Weidenfeld & Nicolson snaps up a new volume of diaries by Michael Palin

Weidenfeld & Nicolson has snapped up a new volume of diaries from Michael Palin, and publication will coincide with a new UK theatre tour this autumn.

Jenny Lord, executive publisher, acquired world rights from Mayday Management PS Ltd. There and Back: Diaries 1999-2009 will be published in hardback, trade paperback, audio and e-book on 26th September 2024.

"With a Hemingway travel project testing his confidence, doubts creeping in about his abilities as a writer, the death of his great friend George Harrison and the last of his children leaving home, the dawn of the twenty-first century sees Michael at his most reflective yet," the synopsis says. "With the warmth and gentle empathy that have endeared millions of fans to him over the decades, Michael documents the day-to-day detail of living in a world buffeted by such powerful winds of change.  And amidst this turbulence, one thing remains constant: Michael’s irrepressible curiosity and thirst for adventure." 

Publication will coincide with "There and Back – The Diary Tour 2024", which will begin on 15th September in Norwich and travel to cities across the UK, before culminating at London’s Cadogan Hall on 15th October. The book campaign will also see the author doing further events with bookshops and festivals through the autumn.

Lord said: "Michael’s diaries are always a treat — warm, wise and witty, and marked with a great sense of curiosity about the world we live in — this new volume is no exception. As the century turns, we see Michael in a more reflective mood, grappling with a life spent on the move, turning sixty and becoming a grandfather for the first time, along with some major world events."

Palin added: "There and Back is the fourth collection of my diaries and the first to be released for ten years. Lots of fun as I go through the Noughties, and some dark times too. I constantly surprise myself with the sheer amount I took on."