Shaun Usher

Shaun Usher

Photo Credit: Craig and Eva Sanders

Shaun Usher is a writer and sole custodian of the popular blogs lettersofnote.com and listsofnote.com. He has transformed both blogs into bestselling books, crowd-funded by Unbound and jointly published by Unbound and Canongate. He lives in Wilmslow with his wife Karina and their two sons. He is the author of the bestselling Letters of Note, More Letters of Note and Lists of Note. Along with Simon Garfield’s To the Letter, Letters of Note inspired Letters Live, a series of live performances celebrating the enduring power of literary correspondence, with great performers reading remarkable letters to a live audience.



Many of the lists offer advice that you will take to your grave. Some offer a snapshot of history previously unknown. Others are simply a joy to read. Each and every one, however, is certainly a list of note

Lists of Note

Letters of Note cover

Want to hear Olivia Colman read a letter from the Queen to Dwight Eisenhower about her scones? Of course you do! And thanks to the audiobook of Letters of Note, now you can!

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Letters of Note: Music cover

From the book Letters of Note: Music, compiled by Shaun Usher. ‘Get at the very heart of it’, a letter from Ludwig Van Beethoven to Emilie H. Introduced by Shaun Usher.

Letter read by Simon Callow.

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Letters Live is a series of events where remarkable letters are read by a diverse array of outstanding performers. On 4th December 201 an incredible line up took to the newly opened Alexandra Palace Theatre stage: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Joely Richardson, Alison Steadman, Louise Brealey, Celia Imrie, Clarke Peters, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Jordan Stephens, Simon Callow and Paul Ryan, with musical performances from Tom Odell. The night was in aid of Crisis at Christmas, ensuring homeless people across the country have a place to go and a meal to eat this Christmas.

There really is no correct way to consume this book. Read it from front to back, from back to front, or simply pick letters at random; whichever one you land on will offer you a snapshot of history in a format that we cannot afford to let die

More Letters of Note

Letters Live at Freemasons’ Hall, Covent Garden http://letterslive.com/

Lists of Note is a constantly surprising A-Z of what makes us human.