Following Visions Before Midnight, The Crystal Bucket is another hilarious time-capsule of 1970s television - the second collection of Clive James's ruthlessly funny, inimitable columns dissecting the entertainment of the day.'One of the few columnists who makes you laugh aloud' - Melvyn Bragg, Sunday TimesIn many ways, the 1970s were a dark time for Britain - a time of struggle, deepening divisions and Christmas with the Osmonds. Clive James, the man who made TV criticism an entertainment in its own right, provided the relief. By turns insightful and hilarious, this collection sees his lens turn to television as diverse as the election of Margaret Thatcher's Conservative Party, the Silver Jubilee, endless Star Trek reruns, the Frost/Nixon interviews and Charlie's Angels.'He is one of the most remarkable figures in British cultural life at the moment: a poet and gifted literary critic who is also genuinely liked by the mass audience' - London Review of BooksThe Crystal Bucket collects James's TV criticism published originally in the Observer between 1976 and 1979. Clive's TV criticism from 1979 onwards continues in Glued To The Box. Clive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His much-loved, influential and hilarious television criticism is available both in individual volumes, of which this is the second, and collected in a single volume in Clive James On Television. Praise for Clive James:'There can't be many writers of my generation who haven't been heavily influenced by Clive James' - Charlie Brooker'A wonderfully witty and intelligent writer' - Verity Lambert'The perfect critic' - A. O. Scott, New York Times

The Crystal Bucket

Travel writing at its humorous best, Flying Visits collects the Postcards of Clive James originally written for the Observer between 1976 and 1983 - full of his distinctive wit and satire. Whether enduring Australian television, exploring the mystifying Soviet Union, watching sumo training in Japan, or enjoying Sondheim via serial killers in New York, James is never less than thoroughly entertaining. As a time-capsule of the period or as a humorous journey across the globe, this is an enduring collection for the well - and not so well - travelled.'He writes with such wisecracking intelligence that you're happy to be taken around by him - whether to Japan, Los Angeles, or Sydney' - GuardianClive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His much-loved, influential and hilarious television criticism is available both in individual volumes and collected in Clive James On Television. His encyclopaedic study of culture and politics in the twentieth century, Cultural Amnesia, remains perhaps the definitive embodiment of his wide-ranging talents as a critic. Praise for Clive James: 'The perfect critic' - A. O. Scott, New York Times'There can't be many writers of my generation who haven't been heavily influenced by Clive James' - Charlie Brooker'A wonderfully witty and intelligent writer' - Verity Lambert

Flying Visits - Postcards From  The Observer  1976-83

Erudite and entertaining in equal measure, Somewhere Becoming Rain is a love letter from the much-loved writer Clive James to one of the world's most cherished poets: Philip Larkin.'This is the finest critic of his generation on the best poet of his lifetime' - The TimesClive James was a life-long admirer of the work of Philip Larkin. Somewhere Becoming Rain gathers all of James's writing on this towering literary figure of the twentieth century, together with extra material now published for the first time. The greatness of Larkin's poetry continues to be obscured by the opprobrium attaching to his personal life and his private opinions. James writes about Larkin's poems, his novels, his jazz and literary criticism; he also considers the two major biographies, Larkin's letters and even his portrayal on stage in order to chart the extreme and, he argues, largely misguided equivocations about Larkin's reputation in the years since his death. Through this joyous and perceptive book, Larkin's genius is delineated and celebrated. James argues that Larkin's poems, adored by discriminating readers for over half a century, could only have been the product of his reticent, diffident, flawed, and all-too-human personality.'A collection to savour two-fold - for the genius of Larkin and the playful erudition of James' - Financial Times

