Alan Bennett's fourth collection of diaries: poignant, funny, contemplative, as he records life personal and political in his singular voice

20 September. Have a notion for a radio series - Awkward Conversations.
Enough Said is Alan Bennett's fourth collection of diaries and prose. Covering the turbulent years 2016 to 2024, the diaries take us through lockdown, Brexit, the reign of Johnson, the rise of Trump and the death of the Queen. In between, we take the train with him back and forth to Yorkshire, celebrate the herons, the newts and the street fairs, and lament the scarcity of curlews, the closure of the last local bank and the deteriorating welfare state. There is the premiere of Allelujah!, the revived Talking Heads, the publication of two Sunday Times bestsellers and the filming of The Choral. 2024 is the year that Alan turns ninety; he reflects on old age and the importance of luck. He looks back to childhood and recalls an idyllic wartime month as an evacuee. A book for the bedside, this is poignant, funny, contemplative Alan Bennett, as he records life both personal and political in his most distinct of voices.

Details

ISBN13: 9781805228981
Format: Hardback
Number of Pages: 464
Edition: Main
Publication Date: 31 Mar 2026
Publisher: Profile Books Ltd
Publication City, Country: London, United Kingdom
Dimensions (cm): 23.8(H)x16.2(L)x4.2(W)867
Weight (gm): 867

Author Biography

Alan Bennett's works of prose include House Arrest, Keeping On Keeping On, Writing Home and Untold Stories (PEN/Ackerley Prize, 2006). His fiction includes The Uncommon Reader, Smut: Two Unseemly Stories and Killing Time. His celebrated work for the stage and screen include Talking Heads, Forty Years On, The Lady in the Van, A Question of Attribution, The Madness of George III, an adaptation of The Wind in the Willows, The History Boys, The Habit of Art, People, Hymn, Cocktail Sticks, Two Besides and Allelujah!

Reviews

A legend of British letters * Financial Times *
Alan Bennett is our greatest living writer * Daily Mail *
In an age of curated self-belief, his vulnerabilities feel refreshing, his reticence almost radical... we are left with the bracing consolation of a mind that has never stopped doubting, never stopped observing, never stopped quietly, stubbornly climbing the stairs * The Times *
Alan Bennett has definitively arrived at the status of public institution... against the societal upheaval of this period, Bennett provides a welcome unsentimental deflation of political grandiosity... The eclecticism of this collection ultimately charms * Irish Times *
Nostalgia, shame and gossip from Alan Bennett ... A man for all seasons * Guardian *
These warm recollections are welcome and very charming... What remains a pleasure is Bennett's relish of the spoken language, both recalled and current * Spectator *
Homely and scabrous, cosy and sardonic, waspish and humorous ... Don't believe the title: Enough Said will surely not be the last we hear from Alan Bennett * Literary Review *
Terrific. He's always been witty. Occasionally he's wise. It's a winning compound * Telegraph *
It's time to address the paranormal forcefield around Bennett, which means we always see him as Wry National Treasure Alan Bennett, Britain's cultural equivalent of a much loved elderly spaniel. In reality , however, Bennett is not fluffy and has spent decades telling us this -- Caitlin Moran * The Times *
Its eclectic entries reveal a mind that remains inquiring deep into the brambles of old age. Whether writing about hymns or the comedy of Stewart Lee, the judgments are dependably sharp * New European *
So accustomed are we now to Bennett's prose that it takes a mental leap to notice just how good he is, how finely tuned his sentences, the microscopic power of his observation * iNews *
Hopefully Enough Said isn't the full stop its title implies - but if it is, it's a wonderful way to bow out * buzz *