Alan Partridge

As seen on This Time with Alan Partridge on BBC One. THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER Praise for Nomad: 'Funniest book of the year' Sunday Telegraph 'Alan Partridge's Nomad is almost certainly the funniest book ever written' Caitlin Moran 'Sensationally funny. What brilliant writing' Richard Osman 'Sensational' Jenny Colgan 'Hilarious' Jon Ronson 'Brilliantly funny' Marcus Brigstock In ALAN PARTRIDGE: NOMAD, Alan dons his boots, windcheater and scarf and embarks on an odyssey through a place he once knew - it's called Britain - intent on completing a journey of immense personal significance. Diarising his ramble in the form of a 'journey journal', Alan details the people and places he encounters, ruminates on matters large and small and, on a final leg fraught with danger, becomes - not a man (because he was one to start off with) - but a better, more inspiring example of a man. This deeply personal book is divided into chapters and has a colour photograph on the front cover. It is deeply personal. Through witty vignettes, heavy essays and nod-inducing pieces of wisdom, Alan shines a light on the nooks of the nation and the crannies of himself, making this a biography that biographs the biographer while also biographing bits of Britain.

Alan Partridge: Nomad

Bad Girl Bex

One of those funny little books that are well worth checking out if you're a fan of the character, or if you just like eccentric British comedy on the whole. I needed something silly and light-hearted to try and counter all the black-pills I've been swallowing back with my recent reading choices...and this definitely hit the spot.

I have to confess however, that rather than reading the physical text in this case, I actually went with the audio-book, because it's narrated by Steve Coogan in character as Alan Partridge himself and all of the jokes, quips, whinges, tandems and silliness is always going to sound funnier coming from Alan in that weird combination of smugness and self-deprecation that makes up his classic delivery.

The premise is perfectly ridiculous. Alan is doing the 'in' celebrity thing of going on some type of journey, which encompasses actual travel, intermingled with a less tangible, personal sense of discovery. But being Alan, rather than climb K-2, or cycle from Land's End to John O'Groats, he chooses to follow in the footsteps of his father, from Norwich to Dungeness, determined to get to the bottom of the mystery of why he never made it to a job interview with British Nuclear Fuels.

It's every bit as bonkers as you can probably imagine, with every other line a joke. Some fall a bit flat, but over half of them are almost laugh-out-loud hilarious; in a blink-and-you'll miss them (or whatever the audible equivalent is) never-ending assaults on your funny bone. Most of the references however, are probably only going to make sense to people aged 35 and over. I nearly spat out my tea hearing about Gary Wilmott at a wedding, but I can't imagine many Gen Z'ers even knowing who he is.

Overall, it's nothing we haven't heard before with Alan. He's still his insufferable self, with just enough pathos, failure and little-boy bewilderment to make us still want to root for him. But if you're a fan of the character and you can't get enough of his regional quips, boring facts or complete lack of self-awareness in many situations, then you're going to want to check this out. 

And the audiobook has got to be the way to go in this case. I don't normally listen to many of them because I often find myself drifting off in my own thoughts and missing large chunks; so it's not really suitable for a lot of the statistic and information heavy texts I tend to read a lot of. But this is funny, engaging and perfect to stick on in the car, or when you're doing the dishes, or if you're sat on a bus or train during the morning commute. Although, you might find yourself getting a few funny looks from fellow passengers because there's no way you'll be able to get through even a single chapter without letting out at least one or two audible giggles. 

Back of the net.

Alan Partridge: Nomad

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