chris morris book

[klaus]

Not a joke:

Disgusting Bliss: Chris Morris and the Rebirth of Satire (Paperback)
by Lucian Randall

Synopsis
The Sun newspaper asked if Chris Morris's July 2001 Brass Eye Special on paedophilia was 'the sickest TV ever?' It was certainly the most controversial, though his uncompromising style of comedy meant he was rarely far from trouble. Morris first came to national prominence at the heart of a group of virtually unknown comedians brought together by Armando Iannucci. This book follows them from their 1991 news satire On the Hour, which transferred from radio to television where it was reinvented as the equally successful The Day Today. It became impossible to watch bulletins without thinking of Morris's Paxmanesque anchor character chastising a reporter -- 'Peter! You've lost the news!' -- or authoritatively delivering nonsense headlines: 'Sacked chimney worker pumps boss full of mayonnaise.' Meanwhile co-star Steve Coogan created a lasting anti-hero in Alan Partridge, imbued with a horrible life all of his own. But Morris himself was always the most compelling character of all.Drawing on exclusive new interviews and original research, this book creates a compelling portrait of Chris from his earliest radio days and of the comedians and writers who frequently took on the industry they worked in, polarising opinion to such a degree that government ministers threatened to ban them entirely.

THIS IS THE NEEEWWWWS!

Just found this on Amazon.uk.  Anyone have details?  Out in August 2008. 

Also, region free barley apparently is also low fat.

Klaus

[rudi]

Other books he are done:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/search-handle-url?%5Fencoding=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=books-uk&field-author=Lucian%20Randall

[Ambient Sheep]

So, have any of our resident Viv experts read that author's Stanshall book, and know how it stacks up?

[Beck]

THIS IS THE NEEEWWWWS!

Oh dear. I thought you'd added that, but nope, it's in the actual synopsis. Surprising he's not got in touch with CaB, you'd think if he's writing about No Known Cure etc. that he'd be pilfering at least some info from here... Still, not a bad title, and unless I hear some really bad things about it pre-release I imagine I'll end up buying it.

The synopsis doesn't bode terribly well though does it? Sort of suggests it'll just be pointing out funny bits and laughing. Here's hoping for possibly the first accurate description of the Heseltine thing in print. But I can't imagine it adding anything not already known by the more obsessive among us, except perhaps the "exclusive new interviews" bit.

[The Widow of Brid]

So, have any of our resident Viv experts read that author's Stanshall book, and know how it stacks up?

I've read it and thought it was fine. But I don't think it was fantastically well regarded overall for some reason.

[Jemble Fred]

Drawing on exclusive new interviews and original research

Hmm... exclusive new interviews with Morris himself? Without being authorised, this will very much depend on the sheer quality of the writing. I enjoyed 'Ginger Geezer' (co-written by Chris Welch) though, so it could be quite good.

[amputeeporn]

I think if they were interviews with Morris the blurb would be more specific. Probably more likely that they'll be with producers and 'behinds the scenes' type people who've worked with him. This is interesting though - you'd have thought it might happen around BES, but now Morris doesn't really seem big name enough somehow.

[Glebe]

Interesting, thanks. Must look out for that.

[Uncle TechTip]

Actually it was the Daily Mail which branded the show "sickest TV ever", but then that's neither here nor there. Belies decent research?

[Ignatius_S]

Actually it was the Daily Mail which branded the show "sickest TV ever", but then that's neither here nor there. Belies decent research?

According to the Beeb (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1460805.stm) The Sun did as well - of course, maybe this story was incorrect.

Also, the blurb on Amazon is likely to be taken from the press release and the person who wrote it may not have actually read the book.

[Lfbarfe]

Don't judge a book on its blurb. They're usually written by publishers who can't read.

[The Horse]

Both the Mail and the Sun called it the "sickest TV ever", in headlines to their stories about it.

The Mail report contained this brilliantly mendacious sentence:

In one scene, Morris played a Crimewatch-style presenter, introducing a boy pretending to be his son to a paedophile and asking him if he would like to have sex with him. More than 1,000 viewers called Channel 4 to protest.

