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8 Deaths
Mark Watson is generally accepted to be alive. And yet he’s died. In fact, he’s died loads of times.
On stage.
It’s embarrassing. Excruciating. But dying on stage isn’t the only death Mark’s suffered. There’s also been the death of his innocence. The death of that absolutely brilliant project that everyone told him was really amazing. And that time he died inside.
In this warm-hearted, hilarious memoir he takes you behind the scenes of a life - and many deaths - in comedy and beyond. From his early years on the circuit, to getting lost in the world of TV, Mark reveals everything: when he died and when he lived. 8 Deaths will show you that it’s not how you die that counts - it’s how you live.
On stage.
It’s embarrassing. Excruciating. But dying on stage isn’t the only death Mark’s suffered. There’s also been the death of his innocence. The death of that absolutely brilliant project that everyone told him was really amazing. And that time he died inside.
In this warm-hearted, hilarious memoir he takes you behind the scenes of a life - and many deaths - in comedy and beyond. From his early years on the circuit, to getting lost in the world of TV, Mark reveals everything: when he died and when he lived. 8 Deaths will show you that it’s not how you die that counts - it’s how you live.
Audible Audio
First published December 2, 2021
9 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
About the author
Mark Watson
54 books359 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Mark Watson is an English comedian, novelist, and producer whose career spans stand-up, radio, television, and literature. Born in Bristol to a Welsh mother and English father, he grew up with younger twin sisters and a brother. Educated at Bristol Grammar School, he went on to study English at Queens' College, Cambridge, graduating with first-class honours. At university, he became a member of the prestigious Footlights, performing alongside Stefan Golaszewski, Tim Key, and Dan Stevens, and contributing to a revue nominated for Best Newcomer at the 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Watson first gained wider recognition through stand-up comedy, performing regularly at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where he won the inaugural Panel Prize at the if.comeddies in 2006 and received a Perrier Comedy Award nomination in 2005. Known for inventive and often marathon performances, his shows have included 24-hour performances, collaborative audience-driven novels, and themed events like the “Earth Summit” and “Edit,” compiling his festival highlights. His comedy frequently incorporates unusual settings, from ferries and streams to vaccination queues, demonstrating his flair for unconventional experiences.
On television, Watson co-hosted the BBC Four panel show We Need Answers, appeared on series including Taskmaster, Richard Osman's House of Games, and Celebrity Mastermind, and starred in his own programs such as Mark Watson Kicks Off and the Channel 4 panel show The Mad Bad Ad Show. His appearances also extend to stand-up specials on Live at the Apollo, Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow, and international comedy festivals in Australia and New Zealand.
In radio, he has hosted multiple series including Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better and Mark Watson Talks A Bit About Life, often collaborating with Tim Key, Tom Basden, and Flo & Joan. He has also contributed to BBC Radio 5 Live’s Fighting Talk and produced series exploring both comedy and broader cultural themes.
Watson is also a prolific author, publishing novels, non-fiction works, and graphic novels. His books include Bullet Points, Crap at the Environment, Eleven, The Knot, Dan and Sam, Hotel Alpha, The Place That Didn't Exist, Contacts, Mortification, and One Minute Away.
Beyond performing and writing, he co-runs Impatient Productions, producing radio shows, podcasts, and digital content, and hosts the World Snooker Tour podcast Snooker Club. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he innovated with livestreamed 24-hour charity events called “Watsonathon!” and co-created the YouTube series No More Jockeys.
Mark Watson is a lifelong supporter of Bristol City Football Club and continues to live in East London, balancing a career that blends comedy, literature, and experimental performance with a commitment to inventive, audience-focused storytelling and engaging entertainment.
Mark Watson is an English comedian, novelist, and producer whose career spans stand-up, radio, television, and literature. Born in Bristol to a Welsh mother and English father, he grew up with younger twin sisters and a brother. Educated at Bristol Grammar School, he went on to study English at Queens' College, Cambridge, graduating with first-class honours. At university, he became a member of the prestigious Footlights, performing alongside Stefan Golaszewski, Tim Key, and Dan Stevens, and contributing to a revue nominated for Best Newcomer at the 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Watson first gained wider recognition through stand-up comedy, performing regularly at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where he won the inaugural Panel Prize at the if.comeddies in 2006 and received a Perrier Comedy Award nomination in 2005. Known for inventive and often marathon performances, his shows have included 24-hour performances, collaborative audience-driven novels, and themed events like the “Earth Summit” and “Edit,” compiling his festival highlights. His comedy frequently incorporates unusual settings, from ferries and streams to vaccination queues, demonstrating his flair for unconventional experiences.
