I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan

By: Alan Partridge

Narrated by: Alan Partridge

Length: 6 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's Summary

Journalist, presenter, broadcaster, husband, father, vigorous all-rounder – Alan Partridge – a man with a fascinating past and an amazing future. Gregarious and popular, yet Alan’s never happier than when relaxing in his own five-bedroom, south-built house with three acres of land and access to a private stream. But who is this mysterious enigma?

Alan Gordon Partridge is the best – and best-loved – radio presenter in the region. Born into a changing world of rationing, Teddy Boys, apes in space and the launch of ITV, Alan’s broadcasting career began as chief DJ of Radio Smile at St. Luke’s Hospital in Norwich. After replacing Peter Flint as the presenter of Scout About, he entered the top 8 of BBC sports presenters.But Alan’s big break came with his primetime BBC chat show Knowing Me, Knowing You. Sadly, the show battled against poor scheduling, having been put up against News at Ten, then in its heyday. Due to declining ratings, a single catastrophic hitch (the killing of a guest on air) and the dumbing down of network TV, Alan’s show was cancelled. Not to be dissuaded, he embraced this opportunity to wind up his production company, leave London and fulfil a lifelong ambition to return to his roots in local radio.

Now single, Alan is an intensely private man but he opens up, for the second time, in this candid, entertaining, often deeply emotional – and of course compelling – memoir, written entirely in his own words. (Alan quickly dispelled the idea of using a ghost writer. With a grade B English Language O-Level, he knew he was up to the task.)

He speaks touchingly about his tragic Toblerone addiction, and the painful moment when unsold copies of his first autobiography, Bouncing Back, were pulped like ‘word porridge’. He reveals all about his relationship with his ex-Ukrainian girlfriend, Sonja, with whom he had sex at least twice a day, and the truth about the thick people who make key decisions at the BBC.

A literary tour de force, I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan charts the incredible journey of one of our greatest broadcasters.

©2011 Alan Partridge (P)2011 HarperCollins

Critic Reviews

"Legendary." ( The Guardian)

"Some of the UK’s finest comedy." ( The Telegraph)

"Coogan’s greatest creation." ( Daily Mail)

“I’m a massive Alan Partridge fan, and this is without a doubt the funniest book I’ve ever read. You’ll be laughing at something on every single page. Its worth downloading the audiobook, though, so you can listen to Alan reading it to you.” (Greg James, Heat Magazine)

An Anglican giant among pygmies

If you could sum up I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan in three words, what would they be?

black belt chat

What other book might you compare I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan to and why?

The Bible, Great Expectations, The Story of My Experiments with Truth - Mahatma Gandhi, My Early Life: A Roving Commission - Winston Churchill, Poptastic: My Life in Radio - Tony Blackburn

What does Alan Partridge bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Alan's personal reading of the book lends the words a rich timbre which, combined with his signature rhythm and a pair of noise-cancelling headphones can lead to tears, laughter or literally incontinence all over the very same page.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Sorry I should have read this question first as I explained my laughter, tears and urine expulsion in the previous question.

Any additional comments?

It makes the lives of Richard Madeley and Alan Titmarsh look positively tame.

Even Better Than "Bouncing Back!"

Would you listen to I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan again? Why?

Yes, until Alan gets his much deserved second series, this is the best way to enjoy more Partridge.

What was one of the most memorable moments of I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan?

Learning about Alan's heroic return after his crippling addiction to Toblerones.

Have you listened to any of Alan Partridge’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Refreshing to hear Alan's version of his life, instead of that impostor Steve Coogan's.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I laughed so hard that the other train riders thought I was a sexual deviant.

Literally laughing out loud during my commute.

I honestly thought this would be a serious biography of Steve Coogan. Up to now I mainly listen to biographies of comedians or musicians and a bit of fiction. I'm only 6 chapters in of 30+ but this really is hilarious if you're a fan of Alan Partridge. Highly recommended.

Great performance

not being a huge fan of Alan Partridge I was worried that I wouldn't get this book but the voice performance is amazing and carries you through with lots of little laughs throughout.

Incredibly funny

This book is soooo funny. I listen to it every night. For some reason his voice is very soothing to me.

aha

aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha aha ahhaa ahhaa is very good and shit

Everything you wanted to know about Alan.

Steve really did a great job covering the whole Alan story. Extremely funny, dry and consistent with the Alan character. Will listen to this again at some point.

The performance makes the book

This would not be worth reading as a book, really - the performance makes the middling material worth your time. If you like any of the other Alan Partridge entertainments, you will like this audiobook.

Return of the Partridge

As a fan of the various Alan Partridge series on the BBC, I was excited to hear Coogan and Co. were writing an Alan Partridge book, and when I found out Coogan would be narrating the audiobook as Alan Partridge, I knew that would definitely be the version to get. The reading does not disappoint. Alan's deadpan buffoonish style is just as funny as ever, and I found myself laughing out loud in the car many times while listening. The writing style is fun and fresh, actively calling attention to the book-writing process, as Alan tries to meet his publisher's minimum word count. My only complaint is that book covers a lot of material from the KMKY and I'm Alan Partridge, so some of the jokes/situations are recycled. Even still the writing makes them fresh. If you haven't seen all those series as many times as I have, obviously that's not a problem. Even if you have, if you're a fan of the Partridge, it's definitely worth a listen, but you probably knew that already.

This is Alan, written by Alan, read by Alan

I am writing this review not as an impartial reader, but as a fan of AP. Those who have not had the full Partridge - spanning the Toblerone addiction, the years in the Travel Tavern, and the continuing efforts at Bouncing Back - will not appreciate the references and wit encompassing this volume. But for those of us thoroughly engulfed in the World of Partridge, this book was "full of joy," albeit sometimes at the expense of others. I noticed that he used the phrase, "needless to say I had the last laugh..." many times. (a wink to AP fans everywhere.) A must-read for AP fans, and maybe a giggle or two for AP newbies.

