What do you think?
Rate this book
Another World: The Oxford Years
Having won a scholarship to Oxford University, eighteen-year-old Melvyn Bragg leaves his hometown of Wigton to travel south and immerse himself in a new and golden world.
There, he must find his place amongst the raucous public school boys and the students fresh from National Service, making new friends from varied backgrounds but never forgetting those at home. Over three formative years - as his tutors, his studies and the people around him all expand his horizons and his sense of what is possible - he takes his next steps into adulthood, surrounded by the old, imposing buildings and libraries (and protests and parties) of the 'city of dreaming spires'.
In this moment of change, for a young man and for the nation, Bragg looks to the past and the future, and as he studies History in his tutorials, so he remembers the histories of family, friends and lovers that shaped his own story.
Alive with insight and tenderness, Another World beautifully captures a decisive step in a remarkable life.
PRAISE FOR BACK IN THE DAY:
'A memoir bursting with affection . . . fascinating' Sunday Times
'Masterly . . . I loved it' Observer
'Utterly captivating' Daily Mail
There, he must find his place amongst the raucous public school boys and the students fresh from National Service, making new friends from varied backgrounds but never forgetting those at home. Over three formative years - as his tutors, his studies and the people around him all expand his horizons and his sense of what is possible - he takes his next steps into adulthood, surrounded by the old, imposing buildings and libraries (and protests and parties) of the 'city of dreaming spires'.
In this moment of change, for a young man and for the nation, Bragg looks to the past and the future, and as he studies History in his tutorials, so he remembers the histories of family, friends and lovers that shaped his own story.
Alive with insight and tenderness, Another World beautifully captures a decisive step in a remarkable life.
PRAISE FOR BACK IN THE DAY:
'A memoir bursting with affection . . . fascinating' Sunday Times
'Masterly . . . I loved it' Observer
'Utterly captivating' Daily Mail
234 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 26, 2026
About the author
Melvyn Bragg
128 books144 followersMelvyn Bragg, Baron Bragg, FRSL, FRTS (born 6 October 1939) is an English author, broadcaster and media personality who, aside from his many literary endeavours, is perhaps most recognised for his work on The South Bank Show.
Bragg is a prolific novelist and writer of non-fiction, and has written a number of television and film screenplays. Some of his early television work was in collaboration with Ken Russell, for whom he wrote the biographical dramas The Debussy Film (1965) and Isadora Duncan, the Biggest Dancer in the World (1967), as well as Russell's film about Tchaikovsky, The Music Lovers (1970). He is president of the National Academy of Writing. His 2008 novel, Remember Me is a largely autobiographical story.
He is also a Vice President of the Friends of the British Library, a charity set up to provide funding support to the British Library.
Bragg is a prolific novelist and writer of non-fiction, and has written a number of television and film screenplays. Some of his early television work was in collaboration with Ken Russell, for whom he wrote the biographical dramas The Debussy Film (1965) and Isadora Duncan, the Biggest Dancer in the World (1967), as well as Russell's film about Tchaikovsky, The Music Lovers (1970). He is president of the National Academy of Writing. His 2008 novel, Remember Me is a largely autobiographical story.
He is also a Vice President of the Friends of the British Library, a charity set up to provide funding support to the British Library.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 26, 2026
REAL LIFE
I admire this man. His writing is straightforward. Every sentence clearly records his life from Wigtown to, and through, Oxford. He takes us with him in plain, unembroidered English.
I know his accent. It’s refreshingly clear and unaffected. The journey is like the soup they make in the north of England; it comprises real, unpretentious ingredients that reflect the nourishing basics we all go through in that time between the end of one type of education and the start of another.
I thoroughly enjoyed the stories Mr Bragg tells in this interesting, heartfelt part of his autobiography. A good read about an interesting man at a captivating time of life.
I liked his mother and father as well. More than a story … this is real life. Thank you.
I admire this man. His writing is straightforward. Every sentence clearly records his life from Wigtown to, and through, Oxford. He takes us with him in plain, unembroidered English.
I know his accent. It’s refreshingly clear and unaffected. The journey is like the soup they make in the north of England; it comprises real, unpretentious ingredients that reflect the nourishing basics we all go through in that time between the end of one type of education and the start of another.
I thoroughly enjoyed the stories Mr Bragg tells in this interesting, heartfelt part of his autobiography. A good read about an interesting man at a captivating time of life.
I liked his mother and father as well. More than a story … this is real life. Thank you.
March 15, 2026
Beguiling, if uneven. Written in a lyrical, almost ethereal way that is enjoyable, but mildly confusing.
Beautiful in parts. The part about his father visiting him in Oxford was stunning and tear inducing. His writing about Oxford and his college is superb.
At other times clunky and confusing. He spends ages talking about a town in Cumbria for no good reason, and his remembering and detail of an old relationship felt off somehow.
Overall, if you like either Bragg or Oxford (or both), well worth your time and regardless, the good bits are good enough to make up for the rest.
Beautiful in parts. The part about his father visiting him in Oxford was stunning and tear inducing. His writing about Oxford and his college is superb.
At other times clunky and confusing. He spends ages talking about a town in Cumbria for no good reason, and his remembering and detail of an old relationship felt off somehow.
Overall, if you like either Bragg or Oxford (or both), well worth your time and regardless, the good bits are good enough to make up for the rest.
March 26, 2026
An excellent addition to the memoirs of Melvyn Bragg.
His time at Wadham College Oxford as a history undergraduate
Caught between two worlds, he explores the many challenges he faces - the purposes of a university education - how we learn - the people he meets and his own relationships
An interesting read
His time at Wadham College Oxford as a history undergraduate
Caught between two worlds, he explores the many challenges he faces - the purposes of a university education - how we learn - the people he meets and his own relationships
An interesting read
March 12, 2026
Melvyn Bragg can do no wrong by me so another chapter in his autobiography was always gonna be a hit with me . This volume covers his Oxford University years. Would have been 5 stars if longer ..
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews