Common As Muck!: The Autobiography of Roy 'Chubby' Brown

by Roy Chubby Brown

By the time he was nineteen, Royston Vasey had married, divorced, fathered two children, spent two years in Britain's toughest Borstal, served three prison stretches and been stabbed while in the Merchant Navy. He thought his only career choice would be a life of crime.

Fifteen years later, he was one of Britain's most successful comics, playing live to half a million fans a year as Roy 'Chubby' Brown.

COMMON AS MUCK! tells an incredible story of hardships, heartbreak and, ultimately, success. From an impoverished childhood with his abusive father, to his brand of comedy too rude for television and his determined fight against throat cancer, COMMON AS MUCK! is a frank telling of a remarkable life, laced with Roy's irrepressible humour.

Genres: Autobiography, Biography, Nonfiction, Humor

384 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2007

Reviews

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. a raw and honest account of a comedy genius

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. It’s by far 1 of the most honest autobiography I’ve read. A truly warts and all account of Chubby’s life.
He doesn’t shy away from his criminal and adulterous past and openly admits he was a t&@t and treated people like shit.
It covers his time in borstal and prison and how he got started as a comic and the struggle he had. Once he decided to just do blue it opened and closed doors at the same rate.
Once he got the right manager he was on the way to super stardom and meeting his love of his life and putting his adulterous past behind him.
If you’re a fan this is a must read.

[Darla Ebert · Rating 1 out of 5]

Uninspiring, slow paced and a waste of time. The account of his life would have been less offensive if the author had not used such foul language. His lifestyle befitted the vices and serial cursing. Being uninitiated into the broader world of British comics, I had no forewarning about this particular comedian. Disappointing.

[daniel church · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chubby brown

Really good insight in to his life and enjoyed the story of how he became who he is today and the changes in his life

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

An honest and candid biography but let's face it you either love him or hate him.

[Stephen Litt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book from chubby,a hard upbringing in the north east he tells it as it is and pulls no punches a great read.

[Mark Farley · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a member of the North East fraternity, and having met the man late one night when he came into the petrol station I worked in many years ago, I was keen to read this when it popped up quite unexpectedly at the Central London bookshop I worked at. For lots of different reasons, I never got around to reading it but mainly because my TO READ pile was so huge and working for a bookshop, I tended to read more things that hadn't been released. But anyway. I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this when I found it in a charity shop when I moved back up north. I had seen maybe one show halfway through either on VHS or on YouTube or something and while initially funny and clever, I got got bored with the routine fairly quickly. Back when I met the man, it was the day after Princess Diana died and while humble and cordial, he had a bee in his bonnet about some of his gigs having to be cancelled out of sympathy. You could imagine the conversation, I'm sure. All in all, nice bloke and I knew there would be more to this than cunts and fucks. I was right. Reading about the area I grew up in before I was born was quite interesting. Not to mention the clubland culture that I was unfamiliar with. About having to live with the burden of people in the street not knowing the diffence between reality and a fictional character. But most surprising was the chapters about his recovery and battle with throat cancer, which definitely makes this book worth a read.

[Matt Blum · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting much from this , the book was free to read on Amazon prime and I had time to kill, I thought it might be a bit of a light hearted look back at his career with a few daft gags in. It's not. It's a very honest autobiography of a man who's actually led quite a tough life. To be honest I thought he came across as a bit of a scumbag in parts, but he's very open about everything. He had a very difficult childhood. He admits to being violent, bad tempered, a womaniser for most of his life and spending time in prison in his youth for stealing. He's very frank and completely honest about his mistakes and his faults. He also talks about his battle with throat cancer. It was interesting to hear his story.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a Roy Chubby Brown fan for many years, I love this book. It is the story of how a comic genius came to be, from his roller coaster childhood and harsh upbringing, to stints in borstal and the Merchant Navy and his battle with throat cancer, this book is heartwarming in places and outrageously funny in others. I recommend this to all fans of comedy and dark humour. Even if you are not a RCB fan, I think you will enjoy this autobiography.

[Wayne Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really funny life telling book to how he got famous !

[Craigb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this to read when I went on holiday last year. If you like autobiographies this is an easy and enjoyable read about the life and times of Britain's bluest comedian.

[Keri Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

An honest and frank life story no skeletons held back, fab book and thoroughly enjoyed it

[Chris Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quality autobiography by a class act. Read this if you have a sense of humour. Read it even if you don't, you might learn something! Thought-provoking and informative too, you can't go wrong.

[Julie Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chubby

What an amazing story. I read this in 1 go. Usually takes me a couple of nights to get into an autobiography but not this one