Damaged Goods

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What to expect

Penguin Audio presents Damaged Goods written and read by Oliver Shah.

DISCOVER THE SHOCKING TRUTH BEHIND THE BUSINESS AND LIFESTYLE OF SIR PHILIP GREEN

In this jaw-dropping expose, Oliver Shah uncovers the truth behind one of Britain's biggest business scandals, following Sir Philip Green's journey to the big time, the wild excesses of his heyday and his dramatic demise.

Stunning praise for the book:

'A detailed and entertaining dismantling of the 'king of the high street'' Guardian

'Superb' Evening Standard

'From the glitzy parties to the threatening phone calls, the larger-than-life characters to the speedy downfall, this real-life tale of hubris has all the elements of a Greek tragedy' City AM

'Entertaining stuff, pacily written. Filled with colourful characters - and expletives' The Times

'Shah has written a hard-hitting, often funny, ultimately sobering tale of how fortunes were made and lost in late 20th and early 21st century Britain' Financial Times

The author:

Oliver Shah is the award-winning Business Editor of the Sunday Times who uncovered the methods Green used to amass his gigantic offshore fortune and the desperation that drove his doomed BHS deal. Shah was named business journalist of the year at both the Press Awards and London Press Club Awards in 2017 for his investigation into Sir Philip Green. He studied English at Cambridge University and journalism at City University before joining City AM in 2009 and the Sunday Times in 2010. Aged 34, Shah lives in east London.

Critics Review

From the glitzy parties to the threatening phone calls, the larger-than-life characters to the speedy downfall, this real-life tale of hubris has all the elements of a Greek tragedy. Either that or a James Graham box office hit
City A.M.
Superb. It manages to be both forensic and pacey. It's penetrating, but it's not unfair. If there is a benefit of doubt to be given, Shah gives it.
Simon English, Evening Standard
A sweeping, detailed colourful account of the rise and fall of the king of the UK's High Street, complete with a Dickensian cast of grifters, charlatans, flunkies, the odd dogged hero, and an irresistibly obnoxious protagonist. Shah has written a hard-hitting, often funny, ultimately sobering tale of how fortunes were made and lost in late 20th and early 21st century Britain.
Andrew Hill, Financial Times
Meticulously researched... it's entertaining stuff, pacily written. Filled with colourful characters - and expletives.
Ian King, The Times
Brilliantly researched and sensational. The book reads as though it is on speed: there are moments when Shah's narrative runs like a frantic James Bond script interspersed with moments of Shakespearean farce. There are times you have to prick yourself to remember that Green's wheeling and dealing is not fiction but what actually took place behind the closed doors of the High Street
Maggie Pagano, Reaction
A detailed and entertaining dismantling of the 'king of the high street'
Tim Adams, Guardian
A merciless, profanity-strewn dissection of the tumultuous career of UK retail tycoon Philip Green
FT & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award

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