Matador Non-Fiction
 
SAVED
How an English village fought for its future... and won
£8.99


"David Hewson writes thrillers. Saved is a real life thriller, exposing the sham of "local democracy". A must for all those wanting to save their countryside and communities from the concrete mixers and the planning fixers."
Robin Page, Countryside writer and broadcaster

"...a revelatory account of how the power and instant communication facilities of the internet can change the face of modern democracy."
Best of British

"This book is invaluable for any community, rural or otherwise, whose way of life and environment is being threatened by seemingly overwhelming fire-power and resources."
Amazon.co.uk review
by David Hewson
Published: 07 April 2007

It was meant to be a done deal. In the winter of 2005 the historic Kent village of Wye discovered it was about to disappear under a sea of new housing and commercial development deal brokered in secret by its own councils and a huge London university. Ten months later the £1 billion dream to concrete over some of England's best loved and protected countryside was dead, killed by some astonishing revelations on a £10 web-site run by two local residents in their spare time. SAVED is a highly personal, warts-and-all history of one of the biggest environmental victories in recent years. Told by best-selling author David Hewson, who founded the web-site http://www.save-wye.org, this is a biting, controversial and entertaining account of the campaign and the individuals who brought this massive scheme crashing to earth.

With a foreword by the leading media commentator Roy Greenslade, SAVED is a glimpse into the inner workings of 21st century Britain, and a revelatory account of how the power and instant communication facilities of the internet can change the face of modern democracy. It makes essential reading for anyone who fears for the future of the English countryside and its communities, and those who need to know how Wye succeeded where so many other campaigns have failed.

ISBN: 9781905886760