Tabloid Girl

by Sharon Marshall

I didn't know I was starting a life where I'd be asked to do three impossible things before breakfast, and be sworn at by four celebrities by lunch. I just thought, hey, I've got a job on a tabloid.'Sharon Marshall was a tabloid reporter for ten years. Along the way she saw and did some Very Bad Things. She also had a spectacularly lousy love life. It took the entire decade to realise the two may be connected.In her hilariously honest memoirs she reveals what really goes on behind the scenes at a major tabloid newspaper. What lengths will a tabloid hack go to, just to get the story What do celebrities (secretly) do to get into the headlines And can a job which involves fighting with popstars, pretending to be a swinger and provoking a fuming Jeremy Paxman ever make you marriage material

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Supposedly one-time UK tabloid journalist's tell-all about the doings and goings on in the tabloid media. I really enjoyed this tell-all look at the world of tabloid media and the seemingly honest inward looking throughout narrator, but have to temper that with, it being written by an ex tabloid journalist, that it might be just more spin? Revealing read nonetheless. 8 out of 12, Four Star read.

2014 read

[N · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tore through Tabloid Girl at speed, and reading it certainly made a nice break from a glum, academic book I’d been plodding through at the same time. Sharon Marshall’s memoir of life as a tabloid journalist is undoubtedly amusing, giving great insight into the bonkers world of working for a red-top newspaper, but it also leaves a rather unpleasant aftertaste.

There are no two ways about it: tabloids are grimy, and even an irreverent look at the tabloid newsroom still makes the reader feel… grimy. It doesn’t help that Marshall splices in stories about her crap love life alongside her journalistic adventures. I think she fancies herself as a real-life Bridget Jones, but I found the stories more depressing than funny. I just kept thinking: why do you hate yourself so much just because you don’t have a boyfriend?

I love reading books about other people’s jobs, and the parts of this book that concerned life on Fleet Street fitted the bill nicely. The drunken cavorting, however… eh, I could have done without it.

[Abdullah Samir]

I read this book by chance during a hard time in my life and now am reading it again . This book made me laugh loudly and am still wondering why. the subject is not easy for me since am not familiar with how tabloids work but the imagery of the characters is hilarious . this CRUMP character is phenomenal and makes me laugh even while am writing this review .

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having very briefly done shifts with a tabloid years ago I recognised lots of the details in this 😆 Reading it now also reminds me how much technology has changed the news i grew up with, both good and bad i suppose

[Susan]

Funny, but just fyi- the aurhor paid for her liedstyle she ended up doing ivf 6 or 7 times

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

After finally getting her break in a tabloid newspaper, Sharon Marshall managed to stick with it for an entire decade, sacrificing love as a result. Along the way she did some things that weren’t particularly moral, and she probably spent more time drunk than she cared to imagine, but she enjoyed chasing down a story and trying to get her byline in the newspaper. In Tabloid Girl, Sharon recounts her memories of working on a tabloid and all of the stuff that goes on to make a tabloid newspaper what it is. Sometimes it isn’t pretty, but it is what it is. Is it entirely possible though that the reason for Sharon’s lousy love life is connected to her working for a tabloid?

I have to admit hearing that Sharon Marshall was writing a book about her tabloid life didn’t exactly make me immediately think ‘I must read that’ however I quite liked the sound of it – who doesn’t want to know exactly how the world of tabloids actually works? – so I was pleased to receive a copy earlier this week and decided to give it a whirl. It’s a short enough read – barely 300 pages – so I knew I’d be able to finish it fairly quickly even if I didn’t like it much. Thankfully I found myself enjoying the book and I have to admit, it wasn’t what I was expecting.

This is actually Sharon Marshall’s second foray into book writing; she co-authored Tara Palmer Tomkinson’s book The Naughty Girls’ Guide To Life. I haven’t read it, I’m not a fan of TPT, however if it’s as easy a read as Tabloid Girl it may be worth reading so I think I’ll have to be on the lookout for it. I have to admit, that Sharon’s writing style is so readable it’s unreal, I would hazard a guess that should she branch out into writing fiction, she would indeed be quite successful. I for one would buy her books. I assume it’s always difficult to write/read memoirs – particularly for reviewers, I hate reviewing non-fiction – but Tabloid Girl is an effortless read and it seems as if it was written effortlessly too.

