Birmingham's Got Talent! Well, there can't be any question about that - a shopping centre that has always rivalled almost anywhere in existence, a manufacturing industry with a worldwide reputation andtheatres and cinemas in abundance.In this collection we have tried to show that, after the terribleevents of the forties, our city was busy replenishing and starting to flourish again - shops, factories and places of entertainment and, of course, the people. In the fifties shops played an enormous part in our lives as very few people had refrigerators and daily trips were a necessity. Politically the Conservatives held their ground from 1951 until 1964 when Labour came into its own. Musically the Beatles dominated the sixties and television finally burst into colour. So, there you are, in this, our 33rd Birmingham book, there are more wonderful items to enjoy. All proving, once and for all, that Birmingham has ALWAYS had talent!

Reality Shows. They may be all the rage on television at present but let's face it - the real reality is here! The minute you open the book you see life as it really was. The streets, and there are dozens of them, leaping out at you as true-to-life as ever. Much loved stars still topping the bill. Cars, that we now know have ceased to be manufactured, travelling along our highways. Factories, that haven't existed for years, were in the 60's proudly standing as if their lives and ours depended on them - and indeed they did. Here's a show bursting at the seams with more than 350 images and you can't get greater reality than that. Enjoy a decade which began - wait for it - over half-a-century ago.

Alton Douglas is back! Author of over fifty books, Alton once again trawls through his career as a professional comedian, scriptwriter, TV warm-up artiste, actor and trombonist, to produce a feast of anecdotes, jokes and stories in the same vein as his previous Entertaining Thoughts, Laughs in the Right Place and I Forgot to Tell You. With the emphasis on fun and entertainment, he presents another collection of the curious, humorous and downright strange happenings that have enriched his life, including behind-the-scenes stories of the nice and not-so-nice inhabitants of the world of show business.

The fifties was the decade that saw Birmingham getting back to its feet, shaking off the dust and demolition of the war years and slowly getting on with the business of "Life as normal". For that reason we've deliberately weighted the book in favour of the later years in order to show a brighter city. Digging deep, we've discovered quite a few rare items and, bearing in mind your comments, once again included dozens and dozens of those much-loved street scenes. Lots of firms jostle for position with their advertisements and we do hope that many of our 300+ images ring bells with you. It seems a miracle to me that so much photographic evidence of Birmingham's past still remains!