The Great British Dream Factory
The Strange History of Our National Imagination
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Narrated by:
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David Thorpe
About this listen
Britain's empire has gone. Our manufacturing base is a shadow of its former self; the Royal Navy has been reduced to a skeleton. In military, diplomatic and economic terms, we no longer matter as we once did. And yet there is still one area in which we can legitimately claim superpower status: our popular culture.
It is extraordinary to think that one British writer, J. K. Rowling, has sold more than 400 million books; that Doctor Who is watched in almost every developed country in the world; that James Bond has been the central character in the longest-running film series in history; that The Lord of the Rings is the second best-selling novel ever written (behind only A Tale of Two Cities); that the Beatles are still the best-selling musical group of all time; and that only Shakespeare and the Bible have sold more books than Agatha Christie.
To put it simply, no country on Earth, relative to its size, has contributed more to the modern imagination. This is a book about the success and the meaning of Britain's modern popular culture, from Bond and the Beatles to heavy metal and Coronation Street, from the Angry Young Men to Harry Potter, from Damien Hirst to The X Factor.
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I spent $24,000 in 4 months
- By B.M. on 10-06-18
By: G. L. Lambert
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The Autobiography of Malcolm X
- As Told to Alex Haley
- By: Malcolm X, Alex Haley
- Narrated by: Laurence Fishburne
- Length: 16 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Experience a bold take on this classic autobiography as it’s performed by Oscar-nominated Laurence Fishburne. In this searing classic autobiography, originally published in 1965, Malcolm X, the Muslim leader, firebrand, and Black empowerment activist, tells the extraordinary story of his life and the growth of the Human Rights movement. His fascinating perspective on the lies and limitations of the American dream and the inherent racism in a society that denies its non-White citizens the opportunity to dream, gives extraordinary insight into the most urgent issues of our own time.
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it's Nearly perfect
- By Kerry on 09-16-20
By: Malcolm X, and others
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I Thought It Was Just Me (but it isn’t)
- Telling the Truth about Perfectionism, Inadequacy, and Power
- By: Brené Brown
- Narrated by: Lauren Fortgang
- Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Based on seven years of ground-breaking research and hundreds of interviews, I Thought It Was Just Me shines a long-overdue light on an important truth: Our imperfections are what connect us to each other and to our humanity. Our vulnerabilities are not weaknesses; they are powerful reminders to keep our hearts and minds open to the reality that we're all in this together.
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I'm sure its great if you are a mother ....
- By Leslie A Hill on 08-09-11
By: Brené Brown
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Mythology: Mega Collection
- Classic Stories from the Greek, Celtic, Norse, Japanese, Hindu, Chinese, Mesopotamian and Egyptian Mythology
- By: Scott Lewis
- Narrated by: Madison Niederhauser, Oliver Hunt
- Length: 31 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Do you know how many wives Zeus had? Or how the famous Trojan War was caused by one beautiful lady? Or how Thor got his hammer? Give your imagination a real treat. This Mega Mythology Collection of eight audiobooks is for you....
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An interesting set of introductions.
- By Kevin Potter on 05-30-19
By: Scott Lewis
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The Philosopher's Toolkit: How to Be the Most Rational Person in Any Room
- By: Patrick Grim, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Patrick Grim
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Original Recording
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Taught by award-winning Professor Patrick Grim of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, The Philosopher’s Toolkit: How to Be the Most Rational Person in Any Room arms you against the perils of bad thinking and supplies you with an arsenal of strategies to help you be more creative, logical, inventive, realistic, and rational in all aspects of your daily life.
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This should NOT be an audio book
- By Brooks Emerson on 03-21-20
By: Patrick Grim, and others
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My Big TOE: Awakening
- Book One of a Trilogy Unifying Philosophy, Physics, and Metaphysics
- By: Thomas Campbell
- Narrated by: Thomas Campbell
- Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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My Big TOE: Awakening, written by a nuclear physicist in the language of contemporary culture, unifies science and philosophy, physics and metaphysics, mind and matter, purpose and meaning, the normal and the paranormal. The entirety of human experience (mind, body, and spirit) including both our objective and subjective worlds is brought together under one seamless scientific understanding.
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What a Trip (but to where?)
- By Michael on 11-26-13
By: Thomas Campbell
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Carry on, Britain!
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A 15-part BBC Radio 4 series exploring the origins of the Post Office, how it became a cherished national institution, and how it adapted to globalisation and commercialisation. It’s called Royal Mail but it should be known as the People s Post. Launched in 1516 by Henry VIII, it was intended to support royal communications and bolster intelligence.
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The Rest Is History
- From Ancient Rome to Ronald Reagan—History's Most Curious Questions, Answered
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This entertaining companion to the massively popular history podcast tackles everything from Alexander the Great to Agatha Christie, the Wars of the Roses to Watergate—with a unique blend of wit, wisdom, and good old-fashioned banter. Featuring an introduction from podcast hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook, this book cleverly demonstrates that the past—from modern to ancient and every time in between—is both closer to us than we might realize and bafflingly strange, all at once.
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Holland and Sandbrook!!!
- By marc edge on 12-10-23
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Rubicon
- The Triumph and Tragedy of the Roman Republic
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The Roman Republic was the most remarkable state in history. What began as a small community of peasants camped among marshes and hills ended up ruling the known world. Rubicon paints a vivid portrait of the Republic at the climax of its greatness—the same greatness which would herald the catastrophe of its fall.
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Story of the Fall of the republic told in a very lively manner.
