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Jasper Rees

Let's Do It: The Authorised Biography of Victoria Wood Hardcover – 29 December 2020

by Jasper Rees (Author)

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THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

'I was born with a warped sense of humour and when I was carried home from being born it was Coronation Day and so I was called Victoria but you are not supposed to know who wrote this anyway it is about time I unleashed my pent-up emotions in a bitter comment on the state of our society but it's not quite me so I think I shall write a heart-warming story with laughter behind the tears and tears behind the laughter which means hysterics to you Philistines...'

From 'Pardon?' by Vicky Wood, Aged 14. Bury Grammar School (Girls) Magazine, 1967

In her passport Victoria Wood listed her occupation as 'entertainer' - and in stand-up and sketches, songs and sitcom, musicals and dramas, she became the greatest entertainer of the age. Those things that might have held her back - her lonely childhood, her crippling shyness and above all the disadvantage of being a woman in a male-run industry - she turned to her advantage to make extraordinary comedy about ordinary people living ordinary lives in ordinary bodies. She wasn't fond of the term, but Victoria Wood truly was a national treasure - and her loss is still keenly felt.

Victoria had plenty of stories still to tell when she died in 2016, and one of those was her own autobiography.

'I will do it one day,' she told the author and journalist Jasper Rees. 'It would be about my childhood, about my first few years in showbusiness, which were really interesting and would make a really nice story.'

That sadly never came to pass, so Victoria's estate has asked Jasper Rees, who interviewed her more than anyone else, to tell her extraordinary story in full. He has been granted complete and exclusive access to Victoria's rich archive of personal and professional material, and has conducted over 200 interviews with her family, friends and colleagues - among them Victoria's children, her sisters, her ex-husband Geoffrey Durham, Julie Walters, Celia Imrie, Dawn French, Anne Reid, Imelda Staunton and many more.

What emerges is a portrait of a true pioneer who spoke to her audience like no one before or since.

Print length

592 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Trapeze
Publication date

29 December 2020
Dimensions

16 x 5.2 x 23.6 cm
ISBN-10

1409184099
ISBN-13

978-1409184096
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Review

This utterly absorbing and beautiful book, written with such insight and kindness, moved me hugely' ― Julie Walters

Let's Do It is a biography that feels as unflinching and true as it is entertaining and affectionate. Rees pulls off the trick of writing a brilliant tribute while also - somehow, almost - bringing Victoria Wood back to life in all her complicated glory. -- Viv Groskop ― GUARDIAN Published On: 2020-10-24

When I met Victoria I gushed at her and she told me to stop, which was sweet and kind and saved us both! I won't gush now as per her non gushing desires, except to say that I would love people to read this beautiful book about the woman I will be forever grateful for in leading the way for me and other women in comedy and for making my life a jollier one. ― Miranda Hart

There was none like her before and there's been none like her since - she was unique... I contributed to the book because I know that Jasper [Rees], who wrote it was a great friend of hers and she trusted him...and I knew that he would respect that... We weren't sitting down to be soft and fluffy about Vic, because Vic was quite spiky, quite demanding, and utterly hilarious. ― Dawn French on BBC RADIO 5 LIVE Published On: 2020-10-15

I remember first watching Victoria Wood when she was on Look North, when she would simply sing a song and play the piano, and knew then she was someone special. Decades later, I saw her show at the Albert Hall and not long after I bumped into her in our local M&S. I started to cry as I told her how amazing she was that night - I had no words for how wonderful she had been. Thankfully Jasper Rees has found the perfect words to convey Victoria's brilliance, in this meticulously researched, immersive and entertaining biography. It is a wonderful tribute to a pioneering entertainer who we all still miss so keenly. ― Alison Steadman

An extraordinary, wonderful, rich biography of Victoria Wood - every bit as fascinating, challenging, and brilliant as she was. It is evident that Jasper Rees loves his subject and has been given unprecedented access to Wood's personal and professional archives. He explores Victoria's inspirations and creative processes, celebrating her genius, and never shying away from the tricky stuff. ― Nina Stibbe

I love this book. I adored Victoria, and Jasper Rees has almost brought her back to life, so I highly recommend it to all her admirers who miss her desperately. Which is, of course, all of us. ― Dame Esther Rantzen

The authorised biography of Victoria Wood by Jasper Rees is great - wonderfully detailed on her creative process, the graft she put in and the mechanics of how she did what she did, but losing none of the warmth and joy of what ended up on screen. Recommended. ― Simon Blackwell, writer of VEEP and THE THICK OF IT

You can almost feel him riffling files, rewinding tapes, so carefully is it pieced together. Yet the reward is a 360-degree biography that transforms a beloved entertainer into a real human being, moving about a recognisable world: unhappy family home, provincial theatre, TV studio, celebrity's Highgate terrace, even, heartbreakingly, hospital room. It's a book for fans, of course, but it also documents 40 years of British entertainment, filtered through a life that stretched so much further than a few knackered bras. -- Victoria Segal ― SUNDAY TIMES CULTURE Published On: 2020-10-11

