Splash!

'I thoroughly enjoyed Splash! It's a delicious confection of excellent plotting, an inventively bonkers cast of characters, subtle insights into the world of newspapers and a satisfying ending which invokes the great Evelyn Waugh's masterpiece, Scoop. A fine comedy of manners by a writer who knows the media inside out' BEL MOONEY

Sam Blunt is a drunken, broken-down tabloid reporter, working for a once-mighty newspaper struggling to come to terms with the digital age.

With the assistance of Benedict, an earnest though clever wet-behind-the-ears young intern on the paper, Sam grapples to uncover the story of the century which reveals the political corruption and cynicism at the heart of a rotten Establishment.

As they try to nail the story amid a series of capers, Sam and Benedict are frustrated by the self-serving proprietor of the Daily Bugle, various self-appointed do-gooders who want to rein in the Press, and Trevor Yapp, the malign and untrustworthy editor of Bugle Online.

Splash! is a satire of the Press and politics in a modern London peopled by a Chinese billionaire would-be press proprietor, a worldly bishop, neglected immigrants, a corrupt and plaintive Prime Minister, and journalists who are often most interested in doing one another down.

Yet however self-serving newspapers may sometimes be, Sam and Benedict are ultimately on the side of the angels as they battle to write their triumphant story.

Long-listed for Authors' Club Best First Novel Award 2018 (UK)

“Utterly brilliant and irresistible”

I would recommend it to anyone without reservation . . . very funny

A proper novel - something that journalists don't always manage to write. Society hostesses, billionaires, bishops, a newspaper baron, MPs, journalists noble and scurrilous: modern London life is there, fully realised

Potentially Splash! could do more for restoring public confidence in newspapers than sanctimonious leader articles from big publishers . . . Splash! might also remind owners and editors [of newspapers] of the public good they can do when at their best - The Independent

Written in Waugh's style, Splash! imitates his practice of giving characters expressively comic names . . . Glover clearly enjoyed writing it and I enjoyed reading it . . . Glover's novel is an apologia for tabloid journalism and a celebration of its role in exposing corruption among the elite - New Statesman

Both a terrific romp through the indiscretions, dodgy deals and Establishment stitch-ups of our times, and an invaluable reminder of just how vital the Press is in holding power to account - Daily Mail

Veteran insider's sharp, timely satire on the newspaper business - Daily Mail

Splash! has the pace and wit of Tom Sharpe at his Porterhouse best and the mournfulness of Michael Frayn's Towards the End of the Morning . . . captures the thrill of the newsroom - Standpoint

Stephen Glover was co-founder of The Independent and the founding editor of The Independent on Sunday. He has worked as a columnist for the Evening Standard, Daily Telegraph, Spectator and Independent, and now writes a column for the Daily Mail and the Oldie. He is the author of Paper Dreams, about the founding of The Independent, and was editor of The Penguin Book of Journalism. Two of his short stories have recently been published by Amazon Singles.

'I thoroughly enjoyed Splash! It's a delicious confection of excellent plotting, an inventively bonkers cast of characters, subtle insights into the world of newspapers and a satisfying ending which invokes the great Evelyn Waugh's masterpiece, Scoop . A fine comedy of manners by a writer who knows the media inside out' BEL MOONEY Sam Blunt is a drunken, broken-down tabloid reporter, working for a once-mighty newspaper struggling to come to terms with the digital age. With the assistance of Benedict, an earnest though clever wet-behind-the-ears young intern on the paper, Sam grapples to uncover the story of the century which reveals the political corruption and cynicism at the heart of a rotten Establishment.As they try to nail the story amid a series of capers, Sam and Benedict are frustrated by the self-serving proprietor of the Daily Bugle, various self-appointed do-gooders who want to rein in the Press, and Trevor Yapp, the malign and untrustworthy editor of Bugle Online. Splash! is a satire of the Press and politics in a modern London peopled by a Chinese billionaire would-be press proprietor, a worldly bishop, neglected immigrants, a corrupt and plaintive Prime Minister, and journalists who are often most interested in doing one another down.Yet however self-serving newspapers may sometimes be, Sam and Benedict are ultimately on the side of the angels as they battle to write their triumphant story.

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