From Felix Francis, the bestselling co-author (with Dick Francis) of Dead Heat" and "Even Money" comes "Gamble", the latest Dick...... more

From Felix Francis, the bestselling co-author (with Dick Francis) of Dead Heat" and "Even Money" comes "Gamble", the latest Dick Francis novel. Set in the cut-throat world of horse racing, "Gamble" is an enthralling thriller packed full of suspense, mystery and intrigue. Nick Foxton once won the Grand National, but a terrible accident cut his racing career short. Years later, he is returning to Aintree - as a spectator - when he once more finds himself the centre of attention. Minutes before the big race, Nick's colleague, financial adviser Herb Kovak, is shot dead and the gunman vanishes into the crowd. The police want answers but Nick can't explain why anyone would want Herb dead. Yet when he finds a threatening message crumpled in Herb's coat, Nick begins questioning all he knows about his friend. And on learning that he is the benefactor of Herb's will, Nick is certain that something is not right. A fact confirmed when Nick discovers he's next in the killer's firing line. Packed with all the hair-raising suspense and excitement readers know and love from Dick Francis, "Gamble" is Felix Francis' most heart-pounding thriller yet. "The Francis flair is clear for all to see". ("Daily Mail"). "Spare, efficient and unflashy ...inexorably draws you in". ("Daily Telegraph"). "The master of suspense and intrigue". ("Country Life"). "Still the master". ("Racing Post"). Felix Francis is the younger son of thriller-writing legend, Dick Francis, with whom he co-wrote the four most recent Dick Francis Novels, "Dead Heat", "Silks", "Even Money" and "Crossfire", with Felix taking an increasingly greater role in the writing. Sadly Dick died in February 2010 but his work will live on through Felix. "Gamble" is Felix's first solo Dick Francis Novel. Felix trained as a physicist and spent seventeen years teaching A level physics before taking on the role as manager to his father, and then as author. He lives in Oxfordshire."

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As one of the youngest ever winners of the Grand National, Nick 'Foxy' Foxton's career as a world class jockey is on perfect track until a near fatal accident...... more

As one of the youngest ever winners of the Grand National, Nick 'Foxy' Foxton's career as a world class jockey is on perfect track until a near fatal accident cuts his dream brutally short. But when he returns to Aintree as a spectator years later, nothing can prepare him for what unfolds. Minutes before the biggest event on the racing calendar, Nick's affable American colleague Herb Kovak is shot at point blank range, the gunman disappearing amongst the stunned crowd.

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From Felix Francis, the bestselling co-author (with Dick Francis) of Dead Heat" and "Even Money" comes "Gamble", the latest Dick...... more

From Felix Francis, the bestselling co-author (with Dick Francis) of Dead Heat" and "Even Money" comes "Gamble", the latest Dick Francis novel. Set in the cut-throat world of horse racing, "Gamble" is an enthralling thriller packed full of suspense, mystery and intrigue. Nick Foxton once won the Grand National, but a terrible accident cut his racing career short. Years later, he is returning to Aintree - as a spectator - when he once more finds himself the centre of attention. Minutes before the big race, Nick's colleague, financial adviser Herb Kovak, is shot dead and the gunman vanishes into the crowd. The police want answers but Nick can't explain why anyone would want Herb dead. Yet when he finds a threatening message crumpled in Herb's coat, Nick begins questioning all he knows about his friend. And on learning that he is the benefactor of Herb's will, Nick is certain that something is not right. A fact confirmed when Nick discovers he's next in the killer's firing line. Packed with all the hair-raising suspense and excitement readers know and love from Dick Francis, "Gamble" is Felix Francis' most heart-pounding thriller yet. "The Francis flair is clear for all to see". ("Daily Mail"). "Spare, efficient and unflashy ...inexorably draws you in". ("Daily Telegraph"). "The master of suspense and intrigue". ("Country Life"). "Still the master". ("Racing Post"). Felix Francis is the younger son of thriller-writing legend, Dick Francis, with whom he co-wrote the four most recent Dick Francis Novels, "Dead Heat", "Silks", "Even Money" and "Crossfire", with Felix taking an increasingly greater role in the writing. Sadly Dick died in February 2010 but his work will live on through Felix. "Gamble" is Felix's first solo Dick Francis Novel. Felix trained as a physicist and spent seventeen years teaching A level physics before taking on the role as manager to his father, and then as author. He lives in Oxfordshire."

