Anything Goes

The Book Report: The life and times of fabulous Captain Jack Harkness, I mean I mean JOHN BARROWMAN of course I do, silly me to get the two confused, he of the TV show Torchwood, in all his dimpled and smiling glory. With butt shots. Two.

My Review: One knows what one is getting with celebrity memoirs, right? Whitewash, excuses, justifications, and a little catty score-settling. It takes a pretty damned big ego to write an "autobiography" (which this ain't, it's a memoir) in the first place; to do it before the age of sixty is, well, it's a bit uppish.

Yeah, so what, pretty people get to do what they want. And Barrowman is nothing if not pretty. Very pretty. Very very pretty. That he is also a talented actor, a fine musical-theatre show more singer, and a high-maintenance mess of a man makes it all the more fun that he didn't wait to write the book (with his sister, Carole). He takes it upon himself to tell us the tale of what brought Clan Barrowman from Glasgow to Illinois, what made the clan tick, and what happened as a result of this daring and quite unsettling move, made in the Malaise Years of the middle 1970s.

Wait. Make that, he tells us the tale of what happened to John of the Clan Barrowman. This is a book that relentlessly focuses on John Barrowman, contextualizing his life with the necessary information, but skimping on the lives and times of the other people in his orbit. Quite forgivable in a memoir; less so in an autobiography, which is more about the life-and-times, less about the lifestyle.

He's not forthcoming with details of his personal life, eg what his feelings were, what his thoughts were, around his coming out. He doesn't fail to mention them, understand; it's simply that, as is the gentleman's privilege, he goes very soft-focus and moves on quickly from the topic. He writes his most passionate, his most emotional, and his most harrowing stuff when he writes about the descent of a friend into madness. It's an amazing, painful, and quite wonderful passage in the book. It brings into stark relief, though, the absence of these very qualities in some other passages in his life that could have used the same treatment.

That criticism aside, I would recommend the book to most all gay guys because here, gents, here is someone whose joie de vivre and whose enthusiasm for his work have led him down some fascinating garden paths, all the while declining to be stereotyped. It's a very instructive path he's on, for the most of us who aren't in the least famous or likely to get there. It's good to see someone skiing ahead on the trail, hollering back, "there's a crevasse over here, don't go there!" every so often. Good on him that he chose to do it. Good for us that it is, on balance, a fun book to read.

The butt shots don't hurt. show less

I've very much enjoyed John Barrowman's performance as Captain Jack on Doctor Who (a show of which I am a huge and unabashed fan), and every time I've come across an interview with him, he's struck me as being full of appealingly goofy charisma, a kind of infectiously enthusiastic energy, and a deliciously raunchy sense of humor. So I figured his autobiography had to be fun to read, and I wasn't disappointed. This book would be worthwhile, really, just for the funny stories from his childhood, which he tells in a pleasantly rambling style with the assistance of hilariously cheeky footnotes. The rest of the book is a bit more of a mixed bag, I suppose: funny anecdotes, sad anecdotes, straightforward biographical information, lots of the show more usual celebrity name-dropping, and a fair amount of egotism that's pleasantly leavened with an occasionally self-deprecating sense of humor. Barrowman says at the outset that his hope is that "you'll feel as if you and I are lounging in our pyjamas on the couch in my Cardiff living room, sharing a bottle of champagne or a pot of tea, with music on in the background, having a blether and a laugh about my life so far." And that's exactly the feeling he manages to achieve.

The 4/5 rating is a little generous, maybe, but doggone it, I had fun. show less

I decided I loved this book when Barrowman started his autobiography with a recap of a Matrix-style wall vault on a busy street, inadvertently almost taking out an old lady.

It's a coming out story, a work-hard-and-be-beautiful story, and a tale about a kid who loves to dance. Granted, the actor seems to enjoy the sound of his voice. To his credit, the voice is rather showbiz, slightly self-centered, and definitely entertaining. I stretched this one out to a few sittings because he made me laugh.

... and yes, I started reading it because I'm a bit in love with his character on Doctor Who. Don't judge.

This is exactly what I would expect if I sat down and dished with John over a few cocktails. I love the fact that it isn't chronological - that's what usually drags a memoir down, since most people do not have an exciting childhood. The story is told in chapters named after songs from various musicals, skipping around a bit, but never getting you too lost. The best part of the book, hands down, is the way he uses footnotes. Snarky little side comments that had me laughing time after time. He's not afraid to talk about being gay in the entertainment world. Most of all, his clear and obvious love for his family and friends shines through in every page. A real pleasure to read.

"My ending isn't written yet, my show's not over. Stay in your seats. This is only the intermission."

These final lines of John Barrowman's autobiography Anything Goes beg the question of why the life story of a young performer, hardly a lion of the theater, would be worth reading.

Actually, though, it is. Barrowman, probably better known in the United Kingdom than in the USA, is a talented actor and singer, with wide-ranging experience in theatre, television, and music. He's also one of the few openly gay male entertainers in the business. So if you're interested in behind-the-scenes stories from the American and British entertainment industries told from the perspective of a multi-talented out performer, John Barrowman - with the help show more of his English professor sister Carole - delivers the goods spiced with a delicious sense of humor and a sprinkled with entertaining footnoted asides.

There are a few aspects of Anything Goes that might bear some improvement, however. For one thing, Barrowman tends to be his own biggest fan, well aware of both his talent and his good looks. Then, his repeated mention of celebrity names – Simon Mackintosh, Stephen Sondheim, Cher, and Carol Burnett, among many others – at times come to resemble mere name-dropping. And finally, aside from a brief anecdote about the producers of the short-lived American nighttime soap Central Park West who suggested that he keep both his homosexuality and his partner Scott Gill under wraps, Barrowman tends to gloss over any negative experiences in favor of a Candide-like "best of all possible worlds" approach to recounting his life. Fortunately, though, the personality that comes through the pages of Anything Goes is so engaging and so likeable that any flaws in the book are easily overlooked or easily forgiven.

Most Americans probably know Barrowman best for his roles in two BBC sci-fi series. So, for fans of Torchwood and Doctor Who, Barrowman's autobiography gives a fascinating insight into the life and career of the actor behind Captain Jack. And darn it, John's right - he does have killer good looks. Those physical charms make the photo of Barrowman demonstrating what he wears under his kilt just an extra added attraction to an already engaging read! show less

26 July 2009 - The Works

After reading some other reviews of this I was prepared not to like it too much, but I was actually pleasantly surprised. Yes, there was bottom-baring and some fart jokes, but they were set within the context of a family that loves playing practical jokes, and the need to let off steam when working in a pressurised theatre or film environment. I did like the stuff about the importance of family, and his realisation that he needed to be honest about being gay and support charities and foundations that helped those less fortunate than themselves. Some lovely photos (inc David Tennant in two!) and, although I'm glad I paid a quarter of the cover price, I'm still glad I picked it up on that BC Birmingham meetup day show more when I embarassedly showed everyone my new highbrow purchases! show less

John Barrowman's memoir is a fun, breezy read. My biggest complaint would be that it's somewhat unorganized and chaotic, but that seems to be a natural extension of who he is.