Why Britain Rocked: How Rock Became Roll and Took Over the World travels deep into Britain’s history to trace the events that led to its twentieth century musical explosion. Completely rewriting the history of British pop music, Why Britain Rocked argues that The Beatles’ arrival that so surprised the world really shouldn’t have been a surprise at all.

From the Celts and the Quakers, to Ira Aldridge and Paul Robeson, Why Britain Rocked breaks out of British pop history’s twentieth century confines. Instead, Sharkey starts the story in Celtic Britain and follows the migration of the peoples who carried their music from the British Isles to the southern states, laying the foundations of America’s folk music and ultimately, rock n’ roll.

Back on British shores, Sharkey reveals how Henry VIII ensured Britain’s art colleges became feeder schools for Top of the Pops; she identifies the Celtic inheritance of superstars from Lonnie Donegan and The Beatles, to David Bowie, John Lydon, Kate Bush, Johnny Marr, Noel Gallagher and Ed Sheeran; and completes the story with the enduring power of British balladry and the Marxists, who liberated the voices of England’s working class, inspiring a revolution of British singer songwriters.

An audience Q&A with Elizabeth will follow the talk.