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One of the youngest winners of the Grand National, Nick "Foxy" Foxton suffered a near-fatal injury that cut short his career. Years later, he's out for a day at...... more

One of the youngest winners of the Grand National, Nick "Foxy" Foxton suffered a near-fatal injury that cut short his career. Years later, he's out for a day at the Grand National races when his colleague, Herb Kovack, is shot at point-blank range right in front of him. Like the police, Nick is baffled: Why would anyone kill such an apparently gentle soul? Then Nick finds a threatening note in the dead man's coat, and he begins to doubt how well he really knew his friend. And on discovering that Herb named him beneficiary in his will, Nick wonders why he's been entrusted with the legacy. Is this a generous gift from a friend, or is it, in fact, a poisoned chalice?

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On the first day of Royal Ascot, the crowd rejoices in a string of winning favourites. Ned Talbot has worked all his life as a bookmaker - taking over the...... more

On the first day of Royal Ascot, the crowd rejoices in a string of winning favourites. Ned Talbot has worked all his life as a bookmaker - taking over the family business from his grandfather - so he knows not to expect any sympathy from the punters as they count their winnings, and he counts his losses. He's seen the ups and downs before - but, as the big gambling conglomerates muscle in on small concerns like his, Ned wonders if it's worth it any more.

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Rodney Playfair is persuaded, by a promise to meet his gambling debts, to impersonate a manservant named Chapman at his fiancées house, in order to enable his...... more

Rodney Playfair is persuaded, by a promise to meet his gambling debts, to impersonate a manservant named Chapman at his fiancées house, in order to enable his friend Carmichael to use the house in the family's absence for a gambling party. It stars the extremely popular acrobatic comedian, Richard Hearne, who scored a bit hit on TV with "Mr. Pastry". Francis L. Sullivan has a grand time in a role that was originally designed for Charles Laughton. A brisk and fast comedy, "The Butler's Dilemma" never fails to entertain from its trick opening through to Francis L. Sullivan's cut and polished curtain.

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The Revenge of Frankenstein was an inevitability after Hammer Films had made an international star of Peter Cushing in The Curse of this sequel-rich franchise....... more

The Revenge of Frankenstein was an inevitability after Hammer Films had made an international star of Peter Cushing in The Curse of this sequel-rich franchise. The plot here is a braver twist on the story than the many follow-ups would take. The Creature doesn't make its presence known until the final reel, up to which point the only sense of lurking menace comes from Cushing's deliciously mannered performance as a disguised Dr Stein. A new name and a new town is a gamble sure to fail, and circumstances almost immediately conspire against the deceit. Also rattling around the brilliantly lit studio sets are Eunice Gayson and Francis Matthews, while Michael Gwynn gives everything he's got in stiff competition to predecessor Christopher Lee in the Creature role. It's subtle and simply screams out for enfranchisement--so of course Hammer dutifully made another five in the series. On the DVD:The Revenge of Frankenstein comes with mono sound (all you're going to get from Hammer and 1958), but the 1.66:1 ratio is a treat. You also get a trailer (and a surprise additional movie trailer) plus 10 photos. --Paul Tonks

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The Revenge of Frankenstein was an inevitability after Hammer Films had made an international star of Peter Cushing in The Curse of this sequel-rich franchise....... more

The Revenge of Frankenstein was an inevitability after Hammer Films had made an international star of Peter Cushing in The Curse of this sequel-rich franchise. The plot here is a braver twist on the story than the many follow-ups would take. The Creature doesn't make its presence known until the final reel, up to which point the only sense of lurking menace comes from Cushing's deliciously mannered performance as a disguised Dr Stein. A new name and a new town is a gamble sure to fail, and circumstances almost immediately conspire against the deceit. Also rattling around the brilliantly lit studio sets are Eunice Gayson and Francis Matthews, while Michael Gwynn gives everything he's got in stiff competition to predecessor Christopher Lee in the Creature role. It's subtle and simply screams out for enfranchisement--so of course Hammer dutifully made another five in the series. On the DVD:The Revenge of Frankenstein comes with mono sound (all you're going to get from Hammer and 1958), but the 1.66:1 ratio is a treat. You also get a trailer (and a surprise additional movie trailer) plus 10 photos. --Paul Tonks

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The Revenge of Frankenstein was an inevitability after Hammer Films had made an international star of Peter Cushing in The Curse of this sequel-rich franchise....... more

