Review: Young Once by Nigel Planer

Heavy, heavy, heavy ... Neil from The Young Ones has like, written an autobiography. Well, okay, not quite. The cover certainly plays on what is arguably Nigel Planer's most famous role of Neil. But Young Once is a well rounded and much deeper dive into his career as a comedian, actor, author, screenwriter and voice actor. 

In Young Once, Planer gives readers plenty of inside information about his childhood, his personal relationships and his long and varied career. I was genuinely surprised to discover just how varied his career has been--I had no idea that he had voiced the audiobooks for a number of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels or his work with The Magic Roundabout. Of particular interest however was Planer's behind the scenes accounts of The Comic Strip and how it formed, working on The Young Ones and how he had traveled to America to film a pilot for an American version of The Young Ones titled Oh, No! Not Them. The pilot did not get picked up, but Planer has a copy you can view on his Patreon if you like. 

Overall, an entertaining read about a long and varied career.

Recommended. 

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