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The Boy from Nowhere
- Narrated by: Angus King, Caroline Guthrie
- Length: 8 hrs and 36 mins
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The Boy from Nowhere
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Summary
The warm, funny memoir of Gregor Fisher, the much loved Scottish actor best known for Rab C. Nesbitt, told as he uncovers his dramatic family history.
Growing up in the Glasgow suburbs, Gregor was 14 when he asked where he was christened and was told that he was adopted. But it wasn't quite that simple. And so began an unfolding of truths, half truths and polite cover-ups from his various families.
In 2014 Gregor approached Times columnist Melanie Reid to help him tell his story. Together they travelled through the mining villages of central Scotland to uncover the mystery of his birth and early life. What emerged was a story of secrets, deception, tragic accidents and early death, coldness and rejection from the very people who should have cherished him most, but a welcome from the most unexpected of quarters.
From the squalor of industrial Coatbridge after WWI to his own 1950s Glasgow childhood, via a love letter found in the wallet of a dead man and meeting his sister outside lost luggage at Glasgow Central, Gregor shares his family story with warmth and blunt Scottish humour.
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What listeners say about The Boy from Nowhere
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Tak
- 26-05-19
A story of hope? Or despair?
The feeling of abandonment and frustration is so strong in this story that as a listener you are thrown into desperate hope that Gregor must find some answers which shed a more favourable light on some of the roles played by the people he discovers are a part of his history. John's family are a blessing to him but don't provide all the answers he is looking for. The uncanny shadowing of and links to places his father and other family members have been seem to help give some shape to the unfolding strangeness of the life he had been born into. Each strand of the story is a life lived and he is trying to join those strands together to give him the whole. On this journey his gentle care of the feelings of others comes across with a patience which is amazing. At the same time the assistance and help with research and facts from others proves invaluable. I had to listen to this over the course of one evening (into the early hours) and then to the finish the following day. Such a compelling and honest narrative and I can understand why he felt it had to be told. I feel honoured to be allowed to travel this journey too.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 18-06-21
Heart rending and heart warming at the same time
I enjoyed this once I got used to the dual narration. Gregor Fisher is a Scottish National treasure indeed.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- The Reluctant Hermit
- 10-01-16
very slow and not entertaining
I thought this book was not very well written or read. It was slow and repetitive with few interesting stories from his life. The main thread was his search for his birth family but even that was not very interesting. I think that was mainly due to the poor writing with lots of "needless to say Gregor bla bla bla..." Little did he know what was to come" etc. I don't think it was a good idea to have two narrators, one for the story(reading very slowly) and one as Gregor's voice (a woman! why?) I didn't find either voice engaging and found it irritating that it jumped from one narrator to the other throughout. Pretty dull life story and I wouldn't recommend it. I'm sure his life was probably more interesting than portrayed in this book but we will never know.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 21-11-22
Dull
Narrators (of which there are two) were awful, one dull and boring, the other cringe worthy.
I really like Gregor fisher but could hardly stay awake as the narration was poor.The story of his life itself was interesting enough, and sad. For a child who had a bad start in life, he became a real character and managed to make a name for himself which I’d admirable.
Bit boring but may be better to read than listen to.
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