Announcements

Biteback Publishing has acquired Julian Lloyd Webber’s 'explosive, no-holds-barred autobiography, lifting the lid on the life of a globally renowned classical musician' which 'reveals a cut-throat world of agents, promoters, record companies, violin dealers and substance abuse'.

Olivia Beattie, Editorial Director at Biteback, acquired world rights directly from the author. Beattie said: "Having worked with Julian on his insightful book on the great Pablo Casals, everyone at Biteback was thrilled when he came back to us with this utterly candid memoir. Its flow, its lyricism, its humour and its honesty make it an incredible page-turner."

From vivid descriptions of Julian’s childhood in one of the world’s most famous musical dynasties to unfiltered stories from his collaborations with such stars as Elton John, Yehudi Menuhin, Stéphane Grappelli, Philip Glass, and his brother, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Bows and Arrows reveals a cut-throat world of agents, promoters, record companies, violin dealers and substance abuse, laying bare the classical music profession as never before.

With refreshing honesty and humour, Julian recounts the break-up of three of his four marriages, his lifelong passion for ensuring that every child should have a chance to play a musical instrument and his devastation at the 2014 injury that forced him to stop playing and sell his Stradivarius cello. 

This earth-shattering loss, however, led to a new calling, prompting Julian’s appointment as principal of a leading royal conservatoire and his re-emergence as a tireless champion of music education, working closely with politicians including Gordon Brown, Michael Gove and Boris Johnson. Culminating in Julian’s return to the stage for the first time in twelve years, this is a powerful story of passion, loss and a life reborn.

Julian Lloyd Webber is one of the leading musicians of our time. As a solo cellist, he played with the world’s greatest orchestras and recorded with legends including Yehudi Menuhin and Elton John. He won the Classical Brit Award in 1978 and his album Variations won a gold disc within five weeks of its release.

In 2008, he founded the UK government’s In Harmony programme, facilitating access to music for children from less privileged backgrounds. Julian was the only classical musician chosen to play at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games. In 2015, following his forced retirement due to injury, he was appointed principal of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, a role he held for five years.

In April 2026, Julian will return to the stage for a celebratory gala at London’s Wigmore Hall to mark his 75th birthday. 2026 will also see the release of Jasmine – Julian’s first recording for twelve years, inspired by his fourteen-year-old daughter – together with a 75th birthday collection, both on Decca Records.

Lloyd Webber said: "I am delighted to continue my relationship with Biteback at this exciting moment in my life!"

Bows and Arrows will be published on 7 April 2026 as a £22 hardback, supported by a major publicity campaign.

Biteback Publishing has signed Have I Said Too Much?, an autobiography by Iain Dale, which offers 'a rare, honest look at failure, imposter syndrome and the art of broadcasting'.

Olivia Beattie, editorial director at Biteback, acquired world English rights from Gordon Wise at Curtis Brown, and it will be out on 15 July.

In the book, Dale recounts his journey from driving a combine harvester at age eight to driving the national
conversation on LBC. He also reflects on coming out at age forty, coming to terms with his thwarted political
aspirations, and the phone-ins that have made him ‘the friend they’ve never met’ to millions. The book is 'the ultimate insider’s guide to the corridors of power and the pressures of the studio. Whether he’s nearly throwing up on Margaret Thatcher, coming to blows with senior MPs or accidentally calling the Archbishop of Canterbury something less than pious on live radio, this is Iain Dale off-air and unfiltered'.

Iain Dale presents the evening show on LBC Radio and is a regular contributor to Good Morning Britain, Question
Time and Newsnight. His podcasts include Where Politics Meets History and the award-winning For the Many. He is a regular columnist for the Telegraph, the Evening Standard and the i paper, and has written or edited more than fifty books. He is a visiting professor of politics and broadcasting at the University of East Anglia.

Dale said: "You only get one chance of writing an autobiography, and I’m delighted that my old firm Biteback have
taken it on. It is very much warts and all and includes all the various scrapes I’ve been involved in, as well as telling what it’s really like to be a radio presenter. The whole book is anecdote-tastic and is designed to entertain. I don’t flinch about possibly going into too much detail about certain aspects of my life, hence the title of the book. I can’t wait for it to appear in July and to promote the hell out of it throughout the summer and autumn."

Beattie said: "Everyone at Biteback has missed Iain enormously since he stepped down as MD in 2018, so it feelslike a wonderful homecoming to be welcoming him back with this very personal memoir. This is trademark Iain, with all the right ingredients – his candour and raw emotion and sense of humour – and we’re really looking forward to sharing it with a wider audience."

Biteback Publicity Director Suzanne Sangster is set to retire in January 2026 after more than ten years with the company. She started her career at Blackwell Central Marketing and has worked for a number of other publishers including Reed Children’s Books, DK and Head of Zeus, as well as spending a few years at Midas PR. She first joined Biteback in 2010 for four years and then returned in 2018.

Described by Charles Moore as Britain’s leading political publisher, Biteback publish across current affairs, sport, history, politics, social and economic issues and beyond, achieving a series of Sunday Times bestsellers in recent years.

