Why Are You Here, Mrs Hamilton?: The Post Office Scandal and My Extraordinary Fight for Justice

by Jo Hamilton, Alan Bates (Foreword)

The inspirational memoir from Jo Hamilton, and winner of the Speakies award for non-fiction

With a foreword from Sir Alan Bates

'Jo is an inspiration'—Monica Dolan, who played Jo in the ITV drama, Mr Bates vs The Post Office

'My first big discrepancy came in the shape of a £2,000 shortfall that just made no sense at all. Of all the things that kept me awake once in the thick of the nightmare that unfolded, it was being stuck in that truly incomprehensible moment where the mere touch of a button suddenly turned £2,000 into £4,000 within three minutes on that cold December night in 2003.'

Jo Hamilton was one of more than 700 sub-postmasters prosecuted between 2000 and 2014 based on information from the Post Office's faulty Horizon accounting system. She was told to put right a wrong she hadn't committed and pushed to the very brink of her existence - remortgaging her house, borrowing from anyone she could in order to repay money that she hadn't taken, and questioning her own sanity.

Immortalised in ITV smash hit drama Mr Bates v The Post Office, this is Jo Hamilton's extraordinary first-hand account of how she built a Post Office that was at the very heart of her community and lost it all through no fault of her own. For the first time, beyond the headlines and the corridors of the High Court and the UK's political institutions, we will finally hear Jo's full story and the human side of this scandal as well as the untold struggle she faced during the biggest miscarriages of justice in modern history. Ultimately, this is a story of hope and the strength of community and the ability of a few to fight back against the odds.

Genres: Nonfiction, Audiobook, Crime, True Crime, Biography, Autobiography

304 pages, Hardcover

Published June 19, 2025

Reviews

[Stephen]

interesting book about one sub postmasters fight for justice with the horizon system joined with others to get justice. enjoyed the book overall

[Annie Govier]

What an important book - The biggest miscarriage of justice in the history of Britain, recapped by one of the victims herself. Jo Hamilton, who ran a post office and lost her livelihood, made a criminal because the Post Office took her to court over money that was "missing". But no money was missing, it was the IT system "Horizon" that was bugged. It is insane that this happened to HUNDREDS of subpostmasters. It is a heart wrenching story, especially as it is told directly by Jo and I felt every panic, fear, frustration, anger, as well as relief and happiness over the eventual victory and overturning with her while reading this. It's loosely chronological, not as strictly structured as I was expecting, but it made that up in being very genuine and authentic.

The only minor nitpick for the book I'd have is that it's a downside that you kind of need to know about the Horizon scandal before you read the book, and in a way it also expects that you have seen the ITV drama "Mr Bates vs. the Post Office". Purely because I would love to get my non-English friends to read this as outside of the UK this is not as well known.

Congratulations on your OBE, Mrs Hamilton. Great to see someone receive it who truly deserves it!

[Rosie ✿]

I can’t believe that I had no idea this happened wtfff

[Debra Govier]

I'm so glad Jo Hamilton wrote this book as it's a story that needed to be told, enabling readers to see the disgraceful way the Post Office behaved to its sub postmasters.

The new IT system Horizon had bugs and faults from the start causing shortfalls in hundreds of sub postmasters' daily accounts.
Instead of looking into it properly to find out what was happening, the Post Office would not publicly accept there was anything wrong with their system, continuously insisting it was 'robust'.

Instead they claimed the sub postmasters were stealing the 'missing' money, and took them to court, bullying them and calling them thieves. Many were sent to prison, all given criminal records, their reputations in shreds and lives ruined.

This is the story of the sub postmasters' long and difficult fight for justice and to clear their names against one of the countries biggest institutions.
I was glad to see the tables turned towards the end.

A well deserved knighthood for Alan Bates and OBE for Jo after all their hard work.

[Barbara Deeprose]

One Very Brave Lady

It is ubelievable that this post office scandal is still ongoing and no one has really been held to account. This book is the story of one brave lady who lost everything and then had to fight to win it all back. I admire all the of the people who are still fighting for justice and I applaud them all. Jo is honest and truthful about what she went through, and the book brought me to tears several times. Thank goodness her family, friends and villagers stood by her.

[Olivia]

A powerful personal testimony of being caught up in what must be one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in British history. In this book, Jo Hamilton puts forward her story and what follows is truly astonishing - how could such a thing happen? But it is also a book full of hope and justice - and what can happen when people come together to fight a wrong. This is such an important account.

[Michelle Harrington]

This book is extraordinary and fascinating - the horrors of what “the entitled” in their opinions, did to others continues to shock me to my core.