This biographer is the safest of hands, both for helpless fans like me, and to any outsiders who haven't paid attention... It does not feel intrusive because it is so richly fed with the memories of those who properly loved her, and those memories add to the store of lines to treasure... She kept us happy for years herself. I am thankful, for her and for this good biography. Might cry again now. -- Libby Purves ― THE TIMES Published On: 2020-10-24

A smashing biography. He gives a sense of what the real Victoria was like and conveys the unique qualities of her work - and provides a bridge between the two. At one point he says tactfully that the dreadful statue of Victoria in Bury shows "how hard it is to capture in bronze the bounce of her hair and the glow of her smile". At its best, this book does that in prose. -- Jake Kerridge ― SUNDAY EXPRESS S MAGAZINE Published On: 2020-10-18

Rees's biography is a must-read for her fans... This meticulously researched account of her life shows what a loss she is. -- Emma-Lee Potter ― DAILY MIRROR Published On: 2020-10-16

With meticulous thoroughness ... Let's Do It is nearly 600 pages long and copiously footnoted. Rees interviewed Wood frequently in her lifetime, spent two years on research, using Wood's own audio and written notes, and interviewed more than 200 people (from her children and perennial collaborators to occasional accompanists). It shows - this is an immersive, authoritative book... Do it, I urge you, while the mood is right. -- Emma Beddington ― THE SPECTATOR Published On: 2020-10-15

Joyous and revealing... If you're a diehard Wood fan (as I am) you'll find this account of her life wholly engrossing, and it also stands as a wonderful tribute to a pioneering entertainer and her exacting comic genius. -- Caroline Sanderson ― THE BOOKSELLER, Editor's Choice Published On: 2020-07-13

Packed with enlightening anecdotes and revealing interviews with her family and closest friends. A real treat. -- Martin Chilton ― INDEPENDENT Published On: 2020-10-14

This superb biography ensures we can't forget how revolutionary she was. -- Tanya Gold ― THE OLDIE Published On: 2020-10-13

For anyone who loves Victoria Wood, this biography - authorised by her literary estate - is a joy. It paints a rounded portrait of a genuinely nice and kind woman who could also be difficult, scathing, even ruthless. -- Christopher Stevens ― DAILY MAIL Published On: 2020-10-23

Rees is excellent on Wood's long struggle. -- Roger Lewis ― SUNDAY TELEGRAPH Published On: 2020-10-04

With exclusive access to Victoria's archive, Rees has produced this fascinating portrait of a comedy genius who became a national treasure. -- Zoe West ― WOMAN & HOME Published On: 2020-11-01

A joyous read. -- Julia Llewellyn Smith ― THE MAIL ON SUNDAY Published On: 2020-11-01

Written with the approval of family and friends this is a biography more than worthy of its much-missed subject. ― THE NEW EUROPEAN Published On: 2020-10-29

Rees's research is wide-ranging and detailed... his analysis is acute and often beautifully articulated. -- Fiona Sturges ― I NEWSPAPER Published On: 2020-11-14

This profile of the astute observer of domesticity is warm-hearted and full of detail. -- Hannah Jane Parkinson ― OBSERVER Published On: 2020-11-15

Impeccable -- Iona McLaren ― THE DAILY TELEGRAPH, Books of the Year Published On: 2020-11-28

A fascinating portrait of a comedy genius who became a national treasure. ― WOMAN'S WEEKLY Published On: 2021-01-05

Exemplary... Despite the memories of laughter it evoked, I was left saddened by the thought that Wood was really making strides into a brilliant second career as a screenwriter and director when illness took her away from us. ― Jonathan Coe

From the Publisher

Victoria Wood was a writer, actor, director, singer, composer and stand-up comedian. She first appeared on national television in 1974 on the talent show New Faces, and her debut stage play Talent was televised in 1979. In the 1980s her sketch show Wood and Walters was followed by the pioneering Victoria Wood As Seen on TV, which won four BAFTAs. As a stand-up performer she won two more BAFTAs for An Audience with Victoria Wood and, in the course of several national tours, sold out the Royal Albert Hall forty times. The 1990s brought more acclaim with the TV film Pat and Margaret and the canteen sitcom dinnerladies. In the following decade her much loved soap parody Acorn Antiques became a West End musical, while the wartime drama Housewife, 49 won two more BAFTAs. She filmed her stage musical That Day We Sang for television in 2014. Given an OBE in 1997, she was appointed a CBE in 2008. Since her death in 2016 at the age of 62, her work has continued to pulse through the British bloodstream.

Jasper Rees is an arts journalist and author who has written for the Daily Telegraph, Sunday Times and theartsdesk.com, which he co-founded. Previous books include I Found My Horn and Bred of Heaven, both of which were abridged for Radio 4's Book of the Week, and most recently a biography of Florence Foster Jenkins.