[Jumble Cashback]

A bit of bad news:

The book's been pushed back to next year.  I work in the book trade at the moment and got in touch with the publisher. They told me that they found out the book was actually nowhere near as far on as they thought it was when they announced the release date.  I think they said April 2009 is now the expected release time.  The good news is that I can get an advance copy some months before that and will keep you posted as to the quality of the text.  It better be worth the wait.

[kngen]

probably just in time to coincide with the fatwah he'll recieve on the back of the suicide bomber sit-com

[wheatgod]

I'm going to hibernate. Wake me up in April 2009, people!

[Jumble Cashback]

Well, those of you who chose to hibernate until the release of 'Disgusting Bliss', Lucian Randall's reported treatise on the life and times of Chris Morris, may wish to dust yourselves off and stretch your legs once or twice around the promenade of false hopes before retreating once more to your nests.  After noticing a new publication date (6th of July 2009) on my employer's database (a date confirmed by Amazon), I decided to investigate further.  Luckily, I work at a major bookseller (for legal reasons I can't say which one - suffice to say that, if my name were 'Mr. Waterstones', it would be a quaint fucking coincidence) and was able to contact the publisher, ostensibly to resolve a matter of business.  After repeated attempts to be connected to someone with relevant information, I finally managed to get an update.  So, let me be the first to reveal...

...that the date has been pushed back again.    This time to February 2010.   How far behind schedule is this thing?  When pressed, a confused secretarial correspondent tried to sell me some story about it being 'probably to do with our scheduling arrangements', but, given that it was initially pushed back due to the fact that it was so far from being finished, it seems a little unbelievable that it would be held back for such a walloping length of time purely on the grounds of scheduling arrangements.  It seems that Randall may have been whistling out of his arse when he promised this book for September '08, and it certainly looks like that's where his head's been for the last 6 months. 

So, sorry to be the bringer of bad news, but I'll keep calling the publisher and maybe I'll be able to dig up something a little more edible next time.  Until then, why not make a game of trying to guess what Lucian Randall's been doing with the last year or so and how he might have spent the sizeable advance he's sure to have received from the publishers when he agreed to the project.  The best suggestions win an Idi Amin luch-box and a signed first edition of Eric Bristow's Guide to Road Safety.  Runners up will receive one of the latest celebrity autobiography bestsellers, including Norman Brown's 'Extra-Ordinary: Behind the Man in Front of Halifax'; 'Unbelievable Bender: The Uri Gellar Story'; and Barry Scott's 'My Time to Shine'. 

Let the Randall bashing begin...

[13 schoolyards]

I thought the delays might have something to do with the publishers wanting to tie the release in with whenever the hell Morris' suicide bomber movie comes out.  After all, otherwise it's just a book about someone who hasn't actually done anything for half a decade, and hasn't done anything really noteworthy for a fair bit longer than that.  If there's a movie out there, even if it's rubbish, at least Morris' name will be waved in front of the public for a week or so.

[Lfbarfe]

This time to February 2010.   How far behind schedule is this thing? 

I make it 18 months. I was 2 years late delivering my history of light entertainment. Shit happens.

When pressed, a confused secretarial correspondent tried to sell me some story about it being 'probably to do with our scheduling arrangements', but, given that it was initially pushed back due to the fact that it was so far from being finished, it seems a little unbelievable that it would be held back for such a walloping length of time purely on the grounds of scheduling arrangements. 

No, it's fair to assume that the author's taking longer to deliver than expected.

It seems that Randall may have been whistling out of his arse when he promised this book for September '08, and it certainly looks like that's where his head's been for the last 6 months. 

That's a bit unfair. Books can take longer than expected for any number of reasons.  It may well be that Lucian Randall's trying to balance the publisher's need for speed with his own desire to do a proper job, while hitting all manner of dead ends and brick walls along the way.

So, sorry to be the bringer of bad news, but I'll keep calling the publisher and maybe I'll be able to dig up something a little more edible next time. 

Give it a while before ringing again.

Until then, why not make a game of trying to guess what Lucian Randall's been doing with the last year or so and how he might have spent the sizeable advance he's sure to have received from the publishers when he agreed to the project. 

