‘The Fry Chronicles: An Autobiography’ by Stephen Fry

The Fry Chronicles: An Autobiography

(Audiobook)
Following on from the highly successful, ‘Moab Is My Washpot,’ (Stephen Fry’s autobiography of his early years), the award-winning comedian, actor, author, director and presenter continues the story of his various antics in and out of the limelight, with this delightful volume.

I often read books in the wrong order – not from any kind of sadistic desire to confuse myself, but simply because, as usual, I didn’t read the blurb properly. So, not having perused the previous instalment of Mr Fry’s life story, I came to ‘The Fry Chronicles’ simply as a fan of the man and his work. It seems that a lot of folk prefer the first book and, while some bits are truly hilarious, I have to admit this one isn’t as laugh-out-loud funny as I’d expected, being a more serious take on his exploits in the years following the first book.

For fans of Fry’s TV work, there are plenty of anecdotes and ‘insider’ details to titillate the comedic tonsils, though the more thoughtful side to the book (which is kind of what we expect from an autobiography), shows the man at his worst, and conversely, most fascinating.

Read by Fry himself, I enjoyed this volume immensely and will definitely read the first one and the next in the series, ‘More Fool Me’.