About Charlie Connelly
better than shakespeare
Charlie Connelly is a bestselling author and award-winning broadcaster. His many books include Attention All Shipping: A Journey Round The Shipping Forecast, In Search of Elvis: A Journey To Find The Man Beneath The Jumpsuit and Our Man In Hibernia: Ireland, The Irish And Me. Three of his books have featured as Radio 4′s Book of the Week read by Martin Freeman, Stephen Mangan and Tom Goodman-Hill.
Charlie was also a popular presenter on the BBC1 Holiday programme and co-presented the first three series of BBC Radio 4′s Traveller’s Tree with Fi Glover.
His book Gilbert: The Last Years of WG Grace was shortlisted for the 2016 MCC/Cricket Society Book of the Year. The book he wrote with his friend Bernard Sumner, Chapter And Verse: New Order, Joy Division And Me was shortlisted for Book of the Year at the NME Awards, while his most recent co-writing project, Winner: A Racing Life with the champion jockey AP McCoy is shortlisted for Sports Autobiography of the Year.
The audio version of Attention All Shipping came second in a public vote to find the greatest audiobook of all time organised by Waterstone’s and The Guardian. Romeo and Juliet
He has written comedy scripts for BBC radio and RTÉ radio in Ireland and made documentaries for BBC Radio 4 on subjects as diverse as the poetry of Noel Coward and the legendary cricket coach Alf Gover.
A popular public speaker, in 2014 Charlie premiered his one-man show based on Attention All Shipping at the Cutty Sark Studio Theatre, selling out the prestigious venue two months in advance, and has also spoken at a range of venues including the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, National Maritime Museum and the Edinburgh Festival.
A lifelong Charlton Athletic supporter Charlie lives just far enough away from The Valley to make regular attendance impractical but not far enough to stop him feeling guilty about it. To compensate, he is a season ticket holder at Deal Town.
Books
the forgotten soldier
Charlie Connelly’s First World War memoir of his great uncle, Edward Connelly, an ordinary boy sent to fight in a war the likes of which the world had never seen. But this is not just his story; it’s the story of all the young forgotten soldiers who fought and died for their country.
STAMPING GROUNDS
Travelling to all of Liechenstein’s qualifying matches, Charlie Connelly examines what motivates a team to take the field dressed proudly in the shirts of Liechtenstein despite the knowledge that they are, with notably few exceptions, in for a damn good hiding.
Gilbert: the last years of wc grace
Written in the year that marked the centenary of Grace’s death, Charlie Connelly charts the final years of his life, from his fiftieth birthday celebrations in 1898 to his death at the age of 67 in 1915, through the eyes of Grace himself.
elk stopped play
There are few parts of Wisden Cricketers Almanack that embody the magic and appeal of the game more than Cricket Round the World. Elk Stopped Play is a carefully-chosen selection of stories from twenty years of one of Wisdens most-loved sections.