Does anyone apart from Jordan and Russell Brand get sizeable advances? More likely, he's been given a decent amount, but not enough to allow him to refuse all other work, which is delaying the delivery date.

The best suggestions win an Idi Amin luch-box and a signed first edition of Eric Bristow's Guide to Road Safety.  Runners up will receive one of the latest celebrity autobiography bestsellers, including Norman Brown's 'Extra-Ordinary: Behind the Man in Front of Halifax'; 'Unbelievable Bender: The Uri Gellar Story'; and Barry Scott's 'My Time to Shine'. 
Let the Randall bashing begin...

Or not. I've heard nice things about 'Ginger Geezer'. I bought a copy, but left it on the train home from the shop, so I've never read it. I keep meaning to repair the omission. I've also heard nice things about Lucian Randall himself from a lot of people. I think Sirhenry's had pleasant dealings with him. Meanwhile, some other friends of mine have given LR access to their own interviews and research into Morris, and they say he's an honest broker.

[Backstage With Slowdive]

I have a near-complete set of press cuttings from the BES scandal of 2001 and can assure you both The Sun and Daily Mail used the "Sickest TV Ever" line.

[ThickAndCreamy]

I have a near-complete set of press cuttings from the BES scandal of 2001 and can assure you both The Sun and Daily Mail used the "Sickest TV Ever" line.

Really, even the Daily Star one next to a picture of a young Charlotte Church? That's brilliant, and if you don't mind me asking have you ever scanned them for the internet as they sound like a great read.

[Backstage With Slowdive]

The infamous Star/Church one is one of the few I'm missing unfortunately.

[Ignatius_S]

Really, even the Daily Star one next to a picture of a young Charlotte Church? That's brilliant, and if you don't mind me asking have you ever scanned them for the internet as they sound like a great read.

Ah yes, didn't the Church 'story' have the headline of 'She's a big girl now'?

Not forgetting that the Mail's coverage was opposite a big pic of Princess Eugenie and Beatrice clad in bikinis... all in the public interest, of course.

[TVs Nick Wealthall]

The Church one is definitely in there somewhere, I remember seeing it and sending it on to a friend last year. Loads of other stuff too.

[ThickAndCreamy]

The Church one is definitely in there somewhere, I remember seeing it and sending it on to a friend last year. Loads of other stuff too.

Wow, never read these before they are all brilliant. The Daily Mail one especially for saying Chris was sacked from Radio One for "Blaspheming Wildly" to Cliff Richard, that's incredible.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

I'm always staggered by the way that Mirror article wilfully misinterprets that publicity pic of a "spotty"* young Morris "proudly holding" a Jason Donovan LP. They even criticise his tweedy outfit which, to quote Derren Zicks, is obviously ironic   

_{* it's a birthmark, you callous fiends!}

[ThickAndCreamy]

I'm always staggered by way that Mirror article wilfully misinterprets that publicity pic of a "spotty"* young Morris "proudly holding" a Jason Donovan LP. They even criticise his tweedy outfit which, to quote Derren Zicks, is obviously ironic   

_{* it's a birthmark, you callous fiends!}

Also in the NME article you see him in the same outfit burning that record.

[Small Man Big Horse]

The Church one is definitely in there somewhere, I remember seeing it and sending it on to a friend last year. Loads of other stuff too.

Just found it now - http://chilled.cream.org/graphics/charlotte.jpg - I think that was my favourite bit of coverage at the time, it's just unbelievable, I wish I could say they did it as a joke but I somehow doubt it.

[Ronnie the Raincoat]

I really enjoyed Ginger Geezer, though how much of it was down to Chris Welch I don't know.

I'll join Lfbarfe in saying that Lucian is a very lovely person.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

Just found it now - http://chilled.cream.org/graphics/charlotte.jpg - I think that was my favourite bit of coverage at the time, it's just unbelievable, I wish I could say they did it as a joke but I somehow doubt it.

It's stunning, isn't it? Possibly the most sublime piece of tabloid hypocrisy I've ever seen.

[Ronnie the Raincoat]

It's brilliant.  It should be attached to every hysterical, thinly-veiled call to lynch mob Gary Glitter article they're running right now.