Boris Johnson Inks Deal for Shakespeare Biography

By Maryann Yin 

435_200_Ask_Boris_1Boris Johnson, the mayor of London and a renowned author, has signed a deal with the United Kingdom-based publishing house, Hodder. Johnson plans to write a biography on the famous playwright, William Shakespeare.

The Sunday Times reports that Johnson (pictured, via) will receive £500,000 for this project. The publisher plans to release the book in October 2016. At this point in time, it is unclear as to whether or not a United States company will release an American edition.

Here’s more from The Bookseller: “Last year Johnson authored a biography of Winston Churchill, The Churchill Factor, for Hodder. It has sold 187,568 copies through Nielsen BookScan, for a value of just over £2.6m so far. The book will coincide with the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death. Other books marking the anniversary include a series of retellings of some of Shakespeare’s most famous plays by authors including Jo Nesbø, Jeanette Winterson, and Edward St Aubyn, published by the Hogarth Shakespeare.” (via The Telegraph)