Parting Shots. Undiplomatic diplomats - the ambassadors' letters you were neverr meant to see

Parris, Matthew. and Andrew Bryson

ISBN 10: 0670919284 / ISBN 13: 9780670919284

Published by Viking / Penguin, London, 2010

About this Item

First edition, first impression with '1' on copyright page. DOUBLE SIGNED, WITHOUT DEDICATION, ON TITLE PAGE BY CO-AUTHORS MATTHEW PARRIS AND ANDREW BRYSON. Some very very slight creasing to top of spine, not price clipped (£16.99), no other inscriptions, internally clean tight and square, overall an excellent copy, looks almost unread. 386pp, illustrated. When leaving a foreign posting, Britain's ambassadors were encouraged to write a valedictory despatch until the practice was abolished in 2006. Unlike the usual style of the diplomatic bag, these last reports from foreign posts were unbuttoned, indiscreet and often very funny. There was much settling of scores, some poking fun of foreigners, a degree of moaning about the privations of Embassy life - and sometimes a bit of serious analysis too. Based on a very successful BBC radio series, Matthew Parris, who once worked for the Foreign Office and had the task of distributing the despatches, and Andrew Bryson have compiled an always entertaining and frequently hilarious volume of the best of them. Scarce signed.

Seller Inventory # 003750

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Parting Shots. Undiplomatic diplomats - the ambassadors' letters you were neverr meant to see
• Publisher: Viking / Penguin, London
• Publication Date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0670919284
• ISBN 13: 9780670919284
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Illustrations by M. H. Jeeves
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: As New
• Dust Jacket Condition: As New
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

Matthew Parris's Parting Shots is a treasure trove of wit, venom and serious analysis. Up till 2006 a British Ambassador leaving his post was encouraged to write what was known as a valedictory despatch, to be circulated to a small number of influential people in government. This was the parting shot, an opportunity to offer a personal and frank view of the host country, the manners and morals of its people, their institutions, the state of their cooking and their drains. But it was also a chance to let rip at the Foreign Office itself and to look back on a career spent in the service of a sometimes ungrateful nation. Combining gems from the archives with more recent despatches obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, Parting Shots sheds light on Britain's place in the world, revealing the curious cocktail of privilege and privation that makes up the life of an ambassador. 'Wonderful ... a glimpse of that lost world of private eloquence and erudite candour' Matthew d'Ancona, Evening Standard 'Unbuttoned, indiscreet and very funny' Yorkshire Post Matthew Parris had a short career in the Foreign Office where one of his tasks was to distribute incoming valedictory despatches. He was a Conservative MP from 1979 to 1986, since when he has worked as a journalist. He is the author of A Castle in Spain, Parting Shots, and A Spanish Ambassador's Suitcase. He divides his time between Derbyshire (where his old constituency was situated) and east London.

About the Author

Matthew Parris had a short career in the Foreign Office where one of his tasks was to distribute incoming valedictory despatches. He was a Conservative MP from 1979 to 1986, since when he has worked as a journalist. He won the Orwell Prize for Journalism, and his acclaimed autobiography Chance Witness was published by Penguin in 2002. He divides his time between Derbyshire (where his old constituency was situated) and east London. Andrew Bryson is a radio journalist working in the BBC's Business and Economics Unit. He lives in Surrey.