Playing Under the Piano: 'Comedy gold' Sunday Times

It’s a gorgeous book. It made me laugh out loud - and weep buckets * Esther Rantzen *A writer of considerable urbanity and wit. Gary Oldman says it is ‘beautiful, touching and funny’. I agree. – Lynn Barber * Daily Telegraph *Comedy gold… I don’t remember when I last read a book that gave me so many laughs… A riveting account of what it takes to be an actor – Christina Patterson * Sunday Times *Tremendously entertaining… if collapsing into laughter is what you need at the moment, then Playing Under the Piano could be the book for you… a delicious and endearing mode somewhere between utmost sincerity and utter bafflement – Rachel Cooke * Observer *A great read * Graham Norton *An enormously entertaining memoir * Daily Mirror *The tone of Hugh Bonneville’s autobiography is very much like the man himself - warm, charming, funny and thoroughly embraceable… There is a refreshing lack of narcissism in a narrative poised between detached observation and amused self-reflection… An enormously entertaining memoir – Neil Norman * Daily Express *Really enjoyed this. Wonderfully funny and utterly charming - just like the man himself! – Jack WhitehallBy turns funny, touching, revealing - full of insights, delights and surprises. I couldn’t have enjoyed it more – Gyles BrandrethA gorgeous book. Warm, friendly, funny and sometimes surprisingly emotional. Very like Hugh himself – Richard CurtisWhen other books have been forgotten, this one will be remembered. Hugh Bonneville’s considerable talent for writing is on display page after page. Beautiful. Touching. And funny. – Gary OldmanCharming, joyous and entertaining, just like Hugh. – Griff Rhys JonesA collection of stories painting a brilliantly vivid picture of a career on stage and screen * Yorkshire Post *Bonneville is entertaining, with a clear-eyed view of his trade… Reliving it all so far with light and shade, bite and bonhomie, as a memoirist Bonneville passes the audition with flying colours * Mail on Sunday *You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll love Hugh even more * Woman & Home *Bonneville tells of his life with appealing modesty… he gives us plenty of backstage gossip * Reader’s Digest *Witty and moving * Country Living *The Downton star proves himself to be a polished raconteur – Books of the Year * Daily Telegraph *A beautifully poised memoir, both insightful and - occasionally - laugh-out-loud funny, with the gift for comic timing he reveals on screen and a sharp eye for detail… warmly engrossing – Books of the Year * The Times *Bonneville’s affable screen presence richly translated onto the page through anecdotes and adventures… there are many howling laughs in this frequently entertaining memoir * RTE Guide *Playing Under the Piano made me hoot – Ben Macintyre, Books of the Year * The Times *Though a funny raconteur, Bonneville also writes poignantly about his father’s dementia and of his mother, whose life in the secret service only emerged after her death * The Gloss *Gloriously funny… Between the laugh-out-loud anecdotes are revealing stories of the less glamorous side of an actor’s life, as well as poignant family memories – Jane Shilling * Daily Mail *

Hugh Bonneville was born in London in 1963. After school in Sherborne, Dorset, and studying Theology at Cambridge, Hugh became a professional actor in 1985. His career has spanned radio, television, film and stage, including appearances at the National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, Chichester Festival Theatre and in the West End. He received two Emmy nominations for his performance as Robert Crawley in Downton Abbey, and BAFTA nominations for his roles in Iris, Twenty Twelve and W1A. He lives in West Sussex with his wife, Lulu Williams. They have a son, Felix.