From Publishers Weekly
Dubbed the "Queen of Mean," Robinson, host of the popular television game show The Weakest Link, is known as much for her icy demeanor, acerbic insults and severe appearance as for launching the ubiquitous, lilting catchphrase "good-bye." As Robinson lets down her seemingly impenetrable guard here, the only thing listeners may find familiar during the lengthy reading is her trademark clipped British accent and straightforward, flat delivery. She discusses her childhood with a fiercely independent, impatient mother she describes as "part monster, part magic" and a kind, passive father she's only come to fully appreciate after his death; then details the lessons and values of her upbringing that led to her ambitious nature and unrelenting desire for fame. In her 20s, she worked as a Fleet Street journalist, and in 1968 she married editor Charlie Wilson, but quickly realized she'd "misjudged a husband on a grand scale." Her recounting of their divorce and the ensuing custody battle over Robinson's only child results in long passages covering courtroom accusations of adultery, tales of her admitted alcoholism and the high emotional toll her loss of custody cost. But she lightens the tone when she speaks of breaking into radio and television, a successful second marriage and her eventual sobriety. It may be just hardcore fans who are willing to make the time commitment to this production they may also be the only ones who will be able to see Robinson in a sympathetic light. Simultaneous release with the Pocket Books hardcover. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Known as the "rudest woman on TV," Robinson was imported from Britain along with her show, The Weakest Link, as the latest entry in outrageous programming for prime-time American viewers. Her acerbic remarks and cutting putdowns are part of the draw that brings people back to watch this red-haired harpy, dressed all in black, week after week. With an amazing degree of honesty, here Robinson recounts the formative events of her life, which included a gentle but passive father and a domineering and determined mother who dragged the family into the wake of her unrelenting ambition for wealth and social position. To the author's credit, her mother instilled this same ambition and craving for fame and success in her daughter, along with a need for alcohol. In her 20s, Robinson became a Fleet Street journalist; in 1968, she married Charlie Wilson, who worked for the same publication, but he was on the male fast track to becoming an editor. What followed was an abusive marriage, her drinking, and a resultant custody battle with no holds barred. Along the way, Robinson shares her view of the 1960s, the women's movement, and the royal family, including the phenomenon of Princess Diana. The excruciating detail, pontificating assessment of the British monarchy, and the downright monotony of destructive behavior in one person's life make for a torturous listening experience. Only diehard fans of Robinson will find this even mildly interesting. Not recommended for smaller public libraries and a marginal purchase, at best, for larger ones. Gloria Maxwell, Penn Valley Community Coll., Kansas City, MOCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
Those who have met Anne Robinson through her TV series "The Weakest Link" will find her book and its narration to have a similar style, although her prior career as a ground- breaking journalist and editor may be news to many. Robinson shows little mercy in her writing or her reading as she recounts her mother's harsh and unforgiving idea of house and home. She gives herself no more slack in her examination of her early adult life, which was a rather smashing example of the difficulties that can flow from alcohol, particularly after losing custody of her daughter when an ambitious judge in the early '70s found her unseemly as a mother. Robinson's acerbic tone and style leave no doubt of the bitter pain that lies beneath her success. J.E.M. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Review
Allison Pearson bestselling author of I Don't Know How She Does It Like Robinson herself, a combustible mixture of ferocity and vulnerability.

New York Post Brilliant.

The Observer (London) This is no ordinary memoir....A crackling, unsentimental good read.... A book that revolutionizes the celebrity autobiography.


Review
The Observer (London) This is no ordinary memoir....A crackling, unsentimental good read.... A book that revolutionizes the celebrity autobiography.


Book Description
Anne Robinson learned early on that success in the male-dominated journalism industry came at a price -- and her daring, single-minded foray into that world wreaked havoc in her troubled marriage, a desperate struggle with alcohol abuse, and a sensational, highly publicized custody battle. Now, Britain's highest-paid female broadcaster, an outspoken, celebrated, and often controversial survivor -- best known to Americans as the notorious host of the television quiz show The Weakest Link -- opens up about her past, motherhood, feminist ideals, real life, and her miraculous, always-surprising relationship with her filmmaker daughter, Emma Wilson. "If I had been Bridget Jones's mother I would have put her on a diet and told her to get a decent haircut and a facial once a month." Theirs is a mother-daughter bond that has held them together through hardship and hilarity and phenomenal good fortune -- and was captured in Travels with My Unfit Mother, Emma's documentary of their drive across America. What is it like to grow up in the shadow of a celebrity mother? What is it like to see your gifted, independent daughter blossom in ways that remind you of yourself -- and ways in which you could not be more different? Anne Robinson considers these questions but asks many more -- in a sharp-eyed and moving account that speaks to all women.


