‘Joan Rhodes’s story is a colourful tale, full of grit and glamour: the strongwoman who entertained on the streets and in front of royalty.’ – Kate Adie With her hourglass figure and Marilyn Monroe looks, Joan Rhodes would leave audiences speechless as she bent steel bars with her teeth, ripped large phone books into quarters, and lifted two men at a time. And what she did was real. Joan had a superstrength, forged out of desperation to survive. Born into poverty in 1920s London and abandoned by her parents, Joan endured a spell in the workhouse and earned scraps busking on the streets. Despite the worst possible start, she made it to the top of her profession to rub sequined shoulders with the likes of Fred Astaire, Bob Hope and Sammy Davis Jnr. Joan’s crowning glory was to perform for the queen and Prince Philip at Windsor Castle, and along the way she forged lifelong friendships with Marlene Dietrich, Quentin Crisp and Dame Laura Knight, kindred spirits who lived as fearlessly as she did. Biographer Triona Holden met Joan in her later years. When Joan passed away, Triona set out to secure her beloved friend’s place in history. She appeared on the BBC television show The Repair Shop to tell the strongwoman’s story and sifted through archives to retrace her journey to stardom. Joan saw herself as a freak, but in truth she was a champion for the so-called fairer sex. Set at a time when most women were still groomed for marriage and motherhood, An Iron Girl in a Velvet Glove tells the fascinating and tumultuous story of a woman who followed her own unique path.

'Joan Rhodes's story is a colourful tale, full of grit and glamour: the strongwoman who entertained on the streets and in front of royalty.' – Kate Adie With her hourglass figure and Marilyn Monroe looks, Joan Rhodes would leave audiences speechless as she bent steel bars with her teeth, ripped large phone books into quarters, and lifted two men at a time. And what she did was real. Joan had a superstrength, forged out of desperation to survive. Born into poverty in 1920s London and abandoned by her parents, Joan endured a spell in the workhouse and earned scraps busking on the streets. Despite the worst possible start, she made it to the top of her profession to rub sequined shoulders with the likes of Fred Astaire, Bob Hope and Sammy Davis Jnr. Joan's crowning glory was to perform for the queen and Prince Philip at Windsor Castle, and along the way she forged lifelong friendships with Marlene Dietrich, Quentin Crisp and Dame Laura Knight, kindred spirits who lived as fearlessly as she did. Biographer Triona Holden met Joan in her later years. When Joan passed away, Triona set out to secure her beloved friend's place in history. She appeared on the BBC television show The Repair Shop to tell the strongwoman's story and sifted through archives to retrace her journey to stardom. Joan saw herself as a freak, but in truth she was a champion for the so-called fairer sex. Set at a time when most women were still groomed for marriage and motherhood, An Iron Girl in a Velvet Glove tells the fascinating and tumultuous story of a woman who followed her own unique path.

A completely redesigned issue of Daniel Clowes masterpiece of surrealistic and cinematic low-life drama which collects together all 10 chapters of Eightball's terrifying and fascinating journey into madness. As Clay Loudermilk attempts to unravel the mysteries behind a snuff film, he finds himself involved with an increasingly bizarre cast of characters. Clowes reputation as a graphic novel artist is renowned throughout the comic world, and he is set to reach a wider audience next year with the release of the film Ghost World, directed by Terry Zwigoff.

This book presents a concept of the role of police in society as basically repressive. The authors give a historical account of the rise of police from early slave patrols to the present to bolster their position that the police are a repressive force. Instances of police brutality and police control of demonstrators are examined. Technological advances and equipment to aid police departments are pointed to as examples in the police arsenal of repression. Police political surveillance is described, and private security police come under fire also for protecting corporate property and investments.

After returning to Fairyland, September discovers that her stolen shadow has become the Hollow Queen, the new ruler of Fairyland Below, who is stealing the magic and shadows from Fairyland folk and refusing to give them back.

They ruled the streets of London in the 1960s. Half a century later, Ronnie and Reggie Kray, unrepentant purveyors of violence and murder, hold more fascination than ever before. Portrayed as charismatic gangsters on the big screen, the saga of the twins, their firm and their thirty-odd years behind bars is one that is determinedly and deliberately embellished with every passing year. Yet it is only recently that the stark, unvarnished truth about the twins has started to emerge after being so cunningly concealed behind the façade of charitable deeds and East End loyalties. Bestselling author Jacky Hyams has carefully re-examined some of the stories, the lies and the myths to reveal a very different portrait of the twins and those closest to them. She reveals the complexity of their relationships and their closest bonds, and contests the police's belief that Ronnie Kray senselessly murdered 'one of their own'. Ronnie Kray is said to have described he and his twin as 'vicious, elegant bastards'. It is one of the few truths ever uttered by either of them.