Sangster said: ‘I have been privileged to have enjoyed such an interesting career over the past forty years. I have loved my time working at Biteback with so many fascinating authors, and I have been very lucky to work with a small but wonderful and dedicated team of colleagues, who have made the job so much fun. I am looking forward to starting a new chapter next year.’

Olivia Beattie, editorial director at Biteback, said: ‘Suzanne has made an invaluable contribution to Biteback’s growth, leading standout campaigns that helped us consistently punch above our weight in securing coverage for our authors. Along the way, she’s juggled everything from the mammoth undertaking of running the Political Book Awards to shielding in-demand authors from the paparazzi. We’ll miss her enormously – not least her warmth, her sense of humour and her support for the whole team – but we look forward to seeing her enjoy a very well-deserved retirement.’

Suzanne’s last day with Biteback will be 14 January 2026. Until then, she will be available on suzanne.sangster@bitebackpublishing.com or 07818 810173. After retirement, she can be contacted on suzannesangster29@gmail.com.

Biteback Publishing has acquired a unique insiders’ guide to money laundering, addressing the failure of current regulations to tackle the problem, by George Cottrell and Lawrence Burke Files.

Money laundering is as old as money itself – and yet the laws designed to prevent it are as ineffective as they ever have been.

Today’s anti-money laundering (AML) regulations were designed to eliminate profits from drug trafficking and combat tax evasion, terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction. However, the modern laws have done little to stop crime and have instead significantly increased the regulatory burden on legitimate businesses and consumers. As one banker at an AML conference quipped, ‘This does not stop money laundering; it just enables those in the know to charge more.’

Indeed, AML laws have laid the foundations for massive and sophisticated criminal enterprise support services that help criminals evade detection.

How to Launder Money: A guide for law enforcement, prosecutors and policymakers offers a peek behind the veil to see the bent levers of finance and how they are pulled. It also examines how many who have pulled them, including one of the authors, have ended up behind bars. While acknowledging the challenges faced by law enforcement in a borderless world, it also provides concrete recommendations on how to reduce the crime associated with money laundering.

The criminals already know how to launder money; this is, in part, their inside story. This book is for the rest of us, who want to know how the laws that are supposed to protect us from crime are in reality doing more damage than ever before.

George Cottrell is a British financier and political strategist. In 2016, at the Republican National Convention, he was arrested on allegations of a money-laundering conspiracy. He now runs Geostrategy.com, advising political parties and governments globally. All his proceeds from the book will be donated to charitable causes.

Lawrence Burke Files is an international financial investigator, due diligence expert and instructor who has handled cases in over 130 countries. He brings his practical investigative and problem-solving experience to his lectures on due diligence, AML, finance, risk management and anti-corruption. Prior to founding FE&E, Inc., he served as the director of corporate finance for investment bank American National. He is the author of the award-winning book Due Diligence For The Financial Professional, 2nd Edition.

Biteback acquired world rights direct from the authors.

In a joint statement, the authors said: ‘The current AML regime, despite decades of refinement, detects less than 1 per cent of illicit financial flows. This is not just a legal or financial failure; it is a total systemic governance failure. Indeed, most bankers now refer to the all-too-common AML fines as a spank tax. In this accessible book, we aim to show the general public how it’s possible for a few hundred million to go missing without a trace, why the current jungle of overregulation has no impact whatsoever on criminal money laundering, and how it can be replaced with simple, targeted interventions to effectively tackle financial crime.’

How to Launder Money will be published in February 2026, supported by a major marketing and publicity campaign.

Price: £25 hardback                                                                                       

ISBN: 9781837360406

For more information please contact Suzanne Sangster on suzanne.sangster@bitebackpublishing.com or 07818 810173

Biteback Publishing has launched the search for its next Managing Director, as Publisher James Stephens announces his departure later this summer.

Described by Charles Moore as ‘Britain’s leading political publisher’, Biteback has carved out a distinctive position in the publishing world, achieving a series of Sunday Times bestsellers in recent years. The company releases 50-60 books a year across current affairs, politics, sport, history, social affairs and beyond. Having joined Biteback at its founding in 2009 as Sales and Marketing Manager, Stephens rose through its ranks to lead the business.

Mark Wallace, Board Director at Biteback Publishing and CEO of parent company Total Politics Group, said:

“We are immensely grateful to James for all he has achieved in a remarkable 16 years at Biteback. Under his leadership, the company has grown to become profitable, discovered new authors and chalked up a series of bestsellers. Driven and imaginative leadership is key to charting a distinctive and productive course as an independent publisher. We’re sorry to see James leave but eager to build on his success as we recruit the person who will lead the Biteback team to even greater things.”

James Stephens said:

“It has been a pleasure working at Biteback over the years. I can honestly say that no two days have been the same, and I have had the privilege of working with truly fascinating people and their books. I will miss my authors and my wonderful colleagues, but I’m hugely reassured to be leaving behind a group of extremely talented individuals and an ambitious Board of Directors and parent company that are determined to drive Biteback on to greater heights. I'm leaving to take up an exciting new opportunity, which will be announced soon.”

For full details of the Managing Director role, and to apply, click here: https://totalpoliticsgroup.bamboohr.com/careers