On television, Watson co-hosted the BBC Four panel show We Need Answers, appeared on series including Taskmaster, Richard Osman's House of Games, and Celebrity Mastermind, and starred in his own programs such as Mark Watson Kicks Off and the Channel 4 panel show The Mad Bad Ad Show. His appearances also extend to stand-up specials on Live at the Apollo, Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow, and international comedy festivals in Australia and New Zealand.
In radio, he has hosted multiple series including Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better and Mark Watson Talks A Bit About Life, often collaborating with Tim Key, Tom Basden, and Flo & Joan. He has also contributed to BBC Radio 5 Live’s Fighting Talk and produced series exploring both comedy and broader cultural themes.
Watson is also a prolific author, publishing novels, non-fiction works, and graphic novels. His books include Bullet Points, Crap at the Environment, Eleven, The Knot, Dan and Sam, Hotel Alpha, The Place That Didn't Exist, Contacts, Mortification, and One Minute Away.
Beyond performing and writing, he co-runs Impatient Productions, producing radio shows, podcasts, and digital content, and hosts the World Snooker Tour podcast Snooker Club. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he innovated with livestreamed 24-hour charity events called “Watsonathon!” and co-created the YouTube series No More Jockeys.
Mark Watson is a lifelong supporter of Bristol City Football Club and continues to live in East London, balancing a career that blends comedy, literature, and experimental performance with a commitment to inventive, audience-focused storytelling and engaging entertainment.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
March 18, 2022
I chose this book to cheer me up. It did! Surprisingly, the chapter detailing Mark's mental health issues was the one which cheered me up the most! His observations were honest, and really helpful.
January 25, 2022
This audiobook reminded me exactly why Mark Watson is one of my favourite comedians. Which might seem like an odd thing to say - I should know why my favourites are my favourites - but it’s been a long 2 years and it feels like much, much longer since I’ve seen live comedy (and it’s definitely been much longer since I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Mark Watson himself live).
But I was taken right back to those moments I first connected with Watson and his style of comedy. He’s self-effacing and awkward in a way that’s terribly endearing and human and relatable, and it makes his comedy feel so much more accessible than others.
Watson’s wit and self deprecating humour shone through this book while maintaining an overall uplifting air and I highly recommend listening to it. He speaks about the way we compare ourselves to others, to unrealistic standards, the way we don’t take the time to enjoy what we’re doing and instead look to what we feel we SHOULD be doing or should have ALREADY done, and every single bit of it, despite our life experiences being very different, very much hit home.
That last chapter played into some of my deepest anxieties and while it was comforting to know I’m not alone in these overwhelming existential thoughts, it uh…low key made me spiral a little. Yet he still made me laugh, too, so I can forgive him.
This book is half comedy, half self-help book, and I can’t recommend it enough.
But I was taken right back to those moments I first connected with Watson and his style of comedy. He’s self-effacing and awkward in a way that’s terribly endearing and human and relatable, and it makes his comedy feel so much more accessible than others.
Watson’s wit and self deprecating humour shone through this book while maintaining an overall uplifting air and I highly recommend listening to it. He speaks about the way we compare ourselves to others, to unrealistic standards, the way we don’t take the time to enjoy what we’re doing and instead look to what we feel we SHOULD be doing or should have ALREADY done, and every single bit of it, despite our life experiences being very different, very much hit home.
That last chapter played into some of my deepest anxieties and while it was comforting to know I’m not alone in these overwhelming existential thoughts, it uh…low key made me spiral a little. Yet he still made me laugh, too, so I can forgive him.
This book is half comedy, half self-help book, and I can’t recommend it enough.
December 6, 2021
Excellent. I'm already a fan of Watson's comedy, and this was everything I wanted from an audiobook by him. He talks about depression and anxiety but with a great sense of humor about it. He gives genuinely good tidbits of advice and philosophies on life. It's also free with your Audible subscription. I had a great time listening to it.
December 31, 2021
Audiobook
December 4, 2021
Free audiobook. Read as a palette cleanser but can’t really recommend. Bit disorganised, although the insights into TV comedianship were interesting. Maybe I just couldn’t relate personally to his neurosis and fear of everything.
February 1, 2023
I'm glad this was a free audible one, found it quite dull
January 4, 2022
I've long been a fan of Mark Watson's work and not only did I find this audiobook really entertaining, it also resonated with me too. This is a sort of memoir/self help book as Mark talks about his failures and rejections, what he's tried to learn from them and how it's changed him as a person. As a writer myself there were many things Mark has experienced and struggled with that I too have found difficult. I really appreciated his honesty and, of course, his humour. This was the perfect book to start a new year with.
November 14, 2022
*Audible only*
I'm ever keen to get a bit of an insight into the comedic life, especially if I feel the comedians are a bit like me. I've always kind of felt - apart from liking football, which I don't - Mark Watson was of my tribe. I remember a great routine he did back in the mid 2000s about intrusive thoughts that was both hilarious and worrying. Then there was CATE, which I thought was a brilliant attempt at addressing what we can personally do in the war against climate-caused extinction. I thought, here's a comedian who's up for trying things that are a bit different.
