I caught Richard Ayoade on The Graham Norton Show regaling the couch with a description of his new book and I knew I had to read it asap.

Ayoade participated in the 2012 Sight & Sound directors' poll, where he listed his 10 favourite films: The Apartment, Badlands, Barry Lyndon, Crimes and Misdemeanors, Make Way for Tomorrow, Contempt, Ordet, Persona, Raging Bull, and Tokyo Story. [92] Personal life [ edit ] Dobbs, Sarah (3 April 2014). "The cast of Garth Marenghi's Darkplace: 10 years on". Den of Geek. Dennis Publishing . Retrieved 26 January 2018. Jones, Ellen E. (30 March 2015). "Travel Man, Channel 4 – TV review". The Independent . Retrieved 16 June 2016. For whatever reason (perhaps the same reason that sometimes The Wiggles’ sole line of “fruit salad, yummy yummy”, will course through my mind while I’m in a Professional Business Meeting, or 26m below the Java Sea, or mid-coitus, or any other yummy yummy fruit salad-absent scenario), scenes from Top have followed me ever since that fateful summer. Pearson, Catherine (10 January 2018). "Richard Ayoade's 9 greatest TV moments". Digital Spy . Retrieved 6 March 2018.However it's more than just that. It is entirely held together by a series of footnotes, in fact nearly half of the book is just footnotes. It would make David Foster Wallace proud but made navigating this book on my Kindle a task akin to Dante's journey through the Inferno. The footnotes are full anecdotes within themselves, made up of letters and diary entries and strange Pinteresque short film scripts. The book's subtitle, "A Cinematic Odyssey", is really the best description of it. In an episode of The Sacred podcast, Richard said he also gets his wife to read his projects before he signs up. The only faults I saw in this book was I didn't get a lot of the references to celebrities enough to enjoy the joke to it's full capability and I wish the middle portion was more like the 'Interview' with himself section as they were definitely my favourite parts. The middle was definitely blander in comparison with the rest. Also, I don't know how much to believe... xD

He’s even a prominent music video director, having directed videos for the likes of The Arctic Monkeys and Kasabian. In May 2020, it was announced that Ayoade would host the 2020 British Academy Television Awards, [84] [85] which was held behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [86] He returned to host the 2021 and 2022 ceremonies. Sciretta, Peter (13 September 2010). "TIFF Movie Review: Richard Ayoade's Submarine". /Film . Retrieved 20 January 2018. Ritman, Alex (16 March 2017). "Timothy Spall, Richard Ayoade Board Aardman's 'Early Man' as Teaser Trailer Debuts". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 7 March 2018. An era has passed, as all eras must. What is left to say, except the answer to the question, ‘What do you call Gloria Estefan vomiting in a taxi?’Guardian Authors (27 July 2016). "Pulling to Time Trumpet – TV's most underrated shows". The Guardian. a b Pelley, Rich (14 September 2019). "Richard Ayoade: 'I'm even more humble than people expect' ". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077 . Retrieved 24 September 2019.

Sheridan, Colette (28 October 2011). "Far from Hollywood". Irish Examiner. Archived from the original on 6 June 2012 . Retrieved 19 October 2012. Sometimes a format as simple as two comedians going on a bike ride together makes for good television. Away from stage comedy, David O’Doherty earns his primetime slot with another obsession: cycling. Taking Richard Ayoade on a two-day trip along the Kent coast, they observe, reflect and talk utter nonsense. Bliss. Later in the series, Grayson Perry and Mel Giedroyc saddle up. Hollie Richardson The Outlaws 9pm, BBC One Evans, Bradford (26 February 2014). "Richard Ayoade Signs a Deal to Write Three Books About Film". Vulture . Retrieved 8 March 2022. But I digress. This book may be written as humour but the analysis of this film is very real. Okay, not really in the sense that he agrees with what he's saying but the theory is there. The understanding of how a film is put together and the little details that make it. Yes, it's indulgent but it's also refreshing. Most importantly it's really funny. I don't think I've laughed so much reading before. It's such a perfectly written book. Thanks to the premise, it's such a tightly written piece of comedy. The little asides and footnotes add just enough without ever taking away from the main thread. It's a clever piece of writing and it's engaging. It was so easy to read and I never felt aware of the time passing. You get caught up in the journey and just enjoy hearing Ayoade's voice. Moloney, Aisling (23 June 2017). "Who is Crystal Maze host Richard Ayoade? Highlights from The IT Crowd, Garth Marenghi's Darkplace and more". Metro . Retrieved 19 January 2018.

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Ayoade on Ayoade' is a playful, funny parody of those earnest books which fawn over auteurs and deconstruct their work for meta levels of meaning. That Richard Ayoade is so willing to poke fun at this, whilst apparently engaging with it in his own films, made me like him even more - and I already like him a lot. Richard Ayoade to host socially-distanced TV Baftas". BBC News. 29 May 2020 . Retrieved 29 May 2020. Frenette, Brad (27 July 2010). "Toronto International Film Fest announces 2010 lineup". National Post . Retrieved 19 October 2012. Whelan, Natalie (13 June 2008). "UK actors win at Golden Nymph Awards". The Guardian . Retrieved 26 January 2018.