greatest challenge of modern times.

‘Fills my heart with so much joy' Niall Harbison, bestselling author of Hope'In a dark time, a daily dose of hope’ Jojo MoyesHow do you welcome someone new into your heart and home? A week before Christmas, newly retired BBC journalist Rory Cellan-Jones receives a special delivery that will change his life.This is the story of rescue dog #SophieFromRomania.In January 2022, the Cellan-Jones-Coyle family said goodbye to their beloved elderly Collie cross, Cabbage. She and Rory had become inseparable during daily pandemic walks, which alleviated his Parkinson’s symptoms. After a grief-stricken year, Rory and his wife Diane come across a listing for ‘a kind girl who loves everybody and is just looking for her forever home’.Bright-eyed, big-eared and trembling, Sophie arrives in London on 17 December 2022. Rory holds the Romanian rescue in his arms, excited for their first walk together – but the road ahead will be a long one . . . This book follows the real journey of Sophie’s adoption – from her battles with anxiety, to the joys of play and her first time outside – as Rory and Diane work with expert dog trainer Si to win Sophie’s trust and navigate Rory’s Parkinson’s disease.This is a moving story of love, kindness and a lot of patience, paying tribute to rescue dogs and their tender community.

‘Fills my heart with so much joy' Niall Harbison, bestselling author of Tina'In a dark time, a daily dose of hope’ Jojo MoyesHow do you welcome someone new into your heart and home? A week before Christmas, newly retired BBC journalist Rory Cellan-Jones receives a special delivery that will change his life.This is the story of rescue dog #SophieFromRomania.In January 2022, the Cellan-Jones-Coyle family said goodbye to their beloved elderly Collie cross, Cabbage. She and Rory had become inseparable during daily pandemic walks, which alleviated his Parkinson’s symptoms. After a grief-stricken year, Rory and his wife Diane come across a listing for ‘a kind girl who loves everybody and is just looking for her forever home’.Bright-eyed, big-eared and trembling, Sophie arrives in London on 17 December 2022. Rory holds the Romanian rescue in his arms, excited for their first walk together – but the road ahead will be a long one.This book follows the real journey of Sophie’s adoption – from her battles with anxiety, to the joys of play and her first time outside – as Rory and Diane work with expert dog trainer Si to win Sophie’s trust and navigate Rory’s Parkinson’s disease.This is a moving story of love, kindness and a lot of patience, paying tribute to rescue dogs and their tender community.

‘Fills my heart with so much joy' Niall Harbison, bestselling author of Tina'In a dark time, a daily dose of hope’ Jojo MoyesHow do you welcome someone new into your heart and home? A week before Christmas, newly retired BBC journalist Rory Cellan-Jones receives a special delivery that will change his life.This is the story of rescue dog #SophieFromRomania.In January 2022, the Cellan-Jones-Coyle family said goodbye to their beloved elderly Collie cross, Cabbage. She and Rory had become inseparable during daily pandemic walks, which alleviated his Parkinson’s symptoms. After a grief-stricken year, Rory and his wife Diane come across a listing for ‘a kind girl who loves everybody and is just looking for her forever home’.Bright-eyed, big-eared and trembling, Sophie arrives in London on 17 December 2022. Rory holds the Romanian rescue in his arms, excited for their first walk together – but the road ahead will be a long one.This book follows the real journey of Sophie’s adoption – from her battles with anxiety, to the joys of play and her first time outside – as Rory and Diane work with expert dog trainer Si to win Sophie’s trust and navigate Rory’s Parkinson’s disease.This is a moving story of love, kindness and a lot of patience, paying tribute to rescue dogs and their tender community.

For a heady nine months, until the spring of 2000, Britain had dot.com fever. Lastminute.com's youthful founders saw their fledgling company soar to a valuation of £ 750 million, and Martha Lane Fox became a media star. Clickmango.com raised £ 3 million in just days to sell helth products online. Old-style industrial giantswere edged out of the FTSE 100 by e-commerce newcomers employing handfuls of people and losing a fortune... And then, just as swiftly, the bubble burst. London's hi-tech stocks followed New York's Nasdaq downwards. Boo.com, the flashiest website of all, went through £ 100 million in mere months in its mission to see designer sports gear. Financial analysts talked about 'burn-rate', and even the most glamorous start-ups couldn't defy the oldest law of business. Why did it all go so horribly wrong? Now, Rory Cellan-Jones tells the full story of this brief, fabulous, often farcical epoch, from our own now-forgotten Net pioneers to the exclusive few who really did make untold riches - like the man who thought up Freeserve - and follows the destinies of the dot.coms all the way from the glitzy launch to the deserted offices after all the cash had been burned through. Dot.Bomb is the compulsive tale of a never-to-be-repeated time when it seemed anyone could become an instant millionaire - at the click of a mouse.

'A captivating family detective story and a poignant social history of Britain' Observer After an isolated childhood of silence and secrets, Rory Cellan-Jones (broadcaster, Parkinson's podcaster and Sophie-the-rescue-dog owner) began a journey of discovery. Although he knew he was the child of a love affair between colleagues at the BBC, it wasn’t until his mother died and left him a file labelled 'For Rory' that he understood the true scandal and sadness of his parents' relationship, and the reasons for his fatherless upbringing.A compelling, tender and emotive memoir of his difficult but ultimately heroic mother, Ruskin Park is also a tribute to an entire generation of women who were never given the chance to realise their potential.