If you’ve ever wondered what bestselling authors watch on TV or read in the bath, look no further. I’ve been asking some of today’s best-loved authors what their personal Top Tens are.
Deborah Wright’s Top Ten
Book – The English Patient, Michael Ondaatje
Film – Moulin Rouge
TV programme- Peep Show
Actor – John Malkovich
Song – Life On Mars by David Bowie
Quote – “No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.” Robert Frost
Holiday Destination – India
Animal – Cats, especially mine!
Dessert – Chocolate mousse
Pastime – Watching movies
Celebrity Mother is out now – click the cover to find out more…
Christina Jones’s Top Ten
Book – Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Film – Rear Window
TV programme- Coronation Street
Actor – Phil Davis
Song – Summer of 69
Quote – “We’ll talk of sunshine and of song and summer days when we were young; Sweet childish days that were as long as twenty days are now.”
Holiday Destination – Jersey
Animal – Cat
Dessert – Pavlova
Pastime – Reading
Moonshine is out now – click the cover to find out more…
Mike Gayle’s Top Ten
Book – The Wheels of Chance – HG Wells
Film – Gregory’s Girl
TV Programme – The Shield
Actor – Woody Allen
Song – Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want – The Smiths
Quote – “Sometimes I wish I was a check-out chick. But then again I guess check-out chicks have problems of their own.’ – Kylie Minogue.
Holiday Destination – New York
Animal – Rabbit
Dessert – M&S Melt in the middle Chocolate Pudding (with cream)
Pastime – Talking with good friends
New Book – click the cover to find out more…
Matt Dunn’s Top Ten
Book – Great Apes by Will Self
Film – When Harry Met Sally
TV Programme – Have I Got News For You
Actor – Halle Berry – though not for her acting ability
Song – Destiny by Zero 7
Quote – ‘It’s easy to make new friends, but a lot harder to make old ones’. Oscar Wilde
Holiday Destination – Madonna Di Campiglio – skiing
Animal – Baboon
Dessert – Tiramisu
Pastime – Tennis
The Good Bride Guide is out now. Click the cover to find out more…
Louise Bagshawe’s Top Ten
Book – Lord of the Rings
Film – Star Wars
TV programme- Inspector Morse
Actor – Tom Baker
Song – Photograph by Def Leppard
Quote – Veni, vidi, vici – Julius Caesar
Holiday destination – Manhattan
Animal – Border Terrier
Dessert – Italian Gelato
Pastime – Reading
Passion is out now. Click the cover to find out more…
Tilly Bagshawe’s Top Ten
Book – Rivals by Jilly Cooper
Film – Four Weddings and a Funeral
TV programme- Six Feet Under
Actor – Michael Kitchen
Song – Carolina in My Mind by James Taylor
Quote – On childhood, from The Mill on the Floss (George Eliot), Tom and Maggie remembering the days when they had: ‘clasped their little hands in love, and roamed the daisied fields together’
Holiday destination – Nantucket
Animal – Dog
Dessert – Hazlenut Souffle
Pastime – Sleep
Flawless is out now. Click the cover to find out more…
Katie Fforde’s Top Ten
Book – The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer
Film – Shakespeare in Love
TV Programme – Gavin and Stacey
Actor – Alan Rickman
Song – Summertime (Porgi and Bess)
Quote – ‘I have never seen a spade’ (The Importance of Being Ernest)
Holiday Destination – Dominica or Ireland
Animal – Dogs (or cats!)
Dessert – Trifle, made by me without jelly etc.
Pastime – Reading.
Love Letters is out now. Click the cover to find out more…
Carole Matthews’s Top Ten
Book – The Time Traveller’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
Film – Cabaret
TV Programme – 24
Actor – Keiffer Sutherland
Song – Appetite by Prefab Sprout
Quote – ‘Work as if you don’t need to, love as if you’ve never been hurt, dance as if no one is watching.’
Holiday destination – Maldives
Animal – Cat
Dessert – Chocolate ice-cream
Pastime – Reading.
The Difference a Day Makes is out now. Click the cover to find out more…
Kate Harrison’s Top Ten
Book – The Wedding Officer, Anthony Capella
Film – The Commitments
TV programme- Spooks
Actor – Matthew MacFadyen
Song – Anything sung by Dusty Springfield
Quote – Life is the combination of magic and pasta, of fantasy and reality – Federico Fellini
Holiday destination – Italy
Animal – Otter (or, for round the house, a tabby cat)
Dessert – Molten chocolate pudding
Pastime – Baking
The Secret Shopper’s Revenge is out now. Click the cover to find out more…
Lisa Jewell’s Top Ten
Book – The Colour of Money by Geoff Dyer
Film – Gregory’s Girl
TV programme- The Shield
Actor – John Cusack
Song – Time Will Pass You By by Tobi Legend
Quote – Youth is wasted on the young
Holiday destination – Italy
Animal – Lemur
Dessert – Chocolate cheesecake
Pastime – Reading
The Truth About Melody Browne is out now. Click the cover to find out more…
More top tens coming soon …