The Revenge of Frankenstein was an inevitability after Hammer Films had made an international star of Peter Cushing in The Curse of this sequel-rich franchise. The plot here is a braver twist on the story than the many follow-ups would take. The Creature doesn't make its presence known until the final reel, up to which point the only sense of lurking menace comes from Cushing's deliciously mannered performance as a disguised Dr Stein. A new name and a new town is a gamble sure to fail, and circumstances almost immediately conspire against the deceit. Also rattling around the brilliantly lit studio sets are Eunice Gayson and Francis Matthews, while Michael Gwynn gives everything he's got in stiff competition to predecessor Christopher Lee in the Creature role. It's subtle and simply screams out for enfranchisement--so of course Hammer dutifully made another five in the series. On the DVD:The Revenge of Frankenstein comes with mono sound (all you're going to get from Hammer and 1958), but the 1.66:1 ratio is a treat. You also get a trailer (and a surprise additional movie trailer) plus 10 photos. --Paul Tonks

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Wes Anderson's follow-up to the quirky Bottle Rocket is a wonderfully unorthodox coming-of-age story that ranks with Harold and Maude and The Graduate in the...... more

Wes Anderson's follow-up to the quirky Bottle Rocket is a wonderfully unorthodox coming-of-age story that ranks with Harold and Maude and The Graduate in the pantheon of timeless cult classics. Jason Schwartzman (son of Talia Shire and nephew of Francis Coppola) stars as Max Fisher, a 15-year-old attending the prestigious Rushmore Academy on scholarship, where he's failing all of his classes but is the superstar of the school's extracurricular activities (head of the drama club, the beekeeper club, the fencing club...). Possessing boundless confidence and chutzpah, as well as an aura of authority he seems to have been born with, Max finds two unlikely soulmates in his permutations at Rushmore: industrial magnate and Rushmore alumnus Herman Blume (Bill Murray) and first-grade teacher Rosemary Cross (Olivia Williams). His alliance with Blume and crush on Miss Cross, however, are thrown out of kilter by his expulsion from Rushmore, and a budding romance between the two adults that threatens Max's own designs on the lovely schoolteacher. Never stooping to sentimentality or schmaltz, Anderson and cowriter Owen Wilson have fashioned a wickedly intelligent and wildly funny tale of young adulthood that hits all the right notes in its mix of melancholy and optimism. As played by Schwartzman, Max is both immediately endearing and ferociously irritating: smarter than all the adults around him, with little sense of his shortcomings, he's an unstoppable dynamo who commands grudging respect despite his outlandish projects (including a school play about Vietnam). Murray, as the tycoon who determinedly wages war with Max for the affections of Miss Cross, is a revelation of middle-aged resignation. Disgusted with his family, his life, and himself, he's turned around by both Max's antagonism and Miss Cross's love. Williams is equally affecting as the teacher who still carries a torch for her dead husband, and the superb supporting cast also includes Seymour Cassel as Max's barber father, Brian Cox as the frustrated headmaster of Rushmore, and a hilarious Mason Gamble as Max's young charge. Put this one on your shelf of modern masterpieces. --Mark Englehart

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Wes Anderson's follow-up to the quirky Bottle Rocket is a wonderfully unorthodox coming-of-age story that ranks with Harold and Maude and The Graduate in the...... more

Wes Anderson's follow-up to the quirky Bottle Rocket is a wonderfully unorthodox coming-of-age story that ranks with Harold and Maude and The Graduate in the pantheon of timeless cult classics. Jason Schwartzman (son of Talia Shire and nephew of Francis Coppola) stars as Max Fisher, a 15-year-old attending the prestigious Rushmore Academy on scholarship, where he's failing all of his classes but is the superstar of the school's extracurricular activities (head of the drama club, the beekeeper club, the fencing club...). Possessing boundless confidence and chutzpah, as well as an aura of authority he seems to have been born with, Max finds two unlikely soulmates in his permutations at Rushmore: industrial magnate and Rushmore alumnus Herman Blume (Bill Murray) and first-grade teacher Rosemary Cross (Olivia Williams). His alliance with Blume and crush on Miss Cross, however, are thrown out of kilter by his expulsion from Rushmore, and a budding romance between the two adults that threatens Max's own designs on the lovely schoolteacher. Never stooping to sentimentality or schmaltz, Anderson and cowriter Owen Wilson have fashioned a wickedly intelligent and wildly funny tale of young adulthood that hits all the right notes in its mix of melancholy and optimism. As played by Schwartzman, Max is both immediately endearing and ferociously irritating: smarter than all the adults around him, with little sense of his shortcomings, he's an unstoppable dynamo who commands grudging respect despite his outlandish projects (including a school play about Vietnam). Murray, as the tycoon who determinedly wages war with Max for the affections of Miss Cross, is a revelation of middle-aged resignation. Disgusted with his family, his life, and himself, he's turned around by both Max's antagonism and Miss Cross's love. Williams is equally affecting as the teacher who still carries a torch for her dead husband, and the superb supporting cast also includes Seymour Cassel as Max's barber father, Brian Cox as the frustrated headmaster of Rushmore, and a hilarious Mason Gamble as Max's young charge. Put this one on your shelf of modern masterpieces. --Mark Englehart

