Book Signing with Petula Clark - at Hatchards, Piccadilly

We are thrilled to welcome Petula Clark to Hatchards for a public book signing event for her new book Is That You, Petula?

About the Book

Petula Clark has had a life, and career, like nobody else. She has sung to wartime troops, been a 1950s British child star, become a European musical icon, and then conquered America with chart-topping singles such as ‘Downtown’. This international superstar of music, stage and screen has illuminated both major Hollywood movies and iconic stage musicals.

Along the way, Petula has sung to US presidents, dined with Frank Sinatra and watched him pull out a gun, danced through fields of cow dung with Fred Astaire, politely rebuffed Elvis Presley’s advances, and been one of thirteen maids of honour at Liza Minnelli and David Gest’s wedding… all dressed in black.

Yet, like everybody, her life has not always been easy. Petula talks candidly of a sometimes difficult childhood and troubled adolescence, and of a family life that was not always what it seemed. She reflects on learning the art of pretending that things are OK when they’re really not.

Why did John Lennon, at his legendary bed-in for peace with Yoko, ask ‘Is that You, Petula?’ The answer is just one of the many extraordinary stories in this honest, intimate, and unforgettable autobiography. Here is Petula Clark, a resilient and unique figure in popular culture, telling you her spectacular story, in her own words.

About the author

Petula Clark is a singer, actress and performer who has had the longest career of any British entertainer, spanning over eight decades. She first broke into the limelight as a child during WWII, singing to the troops on wartime radio and in concert, and then making many movies. After a string of hit records in the UK in the 50s, Petula followed her heart, and future husband Claude Wolff, to France, where she became that country’s most popular female vocalist, before going truly global when she topped the charts in the US in 1965 with ‘Downtown’. She has sold an estimated 100 million records globally and won two Grammy awards.

Petula has starred in Hollywood movies such as Finian's Rainbow alongside Fred Astaire and British film classic such as Goodbye, Mr. Chips, with Peter O'Toole. Her stage work – on both sides of the Atlantic – includes long-running, critically acclaimed performances in The Sound of Music and Sunset Boulevard. She was awarded a CBE in 1998 for her services to music and drama and she continues to perform. She lives in Geneva and London. This is her first, and only, book. As she says: Never again!