The Blaze of Obscurity : Unreliable Memoirs V

For many people, Clive James will always be a TV presenter first and foremost, and a writer second — this despite the fact that his adventures with the written word took place before, during and after his time on the small screen. Nevertheless, for those who remember clips of Japanese endurance gameshows and Egyptian soap operas, Clive reinventing the news or interviewing Hefner and Hepburn, Polanski and Pavarotti, Clive's 'Postcards' from Kenya, Shanghai and Dallas, or Clive James Racing Driver, Clive's rightful place does seem to be right there — on the box, in our homes, and almost one of the family. However you think of him, though, and whatever you remember him for, The Blaze of Obscurity is perhaps Clive's most brilliant book yet. Part Clive James on TV and part Clive James on TV, it tells the inside story of his years in television, shows Clive on top form both then and now, and proves — once and for all — that Clive has a way with words . . .... In the 1980s, Clive James found his way into full-time television. In The Blaze of Obscurity , his fifth book of memoir, he delivers the inside story. A hilarious, thoughtful, warts and all account of a life in the public eye. 'Clive James is an intellectual as well as a joker, a wise man as well as a wit' – Observer As his fame grew, Clive James was never alone – except in the toilet. But there, cubicle walls provided little protection against young men, standing at urinals, talking behind his back: Jesus, he's looking rough. And it's only Monday. Taking it in his stride and batting away accusations of selling out, Clive James was in television for the adventure. And an adventure it was. Rollicking through the end of one century and the beginning of the next, he interviews Hefner and Hepburn, Frank Sinatra and Françoise Sagan, Peter Ustinov ('even his nose could act') and Ronald Reagan. He explores the Las Vegas Grand Prix and the Louisville Kentucky Holiday Inn talent pageant, sends Postcards from Kenya, Shanghai, Tokyo and Dallas, interprets the news, discovers the first bizarre examples of what has come to be known as reality TV, and promotes the career of the irrepressible Margarita Pracatan – all told here with his trademark humour and thoughtful erudition. The Blaze of Obscurity is the fifth and final book of memoir from Clive James. Praise for Clive James: 'It is one of the most tender, frank and, above all, funny accounts of growing up I have ever read' –Michael Parkinson 'There can't be many writers of my generation who haven't been heavily influenced by Clive James' – Charlie Brooker 'A wonderfully witty and intelligent writer' – Verity Lambert