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Young Once

A Life Less Heavy

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Young Once

By: Nigel Planer
Narrated by: Nigel Planer
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About this listen

 'Beautifully written, deliciously evocative, funny and touching'
STEPHEN FRY
'A thermometer up the Khyber Pass of Comedy, expertly administered'
RICHARD E GRANT

Aged twenty-five, dressed as Che Guevara, Nigel Planer answers an ad for a room and his life changes for ever.

Both a memoir and a love story, Young Once follows his journey, from bell-ringer to gravedigger, from university dropout to long-term patient of the Hospital for Tropical Diseases and all the other bizarre events that shape him, until the day he meets Alexei Sayle, Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson in a former strip club and the 1980s Comedy Revolution is born . . .

Often mistaken (even by his mother) for Neil, the hippy character he creates, by 1986 Nigel has become so well-known he often has to leave the house via the kitchen window. It's lucky that he has always had a talent for seeing the funny side of things: whether it's dealing with 20-foot-éclair-related injuries or being cajoled into Band Aid by Bob Geldof; gatecrashing a rave with Robin Williams or crashing into the set on Top of the Pops; becoming a grandfather at twenty-nine or being rescued from disaster by musical theatre.

Against a backdrop of squats, Glastonbury and roller discos, with a supporting cast that includes Lemmy, a stony-faced Robert de Niro and French and Saunders, Young Once is a wildly entertaining and gloriously sideways glimpse into a remarkable life and career. It's also an object lesson in why you should never give up looking for your Happy Ever After. It might well turn out to be right in front of you.

'Nigel's true-life adventures would make Neil from The Young Ones crap his loons'
BEN ELTON
'YOUNG ONCE is delicious . . .The very funny life of an icon of British comedy, brilliantly portrayed'
JO BRAND©2025 Nigel Planer Entertainment & Celebrities Entertainment & Performing Arts Funny Witty Inspiring Comedy

Critic reviews

Beautifully written, deliciously evocative, funny and touching. (Stephen Fry)
A thermometer up the Khyber Pass of Comedy, expertly administered. (Richard E. Grant)
Nigel's true-life adventures would make Neil from The Young Ones crap his loons. (Ben Elton)
YOUNG ONCE is delicious . . . The very funny life of an icon of British comedy, brilliantly portrayed. (Jo Brand)
Oozes charm and likeability . . . this book is very good, full of terrific stories. He's particularly good on all his old comedy confrères at The Comedy Store and the Comic Strip. [It] will make you hoot with laughter on public transport. A spectacular memoir chronicling a life well lived. Anyone of a certain age and temperament who opens it will be delighted by it.
All stars
Most relevant
a most enjoyable and lovely listen many memory jogs (and not just for young ones fans) its fantastic

oh wow heavy man

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Not sure exactly what I was expecting, except to find out what had happened after Neil departed my life in the 80's.

What I got was an entertaining account of a fairly ordinary life when all is said and done, just a regular guy trying to navigate the ups and downs, and always with a sense of something somewhere north of doom. And all told in such an honest way that I feel Neil didn't completely disappear, he just had nicer people around him.

I enjoyed it, and I'd listen again, in a while. probably missed bits when my mind drifted off into sludge baths, hamsters in toasters and a double decker driving off a Cliff. Ah, those were the days.

A life not quite as heavy

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A great insight into the world of Nigel Planer. I loved the Young Ones and enjoyed the story behind Neil

Honest

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As a lifetime admirer and fan of Nigel’s work , both on screen and stage , this long awaited autobiography, read by Nigel himself, didn’t disappoint .
He comes across with such honesty and integrity, l love him even more .
We all make mistakes Nigel , life is strange in that respect, although we all take chances, . You’re with Roberta , your soulmate and sharer of your adult life despite the middle parts . I’ve listened to it twice and recommended to my friends and family. Thank you for sharing your life memoirs,

Wonderful, loved it ,

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a great autobiography. makes a lovely listen. I enjoyed this and found it interesting

interesting and funny

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