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I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published
September 29th 2011
by HarperCollins
(first published January 1st 2011)
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For those of us that have grown up with Steve Coogan's Alan Partridge, this book will either have you excited with anticipation, or fearful that his most successful character might end up going the way of Tony Ferrino or Duncan Thicket. Fear not, "I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan" is every bit the Partridge book that you would've hoped for.
The autobiography takes us from Partridge's childhood through to his time in radio and then on TV with The Day Today and Knowing...more
The autobiography takes us from Partridge's childhood through to his time in radio and then on TV with The Day Today and Knowing...more
AH HA!
Highly entertaining and hilarious from start to finish, with a back story that doesn't disappoint. The Audiobook is narrated by Partridge himself in full character. Definitely the format to go for on this one even if you don't usually do audiobooks.
It's so chocka block of the funny, that taking some random bit is bound to be hilarious and quotable. I randomly went to 2 hours in and got this:
Highly entertaining and hilarious from start to finish, with a back story that doesn't disappoint. The Audiobook is narrated by Partridge himself in full character. Definitely the format to go for on this one even if you don't usually do audiobooks.
It's so chocka block of the funny, that taking some random bit is bound to be hilarious and quotable. I randomly went to 2 hours in and got this:
...more
Back then things were different. Our tastes were simpler and les
AHAAAAAAAAA!
As a local Norwich chap, Alan Partridge is a comic creation that certainly divides opinion. Some people think that Norfolk's second most famous son (after Bernard Matthews) has done more harm to the city than good - but I disagree, he's put our Fine City on the map.
This fictional spoof memoir had me literally laughing out loud from the off. It depicts Alan’s life from his childhood years (where his cold-hearted mother made him return from school to an empty home, ...more
As a local Norwich chap, Alan Partridge is a comic creation that certainly divides opinion. Some people think that Norfolk's second most famous son (after Bernard Matthews) has done more harm to the city than good - but I disagree, he's put our Fine City on the map.
This fictional spoof memoir had me literally laughing out loud from the off. It depicts Alan’s life from his childhood years (where his cold-hearted mother made him return from school to an empty home, ...more
There will be people who know Alan Partridge from his Radio,TV and/ or podcast programmes, which date back to 1992 and there will be those who don't know him. To those that do know him, they will either love him or hate him. He is Marmite. Not literally of course - he's not made from a yeast extraction, and he doesn't come in a bottle.
And if you "got" that last sentence, you'll probably "get" the gist of what Alan Partridge is mainly about - often making painful p...more
And if you "got" that last sentence, you'll probably "get" the gist of what Alan Partridge is mainly about - often making painful p...more
Despite the stocking filler timing of its release, this ranks as the second funniest book I've ever read. Written in the style of the unreliable narrator, its an autobiography of the fictional radio and TV presenter Alan Partridge.
If you don't know who Partridge is, this book will read as a brilliant satire of any minor celebrity that has cashed in on writing a life story the world really could have done without. All the tropes are there: dramatizing a mundane childhood, hamming the...more
If you don't know who Partridge is, this book will read as a brilliant satire of any minor celebrity that has cashed in on writing a life story the world really could have done without. All the tropes are there: dramatizing a mundane childhood, hamming the...more
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I had a think about whether I wanted to read this - having thought that the TV programme was some of the finest comedy of all time. I decided that it might be a bit annoying and didn't want to go for it. However, receiving it as an Xmas present made up my mind.
There is no doubt that it is funny - more for reminding you of the day today, the chat show series, the travel tavern series and then when he is in the caravan. The travel tavern is the real peak and some of the best TV this s...more
There is no doubt that it is funny - more for reminding you of the day today, the chat show series, the travel tavern series and then when he is in the caravan. The travel tavern is the real peak and some of the best TV this s...more
A-hah! Finally, Norwich's most inescapable talk show host has released a biography that shines a light on one of one of history's most underrated and misunderstood broadcasters. (1) True—his notoriety rests almost entirely on the fact that during the last minutes of the last show of his BBC2 series, Knowing Me, Knowing You, With Alan Partridge (2), he shot and killed one of his guests. After that bombshell (3), what the BBC overlooked, as Alan Partridge points out in his scathing exposé, is that...more
A very funny autobiography charting Alan's career through his own eyes. There are many laugh out loud moments throughout the first 250 pages although I felt after after the events of IAP series 2 the book fell a little flat. Really enjoyed name checking of real celebrities:Oddie, Cooke, Rosenthal, Newbon, Ryder and Lynam;that have become Alan's friends or enemies(which would be worse?!).
