PHILIP: THE FINAL PORTRAIT by Gyles Brandreth, read by Gyles Brandreth - audiobook extract

04/28/21 • 5 min

Elizabeth, their marriage and their dynasty. This is the story of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh - the longest-serving consort to the longest-reigning sovereign in British history. It is an extraordinary story, told with unique insight and authority by an author who knew the prince for more than 40 years. Philip - elusive, complex, controversial, challenging, often humorous, sometimes irascible - is the man Elizabeth II once described as her 'constant strength and guide'. Who was he? What was he really like? What is the truth about those 'gaffes' and the rumours of affairs? This is the final portrait of an unexpected and often much-misunderstood figure. It is also the portrait of a remarkable marriage that endured for more than 70 years. Philip and Elizabeth were both royal by birth, both great-great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria, but, in temperament and upbringing, they were two very different people. The Queen's childhood was loving and secure, the Duke's was turbulent; his grandfather assassinated, his father arrested, his family exiled, his parents separated when he was only 10. Elizabeth and Philip met as cousins in the 1930s. They married in 1947, aged 21 and 26. Philip: The Final Portrait tells the story of two contrasting lives, assesses the Duke of Edinburgh's character and achievement, and explores the nature of his relationships with his wife, his children and their families - and with the press and public and those at court who were suspicious of him in the early days. This is a powerful, revealing and, ultimately, moving account of a long life and a remarkable royal partnership.

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METABOLICAL by Robert Lustig, read by Charles Constant - audiobook extract

It's not what you eat that's damaging your health it's how that food is 'made'. The truth behind ultra-processed food that the food industry doesn't want you to know. Did you know that 62 per cent of the food in our supermarkets is not only processed but 'ultra-processed' (ingredients from other foods are combined to make something 'new', often in colours that do not exist in nature) and that data shows that by eating this kind of food over time we are literally slowly poisoning ourselves? In the hard-hitting, ground-breaking tradition of his NY Times best seller Fat Chance, which revealed the dangers of sugar, Dr Robert Lustig persuasively presents a stark exposé of how our addiction to processed foods (aided and abetted by the food industry, big ag, big pharma, institutional medicine and the government) is behind the lethal increase in major non-communicable diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, fatty liver disease, cancer and dementia. We have come to accept that these chronic diseases are simply part of the 'natural ageing process', but Dr Lustig makes the case that this is simply not true. The solution on both a personal and societal level is a return to unprocessed food and Dr Lustig offers a doable plan for us to heal and restore our own health and wellbeing with real food, and in the process boosting our immunity to viruses like Covid-19.

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WHERE THE WILD THINGS GROW by David Hamilton, read by Matthew Spencer - audiobook extract

Nestled by the roadside, peeking through the hedgerows, hidden in the woods and even in city streets and parks, wild food is all around us - if you know where to look. From woodland mushrooms and riverbank redcurrants to garden weeds and urban cherry blossoms, Where the Wild Things Grow takes us on a journey through the forager's landscape. Drawing on 25 years of foraging experience, David Hamilton show us how and where to hunt for the food that is hidden all around us. Along the way he delves into the forgotten histories and science of wild foods and their habitats and reveals his many foraging secrets, tips and recipes. You'll discover where to find mallows, mustards and pennywort, as well as sumac, figs and mulberries. You'll learn how to pick the sweetest berries, preserve mushrooms using only a radiator and prepare salads, risottos and puddings all with wild food. In all weathers, landscapes and seasons, David shows us that foraging doesn't just introduce us to new tastes and sensations, it also brings us closer to the natural world on our doorstep. Beautifully illustrated and rich in detail, Where the Wild Things Grow is more than a field guide - it is a celebration of the wonderful and fragile gifts hidden in our landscape.