Somewhere Becoming Rain - Collected Writings on Philip Larkin

Collecting verse written in the years 2008-2011, Nefertiti in the Flak Tower sees Clive James approach his later years with the same technical versatility, emotional poignancy and lightly-worn erudition as defined his career. Across a breathtaking range of themes, there are moving elegies, a meditation on the later W. B. Yeats, a Hollywood Iliad, odes to rare orchids, wartime typewriters and sharks - as well as a poem on the fate of Queen Nefertiti in Nazi Germany. What marks this collection out is his intensified concentration on the individual poem as self-contained universe. Poetry is a practice he compares (in 'Numismatics') to striking new coin; in Nefertiti in the Flak Tower each poem is a twin-sided balance of the unashamedly joyous and the deadly serious, 'whose play of light pays tribute to the dark'. Clive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His acclaimed poetry includes the collection Sentenced to Life and a translation of Dante's The Divine Comedy, both Sunday Times bestsellers. His passion for and knowledge of poetry are distilled in his book of criticism on the subject, Poetry Notebook, and, written in the last year of his life, his personal annotated anthology of favourite poems, The Fire Of Joy. Praise for Clive James:'He will be seen, I think, as one of the most important and influential writers of our time' - Bryan Appleyard, Sunday Times'Wise, witty, terrifying, unflinching and extraordinarily alive' - A. S. Byatt, critic and author of Possession: A Romance'Clive James is a true poet' - Peter Porter, London Review of Books

Nefertiti in the Flak Tower

Thoughtful and funny, this fifth collection of essays from much-loved critic and author Clive James covers the art, politics and culture of 1987-1992.'A well-balanced show of wit, intellect and glorious observation' - Sunday TimesWith work on writers as diverse as Philip Larkin, Primo Levi and Stevie Smith, performers as iconic as Frank Sinatra and Billy Connolly, and publishing events as monumental as the World's First Official The Sun Neighbours Collection Stick Album Plus Extra Free Poster Pull-Out of Jason and Kylie, Clive James is always erudite, insightful and thoroughly entertaining.'He writes like a prophet and he can satirise folly in high places with a touch as elegant as Oscar Wilde .

The Dreaming Swimmer - Non-fiction 1987-1992

Cultural criticism at its best, The Metropolitan Critic sees essayist, critic and poet Clive James mix high and pop culture commentary - from Tom Wolfe to Tom and Jerry, from Seamus Heaney to Oz magazine. In 1974, The Metropolitan Critic started a new trend in cultural comment which has since become an orthodoxy. The young Clive James was the first journalist in London to talk about high culture and pop culture as if they were equally fascinating fields of endeavour, and he did it in an incomparably engaged, fluent, sparkling style. Even at that early stage, the learning behind his literary high-wire act was formidable: a portent of the wide-ranging erudition that in subsequent years was to underpin the further volumes of critical prose and the television column that made him famous. An extra delight of this edition is a set of self-critical footnotes which, combined with a nostalgic introduction, evoke what literary London was like when the author, low on salary but high on hope, was making his spectacular start. Clive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His much-loved, influential and hilarious television criticism is available both in individual volumes and collected in Clive James On Television. His encyclopaedic study of culture and politics in the twentieth century, Cultural Amnesia, remains perhaps the definitive embodiment of his wide-ranging talents as a critic. Praise for Clive James: 'The perfect critic' - A. O. Scott, New York Times'There can't be many writers of my generation who haven't been heavily influenced by Clive James' - Charlie Brooker'A wonderfully witty and intelligent writer' - Verity Lambert