What can we say about Alan Partridge that hasn't already been said? True, most of it has been said by Partridge himself, but that's by the by. Bestriding the nineties and noughties like a broadcasting behemoth, he has carved what can only be called a career through both Radio and Television, bringing his own special magic to both mediums.
In this book of words and pictures he tells his life story, from his birth to his current berth (see what I did there?) at North Norfolk Digital (No...more
In this book of words and pictures he tells his life story, from his birth to his current berth (see what I did there?) at North Norfolk Digital (No...more
This is a bloomin' funny book.
I think I could actually finish my review there. It's not like Alan is paying me by the word for this review or anything.
I suppose I should "fill out the dead space" though so here's a bit more. This is a bloomin' funny book that will make you snort out loud with laughter. You just won't be able to help it. This is not a book to read in a public place and should really come with a warning on the front to that end because if you read it ...more
I think I could actually finish my review there. It's not like Alan is paying me by the word for this review or anything.
I suppose I should "fill out the dead space" though so here's a bit more. This is a bloomin' funny book that will make you snort out loud with laughter. You just won't be able to help it. This is not a book to read in a public place and should really come with a warning on the front to that end because if you read it ...more
Mike
is currently reading it
"I was to be a parent. In just under nine months I would welcome a child into the world in much the same way as I would welcome a guest onto my prime time BBC chat show....finally Fernando Partridge was born. Tears streamed down my face. I cradled him against the crook of my elbow. Luckily he was well swaddled so I was protected from Carol's innards which enveloped him. I closed my eyes and began to sing, "there was something in the air that night the stars were bright Fernando...."...more
This is why you have to take star ratings with a grain of salt. Four stars for this work of silliness, the same number I gave to Nobel prize-winner Mario Vargas Llosa's The War of the End of the World? Yes, but with a caveat: You have to be a fan of Alan Partridge, as I am, to appreciate this book. (For that matter, you have to be a fan of Mario Vargas Llosa to appreciate his work.) That said, if it's silliness you're looking for, you'll find it in abundance here. I wish the second half of the b...more
Alan Partridge has finally released his frank and bitter memoirs, charting the rise and fall of his broadcasting career. It’s full of laughable analogies and not so laughable (minor) celebrity anecdotes, pomposity and self-importance. He provides an interesting commentary on the key moments in his radio and TV series, justifying the shooting of one of his chat show guests, and explaining at great length why he is not bothered about his wife leaving him or losing his BBC2 show.
I liste...more
I liste...more
I enjoyed this a great deal, although I suspect the spoken word version with Partidge's voice would be even funnier. The more of the various Alan Partridge series you've seen and can remember, the more pleasure there is to be had from the book. Scenes in which Partridge disgraced himself in the series are re-presented here in a sympathetic light with Alan either as hero, or as diginified victim. The footnotes are a nice touch (e.g. signposting every metaphor) as is the joyously 'bad' writing: "...more
Really funny and totally in character all the way through. You can hear the voice of alan in your head as you read along. One minute he's telling you about the way a digital signal works and the next he's coming out with comments such as my hairy ball bags. He talks about some of the things that happened during his tv series and the book has a key throughout to indicate theme tunes he wants you to play to emphasise that chapter. Genius, really interesting to hear about the made up life of a ma...more
There's probably not a great deal I can say about this, really; the fact that it's a spoof autobiography of a fictional comedy character tells you all you need to know. If you're a huge fan of Alan Partridge, you'll probably find it a very amusing read - if you're not, well, it's not going to be of much interest. The narrative captures Alan's voice brilliantly - I almost felt I could hear him speaking as I read it - but I kept having to take a break from it, as there was only so much of this I c...more
I'd love to know what someone who had never heard of Alan Partridge thought of this book, because I (as someone who has) found it superb. Above all, it's very funny, but it's also very well written and never once strays out of character. I'm sure a lot of reviewers have said this, but you really can hear the voice of Norfolk's finest in your head as you read. A fantastic piece of comic writing.
A secret: I even downloaded the soundtrack.
A secret: I even downloaded the soundtrack.
A truly cracking book. It made me laugh, it made me cry and I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said I now feel like a better man having read it.
The mandatory playlist really brings the book into the 21st Century by adding another dimension to the whole reading experience.
