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The Great British Dream Factory
- The Strange History of Our National Imagination
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 23 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Arts & Entertainment, Art
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Summary
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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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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- D. Menashy
- 20-07-16
"Dem Bones, Dem Bones, Dem Dry Bones"
Everything in culture is connected; "Toe bone connected to the foot bone" etc...
As I was born in 1956, the cultural phenomena discussed within this audiobook resonates very strongly. It was most pleasurable to stroll thorough my own and Britain's recent cultural roots. Brilliantly narrated by David Thorpe, who renders remarkable impersonations of the myriad characters quoted, from Lennon & McCartney (of course) to Thatcher, Kinnock and my fave impersonation, a wonderful Brian Walden.
From the "angry young men" of the 50s to Billy Elliot, by way of James Bond and Flashman, doubling-back to HG Wells and Tolkien then fast-forwarding to The Buddha of Suburbia and JK Rowling, each section is a delight. I'm no huge Damian Hirst fan but found even that chapter entertaining and enlightening. The changing music scene is ever-present in the background and groundbreaking TV series such as The Prisoner also get extensive coverage, (hence my review title...).
I've put all the other Dominic Sandbrook Audible titles in my library (also read by Thorpe) and can't wait to get rattlin' Dem Bones....
14 people found this helpful
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- Teeden
- 22-05-19
Absorbing in parts, so so in others.
After hearing his books revolving around politics in the 1970's, I was really looking forward to this. However, although it was ok, it didn't match the enjoyment and interest of the other two. Fewer laughs too I felt. Perhaps concentrating greatly on a small number of authors, musicians, etc in each chapter, some of which I weren't really familiar with and didn't enjoy if I did, was what made it harder work to complete. Superbly narrated even though the content didn't allow the range of impressions but he's so good at, to be displayed.
3 people found this helpful
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- SirChutney
- 01-08-20
An engaging overview of Britain's popular culture
To put it simply, no country on earth, relative to its size, has contributed more to the modern imagination. There is, however, one area in which we can claim superpower status: our popular culture.
Britain has been in gradual decline since 1945. With the Empire gone along with our manufacturing base, we have compensated by engaging the energy and ingenuity that made the Victorians great to the creative arts. This is a book about the considerable success and the possible 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. We've exported them lucratively around the world.
Sandbrook has a knack of restating hardly original ideas in a way that strikes you as if you’d never heard them before. Heartily recommended.
1 person found this helpful
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- Adrian B
- 11-06-19
Duller Than Ditchwater
I’ve read Dominic Sandbrook’s other books, and enjoyed them, so I thought I’d try this one on Audible. Mistake. The narrator manages to make what is probably an interesting subject too boring for words.
Terrible.
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- mark west
- 02-08-22
Never do the accents
I could not get past the first chapter so bad was the narration.
It started promisingly enough, but then the impersonations started and I cringed so hard I almost fell out of my chair. Wincingly bad and toe curlingly awful, never do the accents....was really looking forward to listening to this book so I could pretend that I had read it, afterall, it is a bona fide a shelf classic.
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- Mike
- 08-03-22
Very enjoyable.
I needed a break from serial novels and autobiographies and this quite long slice of mostly modern history seemed a good choice. Once I started listening, I was hooked. The writing was exactly what I'd expect from Dominic Sandbrook and the main reason I felt in good hands with a 23 hour book to digest. However, the narrator David Thorpe is perfect for this type of book, in that you feel like you're on a long car journey with the perfect travelling companion who is chatting to you rather than reading to you. Must look up the next book in the series!
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- Eddie Green
- 25-10-21
The mask slips
I've loved his other books, this was ok but Sandbrook reveals himself as a bit of a stuffy Tory- his grasp of art sadly fails to match his grasp of history and some of his reactionary views - which he takes no trouble to hide- are embarrassingly narrow minded - JK Rowking and John Lennon fans you have been warned
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- Anonymous User
- 16-08-21
Stretched school essay
I have enjoyed Dominic Sandbrook's frothy nostalgia trips to the recent past to analyse pop culture. For a walk-through commentary on Channel Four or Five retrospectives about the recent past he is ideally suited. However, this volume illustrates quite starkly just how he manages to be so prolific. It is almost entirely composed of excerpts, quotes and reviews of the work of others - linked, in most cases by his very certain opinions - without justifying or explaining them.
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- Steve Wright
- 23-02-21
Not one of Sandbrooks best
I have read most of his UK recent history books and found them all entertaining; this one was less so. Too much made of recounting content of popular literature rather than providing insight; lazy writing/researching/journalism in my opinion. That said, his style is easy to listen too. This one is just not one of his best.
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- Mooms4u
- 27-05-20
Interesting book
Well narrated, held interest until the end .Learned some interesting facts about people who have shaped British culture
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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?
1 person found this helpful
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- L. Peterson
- 03-06-18
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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- Robert F. Jablon
- 24-05-16
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.