1996: My Backstage Pass to the Wildest Year of Britain's Wildest Decade

by Dominic Mohan

1996: The year that shaped a generation, revisited three decades on by Ex Sun Editor, Dominic Mohan

1996 a year that shaped a generation – all the glamour, glitz and grit of the 1990s relived, by the man who lived through it all, Ex Sun Editor, Dominic Mohan.

From the death of Kurt Cobain, to the birth of Britpop, Mohan forensically examines the era when you could truly come as you are. 1996 follows the year when all elements of British culture; music, politics, football, fashion, food, art and media collided spectacularly, allowing Britain to reclaim it's title as the artistic center of the world.

Mohan looks back (without anger), through the lens of his insider perspective, at the decade where records sold in their millions, rock icons made friends in politics and no one knew what an iPhone was.

Drawing on interviews from major 90s icons and legends, 1996 is an authoritative account of the pivotal period that saw the biggest artistic bomb in the nation since the swinging sixties. This book tells the story of one of the most influential eras, with keen observations, reflections and exclusive content throughout.

Genres: Audiobook

320 pages, Hardcover

First published June 30, 2026

Reviews

[Richard S · Rating 1 out of 5]

1996 promises an insider's account of one of the most memorable years in modern British culture, from Britpop and Oasis to Euro '96 and New Labour but fails to deliver. Instead, it often reads as a string of celebrity name-drops and recollections of events that weren't even in 1996, and are only tenuously related to the year at all. What should have been a focused examination of a pivotal cultural moment frequently wanders off into stories that add little to the book's stated purpose.
The book is also relentlessly self-aggrandising, with Mohan frequently positioning himself at the centre of every story. Equally tiresome is the constant promotion of The Sun, with repeated references to it being Britain's "top-selling" or "most-read" newspaper. After a while, it starts to feel less like cultural history and more like a tribute to the author's former employer.
Most frustratingly, despite the title, less than 10% of the book feels genuinely focused on 1996. The sections on Jimmy Savile are particularly galling and unnecessary, adding little to the book's stated subject. Readers hoping for a sharp, focused account of a pivotal year in British culture may be left wondering why so much of it is about Dominic Mohan and The Sun, and so little of it is actually about 1996.

[Layla · Rating 1 out of 5]

book for old men who wank themselves off to the Gallagher brothers and live in Tufnell Park

[Paul Arnold · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even for a Sun journo it's quite badly written

[Steven Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not sure whether to be surprised or not surprised at how poorly written this is, but I persevered for the occasional snippet from the 90s I didn’t already know. It is also about more than just 1996 btw