Jurassic Park

Best audiobook I've ever listened to. By a distance.

Huge advantage over the book version is Coogan's narration; the voice is such a key component of the Partridge persona.

Cannot recommend it enough.

Three downsides:

1) a bloke in Holborn shot me daggers yesterday because it looked like I was laughing directly at him, rather than listening to it on my headphones. You'll also look an epic tit lauging loudly to yourself on the tube/train/bus.
2) You'll be genuinely sorry once it's finished.
3) After seven hours of solid Partridge, you'll find yourself talking a bit like him in real life. Which is odd.

All in all, it's awesome.

You get what you pay for

I'm a big fan of the great AP and if you are you'll love this audio book. This is the first audio book I've bought and while I was apprehensive about whether I'd like the format for novels and fiction I was confident that I'd appreciate AGPs memoirs read by the man himself. It's great fun and while not laugh-out-loud all the way through there were a number of bit that had me chuckling away on a crowded train.

Some of the material is rehashed (or should I say reworked) from the TV shows but it's done in such a way that it represents Alan's personal view of the situation which is not always quite as accurate as the fly on the wall material we witnessed back in the day so it's funny to hear Alan's versions of chinese whispers when he remembers some of his most shame-faced moments in a way that makes him feel good about himself.

I managed to listen to it over about 4 days on my commute to and from work and like the TV shows I've no doubt it will be something I come back to, AP is such a good creation and while I think Coogan and co sometimes push the boundaries too far silliness-wise (Jed Maxwell episode on TV, I'm looking at you) you can forgive them beacuse the character is written so well. The only real sadness I had was that Lynn never gets a name check (purposefully) but some of the stories about her having to fend for herself are great.

All in all I great book and an even better audiobook that's well worth a listen. It's just a shame that Bouncing Back (Alan's first memoirs) never got to see the audio book treatment.....(still this one would well suit a drive to Dundee in your bare feet...)

Lovely stuff

Not really sure what to say about this audibook other than this - if you are a Partridge fan then this is a must-listen.

Entertaining, believably in character and most importantly funny, this is one of the best comedy tie-in books I've ever heard. No mere shameless cash-in, this is a well constructed book by people that by now totally get the character, and cleverly weave in the false reality of Partridge's appearances in 'On The Hour,''The Day Today' and 'Mid morning matters' as well as his interpretation of events seen in 'I'm Alan Partridge' to great comic effect. Being read by Steve Coogan in character adds so much more to an already well considered and contructed comedy autobiography and there's enough new material as well as new takes on old favourites for any Partridge fan to enjoy. If you're a fan then get this audiobook. You won't regret it.

Pure Audible Gold

As a Alan Partridge fan i cannot stress enough how funny this book is. I've listened to it numerous times as i've been laughing and missing bits. Pure AP Joy.

Very very funny

One of the best audiobooks I've book, so glad it's read by Steve Coogan. If you find Alan Partridge funny then don't miss out.

A Rollercoaster of Sports, Scouts and Toblerone.

A literary masterpiece, if it were a novel - which incidentally it isn't, but if it was it probably would be.

Instead it's a brutally honest, behind the camera, candid and often heartbreaking account straight from the pen of the original Norwich based Hell-raiser himself.

Surviving kidnap, confectionery abuse and shooting a man dead - live on national TV. The best presenter BBC Top Gear (Old Top Gear) never had pulls no punches.

I Partridge soars highly amongst the literary giants.

Almost as good as Rob Brydons book.

Don't miss this one.

Comedy genius

Superb. Lovely stuff. Jacknackernory. This book is made even better as Alan himself reads it. The 'contribution' from his wife is genius.

Audible Sound Quality Is Terrible

Audible have ruined an absolute comedy genius by releasing in pathetic low quality (sounds like an analogue telephone). All I can hear is the muffled sound of Steve Coogan and it stops me being able to relax and enjoy the content. I will also complain to the publisher who did not, I am sure, give Audible permission to ruin this recording.

Disappointing

I'm afraid I have to agree with the other reviewers who felt this book was lacking.

I too love the Alan Partridge character, and in fairness this book has prompted me to invest in some Alan Partridge DVD's (and the salesman in me would say that's what it set out to do).

And that's what I felt was wrong with this book - as you listen you're reminded of all the funny events in the shows without getting the full payoff. And so I'm sure if I hadn't seen the shows I would have found this book a lot more entertaining as I'd have nothing to compare it to. But as it stands, apart from the stuff about his younger years, it feels almost like an 'also available' advert. And if Alan wasn't narrating I don't think I would have made it past the first chapter (I've stopped 4 hours in with no desire to go further).

But that being said it looks like I'm in a minority with this opinion. And in fairness it is humorous in a lot of places. And there are laugh out loud moments, albeit spaced too far apart.

Bottom line is- If you've got a few spare credits in your account and you like Alan Partridge then definitely get this. Just don't expect it to be as funny as the shows it describes.

Fans of Alan Partridge can't afford to miss this

The most wonderfully egotistical autobiography money can buy.

One of the best things about this book is that many of the events in the original Radio and TV shows are subtly revisited and given a fresh perspective in the retelling. Listening to him recount the "I've got Cheese" incident at dinner with Tony Hayers was a particular highlight for me and had me laughing out loud on the train on my morning commute.

I'm glad I listened to this book rather than reading it as Steve Coogan's narrative adds so much to it that I'd have missed if I'd read it to myself.