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Reloaded – The Good, The Bad & The Rugby
The Highs. The Heartbreaks. The Hangovers.
The Personal. The Vulnerable. The Downright Absurd.
IT'S TIME TO RELOAD.
As was widely predicted, our first book, The Good, The Bad & The Rugby – Unleashed, did not win a Pulitzer Prize. It did, however, scoop Sports Entertainment Book of the Year at the 2025 Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Book Awards (and sold quite a lot of copies), so here we are again, back for a sequel.
What more have we to say? It’s a fair question. Hask can mine more new material from a trip to the supermarket than most people can from an entire lifetime – and you won’t be surprised to learn that he hasn’t just been hanging around Asda since our last book came out. He recently turned 40, he’s been through much personal turmoil, he’s done an awful lot of DJing – and he’s had a lot of arguments. Expect much of that, and even some thoughts on rugby, in the following pages.
As for Tins, you’ll find out about his early days in rugby, how he had to fight to make it, what he thinks of the state of the game, and his plans to get it back on track. Meanwhile, Alex will tell you all about his career in broadcasting, from making (‘disgusting’) tea and coffee, and presenting some of the greatest rugby matches in history, to getting binned by Sky.
We should end by begging you to pardon our previous flippancy. It was, of course, lovely to win that award, as well as very surprising. In fact, The Good, The Bad & The Rugby will never stop surprising us, and its continuing success is largely down to you – our wonderful listeners, viewers and now readers. We do hope you enjoy what follows and that you keep coming back for more.
Winners of the Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Book Awards 2025 Sports Entertainment Book of the Year, for their previous book The Good, The Bad and The Rugby – Unleashed.
The Personal. The Vulnerable. The Downright Absurd.
IT'S TIME TO RELOAD.
As was widely predicted, our first book, The Good, The Bad & The Rugby – Unleashed, did not win a Pulitzer Prize. It did, however, scoop Sports Entertainment Book of the Year at the 2025 Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Book Awards (and sold quite a lot of copies), so here we are again, back for a sequel.
What more have we to say? It’s a fair question. Hask can mine more new material from a trip to the supermarket than most people can from an entire lifetime – and you won’t be surprised to learn that he hasn’t just been hanging around Asda since our last book came out. He recently turned 40, he’s been through much personal turmoil, he’s done an awful lot of DJing – and he’s had a lot of arguments. Expect much of that, and even some thoughts on rugby, in the following pages.
As for Tins, you’ll find out about his early days in rugby, how he had to fight to make it, what he thinks of the state of the game, and his plans to get it back on track. Meanwhile, Alex will tell you all about his career in broadcasting, from making (‘disgusting’) tea and coffee, and presenting some of the greatest rugby matches in history, to getting binned by Sky.
We should end by begging you to pardon our previous flippancy. It was, of course, lovely to win that award, as well as very surprising. In fact, The Good, The Bad & The Rugby will never stop surprising us, and its continuing success is largely down to you – our wonderful listeners, viewers and now readers. We do hope you enjoy what follows and that you keep coming back for more.
Winners of the Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Book Awards 2025 Sports Entertainment Book of the Year, for their previous book The Good, The Bad and The Rugby – Unleashed.
313 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 6, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 15, 2025
Reposted from CB Book Reviews on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/DREwDjbjO...
The Good, The Bad & The Rugby: Reloaded is the second book to be released by James Haskell, Alex Payne and Mike Tindall, the creators and hosts of one of my favourite podcasts, The Good, The Bad and The Rugby.
In their first book, the trio told the story of how the podcast came together, including details of their rebrand from the original ‘House of Rugby’ title under Joe Media company, and the ensuing court cases. They also amused readers with tales from their experiences at the last two world cups, and their live tour.
‘This time it’s personal’ is the promotional slogan for this second book, and it is accurate.
Podcast Host and ‘The Good’, Alex Payne, uses the opportunity of this book to provide the reader with a brief autobiography, moving swiftly from his first experiences of rugby, through school at Eton, University in Edinburgh and his journey through Sky Sports and back out of the other side. I have to say that I enjoyed Alex’s chapters and understanding more of his Rugby/Career journey to where he is today. In one of his final entries he discusses that he thinks this summers Lions Tour of Australia may well be his last outing as a Sky Sports TV presenter which I personally feel would be a real shame.
As ‘The Bad’, James Haskell, has already released two autobiographies he couldn’t necessarily use this book for the same opportunity as Alex to the same degree. Instead Haskell provides some insight into his more recent life events, such as the loss of his father, his own experiences of fatherhood and some amusing stories from his recent 40th birthday celebrations, all delivered in his usual comical style.
‘The Rugby’, Mike Tindall, somewhat takes Alex’s lead and also uses this book to provide the reader with a brief run down of his journey into Rugby, including fleeting details about his transfer from Bath to Gloucester. The book finishes with James and Mike attempting to sell the vision for R360, the new franchise league that has been leaked during its design phase.
This book is split into short chapters that generally rotate amongst the three authors, discussing a new top/part of their journey with each new chapter. This makes the book feel quite fast paced, helping to keep the reader engaged and meaning that once again it is an enjoyable, easy and entertaining read.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DREwDjbjO...
The Good, The Bad & The Rugby: Reloaded is the second book to be released by James Haskell, Alex Payne and Mike Tindall, the creators and hosts of one of my favourite podcasts, The Good, The Bad and The Rugby.