The facts that it continues to play itself out across our society continually in so many formats is horrifying

I will try and get the other books.

[Libby]

brilliant book makes you angry sad and happy all the same time amazing book

[Angela Lewis]

The real life nightmarish story of Jo Hamilton and her two decades of bullying by her employer. Told with sensitivity and honesty.

[Emerley]

Beautifully told personal account of a post mistress wrongly convicted in the scandal. Amazing story, especially loved the way her village rallied around. Restores your faith in humanity!

[Steve]

a truly wonderful read for justice

A gripping read thank you Jo 😍
I had to keep reading and couldn’t put the book down, unbelievable what they tried to get away with.

[Sandra Pearson]

I listened to this incredible book on audiobook. Like the rest of us I was appalled by what we learned from Mr Bates versus The Post Office. I remember reading a newspaper article many years ago about an Asian sub post mistress embroiled in this awful miscarriage of justice, it was early on and we knew then it couldn’t be right. Listening to the years and years of torment that Jo went through is absolutely heartbreaking, so much more than we thought we knew. The anger I felt on behalf of her and all her fellow victims I hope never goes away until each and every one of them is fully compensated and those responsible feel the full weight of the law. An extraordinary read.

[Helen Arrand]

The Post Office Scandal and Me by Jo Hamilton
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The distressing story of how the Post Office ruined Jo's life (and that of many others), and the fight for justice.

I have followed the Horizon Scandal through the news which is the media's story but this was Jo's account, hearing it in her own voice made it all the more personal.

[Gill]

Horizon scandal

The book accurately described the events surrounding the issue with the Horizon computer in one of the post offices.
I’m not sure how interesting it will be for anyone unfamiliar with this particular accounting process.

[Emily Webb]

Clearly a travesty what was done to them but not everyone should write a book, especially if they’re going to continually refer to the TV series (which I haven’t even seen).

[Dee B]

Interesting first hand experience of the post office scandal

[Christabel Wright]

Still cant believe any of this happened and how long it took to get any form of justice. Fuck the post office.

[Just Kate]

A very interesting re-telling of the still to be concluded post office scandal. A factual book based on Jo’s own experience and that of many others, in their fight for justice.

[Karen]

How could I not give this book 5 stars?

The story behind it is scandalous, shocking and incomprehensible, and the sub post masters are, all these years later, still waiting for Wynn Williams final report.

I remember when this first became public and the horror I felt on behalf of these innocent people, the complete and utter nightmare they found themselves in. Even now, knowing that retribution is finally being made, I still can’t forgive people like Paula Vennels, the Post Office legal team or indeed, Fujitsu, who were at the heart of the scandal.

Listening to the wonderful Monica Dolan read Jo’s story incensed me all over again. But don’t be put off by that; these stories need to be in the public domain so that nothing like this can ever be allowed to happen again.

I’m just pleased that after decades of fighting for justice, Jo finally got hers, and I applaud her for continuing to fight for the others.

[Georgina Ettle]

This was such a good listen. It was as if you were having a conversation with Jo about her life and how she ended up embroiled in this scandal and yet so much heartbreak for her and her family at how it has affected her and so much anger at the institution allowed to get away with it. Their lying and self serving ways sent hundreds of people into a life of destruction and despair that is unrivalled in recent history. Well done Jo on standing up and being counted.

[Keith]

A personal telling of the Post Office scandal story which brings the humanity to a corporate, IT and legal battle. Wonderfully written it’s a real page turner even for those of us who have been following the story. I hope the public enquiry finally brings justice and some peace to those many involved.

[MHDRAPER]

Unbelievable but true

A harrowing description of the personal tragedy faced when the Post Office accuse you of theft, despite having no evidence. Jo's resilience when faced with the 'state' is a lesson for us all. The deception of the Post Office is laid bare. An excellent read .

[Neale Carter]

I found this really interesting and couldn't believe what these poor sub-post officers were subjected to by the Post Office corporation it's incredibly brave to hear how everyone came together, all the underdogs coming together to fight a seemingly unbeatable system I need to watch 'Mr Bates v the post office now'

[Gillian]

An excellent book although it made be incredibly angry at times. The author was a very brave lady to put her experiences so honestly in print but I’m really pleased she did.

[Rachel Groves]

Excellent and excellent narration. Requested and borrowed from local library BorrowBox.

[Michelle Cox]

A very interesting read. What Jo Hamilton and other Sub-postmasters went through is horrendous.
Here the author shows her determination to prove her innocence.

[Angela Vick]

A fascinating account of this major scandal, unfortunately the copy I read had a number of typographical/printing errors which made the reading experience a bit trying so 4.5* in consequence