Let's do it: The Authorised Biography of Victoria is an alright audiobook that I found was an okay listen, could have a bit better

I love Victoria Wood so this was always going to be one on my To Be Read pile! I remember seeing Victoria live at the Royal Albert Hall in 1993 (which is mentioned in this book!) and have loved her for many years both before and after this. It was absolutely heart-breaking to hear the news that she had died, and it certainly felt like a little bit of comedy had died with her. This book, written as an authorised biography, documents her life from her early years right up to when she died, using her own diaries, notes and recollections which she kept. I alternated between listening to the audio book and reading the actual book, but when I was listening to the audio version I found this highly entertaining with some of the chapters read by her dear friends, who we all know and love!

I learnt so much about her as I read. I never knew she spent so much time in Birmingham, just down the road from me. It was great to hear of how she met Julie Walters, penned her first song, got a job on ‘That’s Life’, wrote and starred in Dinner Ladies and received various awards and accolades, amongst many other things which this book shares with the readers. Victoria always came across as quite a private person, but this book lifted the lid on some parts of that private life. It is filled with so much detail, and I found myself wrapped up in her story very quickly!

I have watched (and re-watched!) so much of her work, and am able to recite “An Audience with…” word for word and can laugh out loud at Bren, Tony, Stan, Dolly, Jean, Twinkle, Anita, Philippa and Petula in Dinner Ladies no matter how many times I’ve seen it before. I’ve never really got over her death and found myself quite sad at the end of the book remembering the true entertainer and comedic genius who could never be replaced. The book is wonderfully written and is filled with lots of memories, lots of name dropping and, of course, lots of laughs, and is a very worthy tribute to someone who is very much missed. Barry and Freda would have been so proud!

I loved the concept of this, but the switching voices was a little confusing. It was lovely to hear from all of Victoria Wood's close friends, but as they weren't reading chapters from their point of view, it did feel a bit odd. Funnily I enjoyed the introduction, read by the author, the best, despite the stellar cast...

Dont normally read this type of book but found it really interesting. Never knew Victoria had such a tough start in life. I loved her work and it's such a shame it was brought to an end too early. She was such a hard worker and put herself under so much pressure.

I wanted to listen to this book because Victoria Wood is a celebrity that I wanted to learn about. The story was a real eye-opener.
I listened to the audio version of Victoria's stories and although all the narration was clear and well done, I would have preferred it if only Julie Walters performed the narration. The swapping and changing were off-putting.
Victoria led an amazing life and I am so glad I got to find out about it thanks to this autobiography!

I’m a huge fan of Victoria Wood’s work, I remember being allowed to stay up late to watch her TV show back in the 80s when I was still a child. It felt like such a treat to watch it with my mum every week. I was delighted to get an ARC of the audio book of this biography from NetGalley and I very much enjoyed listening to it. Victoria’s friends and co-stars share narrating duties and it really brings the book to life. It’s quite a long biography but it didn’t ever feel slow. I loved hearing about Victoria’s childhood, and how she got into comedy. I particularly loved listening to the stories behind Acorn Antiques as I loved that show. This is a must-read biography for fans of Victoria Wood. I enjoyed it so much that I bought a hardback copy for my mum-in-law for Christmas (along with a DVD of Acorn Antiques)!

Victoria Wood is one of Britain's best loved comediennes. I say 'is' because whilst she passed away she is still lauded as one of the best by both her peers and her audience today. She gave us such gems as Acorn Antiques, Two Soups and of course Let's Do It - The Ballad of Barry and Freda (still one of my all time favourite things ever) however behind the camera Victoria Wood was an intensely private person. Those who knew her well tell us all about the person behind the performer in this in depth and wonderfully written biography by Jasper Rees.

I should start by saying that Victoria Wood is not glorified in this biography. In fact, some of the more unpleasant facets of her personality are highlighted - in particular her grueling work ethic that she expected others to adhere to and also making her friends the butt of her jokes. However, all of those who worked with her are quick to say how talented and how generous she was with her comedy, often relegating herself to the lesser role and giving the more memorable zingers to her fellow cast member. Jasper Rees paints a picture of a woman who knew she had the power to make people laugh and she knew what she wants from her work and her fellow colleagues. He has taken the life of a brilliant woman and brought her back into the public conscience.

Whatever you think of Victoria Wood it is inarguable that she pathed the way for women in comedy and that her humour had a firm finger on the pulse of contemporary Britain. It is no wonder she is still adored and sorely missed.

