Alexei Sayle gives an exclusive, pre-publication preview of his memoir Stalin Ate My Homework, with stories and readings from the book and an opportunity to ask questions.

Born in Liverpool on the day egg rationing came to an end, Sayle always knew his parents were different. They ate salad. And they read the Soviet Weekly. They also travelled. They travelled to seaside towns to attend union conferences. And they travelled across Europe. Determined to see Communism in action, they travelled to Czechoslavkia, where they visited the sites of massacres, rode in space-age limousines and sat in the audience of bizarre mime shows. Life was often confusing.

Stalin Ate My Homework, which will be published in September, is a funny and perceptive portrait of a family, a city, a country and a continent going through enormous changes.

Recommended for ages 16 and over