The Sound of Laughter

Peter Kay’s unerring gift for observing the absurdities and eccentricities of family life has earned himself a widespread, everyman appeal. These vivid observations coupled with a kind of nostalgia that never fails to grab his audience’s shared understanding, have earned him comparisons with Alan Bennett and Ronnie Barker.In his award winning TV series’ he creates worlds populated by degenerate, bitter, useless, endearing and always recognisable characters which have attracted a huge and loyal following.In many ways he’s an old fashioned kind of comedian and the scope and enormity of his fanbase reflects this. He doesn’t tell jokes about politics or sex, but rather rejoices in the far funnier areas of life: elderly relatives and answering machines, dads dancing badly at weddings, garlic bread and cheesecake, your mum’s HRT…His autobiography is full of this kind of humour and nostalgia, beginning with Kay’s first ever driving lesson, taking him back through his Bolton childhood, the numerous jobs he held after school and leading up until the time he passed his driving test and found fame.

Reviews of The Sound of Laughter

"His autobiography is filled to the very brim with funny bits" * heat * "He is every bit as amusing on the page as he is in person… Hilarious" * Sunday Express * "The Sound of Laughter provides as complete a picture of its subject's world view and creative evolution as any comedian's autobigraphy I can think of" * Independent on Sunday * "J. K. Rowling can't compete. Nor can Dan Brown. By selling more than a million copies in hardback, the highest figure since records began, this autobiography by the comedian Peter Kay has become a minor miracle" * The Times *