Coverage from TV, print, radio, podcasts, and beyond.

Books of the Year 2025

The Uncut Review of 2025 – Books of the Year #8

The Times Literary Supplement – Books of the Year 2025

Literary critic D J Taylor – a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and author of acclaimed biographies and novels – writes: “As a teenage Jam fan I relished Dan Jennings’s Paul Weller Dancing Through the Fire.”

Rough Trade – Books of the Year 2025 – #5

blog.roughtrade.com/gb/books-of-the-year-2025

“Told through the voices of collaborators, friends, and fans, this authorised oral history paints a rich portrait of Paul Weller, the man behind The Jam, The Style Council, and a celebrated solo career.  Journalist and former radio presenter Dan Jennings curates a mosaic of perspectives that reveal Weller’s evolution from mod icon to enduring British songwriter with great access to family, friends, bandmates and long-time collaborators for a real insight into Weller’s creative mind.”

Resident – Books of the Year 2025

What an honour to feature in the Books of the Year for the Resident Annual 2025. They’re one of the UK’s most beloved independent record shops, renowned for their passion for music and their dedication to championing exceptional releases. It’s a genuine honour to be included in such a carefully curated selection.

Clash Magazine – Books of the Year 2025

The best tomes the year had to offer…
clashmusic.com/features/music-books-of-the-year-2025

Robin Murray writes “A Paul Weller book without Paul Weller shouldn’t work, should it? Dan Jennings shot to viral acclaim with his Desperately Seeking Paul podcast, in which he spoke to virtually everyone and anyone who had ever recorded, toured, or bonded with the fabled Modfather. Transforming those interviews into book form, Dancing Through The Fire presents an oral history of a defining British musical figure, both entertaining and revealing in equal measure. Given the man himself has no instinct to write a memoir any time soon, this is the authoritative word on the Changingman.“

God is in the TV Zine – Books of the Year 2025

Dave Roberts picked Dancing Through the Fire as one of his books of the year in the round up here. Honourable mentions go to … “Dan Jennings Dancing Through the Fire (Constable) an almost stalkerishy detailed account of Paul Weller‘s career. “

Irish Examiner – Books of the Year 2025

irishexaminer.com – Talking Heads, Paul Weller, Paul McCartney… the 10 best music books of the year …

“Drawing on more than 200 hours of exclusive interviews, Jennings assembles an absorbing oral history that follows Weller from The Jam’s razor-sharp beginnings to The Style Council and a solo career that’s delivered No 1 albums across five decades. With access to family, bandmates, producers, and longtime collaborators, Jennings reveals the creative drive, stubborn vision, and personal triumphs behind one of Britain’s most enduring songwriters.”

Scottish Herald – Best Music Books of 2025

Oral history has been a real trend this year, most notably Paul Weller Dancing Through the Fire (Dan Jennings), a substantial book that takes its subject from childhood to The Jam, and from The Style Council to his appearance in Steve McQueen’s wartime film Blitz.

Magazine Coverage

Mojo – Lois Wilson ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Classic Pop – Steve O’Brien ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Shindig! – Paul Osborne ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Record Collector – Nick Dalton ⭐⭐⭐⭐

TV Coverage

ITV News with Yasmin Bodalbhai on 4 November 2025

Radio Interviews / Coverage

Totally Wired Radio – Euan Barker – Soul, Ska & Other Good, Good Stuff !

Gary Crowley on BBC Radio London – Sunday 7 Sept

Sounds From The Underground – Steve Perry – Monday 8 Sept

James Cannon on BBC Radio Surrey – Weds 10 Sept

Paul Beesley on BBC Radio Merseyside – Thur 11 Sept

David White on BBC Radio Cornwall / Devon – Thur 11 Sept

Claire Carter on BBC Radio Bristol and Somerset – Thur 11 Sept

Akylah Rodriguez on BBC Radio Essex – Monday 22 Sept

Richard Stead on BBC Radio Humberside & Lincolnshire  – Tuesday 23 Sept

Roberto Perrone on BBC Three Counties & Northampton  – Friday 26 Sept

Extra Time with Paul Ross  on Talk Sport / Talk – Thurs 2nd Oct

Bridgitte Tetteh on BBC Radio Oxford / Berkshire – Thurs 2nd Oct

Harry Barrett on BBC Radio Jersey & Guernsey – Tue 7th Oct

Toby Foster on BBC Radio Leeds, Sheffield & York – Thur 16th Oct

Jo Whiley – BBC Radio 2 – Culture club with Natalie Jamieson – Mon 20 Oct

Toni McDonald on BBC Radio Hereford & Worcester, Shropshire and Stoke – Fri 24 Oct

Adam Dowling on BBC Radio Kent, Surrey & Sussex – Fri 31 Oct

Lucy Owen – BBC Radio Wales – Sat 1 Nov

Chris Mann on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire – Tues 11 Nov

Mike Sweeney on BBC Radio Manchester – Thurs 13 Nov

Graham Rogers on BBC Radio Gloucestershire & Wiltshire – Thurs 27 Nov

X-Posure with John Kennedy (Radio X) – Sat 30 Nov

Podcast Interviews

Behind The Curtain Podcast

Choose 80s Podcast

Word In Your Ear

Under the Influence

Chats With Me Old Chyna

The Rock n Roll Book Club Podcast – Music Maps

Newspapers

Private Eye
You know you’ve made it when Private Eye spoofs your book!

The Sun

The Telegraph (behind paywall)
Paul Weller gave me class consciousness and self-belief by Chris Harvey
telegraph.co.uk/music/news/paul-weller-working-class-hope/

The Big Issue
It was an absolute honour to write for The Big Issue. You can read the article What’s behind the enduring appeal of Paul Weller? – here

The Australian, Ewin Hannan
‘A compelling oral history that is entertaining, authoritative, and comprehensive … the closest thing yet to a Weller memoir.’

Published on 14 Feb 2026 – You read the full article here

Online

Rock and Roll Garage Interview with Rafael Polcaro here – A great interview I did with Rafael Polcaro at Rock and Roll Garage, where we talked about Dancing Through the Fire, Paul Weller’s five-decade career, and how the project grew from a fan podcast into an authorised oral history. We discussed Paul’s songwriting, his roots in British culture, and what it’s really like to spend time with him in conversation — honest, funny, and endlessly creative.

Gigslutz Interview with Matt Mead here – A brilliant in-depth review of Dancing Through the Fire that captures exactly what I hoped to achieve

Woking News and Mail – Meeting the Modfather: How a Paul Weller podcast turned into a bestseller – Read Paul Ferguson’s article here – a nice feature telling the story of how my lockdown podcast about Paul Weller grew into a Sunday Times bestselling book.

writewyattuk – A lively and heartfelt chat between Malcolm Wyatt and me, exploring the journey from Desperately Seeking Paul to Dancing Through the Fire. We talked about the passion, graft, and gratitude behind bringing Paul Weller’s story to life – and the joy of seeing it connect with fans old and new. Praise if you wanna – talking Paul Weller with Dan Jennings

Hilary Seabrook – A lovely piece here by the former Style Council saxophonist, reflecting on her time with Paul Weller and her thoughts on Dancing Through the Fire. In her article, Hilary captures exactly what makes the book special – a deeply human portrait of an artist driven by passion and purpose, told through the voices of those who know him best.

Contact Music – A brilliant feature here by Philip Hamilton for Contact Music, exploring the story behind Dancing Through the Fire and how my dream to meet Paul Weller turned into an authorised oral history.

Life 4 Ever – A lovely chat with Richard Bowes diving into my career in radio, the Weller connections etc