Ricky Gervais

It's been an unorthodox road to the top for Gervais, who was brought up the youngest of four brothers in rough public housing in the early 1960s. He studied philosophy at London University and, after graduation, worked for the university as entertainments manager before embarking on several other short-lived jobs that included managing nascent Brit-pop stars Suede. Gervais became a presenter on London alternative radio station XFM in 1996, where he met his writing partner and long-term collaborator, Stephen Merchant. Television rungs on the stepladder to fame includedComedy Laband an unsuccessful chat show,Meet Ricky Gervais, all in the late 1990s. ThenThe Officebecame the talk of the water cooler in offices all over, andExtrasfollowed in 2005, attracting guest stars of the caliber of Ben Stiller, Samuel L. Jackson, Patrick Stewart, and Kate Winslet. This biographynbsp;is a must read for all fans of the man and his work. Michael Heatley has written numerous books on the rock and pop world with subjects that include Elton John, Guns N' Roses, David Gray, Queen, Justin Timberlake, Eminem, and Robbie Williams.

In this pithy and hilarious book, Karl Pilkington is in conversation with (the often bewildered) Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the writers and stars of The Office and Extras, unwittingly outwitting even those comedy Goliaths as he struggles in vain to make sense of the world around him. Unencumbered by erudition and impervious to logic, Karl ambles down a heuristic path to enlightenment under the edifying influence of Ricky and Steve. His pronouncements on such diverse and contentious topics as population control, simian affairs within human society, the sartorial deliberations of solitary spacemen and how long you can stay alive with your head chopped off, are matched in the vehemence with which they are proposed only by the degree to which they are ill-conceived. Featuring Karl's original illustrations, imaginative scribblings and the best conversations of the world record-breaking Podcasts, The Ricky Gervais Show, this is a unique trip into the world of one of our most innovative thinkers, visionaries and prophets, or as Gervais knows him, "the funniest man I've ever met."

A collection of the best moments from the ‘Ricky Gervais Show’ with further musings from Karl Pilkington, star of Sky 1’s ‘An Idiot Abroad’.

The latest volume in the glorious bestiary 'Flanimals' features the prolific class of flying, crawling invertebrates collectively known as Blugs. The endless variety of Movs, Bants and Zubs. The metamorphosis from Monk Worm to Frag Drier. And the evil incarnate that is the Bletchling. Compulsive bedtime reading for children and disturbed adults alike. Night, night. And mind the Blugs don't bite.

All Flanimal life started in the water. Things start better when wet. Learn how Mulgis became Krudges then Scrundlers, Widdles and Wumpts and finally Spluffs, in this pocket-sized guide to Flanimal Evolution, Flantation and the big, mental Flanisaurs.

The complete scripts of the award-winning series, with exclusive behind-the-scenes photographs by Rich Hardcastle. Meet Andy Millman, actor. Never forgets his lines because he never gets any. And meet Maggie Jacobs, actor. Would love to throw herself into a good part, but she's more likely just to put her foot in it. With an agent who works part-time at Carphone Warehouse, sometimes you have to take a small role on the path to acting fame. But now, after years spent struggling to make it big, Andy has landed a pilot for his sitcom script. Will he finally get the recognition he craves? Extras: the Scripts is the perfect memento for fans of the show and a stylish record of the astonishing writing talent of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant.

An advanced guide for Flanimals fans.

Do you know what upsets David Brent? Wasted talent, yeah? People could come to him, and they could go, scuse me David, but youve been in the business 12 years, can you just spare us a moment to tell us how to, you know, run a team, how to keep them task-orientated while, you know, happy? But they dont. Thats the tragedy. So the Brentmeister General is now prepared to share with us the scenes of his daily life. The scenarios that really illustrate the principles of great team management. His morale-boosting comedy (remember when he got Dawn to actually believe she was sacked?), his fund of earthy wisdom (there should be no ego when youre pulling together to do something good) along with glimpses of the fervent soul beyond the work-related arena, the impassioned singer-songwriter of the potentially highly successful band Foregone Conclusion (a.k.a. supported by Texas). These scripts will show how anyone can be a great boss and a funny person, how to use humour to boost morale, how to have a laugh at work, with women, at us. Investment in people. Thats what its all about really. The staff. Letting them know that they are our most important commodity. Its like, if youre cleaning a floor, and youre up against it, then come to me, and Ill help us clean our floor togethernot literally. Including 500 screengrabs from the series and unseen email correspondence between David Brent and his BBC Producer, The Office: The Scripts is the definitive comedy script book, providing fans with an invaluable opportunity to relive their favourite moments over and over again.