In their first book, the trio told the story of how the podcast came together, including details of their rebrand from the original ‘House of Rugby’ title under Joe Media company, and the ensuing court cases. They also amused readers with tales from their experiences at the last two world cups, and their live tour.
‘This time it’s personal’ is the promotional slogan for this second book, and it is accurate.
Podcast Host and ‘The Good’, Alex Payne, uses the opportunity of this book to provide the reader with a brief autobiography, moving swiftly from his first experiences of rugby, through school at Eton, University in Edinburgh and his journey through Sky Sports and back out of the other side. I have to say that I enjoyed Alex’s chapters and understanding more of his Rugby/Career journey to where he is today. In one of his final entries he discusses that he thinks this summers Lions Tour of Australia may well be his last outing as a Sky Sports TV presenter which I personally feel would be a real shame.
As ‘The Bad’, James Haskell, has already released two autobiographies he couldn’t necessarily use this book for the same opportunity as Alex to the same degree. Instead Haskell provides some insight into his more recent life events, such as the loss of his father, his own experiences of fatherhood and some amusing stories from his recent 40th birthday celebrations, all delivered in his usual comical style.
‘The Rugby’, Mike Tindall, somewhat takes Alex’s lead and also uses this book to provide the reader with a brief run down of his journey into Rugby, including fleeting details about his transfer from Bath to Gloucester. The book finishes with James and Mike attempting to sell the vision for R360, the new franchise league that has been leaked during its design phase.
This book is split into short chapters that generally rotate amongst the three authors, discussing a new top/part of their journey with each new chapter. This makes the book feel quite fast paced, helping to keep the reader engaged and meaning that once again it is an enjoyable, easy and entertaining read.
August 17, 2026
Reloaded – The Good, The Bad & The Rugby by James Haskell, Mike Tindall & Alex Payne is an entertaining follow-up to The Good, The Bad & The Rugby – Unleashed. The book mixes rugby stories, personal experiences, humour and plenty of the banter that fans of the podcast will recognise.
What works best is the chemistry between the three authors. Haskell brings his usual larger-than-life personality, Tindall offers an interesting perspective shaped by his playing career, while Payne provides a more measured voice. Their different personalities give the book a natural conversational feel, making it easy to read.
The personal sections add some welcome depth, particularly when the authors reflect on their careers, challenges and life beyond rugby. It also strikes a good balance between humour and more serious moments. There is plenty of humour, outrageous storytelling and self-deprecating banter, which keeps the pace moving.
The main weakness is that some sections feel more engaging than others. Readers who already follow the podcast will probably get the most from it, while those unfamiliar with the trio's style may find some of the humour and references less effective. It also occasionally feels like a companion piece to the podcast rather than a completely standalone book.
Overall, Reloaded is a fun, honest and easy-going sports read. It isn't trying to be a serious examination of rugby; instead, it succeeds as a collection of stories about rugby, friendship, life and the personalities behind the game. Rugby fans and podcast followers should find plenty to enjoy.
What works best is the chemistry between the three authors. Haskell brings his usual larger-than-life personality, Tindall offers an interesting perspective shaped by his playing career, while Payne provides a more measured voice. Their different personalities give the book a natural conversational feel, making it easy to read.
The personal sections add some welcome depth, particularly when the authors reflect on their careers, challenges and life beyond rugby. It also strikes a good balance between humour and more serious moments. There is plenty of humour, outrageous storytelling and self-deprecating banter, which keeps the pace moving.
The main weakness is that some sections feel more engaging than others. Readers who already follow the podcast will probably get the most from it, while those unfamiliar with the trio's style may find some of the humour and references less effective. It also occasionally feels like a companion piece to the podcast rather than a completely standalone book.
Overall, Reloaded is a fun, honest and easy-going sports read. It isn't trying to be a serious examination of rugby; instead, it succeeds as a collection of stories about rugby, friendship, life and the personalities behind the game. Rugby fans and podcast followers should find plenty to enjoy.
May 8, 2026
Really it's a 2, but I got it free at a podcast so a definite bonus star for that.
It's a series of unrelated articles, mainly focused upon the three hosts of the show as opposed to anything in-depth or insightful about rugby.
It's fine. Easy to read and some interesting moments but it's not, nor ever tries to be, a great work.
It's a series of unrelated articles, mainly focused upon the three hosts of the show as opposed to anything in-depth or insightful about rugby.
It's fine. Easy to read and some interesting moments but it's not, nor ever tries to be, a great work.
March 26, 2026
2nd book in the series so probably missed the juicy bits
August 2, 2026
Still fun, but fading novelty
Always readable, and fun to catch up on the presenting trios evolving interests, but fewer laugh out loud moments and stories.
Always readable, and fun to catch up on the presenting trios evolving interests, but fewer laugh out loud moments and stories.
March 9, 2026
Loved this book!!
The perfect non-fiction read which bad me chuckling throughout.
The chapter about Hasks dad really resignated with me & the loss of my nan.
My only criticism is how much it jumps about a bit from person to person but I really did enjoy.
The perfect non-fiction read which bad me chuckling throughout.
The chapter about Hasks dad really resignated with me & the loss of my nan.
My only criticism is how much it jumps about a bit from person to person but I really did enjoy.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews