The Sound of Laughter

Last updated February 28, 2019

The Sound of Laughter was British comedian Peter Kay's initial volume of autobiography, released on 5 October 2006. The book was a bestseller.^[1]

Peter John Kay is an English comedian and actor. Kay has written, produced, and acted in several television and film projects, and authored three books.

An autobiography is a self-written account of the life of oneself. The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English periodical The Monthly Review, when he suggested the word as a hybrid, but condemned it as "pedantic". However, its next recorded use was in its present sense, by Robert Southey in 1809. Despite only being named early in the nineteenth century, first-person autobiographical writing originates in antiquity. Roy Pascal differentiates autobiography from the periodic self-reflective mode of journal or diary writing by noting that "[autobiography] is a review of a life from a particular moment in time, while the diary, however reflective it may be, moves through a series of moments in time". Autobiography thus takes stock of the autobiographer's life from the moment of composition. While biographers generally rely on a wide variety of documents and viewpoints, autobiography may be based entirely on the writer's memory. The memoir form is closely associated with autobiography but it tends, as Pascal claims, to focus less on the self and more on others during the autobiographer's review of his or her life.

Cover

The cover of the book features Kay's head on Julie Andrews' body from The Sound of Music . The raised effect on the head is supposed to look as if it has been cut out and stuck on, which ties in with the homely feel of the book.

Dame Julie Andrews,, is an English actress, singer and author. Andrews, a child actress and singer, appeared in the West End in 1948 and made her Broadway debut in The Boy Friend (1954). Billed as “Britain’s youngest prima donna”, she rose to prominence starring in Broadway musicals such as My Fair Lady (1956) playing Eliza Doolittle, and Camelot (1960) playing Queen Guinevere. In 1957, Andrews starred in the premiere of Rodgers and Hammerstein's written-for-television musical Cinderella, a live, network broadcast seen by over 100 million viewers.

<i>The Sound of Music</i> (film) 1965 musical film directed by Robert Wise

The Sound of Music is a 1965 American musical drama film produced and directed by Robert Wise, and starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, with Richard Haydn and Eleanor Parker. The film is an adaptation of the 1959 stage musical of the same name, composed by Richard Rodgers with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. The film's screenplay was written by Ernest Lehman, adapted from the stage musical's book by Lindsay and Crouse. Based on the memoir The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria von Trapp, the film is about a young Austrian woman studying to become a nun in Salzburg, Austria in 1938 who is sent to the villa of a retired naval officer and widower to be governess to his seven children. After bringing and teaching love and music into the lives of the family through kindness and patience, she marries the officer and together with the children they find a way to survive the loss of their homeland through courage and faith.

Promotion

Kay has only done one promotional appearance for the book on The Paul O'Grady Show . On the show, Kay came on dressed as a nun, with a mask of his face over his ordinary face - a parody of the cover of the book. In the interview he criticised Billy Connolly's biography, Billy , as well as making numerous jokes about his education by nuns. He said he had many nuns teaching him:

The Paul O'Grady Show is a British comedy chat show presented by comedian Paul O'Grady, first shown on 11 October 2004. The programme is a teatime chat show consisting of a mixture of celebrity guests, comic stunts, musical performances, and occasionally viewer competitions.

Sir William Connolly, is a Scottish stand-up comedian, musician, presenter, actor and artist. He is sometimes known, especially in his homeland, by the Scots nickname "The Big Yin".

Sister Sledge is an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consisted of sisters Debbie, Joni, Kim and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. The year 1979 saw the release of their breakthrough album We Are Family, which peaked at number three on the US Album Chart and included the 1979 US top ten singles "He's the Greatest Dancer" and "We Are Family". A third single, "Lost in Music", reached the US top forty. "We Are Family" earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

Scissor Sisters is an American pop/rock band formed in 2001. Forged in the "gay nightlife scene of New York," the band took its name from the female same-sex sexual activity tribadism. Its members include Jake Shears and Ana Matronic as vocalists, Babydaddy as multi-instrumentalist, Del Marquis as lead guitar/bassist, and Randy Real as drummer. Scissor Sisters incorporates diverse and eclectic styles in their music, but tends to sway towards pop rock, glam rock, nu-disco, and electroclash.

Systematic was an American hard rock band from Oakland, California. They were one of the first signings to Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich's record label, The Music Company, via Elektra Records. The band released two studio albums before disbanding in 2004.

He added that every year, he sent a Valentine's card to each nun from Jesus.

Follow up book

It was announced by Kay at Jason Manford's stand-up gig in Salford, that he would be releasing another book to follow on from The Sound of Laughter. This was later confirmed by Random House and Saturday Night Peter was released in Autumn 2009.

Jason John Manford is an English comedian, television presenter and radio presenter.

City of Salford Metropolitan borough and city in England

Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, extending west to include the towns of Eccles, Worsley, Swinton, Walkden, Little Hulton, and Irlam. The city has a population of 245,600, and is administered from the Salford Civic Centre in Swinton.

Notes

↑ Martin Wainwright (5 June 2012). True North: In Praise of England's Better Half. Guardian Books. p. 244. ISBN 978-0-85265-369-2.

External links

Official Site

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[1] Martin Wainwright (5 June 2012). True North: In Praise of England's Better Half. Guardian Books. p. 244. ISBN 978-0-85265-369-2.