Mortimer “approaches the world with a sly, mischievous smile”, said judging chair and Hay festival founder Peter Florence. “I guess this is what happens when you turn a brilliant, oblique comedic attention to life. The language and the tone tip your perception all the time, and he has this strange ability to keep the reader on the very brink of guffawing for whole chapters at a time. All this suggests that novel-writing is a very promising new direction for comedy’s latest national treasure. Mortimer, who found fame as one half of Reeves and Mortimer alongside Vic Reeves, said he was “really chuffed” to have won the award. “I still have no idea if I can actually write but this award gives me fresh hope,” he added. Plot A fiftysomething woman is devastated when her partner is diagnosed with dementia and his children turf her out of the home they shared. Her partner was insistent that the house should never be sold. But why? Graham Norton, now an established author in addition to his TV and radio career, finds out.

On he podcast, Mortimer also said that he regretted having never done a solo stand-up show, and said: ‘I wouldn’t mind doing that.’ The announcement was made last night at a ceremony held at The Goring Hotel in London. Bob Mortimer receives a jeroboam of Bollinger Special Cuvée, a case of Bollinger La Grande Année, the complete set of the Everyman’s Library P.G. Wodehouse collection, and a pig named after his winning book. Plot Gary, a down-at-heel London solicitor, goes for a drink with a friend. The next day, the friend goes missing. Meanwhile, Gary meets and falls for a mysterious woman. Could the two be connected? And why does Gary keep having conversations with a slightly belligerent squirrel? The debut novel by comedian Bob Mortimer has the answers. Celebrities and good fiction books don’t always go hand in hand. Because celebrities don’t always need to write quality to sell a lot of books. Usually, their name value alone is enough to make a profit. And I wouldn’t necessarily say this book is the exception, but there are some things that do make this book worth reading. Bob Mortimer is a good storyteller. The premise of the story is definitely quite strong. The beginning of the story immediately grabbed me. And in terms of plot, it’s pretty good. But he’s just not a professional novel writer, and this can definitely be noticeable. Because somewhere in the middle of the story, I started losing interest a little bit. The story did a good job of trying to grab me again before I got to the end though. Bob Mortimer is also a good comedian. And there are definitely some snippets of comedy gold to be found in here. Like the brilliant addition of the talking squirrel. But, quite often, the comedy doesn’t hit home like it should.To describe me as anonymous would be unfair but to notice me other than in passing would be a rarity" So many comedians have published novels this year that I have begun to wonder whether writing one is an assignment in a yet-to-be-broadcast episode of Taskmaster. Most of them have confirmed the axiom that comics can’t write memorable fiction: even the novels of master funnymen such as Eric Morecambe and Les Dawson did not burnish their reputations.

I thought if I did the same character, I'll just write the same book,’ the comedian told Kathy Burke on her podcast. ‘So I thought, you know go doing something different.’ Gary also likes to engage in chit-chat with the squirrel he encounters in the park every day, imagining the other side of the conversation. He doesn’t have many mates, see: a couple of blokes he watches football with maybe, or the occasional exchange with the cantankerous old woman next door. As in his television work, Mortimer conveys an infectious joy in his own oddity, and, as his recent bestselling memoir And Away… showed, there’s a sweetness to his worldview that makes his writing gently poignant. And although I can’t imagine non-fans emerging anything other than baffled, those who are used to his brand of weirdness will find that the book works well as a thriller, too. Like Spike Milligan, the only vintage comic whose fiction is still read, Mortimer has managed to use a novel as a vehicle for his distinctive comedic voice.

Some people bury their faces in their smart phones all day. Not me. I’ve had the same old Nokia phone for years and years and have never bothered with social media and the like. I don’t see the point of it; I’ve got enough strangers in my life as it is.” Gary works as a solicitor of little talent and has a thing for drinking in the pub and eating Battenburg cake. When necessary, he also seems to be able to glean words of advice and wisdom from the local squirrels who tend to show up in times when a good talking to is required. Cover quote “His grasp of human loneliness and longing is beautiful and comforting” – Marian Keyes (again). While meeting a work colleague for a drink one night, his attention is taken by an attractive young woman who is sitting alone reading a copy of The Satsuma Complex. His friend suddenly leaves citing a work call and he strikes up a conversation with the girl, a conversation that carries on for hours. He’s smitten, but through all of their chatting, he never found out her name. Next thing he knows, she’s gone and he’s come to the realisation he’s fallen for her.

Kingsolver’s novel is more serious and fatalistic than its 170-year-old predecessor – as Demon says, ‘A kid born to the junkie is a junkie’. But in updating it, she makes a great case for popular fiction’s enduring ability to shine a light on the kind of people we are. (BE)Previous works An autobiography (And Away…) and a Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing tie-in gift book. Who should buy this book? Fans of The Great British Bake Off, especially fans who have just started to notice how wobbly the show has got without her. The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman This is a really slow burn, and I found the ending to be terrifically satisfying. So much so that I’d enjoy a Gary Thorn Part II. Or Gary and Emily. Or what Gary did next.

Gary likes to look around and really pay attention to stuff on his work “commute”. He’s definitely a people watcher, and he has no time to have his face in a mobile phone like most others around him.And so begins Gary's quest, through the estates and pie shops of South London, to finally bring some love and excitement into his unremarkable life? Bob drops in goofy stuff in an almost flattish sounding narrative. Sample ".. have never bothered with social media and the like.I don't see the point of it; I've got enough strangers in my life as it is". In serious parts - a cynical remark (like that of Marvin the robot) has you grinning. And yet, it was a plausible story that had it's highs. Also, the self deprecating meta was hilarious and not too overdone where different characters call the book in the novel "The Satsuma Complex" shit and boring. Main character Sally, a woman who gleefully rediscovers her can-do attitude when all the unnecessary peripherals start to fall away.