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Delia
does it again
Across
our book and video publishing there were individual successes
in all genres. Delia Smith's new television series, Delia's
How to Cook, made a major impact on the nation and the
accompanying book exceeded even our high expectations. It
has so far sold a million copies, contributing to a total
of ten million Delia/BBC cookery books sold over the past
20 years.
We also
published major new cookery titles by Rick Stein, Sophie Grigson
and Ken Hom. History was another successful book genre, with
titles such as Michael Wood's In the Footsteps of Alexander
the Great and Julian Richards' Meet
the Ancestors. In video we had a wide range of new comedy
titles in the autumn, including the award-winning Fast
Show Live, and we extended our range of contemporary drama.
Other
business interests
This year
the UKTV family of channels earned revenues of £51m
and is performing to plan. The fifth channel, UK PLAY, was
launched in October 1998 (see Channels
and partnerships). Broadcasting Dataservices increased
turnover and profits by 20%. BBC Haymarket Exhibitions
maintained its position as the UK's biggest organiser
of consumer shows. Frontline Ltd remains the country's
leading magazine distribution company.
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