My only complaint is that the golden, embossed lettering on the front cover has somewhat perished from handling the book as I read it, but other than that, lovely stuff.
The mandatory playlist really brings the book into the 21st Century by adding another dimension to the whole reading experience.
My only complaint is that the golden, embossed lettering on the front cover has somewhat perished from handling the book as I read it, but other than that, lovely stuff.
Alan's Rise and Fall and Fall and Fall. And Fall. makes for hilarious reading. The use of punctuation/footnotes makes it nigh on impossible not to read the whole thing in his voice all the way through, it's like having an audiobook play your own head. Best multi-authored fictional autobiography I've read in a while which is damning it with faint praise, but you know, if you like A.P., this will not disappoint (1).
(1) Press play on track 1: Spotify link...
(1) Press play on track 1: Spotify link...
Absolutely bloody brilliant. A must for any Partridge fans; it's the story of his life as only he could tell it (at least for a fictional character). I genuinely found myself laughing out loud through most of the book. Whilst mostly re-living the exploits of Alan through the radio and television series from his biased and clueless point of view, reading about the years before, after and during fit everything together nicely.
Not a lame Christmas tie-in, more of an intricate backstory linking together all the programmes that Alan has appeared in from On The Hour onwards. Instead of seeing Alan inept and awkard as others see him, this presents himself as he himself sees himself - the most unreliable narrator ever... The unabridged audiobook read by Coogan has got to be the best version to get hold of, although it does lack the footnotes and photos.
i found myself laughing out loud at first, and coogan's creation really is funny. but... for the ridiculous amount of chapters in this book? not so much. i began to get tired of the same old jokes after about 10 (admittedly quite short) chapters. there were about 40 overall. this book was readable but would've been improved by being cut in half
If you are a Partridge fan, then this really is essential reading. This charts the full history of AP from his Childhood, through hospital and local radio, TV, Out of TV, back to Radio, and then... nowhere!
I found this laugh out loud funny throughout, and the usage of the footnotes and the suggesting audio soundtrack are elements of genius.
I found this laugh out loud funny throughout, and the usage of the footnotes and the suggesting audio soundtrack are elements of genius.
After the death of Alan's nemesis Tony Heyers:
It was only polite that I got in touch with Jane Heyers. I barely knew her and she'd not exactly covered herself in glory by marrying an idiot like Tony, but widows are needy people and I was going to do everything in my power to support her. So I sent her a travel clock wrapped in black tissue paper and in a black box- not the ones from aircraft. (footnote: Which are actually painted red. Try finding a black cuboid on a sea bed. It'd take ...more
It was only polite that I got in touch with Jane Heyers. I barely knew her and she'd not exactly covered herself in glory by marrying an idiot like Tony, but widows are needy people and I was going to do everything in my power to support her. So I sent her a travel clock wrapped in black tissue paper and in a black box- not the ones from aircraft. (footnote: Which are actually painted red. Try finding a black cuboid on a sea bed. It'd take ...more
Very funny autobiography of the Norfolk broadcasting legend. This book pulls no punches and Alan is brutally honest about his battle with addiction (toblerones) and his desire to please his army of fans.
Highly recommended and I challenge you not to read it with Alan's voice in your head!
Highly recommended and I challenge you not to read it with Alan's voice in your head!
I do love Alan Partridge, and enjoyed this book, but the joke did start to wear a bit thin halfway through. Reading it on kindle probably didn't help, as reading the funny footnotes in a lump at the end of a chapter created a bit of disconnect. Still, well worth a pop for those who love old Alan.
I started reading this and was really enjoying it before I realised there was a small change that Steve Coogan had voiced the audiobook version. I downloaded it and much to my delight I was correct. Awesome book, funny as hell, even better coming from the horse's mouth :)
I really enjoyed this, very easy to read and made me laugh out loud. I've never really watched any Alan Partridge on telly but this made me want to. There's something rather sad and touching about him that saves him from being a complete monster.
Polstar
added it
What I loved about this book was equating the episodes from his tv series with his 'experiences' of them. I've always been a fan of Alan Partridge and this book is most definitely written in Alan's voice. Funny, cringe-worthy and addictive.
Quite literally a top drawer* read (*NB drawer, not shelf, although chapter 30 gets pretty steamy**) (**not literally). Señor Partridge, I*** salute you! (***as in I, Partridge****)(****not literally. I think.)
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