Extreme Ironing - The Book...

It's astonishing how something that started life as a whimsical parody of 'extreme sports' has grown into a mighty global empire, ahem...

And now it's 'watch out JK Rowling' as the sport's founder 'Steam' (aka Phil Shaw) has a doubtless incredibly lucrative book deal in the pipeline - almost certainly enough to buy a new iron and a few cans of spray starch we reckon...

Scheduled for publication on 1 November, 'Extreme Ironing' tells the story of how EI rose from its humble origins in Leicester in 1997 to become a global phenomenon with practitioners in over 20 countries 'around the world'.

We're expecting a thorough examination of the ethical purity of the sport, tackling issues such as whether sponsorship from multinational corporations like Rowenta has undermined the essence of EI and of course, a look at its future.

Actually, as we have some pre-publication proofs in front of us, we can tell you that Steam expects 'the sport to turn professional and, who knows, one day appear in the Olympics'. Hmmmm... Spray me with starch and press me gently is what we say.

Anyway, it's in colour, classified as 'humour' rather than 'sport' - phew - and will cost £7.99. For more information on Extreme Ironing, visit the EI web site.