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Trapeze; 1st edition (29 December 2020)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 592 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1409184099
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1409184096
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 16 x 5.2 x 23.6 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 446,141 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 825 in Comedy (Books)
- 2,013 in Biographies of Television Performers
- 2,707 in Biographies of Opera Performers

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Vicuña

Well written and definitive biography. Very enjoyable and filled with insight

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 October 2020

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I’ve long been a fan of the late Victoria Wood. From her very early days of short sketches with Julie Walters, I thought she changed the face of British comedy. She was often understated but spot on with her observational humour and as her career progressed, her ‘one man’ stand up shows which filled The Royal Albert Hall were the stuff of legend. She made it look so easy and the scope of her talent was both remarkable and unique.

This biography by Jasper Rees is everythingI’ve been looking forward to. It’s a compelling read, filled with insight into a complex individual and her, at times, odd personal story. There’s clearly been extensive access to a lot of original source material ( detailed at the end of the book). There are numerous photos and an extensive index. It’s clear that the author was working closely with Victoria Wood and that this biography was in progress with her blessing and endorsement. It’s written with sensitivity, honesty and compassion.

From an often lonely and isolated childhood, Victoria Wood was always her own person. Her determination to overcome often overwhelming odds was clearly part of her character and from the numerous stories about her writing and shows, it’s clear that she could be exacting to work with. This is a thorough and comprehensive overview, filled with life and it’s a lasting tribute. It’s sad that she died so young when she had so much more to do. I’ve really enjoyed the book and it’s one I’ll return to.

78 people found this helpful

Sahlan Diver

A bio that deserves a BAFTA

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 November 2020

Verified Purchase

First, in the interests of disclosure, I am one of the people mentioned in the book, the university student who gave Victoria her first concert with an accompanying band. In these days of dubious bio-pics that reflect more the private agenda and prejudices of the producers, it’s refreshing to find an author, like Jasper Rees, who is determined to get the facts straight, warts and all. I know this from personal experience. In the bio, he quotes a humorous remark Victoria made, one time I visited her flat, in response to an announcement on the radio of a royal engagement. He went so far as to check the precise date of the announcement, that it coincided with the brief period of time I knew Victoria. A man who takes so much trouble to check a minor detail like that can be trusted to tell the story like it is. Some reviewers have complained there is too much detail. This is the official biography, so it has a duty to Victoria to be authoritative. Victoria did not have run-of-the-mill parents, she did not enjoy an ordinary childhood, she did not live in an ordinary house, she was no ordinary college student and she certainly did not enjoy the instant elevation to stardom of so many less-deserving celebs. All this makes for a fascinating story which deserves to be properly told, and tell it Jasper Rees certainly does. At times it’s so extraordinary you feel like you’re reading a novel. And there are many fascinating extra details, not directly connected with Victoria herself, that set the scene and context for her life: the descriptions of the sheer awfulness of the male-dominated entertainment industry, the remark made to her mother at a Communist party rally that she should come in better shoes, and so on. On one point, I have the advantage over the author. Not appreciating at the time the future significance, I decided to tape record Victoria’s first concert. So, when, in the bio, Jasper states her performance exuded confidence, that’s no exaggeration - in fact, it’s an understatement - the Victoria on those tapes is every bit as much in control of her material and her audience as she was later on TV. I’d even say the bio has something missing, a detailed appreciation of Victoria’s musicality as seen by those of us from amateur to professional fortunate to work with her on her songs. A person with a life as full as Victoria’s deserves a full and accurate re-telling. One reviewer suggests the book needs editing. To do that you would have to edit Victoria’s life. I encourage anyone to take their time enjoying this long but highly amusing and at times extremely moving biography.

44 people found this helpful

Amazon Customer

Long winded, humourless and, quite frankly, boring

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 October 2020

Verified Purchase

I don't normally write book reviews on amazon but having spent £9.99 on the Kindle edition of this book, I found it so disappointing. The book is, if anything, too detailed. It drags long-windedly through a lot of seemingly irrelevant information and there are so many names mentioned that it is difficult to keep track of who's who. I'm a big fan of biographies and autobiographies in general but in reading this one, I genuinely struggled to stay awake.

46 people found this helpful

Julian

Less is More?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 October 2020

Verified Purchase

I’m a Victoria Wood Super Fan and even I struggled with this book. What I hoped would be a glorious upbeat tribute reads more like an academic PHD paper from Fuengirola Poly (that’s an injoke for all you other Super Fans!)

It’s longer than War and Peace and details pretty much everything she ever did in a dense chronological order. I’m sure that what she ate for dinner on a random Wednesday night in the spring of 1974 is interesting for some people, but not me.

Which is a shame because this book is full of wonderful insights, it just needs a good editor. Maybe Edward Scissorhands?

33 people found this helpful

HistoryLover

Detailed and fact-packed. A somewhat unexpected VW emerges...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 October 2020

Verified Purchase

This is the best thing written on the late, great Victoria Wood, and will be the go-to biography of this much-missed talent. She comes over as a very complex individual, not always easy to like and, at times, very egocentric. There was certainly an ugly side to her; quite dark at times. Sometimes, as a loyal fan, this is hard to digest, but her skills and many talents triumph in the end - there are great quotes & gags used; they are laugh aloud funny. But major praise to Jasper Rees for pulling so much diverse material together. It is written clearly and authoritatively.

32 people found this helpful

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