"'If you want to succeed here you must be able to handle the English sense of humour.' So proclaims George Mikes' timeless exploration of this curious phenomenon. Whether it's understatement, self-deprecation or plain cruelty - the three elements he identifies as essential to our sense of humour - being witty is a way of life here. Perfectly placed as an adopted Englishman himself, Mikes delivers his shrewd advice - helpfully divided into 'Theory' and 'Practice' - with a comic precision. Drawing on a trove of examples from our rich canon, from Orwel..