If you are on this site you are certainly interested in theatre and the live entertainment industry!
Here’s some books by Cliff Dix that you’ll like. Two fiction… one autobiographical. No entertainment orientated shelf should be without them! Buy them for yourself… great reads! (Or you could drop big hints to people that you’d like these books for your next birthday.)
“And Burnt The Topless Towers” is a novel, set in the backstage world of a theatre. Books set in theatres are rare. Books by authors with professional theatre experience are rarer still. This brings the ‘disaster’ fiction genre backstage!
An imposing hundred year old theatre.
A new musical on its pre West End tour.
A matinee performance.
A full house.
What could possibly go wrong?
You may never feel safe in a theatre again!
Reviewers say:-
…. gripping read. I couldn’t put it down as it hurtled towards its shocking climax!
“This is a wonderful read. And – if you have ANY experience of theatrical work – it should be a COMPULSORY read.
Entertaining? Without a doubt. I couldn’t put it down, and as a debut novelist Cliff Dix has managed to demonstrate that greatest ability of all good writers – spinning multiple threads which come together in the final chapters to complete a fine tapestry. It is a Jolly Good Read!”
“Do you like a nail biting movie that keeps you guessing ? If so, you’ll love this bravura piece of writing. It is a tremendous first novel that I read in two sittings. The build up is patient, painstaking and intricate. As we are gradually introduced to the ensemble cast, we are given hints and vague signposts of something ominous coming over the horizon. The suspense grows a little more with each turn of the page…. all the characters and previous ‘scene setting’ are skillfully brought together in a finale of epic proportions. All the loose ends are neatly tied up by a forensic author. Highly recommended to anyone, but even more so if you have a love of the Theatre.”
Available from Amazon as a paperback. Or search eBay and many international sellers sites.
is a prequel to “And Burnt The Topless Towers”, also set in the world of theatre. Buy ‘Theatre Wagon’
‘The suffocatingly closed world of a small scale theatre company, divided by animosities and differences, and a love triangle, as it tours schools, arts centres and theatres, changes unexpectedly. Can John Mason keep the cast of this show, that he despises, content? Is there a happy ending for him?
Available from https://www.amazon.co.uk/Theatre-Wagon-Cliff-Dix/dp/1399955632 as a paperback. Or any good on-line bookshop.
AND:-
“Up The Fire Escape And Through The Kitchens” is Cliff’s outspoken autobiographical look at some fifty years of the British entertainment industry (with some name-dropping, of course! And some unexpergated opinions on a selection of star names!). No holes barred.
Reviewers say:-
“A must read book for theatre lovers everywhere. Whether you are front of stage; back stage; in the audience, or just a theatre anorak, you will be enthralled by the tales in this far reaching biography of life behind ther footlights. If you are a whiskery ‘techy’ with solder burns, rope scars, and tinnitus, you will read this book nodding knowingly at every page. If you are a theatre goer you will be open mouthed that shows ever reach the stage in the first place – at least without multiple crew deaths from accidents, or murders of the management. If you are a well known artist – read with caution. Names are named… and not always complimentary. From back street ‘arthouse’ establishments to the biggest venues and names in the business – it’s all here. A fascinating read from start to finish.”
“An hilarious look at theatre goings on. Provided me with hours of laughter. Highly recommended, even if you know nothing about theatre & lighting.”
“Who but Cliff could manage not one but two anecdotes about Cheetahs in Birmingham Nightclubs? (My wife and son nearly wet themselves when I gave them the ad-libbed version. ‘Specially the second one!)”
Available from Amazon or search many international sellers sites too.