Download Description
Who is Anne Robinson? She's the notorious grand inquisitor of the television sensation The Weakest Link. She's the first woman in nearly half a century to host a prime-time game show. She's the highest-paid female journalist in British history. She warrants fan mail and death threats, fear and loathing, unqualified admiration and unabashed hatred.... But what you don't know about the Host from Hell could fill a book. From pioneering journalist to overnight pop-culture phenomenon, Anne Robinson tells all with the same bar-nothing candor that won her the honor of "rudest woman on TV" (Britain's TVTimes). But now Anne Robinson trains her steely-eyed focus on her own past. With unblinking honesty she shares the events of her formative upbringing by a sensitive father and a driven, hardworking mother who was "part magic, part monster." With unreserved pride she reveals the headline-making battles to carve out her own career as a journalist, a controversial consumer reporter, and a BBC anchor -- a calling that took its toll on a troubled marriage and a sensational, highly publicized custody battle. And with biting humor, Anne Robinson explores what brought her to her latest level of infamy: the autocratic style, withering glance, and stinging lash of the lady in black, landing her in the unique position of being both the most popular and unpopular television personality in history. This is Anne Robinson. Are you game?

FROM THE PUBLISHER

She￯﾿ﾽs the notorious grand inquisitor of the television sensation The Weakest Link. She￯﾿ﾽs the first woman in nearly half a century to host a prime-time game show. She￯﾿ﾽs the highest-paid female journalist in British history. She warrants fan mail and death threats, fear and loathing, unqualified admiration and unabashed hatred￯﾿ﾽbut what you don￯﾿ﾽt know about the Host from Hell could fill a book! From pioneering journalist to overnight pop-culture phenomenon, Anne Robinson tells all-sharing the events of her formative upbringing, a career that took its toll on a troubled marriage and a sensational, highly publicized custody battle, and what exactly landed her the unique position of being both the most popular and unpopular television personality in history.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Dubbed the "Queen of Mean," Robinson, host of the popular television game show The Weakest Link, is known as much for her icy demeanor, acerbic insults and severe appearance as for launching the ubiquitous, lilting catchphrase "good-bye." As Robinson lets down her seemingly impenetrable guard here, the only thing listeners may find familiar during the lengthy reading is her trademark clipped British accent and straightforward, flat delivery. She discusses her childhood with a fiercely independent, impatient mother she describes as "part monster, part magic" and a kind, passive father she's only come to fully appreciate after his death; then details the lessons and values of her upbringing that led to her ambitious nature and unrelenting desire for fame. In her 20s, she worked as a Fleet Street journalist, and in 1968 she married editor Charlie Wilson, but quickly realized she'd "misjudged a husband on a grand scale." Her recounting of their divorce and the ensuing custody battle over Robinson's only child results in long passages covering courtroom accusations of adultery, tales of her admitted alcoholism and the high emotional toll her loss of custody cost. But she lightens the tone when she speaks of breaking into radio and television, a successful second marriage and her eventual sobriety. It may be just hardcore fans who are willing to make the time commitment to this production they may also be the only ones who will be able to see Robinson in a sympathetic light. Simultaneous release with the Pocket Books hardcover. (Nov.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Known as the "rudest woman on TV," Robinson was imported from Britain along with her show, The Weakest Link, as the latest entry in outrageous programming for prime-time American viewers. Her acerbic remarks and cutting putdowns are part of the draw that brings people back to watch this red-haired harpy, dressed all in black, week after week. With an amazing degree of honesty, here Robinson recounts the formative events of her life, which included a gentle but passive father and a domineering and determined mother who dragged the family into the wake of her unrelenting ambition for wealth and social position. To the author's credit, her mother instilled this same ambition and craving for fame and success in her daughter, along with a need for alcohol. In her 20s, Robinson became a Fleet Street journalist; in 1968, she married Charlie Wilson, who worked for the same publication, but he was on the male fast track to becoming an editor. What followed was an abusive marriage, her drinking, and a resultant custody battle with no holds barred. Along the way, Robinson shares her view of the 1960s, the women's movement, and the royal family, including the phenomenon of Princess Diana. The excruciating detail, pontificating assessment of the British monarchy, and the downright monotony of destructive behavior in one person's life make for a torturous listening experience. Only diehard fans of Robinson will find this even mildly interesting. Not recommended for smaller public libraries and a marginal purchase, at best, for larger ones. Gloria Maxwell, Penn Valley Community Coll., Kansas City, MO Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

AudioFile