THE BOOK FOR PEOPLE WHO LIKE HISTORY BUT DON'T CARE WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED

This radical reappraisal of human history will change the way you look at the past. In this expansive yet abridged volume, academic pariah and pseudo-historian Fin Taylor re-writes the human story, from the Big Bang to the Second Plane (minus all the stuff we can skip in between).

Reader, you are looking at the entire story of humanity, abridged and edited by myself - Fin Taylor, Historian.

Interest in history is at an all time high, but in the midst of this gold rush my fellow academics have lost sight of why. What is it about the past that sets pulses racing? Is it really the “structural homophobia of Victorian Architecture?” Or is it the sadistic exploits of a madman with medals strapped to his chest? Is 1066 even important? Or is it, in fact, mere inspiration for the Francosphere’s largest tea towel?

From Henry VIII to Hitler via Cromwell, Caligula and Colonel Gaddafi, this new thesis is a radical reappraisal of the human story, featuring only the exciting bits like naval battles or war crimes. Because what is history if not entertainment for middle-aged men looking to escape the drudgery of their own domesticity?

Ground-breaking and entirely unsupervised, The History of Mankind in Its Entirety (Abridged) will teach you everything you need to know about the good old days – minus the boring stuff.

'Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it, half remembered. Fin Taylor is one of those people.’ Al Murray, comedian and author of Arnhem: Black Friday

'I deplore this book and wish its author ill.’ Dominic Sandbrook, author and host of The Rest is History podcast

© Fin Taylor 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026