Tabloid Girl is everything I thought it would be, it’s gossip-y, it’s full of completely ridiculous stories that sound more fiction than non-fiction and it’s just a fun and enjoyable read. The stories Sharon recounts, as I say, sound like complete and utter fiction but they aren’t, obviously. The things a tabloid journalist go through aren’t pretty and if I was ever thinking about going into tabloid journalism, this book would put me off. In fact anyone thinking of working in tabloids should steer well clear of the book, because it’s not as fun a job as it may seem. I did expect a bit more name-dropping, but there wasn’t any at all, which I assume is down to legal issues. Yes, there are celebrities mentioned – Jady Goody and her mother, Jeremy Paxman and others – but when it comes to the meaty parts, the celebrities who actually pay to be in the papers and the couple who constantly talk about each other to keep themselves in the papers, no names are actually named, which is mildly unfortunate.

Tabloid Girl is an excellent read though, and it really opened my eyes as to what it’s like to be a tabloid journalist. It’s easy to see why Sharon eventually wanted out, it is the kind of job that just drags you down constantly. Not to mention the fact her poor liver was probably near to collapse, particularly if it’s true how much she drank during her years as a tabloid journalist; I’m fairly sure they all must be in a constant drunken haze, if Sharon is right. I digress. If you’re into your tabloids and would enjoy reading about one woman’s quest to make her name in the tabloids, then this is absolutely the story for you. However if you want to be a tabloid journalist, read it at your own peril, it’ll put you off for life!

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always wanted to be a journalist, and since I couldn't decide what area I would like to compete in, I decided to read a variety of journalist books. After reading the editor side of life from Piers Morgan and Mark from Heat magazine I decided to read the lower side of tabloid journalism starting with Sharon.

The book certainly made me decide one thing- tabloid journalism is not my goal. Being mean to people, and having to intrude on celebrities doesn't appeal to me, and this book does portray the gritty yet honest side of journalism. I have to applaud Sharon for this book- she knows when she was wrong, yet also knows journalism is certainly not the depths of all evil. And although she does seem to fancy herself as Bridget Jones, she makes up for it with wit and making me laugh throughout.

Brilliant book, I would recommend to all.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightfully frank tale of life on a tabloid newspaper. Marshall's chatty, confessional style of writing is perfect for the sort of stories she's telling, capturing both the tabloid approach to these sorts of stories as well as the blase attitude she had to adopt in order to deal with her line of work.

There are a few moments that are less successful than others (the chapter on Jade Goody sticks out as a rather heavy-handed attempt to posthumously repair her reputation) but the book as a whole is a compelling, fun read, and left me with a strange admiration for Marshall's commitment to a job I could absolutely never do.

[Agi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am really impressed. Sharon wrote this book hiding nothing: things that she has done as well as other journalist. Although shall we call them journalists at all? I am personally not a big fan of tabloids, I read them sometimes but have never thought that people can do such things just to get a hot thema to write about. Lies, sex, drugs, and one wants to add rock'n'roll:) No, rave:)A lot of famous names, but also a lot of people without the name, I caouls only imagine who is she writing about. Such books trach us that there is always the other side of the story.

[Anji · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hilarious insight into tabloid Journalism, sometimes unpleasant, in terms of the awful experiences she had to endure as a shifter, but also in terms of the type of people Journalists and Celebrities tend to be. It was interesting, but not entirely surprising that a fair percentage of famous people are prepared to prostitute themselves in sometimes questionable ways in order to stay in the limelight.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

This follows Sharon Marshall, a tv soap journalist, in her early days as a tabloid journalist. It's a tough world to break into and the 'rookies' get some awful assignments. It's a cut throat world- and if they fail to get a good scoop they are out.

I hadn't realised it was a memoir- I thought it was a novel when I reserved it. It was quite a quick read.

[Edoardo Albert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shocking expose of journo shenanigans by ex-tabloid stunner, Sharon Marshall (plus some moaning about how difficult it is to get a boyfriend when you're dressed in latex and infiltrating a suburban orgy).

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best non-fiction I've ever read. Her writing is engaging and witty, especially for someone who worked in tabloids for a decade. I honestly had no idea they knew how to write properly. Glad to be proven wrong. This book really sheds light on a lot of things.

[Bronwyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt like a juicy gossipy read and did not get it from this - was interesting though to read about the life and inner workings of tabloid journalists and the indusrty they compete in.

[Diana180]

Blackmail, kidnapping, impersonation, phone tapping, a shout-out to Rebekah Wade in the acknowledgements. A little slice of the age of innocence in tabs.

[Karina · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author does at least acknowledge that a lot of the stuff the tabloids do is immoral, but she doesn't really seem to care that much.

[Lou Gillies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marshall has written a tongue in cheek semi autobiographical account of her days as a tabloid journalist which is witty and horrifying in equal proportions. Great read when you're bogged down in academic reading and life stress. Recommended for anyone who still believes everything they read in the press