The Metropolitan Critic

With fascinating essays on artists from Louis Armstrong to Walter Benjamin, Sigmund Freud to Franz Kafka and Beatrix Potter to Marcel Proust, Cultural Amnesia is one of the crowning achievements in Clive James's illustrious career as a critic.'One stupendous starburst of wild brilliance' - Simon Schama, historian and author of The Power of ArtA lifetime in the making and containing over one hundred essays, this is a definitive guide to twentieth-century culture. James catalogues and explores the careers of many of the century's greatest thinkers, humanists, musicians, artists and philosophers, with illuminating excursions into the minds of those historical figures - from Sir Thomas Browne to Montesquieu - who paved the way. Altogether, it is an illuminating work of extraordinary erudition. Organised alphabetically by surname, this almanac invites you to share in the connections James draws, and to make your own - whether you read cover-to-cover, or allow curiosity to guide you. From Anna Akhmatova to Stefan Zweig, via Charles de Gaulle, Hitler, Thomas Mann and Wittgenstein, this varied and unfailingly absorbing book is both story and history, public memoir and personal record - and provides a field-guide to the vast movements of taste, intellect, politics and delusion that helped to prepare the times we live in now.'Aphoristic and acutely provocative: a crash course in civilization' - J. M. Coetzee, author of Disgrace'This is a beautiful book' - ObserverPart of the Picador Collection, a series showcasing the best of modern literature.

Cultural Amnesia - Notes in the Margin of My Time

A single book-length poem, The River in the Sky sees Clive James face up to his final moments of life with all the wisdom, lightly-worn erudition and good humour that defined his extraordinary career. Close to death for a number of years, Clive James wrote about the experience in a series of deeply moving poems. In this volume, we find him in ill health but high spirits. Though his body found him bound to his Cambridge home, his mind was free to roam. On a grand tour of 'the fragile treasures of his life', James is animated by powerful recollections. He presents a flowing stream of vivid images, moving from emotionally resonant personal moments, such as listening to jazz records with his future wife, to unforgettable encounters with all kinds of culture: Beethoven's Ninth Symphony sits alongside 'YouTube's vast cosmopolis'. James shares his passions with enormous generosity, making brilliant, original connections and fearlessly tackling the biggest questions: the meaning of life and how to live it. In the end, what emerges from this autobiographical epic is a soaring work of exceptional depth and feeling.'The River in the Sky is superb, an epic lament, written in late life, filled with exact and moving observations about life and culture' - New York TimesClive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His acclaimed poetry includes the collection Sentenced to Life and a translation of Dante's The Divine Comedy, both Sunday Times bestsellers. His passion for and knowledge of poetry are distilled in his book of criticism on the subject, Poetry Notebook, and, written in the last year of his life, his personal annotated anthology of favourite poems, The Fire Of Joy. Praise for Clive James:'He will be seen, I think, as one of the most important and influential writers of our time' - Bryan Appleyard, Sunday Times'Wise, witty, terrifying, unflinching and extraordinarily alive' - A. S. Byatt, critic and author of Possession: A Romance'Clive James is a true poet' - Peter Porter, London Review of Books

The River in the Sky

The second instalment of his famed unreliable memoirs, Falling Towards England sees Clive James set sail for London - a long way from the acclaimed author, poet and broadcaster he would one day become .

Falling Towards England - More Unreliable Memoirs

'Finally I realised that I had been practising for this job every time I wrote a quatrain .

The Divine Comedy

Hilarious and trenchant, Reliable Essays collects the most memorable works of criticism and travel writing from well-loved author and broadcaster, Clive James. With an introduction by Julian Barnes.'[An] intellectual as well as a joker, a wise man as well as a wit' - ObserverWhether discussing arts, politics or culture, Clive James opens up new avenues for thought whilst never being less than wonderfully entertaining. From his 'Postcard from Rome' to his observations on Margaret Thatcher, and his insights into Heaney, Larkin and Orwell, Clive is equally at home discussing the nature of celebrity and considering serious political matters. With brilliantly funny examinations of characters like Barry Humphries, Germaine Greer and Marilyn Monroe, this is a thoughtful, analytical and thoroughly enjoyable selection of Clive at his best.'[I]immensely enjoyable' - TelegraphClive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His much-loved, influential and hilarious television criticism is collected in Clive James On Television. His encyclopaedic study of culture and politics in the twentieth century, Cultural Amnesia, remains perhaps the definitive embodiment of his wide-ranging talents as a critic. Praise for Clive James:'The perfect critic' - A. O. Scott, New York Times'There can't be many writers of my generation who haven't been heavily influenced by Clive James' - Charlie Brooker 'A wonderfully witty and intelligent writer' - Verity Lambert

