Bob Chapek’s Behind the Castle Walls Available to Pre-Order In The UK Now

Former Disney CEO Bob Chapek will release his new memoir, Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth, in the UK on 8th October 2026, with pre-orders now available through Amazon UK. I can’t wait to read it. The book promises Chapek's first detailed account of almost three decades at Disney, including his years running Disney Parks and the turbulent period that ended with Bob Iger returning as CEO in 2022.

Behind The Castle Walls At A Glance

Bob Chapek ran Disney's Parks business from 2015 until becoming CEO in 2020, giving him a perspective on the parks that extends well beyond the Disney boardroom.

When is Bob Chapek's Behind the Castle Walls released and where can you buy it in the UK?

Behind the Castle Walls is currently scheduled for UK publication on Thursday 8th October, nine days after it’s 29th September release, according to Amazon UK. Other UK retailers are not yet specifying shipping dates although have it available to pre-order. However, UK fans keen to delve into the memoir can get the book in Amazon’s Audible library in the UK from Tuesday 29th September 2026.

Amazon UK pre-orders are already live, and UK Disney fans have 2 options to buy with Amazon UK:

• the hardback book option showing at £20. You can pre-order or read more at Amazon UK.

• Amazon’s Audible option is free for new subscriptions, or looks like it will be part of your usual £8.99 month subscription fee if you already have an Audible subscription. The audio book description also suggests that Bob Chapek will be the narrator, so you’ll get to hear his memoir in his own words 9 days earlier than yyou can read his words currently.

You can also pre-order the book from:

• Waterstones in Hardback format for £20

What is Bob Chapek's new Disney book about?

Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth is Chapek's account of his nearly 30 years working at The Walt Disney Company, culminating in his short and unusually turbulent tenure as chief executive.

Chapek joined Disney in 1993 and worked his way through several areas of the business before becoming CEO in February 2020. Disney's own announcement at the time noted that he had already spent 27 years working across its Parks, Consumer Products and Studio businesses.

The book’s synopsis suggests there will be an emphasis on what happened once Chapek reached the top, rather than the journey to get there. He became CEO just weeks before COVID-19 forced Disney to close theme parks, suspend cruises, halt film and television production and navigate a crisis unlike anything the company had previously faced.

The memoir will apparently address questions surrounding whether he was given a fair opportunity to lead, the circumstances behind his removal and Bob Iger's return, and what was happening within Disney during the pandemic. Only time will tell the contents of this book, and what is really going to be said.

Why should Walt Disney World fans care about Bob Chapek's memoir?

Disney Parks fans have a reason to be interested because Chapek was running Disney's global Parks and Resorts business for five years before he became CEO.But with that said this is a probably going to be a book for the big parks fans here in the UK. Although it could end up being a great casual read too; we’ll have to see.

Disney appointed Chapek Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts in February 2015. He subsequently led Disney Parks, Experiences and Products after the business was reorganised in 2018, remaining in charge until his promotion to chief executive in February 2020.

It’s a period that included some significant Disney Parks expansion. Disney itself credits Chapek's Parks tenure with overseeing the opening of Shanghai Disney Resort and the development of major additions across its resorts, including Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Walt Disney World and Disneyland.

His relevance to Parks fans therefore predates the much more controversial CEO chapter for which he is now best remembered.Exactly which Parks decisions Chapek discusses, and how much detail the memoir provides about them, won't be clear until the book is available.

Will Bob Chapek discuss his falling out with Bob Iger?

Yes, the publisher says the circumstances surrounding Chapek's departure and Bob Iger's return are central subjects of the memoir, although we don't yet know exactly what Chapek will allege or reveal. Early coverage of this book is calling it a tell-all but it’s not yet clear whether that’s really what you’ll find when you turn the page.

Chapek's explanation of what happened behind closed doors will be his account, and it will be particularly interesting to compare that version with Disney's statements and the substantial reporting that has appeared since his departure.

The book is being marketed as a revealing behind-the-scenes memoir, but readers should wait until publication before assuming it contains major new revelations.

Magic in a Minute

Bob Chapek's memoir is called Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth, and it’s available to pre-order in the UK now. A book for Disney fans and anyone who likes a good memoir, this is clearly being aimed at the Christmas gift market. Chapek ran the Parks organisation during a period of significant expansion and then became CEO just as the pandemic fundamentally changed how Disney operated its resorts. Whether Behind the Castle Walls provides genuinely new insight into those decisions remains to be seen.