Frankie Boyle writes A Short History Of The Apocalypse

ExclusiveWednesday 21st February 2024, 8:25am by Jay Richardson

Frankie Boyle has written a guide to the end of the world, coming out at Christmas
A Short History Of The Apocalypse is co-written with New World Order scribe Charlie Skelton and features illustrations by comic book artist Frank Quitely
"We're just finishing the first draft of A Short History Of The Apocalypse, really looking forward to being involved in one of the most misguided Christmas book launches of all time" Boyle wrote on social media

Frankie Boyle is publishing a guide to surviving the end of the world ... for Christmas!

A Short History Of The Apocalypse has been co-written with his regular collaborator and New World Order scribe Charlie Skelton, and is set in "a grotesque and bizzarro future where society has collapsed and it is everyone for themselves. Well, maybe not so bizarre then ..."

Published on 7th November by John Murray Press, which also put out Boyle's debut novel Meantime in 2022, the 320-page book features illustrations by comic book artist Frank Quitely, whose work includes New X-Men and All-Star Superman.

"We're just finishing the first draft of A Short History Of The Apocalypse, really looking forward to being involved in one of the most misguided Christmas book launches of all time" Boyle posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Covering subjects from gangs and government to bunkers and cannibalism, the book is described as "a journey into our impending and doomed future", full of "dark humour and the macabre", a blueprint for "overcoming this hellscape".

Readers are guided by Alonso Lamp, "a traveller in time, who has returned from the late 21st Century to impart to our cursed age his hard-earned wisdom and survival tips to give us some future perspective."

Meantime, a comic crime novel set in the aftermath of the 2014 Scottish Independence referendum was critically acclaimed, with the Observer describing it as "an enjoyably dark and entertaining tranche of Glasgow novel" and the Telegraph likening the prose to Raymond Chandler's.

Skelton, whose other credits include Have I Got News For You and Death To 2021, has written for several of Boyle's television shows, including his documentaries Frankie Boyle's Tour Of Scotland and Frankie Goes To Russia.

A Short History Of The Apocalypse is the seventh book that the comedian has published, including his 2009 autobiography My Shit Life So Far and a 2018 collection of his Rex Royd graphic novel, co-written with Mike Dowling.

Boyle, who has just launched the dark comedy podcast Here Comes The Guillotine, featuring him in conversation with fellow Glaswegian comics Susie McCabe and Christopher Macarthur-Boyd, resumes his Lap Of Shame stand-up tour at the Theatre Royal in Brighton on Saturday.

A Short History Of The Apocalypse is available to pre-order now:

Frankie Boyle & Charlie Skelton - A Short History Of The Apocalypse

By Frankie Boyle and Charlie Skelton

A Short History Of The Apocalypse imagines a grotesque and bizzarro future where society has collapsed and it is everyone for themselves. Well, maybe not so bizarre then . . .

Covering subjects from gangs and government to bunkers and cannibalism, A Short History Of The Apocalypse is a journey into our impending and doomed future. Guided by Alonso Lamp, a traveller in time, who has returned from the late 21st Century to impart to our cursed age his hard-earned wisdom and survival tips to give us some future perspective, Frankie Boyle and Charlie Skelton's sketching of the end times is full of dark humour and the macabre.

Featuring exclusive illustrations by legendary comic book artist Frank Quitely, A Short History Of The Apocalypse is your guide to overcoming this hellscape.

First published: Thursday 7th November 2024

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