Reliable Essays - The Best of Clive James

A comedy of no manners, Brrm! Brrm! by Clive James is the satirical story of a high-flying Japanese businessman sent to London.'Brrm! Brrm! is funny, clever and sometimes as delicate and tender as the poetry of its hero, Akira Suzuki' - The TimesAkira Suzuki is in London for the first time. He ponders the litter and the unappealing food, while smiling politely at motorcycle jokes about his name. British humour, he realises, is largely a game of mortal insults. Breaking into high society and chasing after two different women, he is supposed to be learning about the city's cosmopolitan lifestyle. Instead, Akira manages to make headlines - for all the wrong reasons .

Brrm! Brrm!

A hilarious time-capsule of 1970s television, Visions Before Midnight is the first collection of Clive James's much-loved, inimitable columns skewering the entertainment of the day.'One of the few columnists who makes you laugh aloud' - Melvyn Bragg, Sunday TimesClive James is the man who made TV criticism an entertainment in its own right, paving the way for writers like Charlie Brooker. His comic brilliance is on full display here, from the 1972 Olympics to the 1976 Olympics, from War and Peace to the fall of Richard Nixon, and from the election of Thatcher as Leader of the Opposition to the Eurovision Song Contest. In this volume is collected the brilliant, uniquely Jamesian humour that saw hundreds of thousands of devoted fans turn to his column each Sunday morning. Visions Before Midnight collects James's TV criticism published originally in the Observer between 1972 and 1976. Clive's TV criticism from 1976 onwards continues in The Crystal Bucket. Clive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His much-loved, influential and hilarious television criticism is available both in individual volumes, of which this is the first, and also collected in a single volume in Clive James On Television. Praise for Clive James:'The perfect critic' - A. O. Scott, New York Times'There can't be many writers of my generation who haven't been heavily influenced by Clive James' - Charlie Brooker'A wonderfully witty and intelligent writer' - Verity Lambert

Visions Before Midnight

Wide-ranging, hilarious and enlightening, The Revolt of the Pendulum collects the best of Clive James on art, culture and politics from 2005-2008, showing the author, broadcaster and poet at his dazzling and versatile best. From the rules of grammar to the fundamentals of religion, from the culture of fandom to the cult of the critic, it's all there in this collection of essays - steeped in Clive's vast learning, his sane intelligence, and his wit. Whether discussing Kingsley Amis, Camille Paglia, Leni Riefenstahl or Formula 1, Clive is able to focus on the finer points and the bigger picture simultaneously - generating insight across a huge range of subject matter.'There's only one Clive James' - Sam Leith, SpectatorClive James (1939-2019) was a broadcaster, critic, poet, memoirist and novelist. His much-loved, influential and hilarious television criticism is available both in individual volumes and collected in Clive James On Television. His encyclopaedic study of culture and politics in the twentieth century, Cultural Amnesia, remains perhaps the definitive embodiment of his wide-ranging talents as a critic. Praise for Clive James:'The perfect critic' - A. O. Scott, New York Times'There can't be many writers of my generation who haven't been heavily influenced by Clive James' - Charlie Brooker 'A wonderfully witty and intelligent writer' - Verity Lambert

The Revolt of the Pendulum - Essays 2005-2008

Clive James, nom de plume de Vivian Leopold James, né le 7 octobre 1939 à Kogarah en Nouvelle-Galles du Sud et mort le 24 novembre 2019 à Cambridge (Angleterre), est un écrivain australien expatrié, poète, critique littéraire, essayiste, présentateur d'une émission-débat, auteur d'ouvrages de voyage et commentateur culturel.

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clive_James

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