Pan Mac wins Elton John's autobiography

Pan Macmillan has acquired Sir Elton John's autobiography alongside sister company Henry Holt in New York, for publication worldwide in 2019.  

Pan Macmillan m.d Anthony Forbes Watson and publisher Jeremy Trevathan at Pan Macmillan, along with Stephen Rubin, president and publisher, and Gillian Blake, editor-in-chief, at Holt, jointly acquired world English rights from Andrew Wylie of the Wylie Agency.

The book will be the first and the only official autobiography of the multiple Grammy-winning international singer-songwriter. It is being written by Sir Elton with writer and music critic Alexis Petridis as a "no holds barred account" of his life and work.

It was tipped to be one of the hottest properties ahead of the Frankfurt Book Fair, with the advance predicted to "certainly eclipse seven figures”.

Elton John said: "I'm not prone to being a nostalgic person. I'm often accused of only looking forward to my next gig or creative project. It's come as quite a surprise how cathartic I am finding the process of writing my memoirs. As I look back, I realise what a crazy life I have had the extreme privilege of living.  I have grown up in a period of extraordinary change in our world - and have had the joyful honour of rubbing shoulders and working with so many of the people at the heart of these changes. My life has been one helluva rollercoaster ride and it's still lumbering on. I hope readers will enjoy the ride too."

Forbes Watson said: "Elton's life transcends classification and his wildly readable, deeply human story will speak to anyone and everyone, everywhere. We look forward to working alongside our close colleagues at Holt to make Elton the biggest worldwide publishing event of 2019."

Trevathan, publisher for Macmillan UK, added: "Elton John's memoir is a Holy Grail of book publishing. Publishers around the world have long contemplated the excitement and potential of such a wonderful project. When the material arrived we were overwhelmed by how authentic, open, charming and, yes, commercial it was. I'm more than proud that we will be working with Elton and David to bring out this fantastic book."