Mark Watson is, to me, very much successful, as a comedian and writer, so what are these deaths he's on about, I wondered... A bad gig? We all have those...
When teetotal millionaire comics can advertise awful beer and not get flack, or they can appear with monkeys and nodding dogs on ads, or go into Squawking Rages and still get hailed geniuses, but Watson gets a drubbing from his peers just for not calling it perry, you know that this is a cliquey industry, and he talks about some of the awful behaviour and one-upmanship that is definitely a part of the world he inhabits.
Watson's "self help" book is actually more of a memoir and a discussion about the things that frighten us, and it's a heart on his sleeve fascinating one. Will his book help me? I think it might in a way... I won't spoil it for you, but it's well worth listening to.
I'm ever keen to get a bit of an insight into the comedic life, especially if I feel the comedians are a bit like me. I've always kind of felt - apart from liking football, which I don't - Mark Watson was of my tribe. I remember a great routine he did back in the mid 2000s about intrusive thoughts that was both hilarious and worrying. Then there was CATE, which I thought was a brilliant attempt at addressing what we can personally do in the war against climate-caused extinction. I thought, here's a comedian who's up for trying things that are a bit different.
Mark Watson is, to me, very much successful, as a comedian and writer, so what are these deaths he's on about, I wondered... A bad gig? We all have those...
When teetotal millionaire comics can advertise awful beer and not get flack, or they can appear with monkeys and nodding dogs on ads, or go into Squawking Rages and still get hailed geniuses, but Watson gets a drubbing from his peers just for not calling it perry, you know that this is a cliquey industry, and he talks about some of the awful behaviour and one-upmanship that is definitely a part of the world he inhabits.
Watson's "self help" book is actually more of a memoir and a discussion about the things that frighten us, and it's a heart on his sleeve fascinating one. Will his book help me? I think it might in a way... I won't spoil it for you, but it's well worth listening to.
March 6, 2024
Mark Watson (2021) MARK WATSON'S 8 DEATHS (AND LIFE AFTER THEM) (AUDIOBOOK)
Audible - Audible Originals
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5 stars
Audible writes, "Mark Watson is generally accepted to be alive. And yet he’s died. In fact, he’s died loads of times.
On stage.
It’s embarrassing. Excruciating. But dying on stage isn’t the only death Mark’s suffered. There’s also been the death of his innocence. The death of that absolutely brilliant project that everyone told him was really amazing. And that time he died inside.
In this warm-hearted, hilarious memoir he takes you behind the scenes of a life - and many deaths - in comedy and beyond. From his early years on the circuit, to getting lost in the world of TV, Mark reveals everything: when he died and when he lived. 8 Deaths will show you that it’s not how you die that counts - it’s how you live."
=====
I feel like I'm on a similar page. A forever nothing, the prospect of, is terrifying in my head. Also, go and see Mark Watson do stand up. Hilarious!!!!
=====
#MarkWatson #MarkWatsons8DeathsAndLifeAfterThem #Books #Read #Reads #Reading #Review #Reviews #BookReview #BookReviews #GoodReads #Audiobook #Audiobooks #Audible
Audible - Audible Originals
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5 stars
Audible writes, "Mark Watson is generally accepted to be alive. And yet he’s died. In fact, he’s died loads of times.
On stage.
It’s embarrassing. Excruciating. But dying on stage isn’t the only death Mark’s suffered. There’s also been the death of his innocence. The death of that absolutely brilliant project that everyone told him was really amazing. And that time he died inside.
In this warm-hearted, hilarious memoir he takes you behind the scenes of a life - and many deaths - in comedy and beyond. From his early years on the circuit, to getting lost in the world of TV, Mark reveals everything: when he died and when he lived. 8 Deaths will show you that it’s not how you die that counts - it’s how you live."
=====
I feel like I'm on a similar page. A forever nothing, the prospect of, is terrifying in my head. Also, go and see Mark Watson do stand up. Hilarious!!!!
=====
#MarkWatson #MarkWatsons8DeathsAndLifeAfterThem #Books #Read #Reads #Reading #Review #Reviews #BookReview #BookReviews #GoodReads #Audiobook #Audiobooks #Audible
February 18, 2022
I must admit I only 'read' this as it was free on Audible but I always quite liked what I had seen of Mark Watson on the TV.
I suppose it is a cross between a biography and a self-help book, but without all the preachiness that most self-help books have.
Overall, I really enjoyed most of it, and probably took more away from this than the few other self-help books I have read, most of which have been bad enough that I decided I wouldn't read any more.
I suppose it is a cross between a biography and a self-help book, but without all the preachiness that most self-help books have.