Let's Do It: The Authorised Biography of Victoria Wood by Jasper Rees is available now.

For more information regarding Jasper Rees (@JasperRees) please visit www.facebook.com/fredaandbarry

For more information regarding Trapeze (@TrapezeBooks) please visit www.instagram.com/trapeze_books/

Let's do it - Victoria Wood 1953 - 2016

Victoria was one of Britains most popular stand-up comics and T.v stars whose career spanned more than 40 years. She was born in Lancashire, England May 19th 1953, diagnosed late 2015 with terminal cancer and died April 20th 2016 in the presence of her family at her home in London, England.

Vicki, as she was known right up to her 20’s, wanted to be a man when she grew up, she didn't like being a girl or the frills associated with being a girl 🤷‍♀️ Yeap, I can’t say I’ve never felt that way either.

Loved Victoria Wood, great book!

A very detailed account of the work and life of one of the best comedians of my childhood. Starting as a young girl going through all her work vertures and the big life events I feel I 'know' Victoria better.
Many comments from friends and colleagues remembering her fondly, the work she put in and how funny she was. Plenty of hilarious one liners and set pieces to keep you amused throughout.

Well worth the listen 4*, Although be warned it's over 20hrs long! (Good value 😉)
Thanks to hachette audio UK and NetGalley for the Audio ARC.

"Let's Do It: The Authorised Biography of Victoria Wood" by Jasper Rees is a big book! I listened to the audio version which comes in at over 20 hours. It's an all-star cast recording and I highly recommend this format. Susie Blake, Richenda Carey, Celia Imrie, Duncan Preston, Anne Reid, Daniel Rigby, Kate Robbins, David Threlfall, Julie Walters, Jane Wymark bring Jasper's account to life in full technicolour.

Now, despite the fact that Victoria Wood was television royalty when I was growing up I didn't know very much about her life. Rees provides a warts and all account of Wood's early years as a neglected child who sought solace in books and television. It led me to wonder whether all of the very best entertainers are a little bit broken inside.

I particularly appreciated that Rees explains the process (and sheer hard work) involved for Victoria to get to where she wanted to be - the rejections, the depression. She was such a unique talent. Woods' many comedy sketches are relatable to normal, everyday folks. In a similar vein to Billy Connolly, she talked about issues which were traditionally taboo. Moreso, in fact, coming from a woman.

"Let's Do It" doesn't pull any punches. Victoria Wood had an incredible work ethic but this made her a hard taskmaster. I would have loved to have met her but would have been utterly terrified of her. She was a complex character and her enormous contribution to British entertainment cannot be underestimated. Her death is a sore loss and I was absolutely distraught listening to Anne Reid's voice crack as she announces Victoria's passing in the audiobook. There's bonus material (at the beginning and end) of Wood performing in front of a live audience and this serves to remind us of what a truly talented comic she was. We were blessed to have her and Jasper Rees' book is a beautiful tribute.

I am not keen on auto- or biographies in general, but this is Victoria Wood and if there was ever an exception to be made then it would of course be for her story.

After the introduction, with the wonderful opening of her song Let’s Do It, the book begins with Victoria’s childhood and then follows her through school, the beginning of her career and onwards. The chapters are narrated by multiple different people, many of whom people will know from their work with Victoria Wood.

This is a long book, however there is so much to read (listen to). I think it is a very British book, if you are not familiar with Victoria Wood, her humour and writing then the importance of a lot of the contents is lost.

Listening to this audiobook is a really bitter sweet experience, in a way reflecting the subject’s life and work which ranged from comedy to pathos. As a Victoria Wood fan I was really interested to read about her life and discovered many things that I didn't know. For example I had always been under the impression that she was quite reclusive, but actually it was shyness that made her socially awkward, something one would never have imagined from seeing her so at ease on stage in front of huge audiences. I thought she married quite late in life, probably as she had her children a bit later and I didn’t realize how much of a long standing help and support her husband was to her. She was very much a perfectionist, as tough on herself as on her fellow actors but it was clear from the respect she earned that she was always fair. Her childhood was a little bit different from the norm but she was fantastically lucky to have had the space to develop her own talents and skills, and it was interesting that after leaving for university she never really went home again, clearly strong enough to go it alone. I had not known just how long it took her to get her really big breaks and that again was a brave move of hers to deliver stand up comedy instead of sticking to an all song routine in a world where male comedians dominated. Her subject matter was refreshingly honest and open, and must have made a few men cringe over the years. I also hadn’t known just how much writing and directing she had become involved with in later years.

The author must have been allowed very rare access to Victoria’s diaries and other material which I understand was instructed to be kept within the family after her death, and the book spans right from when her parents met up to Victoria’s death at the premature age of 62. What was lacking was much by way of input from her two children and her ex-husband. It would have been nice to have heard more about the domestic side of her. At over 20 hours long, this is a lengthy “listen” and sometimes it felt that the amount of information, whilst packed with facts and covering a lot of detail, was simply a bit overwhelming at times. I noted it was almost halfway into the book when the really memorable shows and sketches started to appear, and my worry is that some readers might have given up by then.

As with any biography where the subject has already died, the ending will inevitably be sad. I was glad the book didn’t draw it out or go into too much detail about her cancer.

It was also a lovely idea to use different narrators, with some very familiar voices such as Julie Walters and Duncan Preston, all having their own fond and very personal memories of Victoria, and who really brought the book to life.

I was fortunate enough to be listening to this book over the Christmas period when several tv stations aired repeats of some of Victoria’s shows. It was lovely to see the sketches played out as they came up in the book, especially some of the earlier ones where I was a bit young and probably missed them. I have just dug out a number of my VW dvds including Dinnerladies, one of my favourites, and I will be viewing them all again now from a better informed perspective.

Overall it is a great account of the life of one of the most loved and wonderfully talented women and entertainers this country was honoured to have seen.

I have long been a fan of the late Victoria Wood and was looking forward to listening to this book. It maps out her life and career and hearing the words read by the people closest to her was wonderful.
It is a warts and all story, there is no rose-tinted glasses in this book. From her difficult childhood through to her untimely death, it tells the real story of Victoria, of her hard work and determination which paid off when she became the biggest female entertainer in the country.

I love Victoria Wood and I enjoyed hearing insights into her life and personality. I struggled, though, with this audio book. I think I found the multiple voices disruptive and they made it harder to get into it. However, I don’t have a great track record with audio books so this innovation may have been a little too ambitious for me and a breath of fresh air for regular listeners.

I adored Victoria Wood and this audiobook is triumph narrated by her friends and amazing colleagues.

Utterly brilliant

**listened via audiobook**

I'm a huge fan of Victoria Wood and wondered why it had taken so long for an authorised biography to come out. I found this book incredibly detailed at approx 22 hours listening time. I found mind wandering and loosing interest, perhaps a few hours editing would have helped.

I enjoyed the different narrators and hearing the voices of those who were close to Victoria. For fans of Victoria Wood this book will be a MUST, just don't expect to find too many personal details and expect the story to be long with lots of banal facts.

A joy to listen to. Hearing Victoria's words alongside the voices of those known so well from Victoria's shows such as Dinnerladies and As Seen On TV it's an audio palette cleanser just making you forget your worries and remember how much laughter Victoria's comedy brought. The insight into her life and how wise as well as funny she was brings an new element to her story. The way the audio book enriches the experience for the listener with the voices bringing a personality to the words and making it an immersive experience. A really well structured, expertly written and enjoyable book

The best narrators. Each chapter relayed by a different celebrity who knew and loved Victoria. A well written book about a most awesome woman. There is nothing else to add

I really enjoyed discovering Victoria's beginnings and what moulded her into the extraordinary entertainer that she became.
The mix of famous narrators made this a very entertaining listen.
I'd definitely recommend this.

I loved Victoria Wood and she really deserved the title of National Treasure. But as with any celebrity, they are not all as they portray themselves. This dives into the background of Victoria including her early life with her parents and siblings, school, university, and her long career in comedy.

People are complicate - we are not straight-forward and have layers that make up our psyche. Why would we expect celebrities to be different? Victoria always came across as the friendly, woman next door who just so happened to be able to make you laugh until you pee's yourself. She was much more than that and this delves into all the things that happened in her life. From her early career to As Seen On Tv, Dinnerladies, Housewife, 49 and her travel documentaries, her career was long and diverse. But as much as she was prolific in her output she was also her own worst enemy and a control hogger. She didn't do people well and even those she worked with for decades were never really seen more than friends from work. Few made it through into her inner circle.

The audiobook version was great as there were several narrators, all of whom had worked with Victoria. There were parts I couldn't help laughing out loud, others I was in tears. It made all the more compelling. Yes, it is a bit of a long-winded audio book but I really enjoyed and was able to listen to it at work during lockdown so it was a god-send to me to help keep my sanity!