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Wes Anderson's follow-up to the quirky Bottle Rocket is a wonderfully unorthodox coming-of-age story that ranks with Harold and Maude and The Graduate in the...... more

Wes Anderson's follow-up to the quirky Bottle Rocket is a wonderfully unorthodox coming-of-age story that ranks with Harold and Maude and The Graduate in the pantheon of timeless cult classics. Jason Schwartzman (son of Talia Shire and nephew of Francis Coppola) stars as Max Fisher, a 15-year-old attending the prestigious Rushmore Academy on scholarship, where he's failing all of his classes but is the superstar of the school's extracurricular activities (head of the drama club, the beekeeper club, the fencing club...). Possessing boundless confidence and chutzpah, as well as an aura of authority he seems to have been born with, Max finds two unlikely soulmates in his permutations at Rushmore: industrial magnate and Rushmore alumnus Herman Blume (Bill Murray) and first-grade teacher Rosemary Cross (Olivia Williams). His alliance with Blume and crush on Miss Cross, however, are thrown out of kilter by his expulsion from Rushmore, and a budding romance between the two adults that threatens Max's own designs on the lovely schoolteacher. Never stooping to sentimentality or schmaltz, Anderson and cowriter Owen Wilson have fashioned a wickedly intelligent and wildly funny tale of young adulthood that hits all the right notes in its mix of melancholy and optimism. As played by Schwartzman, Max is both immediately endearing and ferociously irritating: smarter than all the adults around him, with little sense of his shortcomings, he's an unstoppable dynamo who commands grudging respect despite his outlandish projects (including a school play about Vietnam). Murray, as the tycoon who determinedly wages war with Max for the affections of Miss Cross, is a revelation of middle-aged resignation. Disgusted with his family, his life, and himself, he's turned around by both Max's antagonism and Miss Cross's love. Williams is equally affecting as the teacher who still carries a torch for her dead husband, and the superb supporting cast also includes Seymour Cassel as Max's barber father, Brian Cox as the frustrated headmaster of Rushmore, and a hilarious Mason Gamble as Max's young charge. Put this one on your shelf of modern masterpieces. --Mark Englehart

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In Peascod TimeMusic, Words and Song for Summer and the HarvestThis is a collection of ballads, madrigals, lutesongs, dances and consort music from the...... more

In Peascod TimeMusic, Words and Song for Summer and the HarvestThis is a collection of ballads, madrigals, lutesongs, dances and consort music from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries inspired by nature and in particular the activities of Summertime and the Harvest.Track listing:1. In Peascod Time/Gathering Peascods/In Summertime/Upon a summer's day2. Michael Cavendish: Zephyrus brings the time3. In summer time when flowers do spring4. Francis Pilkington: Amyntas with his Phyllis fair 5. Thomas Campion: Jacke and Jone6. The leaves be green7. John Wilbye: Come shepherd swains8. John Bennett: Lure falconers9. The Cherry Garden10. John Gamble: The Morning doth waste11. The Country People's Felicity/Shepherd's Holiday/Strawberries and Cream/The Glory of the Sun12. Robert Johnson: As I walked forth one summer's day13. Wolverton Hall14. John Wilson: Lawn as white as driven snow15. Bury Fair/Bartholomew Fair16. A description of Bartholomew Fair17. Michael East: Why are summer sports so brittle?18. Claudio Monteverdi/William Shakespeare: Tempest masque sung19. Thomas Robinson: Whetelies wheat-sheafe/Robert Herrick: The hock cart20. Maurice Greene: Thou visitest the earth21. Henry Purcell: Harvest homePassamezzo are: Eleanor Cramer - Soprano, Bass Viol Christopher Goodwin - Lute, Theorbo, Gittern, Bass Peter Luke Kenny - Baritone, Drum Alison Kinder - Viol, Recorders, Alto Tamsin Lewis - Renaissance Violin, Viols, AltoRecorded at St John's Wood Parish Church, 18-19 October 2010

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