Soon after I joined Macmillan in 1998, I was summonsed by the literary agent, Michael Sissons, of what is now the pfd international literary and talent agency. He was representing Chris Patten who had recently overseen the transfer of Hong Kong from British to Chinese control.

Patten had agreed with HarperCollins UK a contract to write about his time in Hong Kong and his views of the Chinese authorities. Sissons had just been informed that HC were withdrawing from their contract under instructions from Rupert Murdoch. The assumption was that Murdoch did not wish to upset the Chinese authorities while he was negotiating a licence to broadcast TV across Asia. HC claimed it ws because the book was boring.

We were delighted to be invited to take over the contract for publication of East and West and HC apologised unreservedly for calling it boring. We sold more than 100,000 copies in our territories. Random House sold a goodly quantity of the US edition and there were several translations. Reviews were excellent. A publishing success all round.

I was therefore surprised to read yesterday that Rupert Murdoch, whose business acumen and commitment to freedom of speech I admire enormously, told the Financial Times that the reason he over-ruled publication not because the book was boring, nor in order to kowtow to China, but because he thought it wouldn't sell. Even the greatest can make mistakes in predicting book sales.