The Long Shoe - by Bob Mortimer (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Bathroom salesman Matt is at a crossroads.

He has lost his job, he is about to be made homeless and his girlfriend has left him. He wants his luck to change and he wants things to go back to how they were. Out of the blue he is offered a job that comes with a free luxury apartment. He hopes this might be enough to tempt her back.

But, as events unfold, it starts to dawn on him that perhaps she didn't leave of her own accord after all...?

Review Quotes

'As a comedian, Bob Mortimer spins a shaggy-dog story like nobody else' The Guardian

'The much loved comic proves adept at noirish fiction in a debut whose surrealist humour sets it apart' - Observer

'Mortimer's verbal specificity and off-kilter humour will keep his fans chuckling' The Times

'There is a sweetness to his worldview that makes his writing gently poignant... Like Spike Milligan, the only vintage comic whose fiction is still read, Mortimer has managed to use a novel as a vehicle for his distinctive comedic voice' The Telegraph

'A touching story of human relationships' The Guardian

'A delight to read' Daily Express

'Characteristically offbeat and thoroughly amiable' Financial Time

About the Author

Bob Mortimer was born in Middlesbrough in 1959, the youngest of four sons. He trained as a solicitor before a chance encounter with Vic Reeves in the 1980s led to a successful career in comedy as half of duo Reeves and Mortimer. His screen credits include BBC2's Gone Fishing, Shooting Stars, Big Night Out and Catterick. His memoir, And Away..., published in 2021. It became the bestselling memoir of the year and was named Times and Sunday Times Humour Book of the Year. His first novel, The Satsuma Complex, was published in 2022 and won the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse prize for Comic Fiction. The sequel, The Hotel Avocado, was an immediate number-one bestseller on release in 2024. His third novel The Long Shoe published in 2025 and was an instant bestseller. His books have sold more than 3.5 million copies in 14 languages. He's on X and Instagram as @RealBobMortimer, on and TikTok as @BobMortimers.