[David]

best book i have read this year.

Ok, it's the only book I've read this year...

[Wyatt]

I dont know if this has been posted before so apologies if it has.

I never knew Chris phoned in to Nick Abbot when Nick was on Virgin in the 90s. I think this is an exceprt from his book.

"I didn't have a radio show of my own, but I could call in to one. So I did. This was when I made my phone calls to Nick Abbot on Virgin Radio under different names and voices. One of them was a Scouse-voiced fella who just said 'It's great' about everything. After my first call on the air, Nick commented:

'I think we've just found ourselves a new star.'

That was great. I called a few more times and was known as 'It's great' 'cos I kept saying it in every call about everything. I even ended up in the radio station for his last late-night show. I was visiting a friend of mine called Wendy Lloyd, who I had been in Luxembourg with and who now worked at Virgin. We had popped in to the station for Wendy to finish up some work, and Nick was on the air, doing his last phone-in show. I called up from a room near the on-air studio and said that I was in London drinking with some pals as I was upset they were canceling his show.
As the conversation went on, Nick's producer and Wendy both saw me sitting there chatting on the phone with a ridiculous Liverpool accent. They looked at me, looked at each other and then realised that the regular caller was me. The producer immediately signaled for me to run into the studio live. Now, I had met Nick once before but I didn't think he'd remember me and, hell, it was a chance to get on air and make some decent radio, so I did. I told Nick to hang on as I was just getting another beer. I placed the phone down and ran towards the studio door. As I burst through, I screamed 'It's great' as loud as I could. Nick looked like I was a terrorist about to blow his head off and take control of the station.

'Hiya, Nick, how are you?' I said in my awful Scouse accent.

'Oh my God,' replied Nick

'Aren't you different in real life? I can't believe you're white.' I was on a roll

'How the hell did you get in here?'

'I love your studio, Nick, it's great.' I was already running out of ideas. Plus Nick looked like he thought I was going to kill him.

In the nick of time, pardon the pun, Wendy and his producer ran in laughing. I think Nick twigged and remembered me from before as Wendy's friend. He looked relieved. Afterwards he told me he had no idea I wasn't a real caller, and he thought that it was funny. A nice result....."


and here is a clip of that call and when

Chris bursted into the studio

as taken from nickabbot.com

[Yudster]

Look, he is a broadcaster, not a writer, and if he is to be believed, he didn't use a ghostwriter. He only started the damn thing in about March or something, and he had it finished in the summer - of course its going to be crap! How could it be anything else?! But the point is, I hope, that it will be entertaining and amusing crap, even if it only takes me two and a half hours to read. Celeb autobiographies are usually pretty light reading, lets face it, and most of them are professionally written - but I still think I am probably going to enjoy The Gospel.

[fish heads]

He only started the damn thing in about March or something,

He clearly didn't. This thing has been in the pipeline for at least a year, maybe longer when a deal was being negociated - In the first couple of chapters he talks about Rachel and how she is being annoying when arranging the OB for last year's Christmas Day show at Charlotte Church's Mum's Pub at the time of writing that particular segment

[Chris]

I do agree with an earlier poster that it's a shame more of the up-to-date career progression wasn't given more attention, particularly his TV work.

[Iced-T]

I dont know if this has been posted before so apologies if it has. ...

cheers for posting that mate...it's great!

[Yudster]

He only started the damn thing in about March or something,

He clearly didn't. This thing has been in the pipeline for at least a year, maybe longer when a deal was being negociated - In the first couple of chapters he talks about Rachel and how she is being annoying when arranging the OB for last year's Christmas Day show at Charlotte Church's Mum's Pub at the time of writing that particular segment

Fair enough. But I think my point still stands - if we are expecting great prose and literary genius, disappointment probably looms. If we want a lightweight entertaining read, I'm expecting a winner.

[Andy B]

I do agree with an earlier poster that it's a shame more of the up-to-date career progression wasn't given more attention, particularly his TV work.

Maybe he's saving it for the sequal...

[Gaspode_The_Wonder_Dog]

It kind of didn't know what it wanted to be. It isn't really an Autobiography and it isn't rants on various stuff. The problem is to do a rant type book he would have to be able to offend people...

[DC_FC79]

Ive started reading my copy and its pretty good so far

[Ballbag]

I finally got around to reading the book, and I totally agree with Chris that there was not enough on his recent work. It's almost as if he stuck way to rigidly to the 70,000 word total (he did mention it quite a bit on the radio). It's like he was writing away, and documenting everything quite accurately, and the when he got to the "move to Radio 1" part of his life, he suddenly realised "hey, I've only got 10,000 words left to do, and crammed the rest of his career into the last few chapters. If he'd put as much detail into his later career than his earlier career, then it would have been alot better.

Also..... I think there was a lot of unnecessary swearing in it too, not that it offended me or anything, just sometimes I felt it was swearing for swearing sakes. Oh, and way too much written about X-factor.

Anyway that's my opinion. Quite good otherwise.

[DC_FC79]

the swearing doesnt bother me to be honest

[Ballbag]

the swearing doesnt bothewr me to be honest

Well it kind of didn't bother me that much, it's just I felt there was too much of it. Also I didn't really like the occasional sentence that appeared in bold on every page, although I presume that was the publisher's doing.

[Boboff]

Honestly I think Chris is contractually restricted, and also socially restricted in what he can right about his current employers !

[Ballbag]

Honestly I think Chris is contractually restricted, and also socially restricted in what he can right about his current employers !

I agree........it's a shame though.

[Boboff]

Not wishing to "chat", but did you have a good holiday, and in what way did the book add or detract from the holiday experience ?

[Ballbag]

Indeed, and not wishing to "chat" either and in order to make this a non "personal chat" hello to all and sundry. In summary I'd say the book had a derogatory effect on my holiday, the pro's included that it was quite a good read, nice and flowing and just right for a relaxing non-effort read on the beach. Although the con came on the way home when we struggled to het the heavy hard back book into either suit case, and hence made for a "tense" packing experience that subsequently put our suitcase just over the weight limit.

Now I'm not saying that the book was the straw that broke the camel's back, but it may well have been, and certainly didn't help matters. If it wasn't for my passport photo causing a distraction at check in so that I could ever so slightly lift my suit case off the scales tipping it under the limit, then I don't think I would have made it.

In future I'll wait for paper back versions for my hols.

Having said that, the rest of my time was fun.

[Yudster]

Can we please see your passport photo?!

[Ballbag]

Can we please see your passport photo?!

Ok, I'll hold it up to the screen........................................ there you go, what do you think?

[Yudster]

Worse than your avatar!!!!!!!!!!!

[Rychu]

Great book loved the language it was written in. Enjoyed every page...

[big-cheez]

its the best

[FLAME]

Listen Kids....

If you want really good "life of" book, then look no further than "EVIL SPIRITS" (the life of Oliver Reed). The first true British wildman.

All hail the king.



----------------------------------------------
Flame: keeping it real for the masses

[tro1]

Looking forward to getting this at Xmas so I'll give my thoughts then, but I read elsewhere that there was a lot in the book about his local radio days which really surprised me. I just assumed he'd concentrate on his R1 and Capitol days as there were more high profile and the large majority of the people who bought the book started listening in that period.