The Empire: 'Wonderful. A lifelong love letter to the theatre' Reverend Richard Coles

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I loved the feel of this book. It was a joy to listen to and was so effortless to slip into. It had some great characters, the plot was steady and entertaining and the whole thing just felt easy. Michael’s debut novel, The Empire, was published in Autumn 2022, and his first-ever autobiography, Different Aspects, is out in October this year. Amy Wadge hs released five solo albums, and co-written for Michael Ball, Camila Cabello, Jonas Brothers, Diana Ross, John Legend, Kasey Musgraves, Lauren Alaina, Lady A, Keith Urban, Joshua Bassett, Mika, Westlife and James Blunt. She also has a long-established writing partnership with Ed Sheeran, with their song Thinking Out Loud winning Grammy awards for “Song of The Year” and “Best Pop Solo Performance”. The Empire has all the qualities of a great piece of theatre, an interesting plot, characters that the audience (reader) can really relate to, romance, comedy and a suitably dramatic ending.

The Empire is described as: "Set in the early 1920s, The Empire tells the story of a fictional theatre of the same name in the north of England. Known as ‘the jewel of the north', it's a palace of dreams which holds a very special place in the nation's heart. But it's not all bright lights and encores and the actors are not the only ones donning a disguise…For there is treachery at the heart of The Empire Theatre and a dark secret waiting in the wings . . ." Olivier Award winning West End star Michael Ball is set to tour the UK next year, including dates at the Eventim Apollo in London, Manchester’s O2 Apollo and Cardiff’s St David’s Hall. While the criminal elements held no surprises it was still enjoyable to see the threads all unraveling. The added touch of romance was delightfully charming and definitely added to the story. Whilst I don't think it being written by such a well loved and respected all round entertainer {and reputedly one of the nicest people you could wish to meet} as Ball can do any harm, I genuinely thought The Empire a pleasant read.

The Empire is an accomplished debut. The story flows well and is written with warmth, feeling and wit, along with touches of romance. There are also darker moments, dirty dealings, tensions and secrets to uncover, but despite the unexpected and dramatic finale there’s no question of giving up.

Although the number of characters is formidable, if you can follow the many storylines in Downton Abbey, The Empire’s large cast is doable. The storyline does require concentration to keep all the pieces straight, and I’m not sure if I would have liked it quite as much if it hadn’t been for Michael Ball’s notoriety and entertaining narration. There is another theatre owner in town, Joe Allerdyce, who is desperately wanting to get his hands on the Empire. How far will he go? The plot takes the reader, and theatregoer in us, behind the curtain to the running of a theatre with its fair share of ups, downs and secrets. When I heard that the talented star of musical theatre Michael Ball, was writing a novel as seems to be the thing to do with so many celebrities, I was of course curious. With his lifetime of experience in this world he has sensibly chosen to use his vast knowledge of the theatre to produce this novel.A warmly told tale of theatre life, from the owners, behind the scenes crews, the stars of the stage and all the way to the delicious bad guy determined to bring down the curtain for good. A press statement describes the book as “part exploration of the pitfalls and pratfalls of modern theatre and part exploration of his life, his career and his relationships”, and describes the book as the story of a life lived on the stage. Musical theatre legend Michael Ball brings his trademark warmth, wit and glamour to this, his debut novel. The large cast of characters is slightly overwhelming, but happily there is a (very long) list to refer to. However, I soon became caught up in the story, following the fortunes of the cast, the theatre and the shows. I did wonder while reading whether Michael Ball had based some characters on people he knows and/or has worked with. I imagine it would have been hard not to do so but regardless, his love for the theatre and its people shines through.