Authors [ M ]
Sean Moncrieff,
Author of Stark Raving Rulers, God A User's Guide
Sean Moncrieff began his media career working for RTE, where he has written and presented a number of television and radio shows. On radio, he has worked on It Says In The Papers and The Right Side and as a contributor to The Arts Show, The Marian Finucane Show and A living Word. On television, his credits include The End, Good Grief Moncrieff, Black Box, Don’t Feed The Gondolas, Ireland Undercover, The Restaurant and most recently HQ – The Holiday Quiz. He was also a guest presenter on the Jack Docherty Show on Channel 5.
Sean now hosts the 2-4pm slot daily on Newstalk 106FM, a Dublin radio station which is about to go national. As well as writing a weekly column for The Irish Examiner, he also happily rents himself out as a voice-over artiste to promote a number of high-quality goods and services, all of which he thoroughly believes in.
Sean Moncrieff lives in Dublin . He is married and apparently has four children.
Books
Stark Raving Rulers
An extraordinary novel brimming with love, passion, deep sadness and hope.
How much trouble is Mark Thatcher really in?
Should the world care if the King of Swaziland chooses his 13th wife?
Could China attack North Korea ?
The answers to these and many other questions are contained in Stark Raving Rulers: a series of profiles of twenty of the world’s most ruthless dictators.
Written by writer and broadcaster Sean Moncrieff, and based on a highly successful series of reports originally broadcast on the Marian Finucane Show, Stark Raving Rulers: Twenty Minor Despots Of The Twenty-First Century brings us to the forgotten and ignored parts of the world, where men inherit entire countries from their families, or blatantly rig elections to stay in power.
Like latter-day Roman Emperors, these men rule according to their whim. But not only are they ruthless: most of them are completely crazy
Uzbekistan , where political opponents are boiled to death.
Cameroon , where the President intervenes in the national football team selection.
Belarus , where rather than divorce his wife, the President had her arrested.
North Korea , where Kim Il-sung is still President – despite the fact that he’s been dead for ten years.
Mauritania , where slavery is still widely practised.
Equatorial Guinea , where the President claims to be in permanent contact with God.
Turkmenistan , where the President re-named Tuesday after his mother.
Libya , where Colonel al-Qadhafi threw five million dollars out the window of his car.
All of these dictators are fascinating characters. While they all share a ruthlessness, their personalities differ wildly: from the coldly messianic to the downright odd. Sometimes hilarious, sometimes horrific, Stark Raving Rulers not only introduces us to parts of the world often overlooked by the media, but also gives a vivid picture of the cynical world of international politics: where oil and gas are usually more valuable than human lives, and where the western world readily turns a blind eye to the most gruesome abuses.
Despite the fall of the Eastern Bloc and talk of the ‘international community’, Stark Raving Rulers vividly demonstrates that in terms of political oppression, the world hasn’t got any better, only different.
“Moncrieff's brand of understated sarcasm and his keen eye for the preposterous mean this is a decent and lively read”. – www.oxegen.ie
God A User's Guide
“Ethiopians, not Jews, are the real chosen people”
“All religions are the same ”
These are not conspiracy theories – but the genuine beliefs of some of the world’s major religions. In God: A User’s Guide, broadcaster Sean Moncrieff reveals the truth behind the history and development of the twenty largest religions, including Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Atheism and Juche, in his own unique lively and wry style.
In the name of religion, millions have been killed and millions have been saved. Political dynasties have been built on the back of religious belief, or been destroyed because of them. The history of religion is one of tyranny, betrayal, sacrifice, generosity and faith: where the same ‘facts’ have often brought believers to dramatically different conclusions.
From religions which have a multiplicity of Gods, to religions which have no God at all, God: A Users’ Guide is a compelling and entertaining insight into the “World’s Top Twenty Religions” and how they came into being.
“If you bought the ‘Da Vinci Code’ and hated it, you’ll love this ”
Sean Moncrieff