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The Blaze of Obscurity

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The Blaze of Obscurity

By: Clive James
Narrated by: Clive James
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About this listen

Read by the author, Clive James.

In the 1980s, Clive James found his way into full-time television. In The Blaze of Obscurity, his fifth book of memoir, he delivers the inside story. A hilarious, thoughtful, warts and all account of a life in the public eye.

As his fame grew, Clive James was never alone – except in the toilet. But there, cubicle walls provided little protection against young men, standing at urinals, talking behind his back:

Jesus, he's looking rough.

And it's only Monday.

Taking it in his stride and batting away accusations of selling out, Clive James was in television for the adventure. And an adventure it was. Rollicking through the end of one century and the beginning of the next, he interviews Hefner and Hepburn, Frank Sinatra and Françoise Sagan, Peter Ustinov ('even his nose could act') and Ronald Reagan. He explores the Las Vegas Grand Prix and the Louisville Kentucky Holiday Inn talent pageant, sends Postcards from Kenya, Shanghai, Tokyo and Dallas, interprets the news, discovers the first bizarre examples of what has come to be known as reality TV, and promotes the career of the irrepressible Margarita Pracatan – all told here with his trademark humour and thoughtful erudition.

The Blaze of Obscurity is the fifth and final book of memoir from Clive James.

©2009 Clive James (P)2009 Macmillan Digital Audio Entertainment & Celebrities Celebrity Funny Africa

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Critic reviews

'Clive James is an intellectual as well as a joker, a wise man as well as a wit' – Observer
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I did enjoy this book, but like the previous reviewer, I too found it frustratingly short. I suppose one could buy the unabridged paper version, but then you miss out on Clive James' narration which is one of the main attractions of an audiobook. He has a such a good conversational style of delivery, perfectly suited to his text, which comprises the usual attractive mix of wit, anecdote, insight and self-deprecating humour with a dash of underlying seriousness - those who have listened to his pieces for Radio 4 on "A Point of View" will know what to expect. I wish he could be persuaded to narrate his work in an unabridged version though.

But, that said, it's still well worth worth buying. I'm sure I will listen to it again.

Good stuff - for an abridgement

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What can you write about Clive James to further extol his legend.
Simply the best, from writing to presenting and making it all look so easy.
This audio book is my first one by Clive James, but it will not be my last.
Excellent person.

One of the best of us all

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Clive James has always been a joy to read and to listen to and this is no different.

Never disappoints

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Very good listen. Some lovely stories from a TV great. Worth the time to listen.

Very enjoyable listen.

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If you could sum up The Blaze of Obscurity in three words, what would they be?

Witty, Intelligent and Insightful.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Blaze of Obscurity?

The birth of Watch Maker.

What about Clive James’s performance did you like?

Everything! I wish 'Unreliable memoirs' and 'Falling toward England' were available on Audible.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Genius at it's most memorable.

Any additional comments?

Loved it

Love this Man

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I grew up listening to, reading and watching Clive James. He is/was an original. He treated high and low art the same and commented on them without insulting your intelligence. So this memoir is like a trip down memory lane. His self-deprecating humour always appealed to me as did his ability to pick on a detail in an event whether it be minor or major that forever more enriched it for you. His postcards series was way ahead of its time - I am pretty sure he was the person to introduce the rest of the world to the phenomenons of karaoke and torture based reality shows (courtesy of the Japanese) all of which are main-stream now. I felt like it was a misfortune that had befallen a member of my extended family when I heard he had been diagnosed with leukemia back in 2011 and was "on his last legs". In a sign that maybe there is a benevolent force in the universe after all, he has made it to 2017. Long may he run.

Long May You Run

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Content is James at his best and an extra treat to hear it read by the master himself. His ability to, as he put it, 'turn a phrase until it catches the light' will be solely missed. My one quibble is that I wish it had been a bit longer.

Age did not dull his wit.

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Shame this is only the abridged release. Contains lots of references to the most memorable moments from his TV shows including the Trabbant in Postcode from Berlin and the end of the year shows. Also explains the (imo ill-fated move to ITV) Will now be buying the book!

Revisiting laughs of my teenage years.

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would have preferred an unbridged version but this just means that everything in this version is Clive's top writing. a very emotive ending especially given Clive's own passing in recent years.

a great close to the series

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This is well up to the author's usual standard, the book contains the usual mix of laughter and the poignant. It does seem a tad short, and one wonders what the word "abridged" really means in this case. However, being read by the author, we must assume we have not been short changed. Keep at it Clive, I can't wait for the next instalment!

Short but Sweet.

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