What do you think?
Rate this book
It's Not a Proper Job
In It’s Not a Proper Job, TV legend Chris Tarrant regales the reader with hilarious and heart-warming stories from his stellar 50-year career in television and radio. With trademark wit and self-mockery, Chris not only recalls his behind-the-scenes capers with fellow celebrities, but also shows us how, as a man of the people, he has relished rubbing shoulders with ordinary folk on his way to becoming one of the nation’s favourite TV faces.
Chris rose to fame at the forefront of trailblazing telly in the 1970s as the host of Tiswas, the anarchic, flan-flinging children’s show that spearheaded a fresh format and a new era for Saturday morning TV, packed with pranks and full of fun, and which remains a benchmark to this day.
For later audiences, Chris will be more familiar as the face of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? which he presented for sixteen gripping years and which grew into a global phenomenon. Chris remembers the highs of contestants’ life-changing winnings, the lows of loss, the cringing embarrassment of ignorance, and the infamous cheating of the ‘Coughing Major’.
Spanning five decades, Chris’s television credits are the envy of aspirational TV stars, but reading his laugh-out-loud anecdotes reveals a man still amused by life, by the people he meets, and by his own humble assertion that none of his glittering career can, in any way, be called ‘a proper job’.
About the Author
Born in Reading in 1946, Chris Tarrant was educated at Choir House in King’s School, Worcester. In 1967, he graduated with a degree in English from the University of Birmingham, before working as a schoolteacher.
His break in television came in 1972, when he landed a job at the ATV network, before going on to become a presenter for ATV Today, a Midlands-based current affairs programme. He rose to national fame in 1974 as the host of the groundbreaking children’s show, Tiswas. From 1984, he enjoyed a successful 20-year spell as a Capital Radio host before presenting ITV’s Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, a television phenomenon exported to 120 countries around the world. Since 2012, Chris has presented several railway-themed shows for Channel 5, most notably Extreme Railways.
He has won numerous awards and honours. In 2000, he received a Special Recognition from the National Television Awards; an OBE in 2004 for his charity work on behalf of disadvantaged children; a Sony Gold Award for Lifetime Services to Radio; and in 2006 a Lifetime Achievement from the British Comedy Awards.
Chris rose to fame at the forefront of trailblazing telly in the 1970s as the host of Tiswas, the anarchic, flan-flinging children’s show that spearheaded a fresh format and a new era for Saturday morning TV, packed with pranks and full of fun, and which remains a benchmark to this day.
For later audiences, Chris will be more familiar as the face of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? which he presented for sixteen gripping years and which grew into a global phenomenon. Chris remembers the highs of contestants’ life-changing winnings, the lows of loss, the cringing embarrassment of ignorance, and the infamous cheating of the ‘Coughing Major’.
Spanning five decades, Chris’s television credits are the envy of aspirational TV stars, but reading his laugh-out-loud anecdotes reveals a man still amused by life, by the people he meets, and by his own humble assertion that none of his glittering career can, in any way, be called ‘a proper job’.
About the Author
Born in Reading in 1946, Chris Tarrant was educated at Choir House in King’s School, Worcester. In 1967, he graduated with a degree in English from the University of Birmingham, before working as a schoolteacher.
His break in television came in 1972, when he landed a job at the ATV network, before going on to become a presenter for ATV Today, a Midlands-based current affairs programme. He rose to national fame in 1974 as the host of the groundbreaking children’s show, Tiswas. From 1984, he enjoyed a successful 20-year spell as a Capital Radio host before presenting ITV’s Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, a television phenomenon exported to 120 countries around the world. Since 2012, Chris has presented several railway-themed shows for Channel 5, most notably Extreme Railways.
He has won numerous awards and honours. In 2000, he received a Special Recognition from the National Television Awards; an OBE in 2004 for his charity work on behalf of disadvantaged children; a Sony Gold Award for Lifetime Services to Radio; and in 2006 a Lifetime Achievement from the British Comedy Awards.
340 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 25, 2022
1 person is currently reading
9 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 18, 2024
It was so good to receive this book as a surprise Birthday present and, being a long-time fan of Chris since childhood, this was perfect for me.
Chris is reticent to write an actual autobiography outlining his personal life - so this book makes a good compromise, as he goes through his hugely successful half-century career as a presenter and entertainer on both TV and radio, conecentrating on many of the more funny and more usual situations he found himself in.
We see how he starts out as a local TV reporter for ATV, before soon progressing to infamy as the host of the hugely popular Tiswas. This of course leads to his long stint as the presenter of Capital Radio's breakfast show, before the surprising global success of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. We also get some chapters towards the end highlighting some of the dangers of hair excellent 'Extreme Railways' series for Channel 5 in more recent years.
Admittedly, Chris has been 'interviewed' for these chapters to get them down in print, which sometimes feels a bit disjointed and means we lose maybe some of the edges of the narrative.
But, despite this, the book was hugely enjoyable, and made for the perfect holiday read for me.
He's certainly a legend of TV and radio, and a genuinely warm, funny and clever guy, and it's been great fun sharing his adventures.
Chris is reticent to write an actual autobiography outlining his personal life - so this book makes a good compromise, as he goes through his hugely successful half-century career as a presenter and entertainer on both TV and radio, conecentrating on many of the more funny and more usual situations he found himself in.
We see how he starts out as a local TV reporter for ATV, before soon progressing to infamy as the host of the hugely popular Tiswas. This of course leads to his long stint as the presenter of Capital Radio's breakfast show, before the surprising global success of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. We also get some chapters towards the end highlighting some of the dangers of hair excellent 'Extreme Railways' series for Channel 5 in more recent years.
Admittedly, Chris has been 'interviewed' for these chapters to get them down in print, which sometimes feels a bit disjointed and means we lose maybe some of the edges of the narrative.
But, despite this, the book was hugely enjoyable, and made for the perfect holiday read for me.
He's certainly a legend of TV and radio, and a genuinely warm, funny and clever guy, and it's been great fun sharing his adventures.
Displaying 1 of 1 review