Gavin & Stacey<\/em>. We can all name a beloved, iconic character brought to life by the magnificent Alison Steadman.<\/p>\nShe overcame early-stage giggles, pushed creative boundaries from day one, and built a successful career while balancing motherhood. Alison Steadman is a brilliant comedy star who has played many famous roles. Here, with her distinctive warmth and humour, she vividly recalls all the must-read moments of a life spent in and out of character.<\/p>\n
We discussed the thread that wove throughout the book – how supportive Alison\u2019s parents were throughout her career (which is unpredictable and very competitive). This was admirable in many ways and shows the importance of this but isn\u2019t always easy from a parent\u2019s perspective.<\/p>\n
It was an easy read and very grounded and had warmth throughout. A great read and one well worth reading. The book club gave a score of 7\/10.<\/p>\n
Chris Munroe<\/p>\n
\n
\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
OFF THE SHELF “Out of Character” \u2013 A Memoir Alison Steadman Alison Steadman grew up in Liverpool and became a celebrated actress known for iconic roles like Beverly in Abigail’s Party and Pamela in Gavin & Stacey. We can all name a beloved, iconic character brought to life by the magnificent Alison Steadman. She overcame early-stage giggles, pushed creative boundaries […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[438,347],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6cWjO-4w1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":12902,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=12902","url_meta":{"origin":17361,"position":0},"title":"“Taste” by Stanley Tucci","author":"Alan Williams","date":"2nd February 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"OFF THE SHELF \"Taste\" by Stanley Tucci \u00a0 From award-winning actor and food obsessive, Stanley Tucci, comes an intimate and charming memoir of life in and out of the kitchen. Before Stanley Tucci became a household name with The Devil Wears Prada, The Hunger Games, and the perfect Negroni, he\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Off The Shelf"","block_context":{"text":"Off The Shelf","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=347"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13563,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=13563","url_meta":{"origin":17361,"position":1},"title":"THE PROSECUTOR by Nazir Afzal","author":"Alan Williams","date":"4th September 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"OFF THE SHELF \"The Prosecutor\" by Nazir Afzal \u00a0 Nazir Afzal knows a thing or two about justice. As a Chief Prosecutor, it was his job to make sure the most complex, violent, and harrowing crimes made it to court, and that their perpetrators were convicted. From the Rochdale sex\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Off The Shelf"","block_context":{"text":"Off The Shelf","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=347"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14639,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=14639","url_meta":{"origin":17361,"position":2},"title":"“I Kiss Myself Goodbye: The Many lives of Aunt Munca”","author":"Alan Williams","date":"8th September 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"a OFF THE SHELF \"I Kiss Myself Goodbye: The Many lives of Aunt Munca\" \u00a0 This is a memoir written by Sir William Robert Ferdinand Mount (3rd Baronet). Principally he is writing about his relationship with his aunt, an apparent millionairess who calls herself Aunt Munca after the mouse in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Off The Shelf"","block_context":{"text":"Off The Shelf","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=347"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16700,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=16700","url_meta":{"origin":17361,"position":3},"title":"“I Am Malala ” by Malala Yousafzai","author":"Alan Williams","date":"1st March 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"OFF THE SHELF \"I Am Malala \" by Malala Yousafzai For this month\u2019s book, I Am Malala, an autobiographical work by Malala Yousafzai co-written with Christina Lamb, was a powerful and deeply moving read. Beautifully written and highly informative, it combines personal memoir with a clear-eyed account of politics, culture,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Items for March 2026"","block_context":{"text":"New Items for March 2026","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=431"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Malala.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12031,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=12031","url_meta":{"origin":17361,"position":4},"title":"July 2022 News Update","author":"Alan Williams","date":"4th August 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"July 2022 News Update July has been a busy month in the life of the church. Sunday services have been well attended. A wedding, a memorial service and two funerals have kept the churchwardens busy making the necessary arrangements for these events to go ahead smoothly. The Joint Church Council\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "St Mary's Parish Church News"","block_context":{"text":"St Mary's Parish Church News","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12351,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=12351","url_meta":{"origin":17361,"position":5},"title":"A Little Life\u00a0 – by Hanya Yanagihara","author":"Alan Williams","date":"12th October 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"OFF THE SHELF A Little Life\u00a0 - by Hanya Yanagihara \u00a0 This is a long read that is beautifully written. Set in New York, it follows the lives of Jude and his three male friends after university. Jude is the main character and as the novel progresses the effects of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Off The Shelf"","block_context":{"text":"Off The Shelf","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=347"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17361"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17361"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17361\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17364,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17361\/revisions\/17364"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/shelf.jpg?resize=150%2C95\")
<\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Steadman.jpg?resize=200%2C308\")
<\/a>Alison Steadman grew up in Liverpool and became a celebrated actress known for iconic roles like Beverly in Abigail’s Party <\/em>and Pamela in Gavin & Stacey<\/em>. We can all name a beloved, iconic character brought to life by the magnificent Alison Steadman.<\/p>\n