Blair signs book deal 'worth 6 mn pounds'
Former British PM Tony Blair has signed a multi-million-pound deal to pen his Downing Street memoirs.
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has signed a multi-million-pound deal to pen his Downing Street memoirs.
Blair's account of ten years as Prime Minister, including few details of his turbulent relationship with his successor Gordon Brown, will be published by Random House, the Daily Mail reported in London on Friday.
"I hope my memoirs will provide a serious and thoughtful, but also entertaining, reflection on my time as a Member of Parliament and as Prime Minister," Blair was quoted as saying.
Though both the former British Prime Minister and the publisher have refused to put a figure on the deal, sources said it could earn Blair as much as six million pounds.
"We are absolutely delighted to be publishing Tony Blair's memoirs. He was an extraordinary Prime Minister, and this will be an extraordinary book. It is a great privilege for all of us to be working with him on this unique project," Chief Executive of Random House Gail Rebuck said.
However, the sources said that the book was unlikely to appear for around two years, "which means it may not come out until after Brown fights the next general election".
The book will be published as a single volume but there will also be lucrative serialisation rights in Britain and the United States. It will be published under the Hutchinson imprint in Britain and by Alfred A Knopf in the US, both part of the Random House group.
Blair's deal came just days after his wife Cherie struck a 1.5-million-pounds deal for her life story, to be published next year. She is also rumoured to be dishing the dirt on her husband's relationship with Brown.