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Hodder & Stoughton scoops D-Day book by Churchill experts
Hodder & Stoughton has commissioned Churchill’s D-Day from Churchill expert Allen Packwood and General Lord Dannatt, a former chief of the General Staff of the British Army and chairman of the Normandy Memorial Trust.
Non-fiction publisher Rupert Lancaster acquired British Commonwealth rights from Gordon Wise at Curtis Brown acting for Allen Packwood and Churchill Heritage, and Charlie Viney at The Viney Agency acting for Lord Dannatt. The book will be published in hardback, audio and e-book in May 2024.
Next year marks both the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy and the 150th anniversary of the birth of Winston Churchill himself. Published on this occasion, the book will take readers through the decision-making for the planning and execution of D-Day.
Lord Dannatt said: "It’s been fascinating to work with Allen Packwood and the Churchill Archives. The access to key documents and letters from the Churchill Papers allows us to tell the inside story of the conception, planning and execution of the D-Day landings in an original and exciting way. It’s worth remembering that the road to victory led directly from the beaches of northern France to Berlin and the liberation of Europe."
Packwood, who is also responsible for the holdings at the landmark Churchill Archives Centre in Cambridge, added: "This book reveals Churchill’s thinking and places his decisions in the wider historical context, showing he was instrumental in securing the success of D-Day, by making sure it occurred in the right way and at the right time – while Richard Dannatt’s strategic insights illuminate the documents and bring events to life."
Lancaster said: "Richard and Allen are a dream team. Original, illuminating and gripping, Churchill’s D-Day is narrative history at its best. It feels absolutely right that we should mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings and the 150th anniversary of the birth of Churchill with a book which brilliantly combines original research with military insight."