Overall, I really enjoyed most of it, and probably took more away from this than the few other self-help books I have read, most of which have been bad enough that I decided I wouldn't read any more.
April 18, 2022
I have to admit reading this book sent me off onto a binge of watching Bear Grylls' The Island series. Quite interesting to contrast Mark's view of what happened to the TV version - who knows where the truth lies. I am not at all a reality TV fan, but I did find the series interesting for the insight into human psychology under duress. Mark's book was entertaining and funny, but I think I got more out of the TV series. Is that ridiculously shallow?
March 29, 2023
Mark Watson, possibly by accident, has written an excellent "self-help" book that basically teaches the following: life isn't a competition with others or with yourself; self-doubt can be the "death" of us; death comes for us all, in all of its forms; "little deaths" help us master the fear of the final death; impermanence is an inevitable part of life (quite Buddhist!). I love Mark Watson, finding him funny, earnest, and likeable, and that bleeds through to the listener here as well.
Read
May 5, 2023This was great. Honest and raw and gave me so much to think about. I loved the idea of life as a game with no goal posts and everyone running around on the field with no idea what they’re meant to be doing, and you don’t find out the score until it’s all over. That’s early on and we move on to life not being a competition, but I’m still stuck with the visual. We’ll worth a listen (I got it on audiobook.)
December 7, 2021
I'm not usually an audiobooks person, but I made an exception for this one. Mark is very easy to listen to, and (perhaps surprising for a book mostly about discomfort and distress) I found this a comforting listen. Kind of a self-help book, but helping himself and showing his workings in public, rather than suggesting that his answers are the right ones for everyone.
Read
December 23, 2021I’ve listened to this audiobook. I’m not sure what to make of it. Probably it’s a bit of biography mixed with self help and humour. I wonder if this would work as an actual book. But I’ve enjoyed the humour and thought there are some valuable points which seems to be directed to the younger generation ?
January 1, 2022
I listened to the audiobook of this title. Its not one I would necessarily have paid for but it was available as part of my subscription.
I do enjoy listening to books narrated by the author - especially when they are a performer. This felt like I was sitting down having a chat with Mark - albeit a bit one-sided.
I do enjoy listening to books narrated by the author - especially when they are a performer. This felt like I was sitting down having a chat with Mark - albeit a bit one-sided.
January 6, 2022
It is difficult to write a comedy book mixed with self help. This book swings too quickly between the two at times, and as a result doesn't do either as well as it could.
However Mark does make some interesting points, and there are (fairly brief) windows into his experiences in stand up and on TV. A good read but I won't be rereading.
However Mark does make some interesting points, and there are (fairly brief) windows into his experiences in stand up and on TV. A good read but I won't be rereading.
June 5, 2022
I loved this. Audiobook only, and free on Audible, it is a very frank memoir of time when life went wrong, and the lessons to take from them. It is about insecurity, imposter syndrome, the perils of judging yourself against others, and lots more. If this came out in a printed version I would buy about 10 copies to give to friends.
November 15, 2022
Largely inoffensive and witty, this book gives an insight into some moments that played havoc with the neurotic mind of Watson. The self-help advice is sensible although it will come as news to those impacted by the Manchester Arena terror attack that concerns over suicide bombers are an anachronism.
December 7, 2021
Free | Stumbled across this free on Audible, and gave it a shot due to very vague familiarity with Watson (two or three panel shows plus Taskmaster, I honestly thought he was a newcomer to comedy). Interesting, and some of his conclusions about life match my own, but nothing earth-shattering here.
December 27, 2021
A lovely listen - currently free as an audiobook with an Audible subscription - on the meaning of success, or specifically how it feels to not succeed and how to cope with that. Funny, insightful and lots of life advice that resonates
January 5, 2022
A very good discussion of the negative thinking that makes you feel about life. All the chapters meant something to me and how I think. Feels like a companion piece to 4000 Weeks. Will need to listen to again and make some notes.
March 6, 2022
The final chapter was unexpectedly touching and thoughtful. Not saying that the rest were pointless, just that the last one was different, which was intentional.
I will have to check out some of Mark Watson's fiction.
I will have to check out some of Mark Watson's fiction.
September 2, 2023
Very dull. I find Mark Watson to be self-absorbed and very entitled - there is a horrible sense of self-importance in his work. It comes across as if he feels hard done by because every single person doesn’t adore him. Not relatable, and not worth your time.
December 11, 2021
Do love a comedian's audiobook
January 23, 2022
Thought provoking, disarmingly honest and funny.
A great book by the charming Mark Watson.
A great book by the charming Mark Watson.
January 24, 2022
Interesting anecdotes
April 6, 2022
Supremely comforting and honest. Food for thought without being preachy or pretending there is a way to win.
April 25, 2022
The most I’ve laughed out loud at a book in a long time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews