Book Review: The Fry Chronicles

11-4-2011
All Flourish: Book, Reviews

The Fry Chronicles

by Stephen Fry

Reviewed by Adam Andreotta

The name Stephen Fry has been a staple within the entertainment industry since the 1980s. This well known public figure who is an established Author (The Liar, The Hippopotamus), Actor (Kingdom, Black Adder) and Television Host (QI) amongst many other accomplishments has documented the second part of this life in his latest Autobiography ‘The Fry Chronicles’.

'The Fry Chronicles' takes off where 1997's 'Moab Is My Wash Pot' ends, which dealt with the early years of his life.

Fry welcomes the reader in by uncovering some of his early indulgences, namely his love of C words. C is for Candy for C is for Carbohydrates he announces, which leads to a reflection and analysis of some of his earliest vices which affected these formative years. These confessions set the tone for the remainder of the book, revealing an author who is never afraid to withhold a potentially embarrassing story in the name of entertainment.

A brief account of his time in prison follows in which he declares as his low point. However he is soon given an opportunity to change things around by winning a Scholarship to read English at Cambridge, which leads Fry to proclaim he had woken up to the world, “The Sly Fry was dead and the reinvention had begun”. Considering Cambridge the last of his last chances and with the world before him Fry was eager to approach his new opportunity head on.

Fry goes on to the reveal his fear of being found out by his soon to be fellow students. Not for his criminal past, his sexuality or ethnicity which he claims were all fine for broadcast but for his intellectual right to be there. Fry contemplates his lack of opinions about Lermontov, Super String Theory and the categorical imperative of Kant, amongst the other student’s sharpened accusations. ”Do you even know who Lermontov is? ” he imagines one student queering him...While I’m sure most people of all walks of life would have no problem discussing all three of these without a skip we can never the less sympathise with the young man.

Fry goes on to speak of the rivalry of Oxford and Cambridge and tallies up some of the great minds who have passed through the two colleges over the past decades from Cambridge’s John Cleese and Graham Chapman to Oxford’s Dudley Moore and Terry Jones, listing the intellectual traditions of the colleges and some of his reasons for selecting Cambridge, concluding "Cambridge creates martyrs and Oxford burns them."

After overcoming his early doubts and fears the settled Fry documents his venture into the world of plays, fine wine and extracurricular activities around campus. He romanticises the student life noting that the unforced, ungraded nature of these activities helped motivate everyone to make them successful with everyone learning as they went for the enjoyment of the project.

Fry notes his first meetings with notable future stars such as Emma Thompson and his future working partner Hugh Lawrie, documenting their adventures around in and around campus, including the excitement of seeing Rowan Atkinson perform live for the first time. Later on we learn while touring with his fellow actors another name and shame session occurs where everyone on the bus lists the books they should of read but haven’t which Fry once again must put his cards on the table for all to see.

The second part of the book explores the more public part of his career, going through television appearances, productions and preparations which give the reader rare behind the scenes look at life past the camera and reveal the inner workings of the business and his own personal thoughts.

One of the more memorable stories occurs after one of his first televisions appearance, where the ‘newly famous’ Fry armed with a pen to sign autographs strolls the streets in anticipation of securing multiple signatures for all of this new fans. To his amazement no one blinks an eye apart from one excited girl who sadly for the young actor only rushes up to him to give Fry the change he forgot. Television obviously didn’t mean instant fame. Fry provides insightful commentary into the life of ‘the famous person’ and notes his early desires to become famous, and adds commentary of our propensity to worship idols and life on the stage.

Fry however didn’t have this problem for long and as the book progresses Fry accepts more challenging roles which stamp his name in the entertainment industry. Through hard work and sacrifice he is able to establish key partnerships with prominent figures including Ben Elton and Rowan Atkinson which lead Fry to greater and greater opportunities and push forward his career.

The Fry Chronicles can be recommended for not only fans of his work, but to those interested in English comedy, English literature and Life in the Spotlight.

It documents the rise of a young man who overcomes some early adversity to become of the more well known figures in the entertainment industry. The candid approach to the narrative makes The Fry Chronicles an intimate encounter with the author, who’s well versed paragraphs annunciate this lively and enterprising period of his life in a humorous and delicate manner.

About the author: Finishing his schooling in 2001, Adam Andreotta attended Edith Cowan university and completed a degree in computer science. In the years following he undertook a drafting position at a civil engineering company. Adam resides in Perth, Western Australia. Follow Adam at his blog, Orbital Book Reviews. Orbital Book Reviews.

Flourishnote: Follow Stephen Fry on Twitter @stephenfry