The World's Most Photographed

The photographic image is key to the public's perception of world leaders and film stars alike. Yet this stunning new book exposes the ways in which the images of some of the best-known men and women of the modern age have been created, manipulated and sold. Accompanying a major BBC Two ten-part series, The World's Most Photographed focuses on Greta Garbo, Mahatma Gandhi, John F. Kennedy, Queen Victoria, Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, James Dean, Muhammad Ali and Adolf Hitler, and exposes a new side to each individual through rare and unfamiliar photographs. Robin Muir, a leading writer on photography, reveals how each individual created, altered and reinvented their public persona through their photographic image. In each of the ten chapters, he: Re-tells the life-story of one of the world's most famous individuals, through the creation of their image in photography and archive. Tells the tales behind the photos, from famous or forgotten shoots to the stories of lucky photography amateurs. Demonstrates how key photographs were produced, highlighting the development of important photographic styles and techniques.
Tracks down unfamiliar images of these individuals to reveal sides of their personalities, which they or their advisers preferred to conceal. Illustrated with 150 stunning photographs. The World's Most Photographed accompanies a major BBC series and a BBC online photographic gallery.