'In his poignant, new book, Fathers & Sons, TV idol Richard Madeley reveals that he suffered physical abuse at the hands of his father, and talks openly about his failed first marriage, before finding love and fatherhood with Judy Finnigan. Richard was able to halt the pattern of violence that afflicted three generations of Madeley men, being an exemplary father to his own son, Jack' Woman 13/10 'Richard Madeley has entered the homes and hearts of millions of people. But Hannah Stephenson discovers a complex family history worthy of Dickens's most fantastical novels' Press Association 'The betrayal and abandonment of Madeley's grandfather when he was just 10 years old reads like the beginning of a Victorian melodrama and its ramifications echo down the generations, blighting the relationships between fathers and sons for nearly a century' Daily Express 10/10 'This isn't autobiography at all -- it's therapy. And after reading Geoffrey Madeley's story, a few theatrical anecdotes -- even one that involve James Bond's wee man -- seem rather tame' Celebrity Autobiography round-up, Sunday Times 12/10 'RICHARD'S HORRIFYING FAMILY SECRETS -- Richard Madeley has always been a cheerful chap, but behind his sunny exterior lies a sad family past' Bella 2/10 'Madeley's surprising book, Fathers & Sons, traces his family tree through the male line -- the silent betrayal of his great-grandfather Henry, the quietly repressed Geoffrey, his own loving but violent father, and finally Richard the journalist and television presenter who could talk for England and for whom nothing is a no-go area. As much as anything, the books is a reflection of how times have changed, from a Britain that bordered on the feudal, to the buttoned-up 50s, to the emotional incontinence of today' Guardian Magazine 4/10 'On screen, it's often the puppyish, gullible part of his persona that so riles his critics. But his swift and magnanimous pardoning of his father, detailed in the book, show a real inner strength and grace' The Scotsman 'One of the most unusual and well-written celebrity memoirs we've ever read' Boyd Hilton, Heat Magazine 25/10 'A surprisingly skilled writer...he constructs a very personal and touching view of how families develop through the generations' Independent 15/11 'Lost love, abandonment, abuse and thwarted dreams -- it's all here in the TV presenter's account of four generations of Madeley men. Most moving is the grandfather's tale: he awoke one day to find his entire family had emigrated to Canada without him, leaving him as payment for their passage. Madeley lays to rest the family ghosts -- and there are many -- in this penetrating memoir. Gosh, the man can write' Daily Mail, Books of the Year 28/11 'A soapy account of four generations of Madeleys that spans a century and the Atlantic Ocean. His grandfather... was heartlessly left behind when his family emigrated to Canada. His fluke of a reunion with his brothers during the First World War is straight out of the movies. Richard, the future chat-show host, doesn't appear in shot until page 148, but he tells his story vividly and fluently' Christmas Books, Sunday Telegraph 30/11 '[Madeley's] book is good by any standards. He would probably have sold more copies had he gone down the autobiographical route, so he deserves credit for attempting instead an ambitious, almost novelistic interweaving of his father and grandfather. Small anecdotes, such as Madeley's childhood discovery of a trunk containing a jar of foil "money" made by his great-uncle, who died at the age of four and whose name was never spoken - "don't mention John" - contain a wealth of poignancy' Christmas Books, Daily Telegraph 29/11 'Lost love, abandonment, abuse and thwarted dreams 0 it's all here in the TV presenter's account of four generations of Madeley men. Most moving is the grandfather's tale: he awoke one day to find his entire family had emigrated to Canada without him, leaving him as payment for their passage. Madeley lays to rest the family ghosts - and there are many - in this penetrating memoir. Gosh, the man can write' Christmas Books, Daily Mail 28/11 'Richard Madeley has at least proved he can write. Fathers & Sons is a candid and moving portrait of his relationship with his father and his own children' Xmas Gifts, Express 19/12 'Madeley's memoir, Fathers and Sons, was also published in paperback last week. In it, he discloses the hardships that have blighted three generations of Madeley men. His grandfather was abandoned as a 10-year-old -- the rest of his family emigrated to Canada without telling him -- a traumatic event that would ultimately lead to the eight-year-old Madeley being beaten by his own emotionally stunted father' Sunday Telegraph 10/5 'Richard Madeley is in control of the reader's emotions from the start of this book...Compulsive and moving' Evening Standard 21/5 'Richard and Judy are often patronised. Yet, the best written and most dramatic celebrity memoir published last year was not by Dawn French or Paul O'Grady, who topped the bestseller lists, but by Richard Madeley, who didn't. His is a riveting story of cruelty perpetrated by three generations of fathers on their sons - starting with a 10-year-old son abandoned as his family emigrates to Canada - and ending with Madeley's own, who beat him mercilessly' Telegraph 30/5 'Madeley is a cracking storyteller. Here, he tells us about his grandfather, who was abandoned by his family, and his father, who was sporadically violent. Madeley tracks the damage through the generations; it's compulsive and moving' 'Summer's Best Paperbacks', Evening Standard 9/7