- By Marteinn Úlfur on 12-16-24
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Pax
- War and Peace in Rome's Golden Age
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- Narrated by: Tom Holland
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The Pax Romana has long been shorthand for the empire’s golden age. Stretching from Caledonia to Arabia, Rome ruled over a quarter of the world’s population. It was the wealthiest and most formidable state in the history of humankind. Pax is a captivating narrative history of Rome at the height of its power. From the gilded capital to realms beyond the frontier, historian Tom Holland shows ancient Rome in all its glory
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Great book!
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In the early 1970s, Britain seemed to be tottering on the brink of the abyss. Under Edward Heath, the optimism of the Sixties had become a distant memory. Now the headlines were dominated by strikes and blackouts, unemployment and inflation. As the world looked on in horrified fascination, Britain seemed to be tearing itself apart. And yet, amid the gloom, glittered a creativity and cultural dynamism that would influence our lives long after the nightmarish Seventies had been forgotten.
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I had no idea how bleak these times were in the UK
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Carry on, Britain!
- By Steven on 07-12-14
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The People's Post
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Story of the Fall of the republic told in a very lively manner.
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Pax
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What listeners say about The Great British Dream Factory
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Clare Winstanley
- 12-06-22
Nicely paced romp through modern day British culture
Very nicely paced overview of modern day British culture pulling on multiple levels and arcs with some strings pulled together very neatly throughout. If you are like me and cynical about John Lennons’ rank hypocrisy and his “impact” on the 60’s and 70’s then you’ll love Sandbrooks contrarian viewpoint and probably laugh out loud. Highly recommended.
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- Robert F. Jablon
- 05-24-16
THE JUNK FOOD OF POP HISTORY
What did you love best about The Great British Dream Factory?
Its chatty, gossipy anecdotes about cultural heroes. Also, David Thorpe's gung-ho narration, complete with dozens of voices (although all his Americans seem to talk like New York gangsters.
Would you recommend The Great British Dream Factory to your friends? Why or why not?
Absolutely. It's entertaining nostalgia with a dash of historical through-line to hold it together. Not much nourishment but very tasty.
Which character – as performed by David Thorpe – was your favorite?
Loved his Northern accents.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
DICKENS, H.G. WELLS, BLACK SABBATH: HOW BRITS CONQUERED THE WORLD!!!!
Any additional comments?
Sandbrook is always enjoyable, although there's much less serious research in this tome. Basically, Sandbrook argues that Britain has given the world an enormous trove of culture over the decades, from Dickens novels to "Downton Abbey" and that all of it embraces a handful of themes: historical nostalgia; public school tales; love-hate relationships with the class system, and the working-boy-makes-good story (there are virtually no women in the book). Sandbrook cherry-picks to make his case (after all, Japan could make the same case for cultural dominance with sushi, anime and "The Ring") but who couldn't like a book that mentions everyone from Margaret Thatcher to Harry Potter and "The Prisoner?" Unfortunately, and for no good reason, Sandbrook spends way too much time slagging John Lennon as a hypocritical narcissist (he also took a shot at Lennon in a previous book). It adds nothing to his thesis and comes off as petty. Overall, though, Nobody does pop history like Sandbrook.
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- James E. Pfeffer
- 12-04-24
Tour de Force
I adored Sandbrook’s audiobook. It was highly entertaining and fun. The narrator is absolutely incredible. The man’s ability to change accents is fabulous.
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- David Alexander McDonald
- 08-08-17
An Overdose Of Thatcherite Tubthumping
Is there anything you would change about this book?
Some serious editing, and get away from the bloody Tory twittering.
Would you ever listen to anything by Dominic Sandbrook again?
I don't think so.
Which scene was your favorite?
I couldn't really pick out a favourite chapter or section, as Sandbrook veered all over the place. Much of the book seems to have been focused on mocking and belittling various successful people, but as Sandbrook is a Daily Mail columnist, I shouldn't be shocked.
Was The Great British Dream Factory worth the listening time?
I honestly can't say it was. I'm rather tempted to make this my first return. I did enjoy the wok of narrator David Thorpe, though. But I will nto be listening to this again.
Any additional comments?
It's rather a bait and switch, as what you expect is a book about the creative history of Great Britain, and what you end up with is endless skewering of various targets and rather arse-licking praise of Margaret Thatcher. By the end I really didn't understand what the point of the book was -- to promote conservative ideology? Promote a return to Victorian times? To idol-worship Thatcher?
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- L. Peterson
- 06-03-18
not history
24 hours of unexamined prejudices, confirmation bias, and thoughtless male gaze. A few interesting facts, but this is not how history should be written in the 21st century. Old fashioned and ignorant.
Examples: A chapter reflecting on how Victorian and unfeminist Harry Potter is, not only ignoring the evidence that contradicts his opinion, but also ironically unaware of how his own book itself reinforces and celebrates patriarchy. Over an hour describing how hypocritical John Lennon was. Ten minutes objectifying Kate Bush then dismissing her as a one-off. A lengthy tribute to Doctor Who, mentioning in passing that it mostly attracts a male audience but attributing that to the sci-fi action rather than noticing how deeply sexist the show has been for decades. He even goes into great detail about one of the most racist episodes of all time (Talons of Weng Chiang) and doesn't mention how unwatchable it is due to the white actors in horrible Asian makeup with stereotyped accents.
I love Doctor Who and don't care one way or the other about John Lennon or Harry Potter, and even I can see that these aren't fair or accurate descriptions of these works or their significance to modern culture. The opposite of insightful.
It's not a history of the British imagination. It's an exposition of his own assumptions.
The reader's great, though. When he quotes real people, he actually reminds me of their real voices.
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