Coronet hits the high notes with Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s debut

Coronet will publish Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s debut Spinning Plates, offering “part memoir, part musings” and “how to navigate life in the face of failure and imperfection”. It follows the singer's regular 'Kitchen Disco' performances online throughout lockdown. 

Hannah Black, publisher at Coronet, acquired world all language rights from Millie Hoskins at United Agents in Spinning Plates: Thoughts on Music, Motherhood and Men. It will be published in hardback, e-book and audiobook in October 2021. 

“Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s kitchen discos became a source of much needed escapism, catharsis and sequined joy for a swathe of the population during lockdown,” the Hodder & Stoughton imprint said. “From knackered mothers and fed up fathers, to cooped up partiers with nowhere to go, Sophie’s gloriously chaotic Friday kitchen performances have cheered and revived us.

“Now Sophie is bringing that same mixture of down to earth candour and optimistic sparkle to her first book Spinning Plates. Part memoir, part musings, Sophie will write about the conjuring act of adulthood and motherhood and how her experience of working while raising her five sons has given her the inescapable lesson of how to navigate life in the face of failure and imperfection." 

It will explore “relationships, good enough parenting, the importance of delusion and dancing”, as the musician writes about “the things that take on greater importance as life becomes more complicated”. 

“From the non-negotiables (solitude, music, glitter) to the unimportant (clean hair, deadlines, appropriate behaviour), this is a book about learning from our experiences and not being afraid to smash a few plates for the sake of what we actually need want and value,” according to the publisher. 

Ellis-Bextor became known as a vocalist on DJ and producer Spiller's number one single "Groovejet" and for her worldwide hit "Murder on the Dancefloor". She released her first solo album in 2001 and as a singer and songwriter she has released five further studio albums. In 2020, her regular 'Kitchen Discos', performed at home during lockdown with her five sons and recorded by her husband, musician Richard Jones, watched by millions globally on YouTube, Coronet said. Her greatest hits, "Songs from the Kitchen Disco", was released in 2020 to critical acclaim, along with her podcast on parenting, "Spinning Plates". She is set to tour again in 2021. 

Ellis-Bextor said: “Throughout my life I’ve spun (and dropped) many a plate, but probably never more so than now. Here are my thoughts on life as I know it, love as I’ve felt it and music as I’ve made it. All leading up to the present day which sees me often singing around the kitchen with my husband and our five kids.” 

Black said: “We’re delighted to be publishing Sophie’s first book this autumn. Sophie has been a glitterball of hope and joy for so many during this past year. From her soul-restoring kitchen discos, to her total self-possession in the face of children, chaos and lockdown limbo, she has shown that life can and should be made up of all aspects of ourselves whatever plates we may be spinning. Written with her trademark humour and no nonsense honesty.”