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Where Have I Been All My Life?
Autobiography of actress Annette Andre
269 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 16, 2019
It’s been so good to read Annette’s autobiog over the past 3 weeks, which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed.
It’s been an extra-special experience for me too, as I was privileged to meet the lovely lady herself at an event in London - where she kindly signed the book for me after talking to a gathered audience about her life and work.
It was interesting to read all about her childhood in Australia, her love of dance, and the story of how she became a professional actor - eventually moving to London.
I’d imagine anyone reading this book would be a big fan of Randall and Hopkirk, and she covers this well in a chapter. There are other anecdotes about her time on shows such as The Saint, The Prisoner and The Avengers, and her friendships with stars such as Roger Moore, Patrick Macnee, Benny Hill and Sue Lloyd.
She also covers her extensive theatre work, various relationships, the birth of her daughter and her happy marriage. There are lots of lovely photos too!
The only slight criticism would be that the book could do with a tighter proofread just to tidy it up - I was aware of this going through, being that this is something I do myself.
But, that small thing aside, this is an indispensable book for all fans of Annette’s work and of cult TV, and it’s been so good to immerse myself in her life with this excellent and enjoyable memoir.
It’s been an extra-special experience for me too, as I was privileged to meet the lovely lady herself at an event in London - where she kindly signed the book for me after talking to a gathered audience about her life and work.
It was interesting to read all about her childhood in Australia, her love of dance, and the story of how she became a professional actor - eventually moving to London.
I’d imagine anyone reading this book would be a big fan of Randall and Hopkirk, and she covers this well in a chapter. There are other anecdotes about her time on shows such as The Saint, The Prisoner and The Avengers, and her friendships with stars such as Roger Moore, Patrick Macnee, Benny Hill and Sue Lloyd.
She also covers her extensive theatre work, various relationships, the birth of her daughter and her happy marriage. There are lots of lovely photos too!
The only slight criticism would be that the book could do with a tighter proofread just to tidy it up - I was aware of this going through, being that this is something I do myself.
But, that small thing aside, this is an indispensable book for all fans of Annette’s work and of cult TV, and it’s been so good to immerse myself in her life with this excellent and enjoyable memoir.
January 19, 2019
It’s an autobiography that combines an almost child like honesty with a great deal of adult angst and self doubt. It catalogues a career that has provided performances on stage, film and TV screen that many millions of us have not only seen but elected to watch again and again – particularly her tele-fantasy roles in The Saint, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased), and The Prisoner.
There will of course be a small number of McGoohan fans who still can’t forgive her for what they see as her dissing the great man. As the Prisoner is also my most loved TV show and Patrick McGoohan remains my, pardon the pun, number one favourite actor, I of course turned first to the pages covering her time in the Prisoner episode “it’s Your Funeral”. She repeats, and slightly enlarges, on that clearly challenging time with her interactions with Patrick then and I have got to say it does still ring true to me. Patrick was one of the finest actors ever to be on stage or screen but the evidence is clear that his: personality, passion for the Prisoner project, intense workload, and perfectionist approach clearly did make him somewhat shouty/angry on occasion and this was clearly one of the worst times for that.
There will of course be a small number of McGoohan fans who still can’t forgive her for what they see as her dissing the great man. As the Prisoner is also my most loved TV show and Patrick McGoohan remains my, pardon the pun, number one favourite actor, I of course turned first to the pages covering her time in the Prisoner episode “it’s Your Funeral”. She repeats, and slightly enlarges, on that clearly challenging time with her interactions with Patrick then and I have got to say it does still ring true to me. Patrick was one of the finest actors ever to be on stage or screen but the evidence is clear that his: personality, passion for the Prisoner project, intense workload, and perfectionist approach clearly did make him somewhat shouty/angry on occasion and this was clearly one of the worst times for that.
August 13, 2022
Light, rather frothy read from Annette André about her life as an actor during the heyday of British television. Always good to hear about the experiences of actors on some of our cult shows, but André largely suffers from the professional reticence of most 'nice actors' and doesn't really get past the 'it was all really lovely' stage. She does have a few harsh words for one or two 1960s directors, and Patrick McGoohan gets short shrift for his unprofessional behaviour on the set of The Prisoner.
© Koplowitz 2022
© Koplowitz 2022
May 25, 2021
Interesting and light read giving an insight into the golden age of UK TV from a working actress.
June 20, 2021
Excellent biography of Annette from her early years in Australia to her move to UK. I remember her in Randell & HopkirK 60's tv series. I always thought that she was a fine actress in that series, and her other appearance's in The Saint, The Avengers she again came across as a very nice person. I did not know more about her other than these roles. Reading her Autobiography I now realise that she made many other stage and film roles. Working with some great actors. This book is a very well written book that if like me interested to read more about Annette's life then I recommend reading this book.
October 15, 2018
Actress Annette Andre's autobiography takes her from childhood in Australia to her years of acting in England. Lots of interesting stories, told in a gentle, pleasing voice that makes them all interesting. She even tells a few ghost stories amidst tales of the actors she's worked with. A delightful book.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews