Alexei Sayle for How I've Tried to Change the World

Eye-wateringly funny, moving and polemical, this is a chronicle of defiance and belief: a story of one man's refusal to stay on the pavement._So, this is the story I wish to tell, the story of the Left and the world it tried and is trying to change, a struggle that I have been involved in my whole lifetime. . ._Born in working-class Liverpool in 1952 to devoted members of the British Communist Party, Alexei Sayle has spent a lifetime walking down the middle of the street shouting._How I've Tried to Change the World_ is a memoir of his life on the Left, covering seven decades of social history told through key marches and rallies.

From the demonstrations against the Vietnam War in 1969 and the first Miners' strike in 1974, to the demonstration against the 2003 Iraq invasion and the recent marches in support of Gaza, Sayle traces the enduring struggle for a better, fairer world.

He explores Left ideas, why they matter and why it's still worth taking them seriously.Along the way, we encounter The Other Alexei (a bitter, retired media studies lecturer from Clitheroe Polytechnic), his imaginary daughter Tanita, and learn how a Samurai philosophy called Bushido can teach us how to behave at an all-you-can-eat buffet.'For years, we have wondered where exactly did Alexei Sayle's outbursts come from.

Finally, right here, he reveals the secret to his exploding brain' MICHAEL ROSENALEXEI SAYLE is a comedian, writer, actor and presenter.

In 1979 he became the first MC of the original Comedy Store in Soho and went on to be a central figure in the Alternative Comedy movement of the early 1980s.

On TV he starred in and wrote for _The Young Ones_, _Alexei Sayle's Stuff_ and _The Comic Strip Presents_.

On radio _Alexei Sayle's Imaginary Sandwich Bar_ is now approaching its sixth series.

He has written many books including two bestselling volumes of memoir and in 2025 his TikTok videos which fuse interpretive dance with Marxism went viral and are now approaching thirteen million views worldwide.

He is also the host of _The Alexei Sayle Podcast_.