Description

Hugh Bonneville is one of Britain’s most accomplished actors, whose credits include Downton Abbey, W1A and the Paddington films.

‘I don’t remember when I last read a book that gave me so many laughs’ Christina Patterson, Sunday Times
‘Tremendously entertaining’ Rachel Cooke, Observer
‘A writer of considerable urbanity and wit’ Lynn Barber, Daily Telegraph
‘You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll love Hugh even more’ Woman & Home

Hugh Bonneville is one of Britain’s most accomplished actors, familiar to audiences worldwide for his roles in Notting Hill, the Paddington films and Downton Abbey. From getting his big break as Third Shepherd in the school nativity play, to mistaking a Hollywood star for an estate agent, Hugh creates a brilliantly vivid picture of a career on stage and screen. What is it like working with Judi Dench and Julia Roberts, or playing Robert de Niro’s right leg, or not being Gary Oldman, twice? A wickedly funny storyteller, Hugh also writes with poignancy about his father’s dementia and of his mother, whose life in the secret service only emerged after her death. Whether telling stories of working with divas, Dames or a bear with a penchant for marmalade, this is a richly entertaining account of his life as an actor.

Publisher Review

A writer of considerable urbanity and wit. Gary Oldman says it is 'beautiful, touching and funny'. I agree. -- Lynn Barber * Daily Telegraph * Comedy gold... I don't remember when I last read a book that gave me so many laughs... A riveting account of what it takes to be an actor -- Christina Patterson * Sunday Times * Tremendously entertaining... if collapsing into laughter is what you need at the moment, then Playing Under the Piano could be the book for you... a delicious and endearing mode somewhere between utmost sincerity and utter bafflement -- Rachel Cooke * Observer * A great read * Graham Norton * An enormously entertaining memoir * Daily Mirror * The tone of Hugh Bonneville's autobiography is very much like the man himself - warm, charming, funny and thoroughly embraceable... There is a refreshing lack of narcissism in a narrative poised between detached observation and amused self-reflection... An enormously entertaining memoir -- Neil Norman * Daily Express * Really enjoyed this. Wonderfully funny and utterly charming - just like the man himself! -- Jack Whitehall By turns funny, touching, revealing - full of insights, delights and surprises. I couldn't have enjoyed it more -- Gyles Brandreth A gorgeous book. Warm, friendly, funny and sometimes surprisingly emotional. Very like Hugh himself -- Richard Curtis When other books have been forgotten, this one will be remembered. Hugh Bonneville's considerable talent for writing is on display page after page. Beautiful. Touching. And funny. -- Gary Oldman Charming, joyous and entertaining, just like Hugh. -- Griff Rhys Jones A collection of stories painting a brilliantly vivid picture of a career on stage and screen * Yorkshire Post * Bonneville is entertaining, with a clear-eyed view of his trade... Reliving it all so far with light and shade, bite and bonhomie, as a memoirist Bonneville passes the audition with flying colours * Mail on Sunday * You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll love Hugh even more * Woman & Home * Bonneville tells of his life with appealing modesty... he gives us plenty of backstage gossip * Reader's Digest * Witty and moving * Country Living * The Downton star proves himself to be a polished raconteur -- Books of the Year * Daily Telegraph * A beautifully poised memoir, both insightful and - occasionally - laugh-out-loud funny, with the gift for comic timing he reveals on screen and a sharp eye for detail... warmly engrossing -- Books of the Year * The Times * Bonneville's affable screen presence richly translated onto the page through anecdotes and adventures... there are many howling laughs in this frequently entertaining memoir * RTE Guide * Playing Under the Piano made me hoot -- Ben Macintyre, Books of the Year * The Times * Though a funny raconteur, Bonneville also writes poignantly about his father's dementia and of his mother, whose life in the secret service only emerged after her death * The Gloss *