Mr Foote's Other Leg
12 September 2013Synopsis
In 1776 Foote's was the most talked-of name in the English-speaking world. By 1777 it was almost unmentionable. Samuel Foote, friend of David Garrick and Dr Johnson, is the greatest lost figure of the eighteenth century; his story defies belief and has only been forgotten for reasons both laughable and shocking. Foote wrote the first true-crime bestseller, was the first...
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12 September 2013
9780330517843Reviews
'I thought this was an exceptionally entertaining book about an extraordinary man. Foote was clearly an extraordinary character even by the standards of Georgian London and one cannot help but feel that if he had not actually existed it would have been necessary to invent him. Kelly gives us a vivid and graphic portrayal of this one-legged satirical genius and the dangerous and compelling world that he inhabited, from the court to debtors' gaol. Highly recommended.'
Catharine Arnold, author of Bedlam: London and its Mad
'Kelly's perceptive wit, and interest in his densely theatrical material, makes him an ideal biographer for this pint-size peacock . . . Foote's imprint deserved uncovering.' Sunday Telegraph
‘Dazzling . . . Kelly is a master at recreating atmosphere and making the reader feel he is living alongside the book’s subject’ Daily Express
'[In this] uproarious account of Foote's career . . . Kelly handles theatrical rumour and apocrypha with great care' Guardian
