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  • Gotta Get Theroux This

  • My Life and Strange Times in Television
  • By: Louis Theroux
  • Narrated by: Louis Theroux
  • Length: 13 hrs and 21 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (8,013 ratings)
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Gotta Get Theroux This

By: Louis Theroux
Narrated by: Louis Theroux
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Summary

From much-loved documentary maker Louis Theroux comes a funny, heartfelt and entertaining account of his life and weird times in TV.

The audio edition is read by the author and contains an exclusive additional chapter.

The Sunday Times Bestseller.

In 1994 fledgling journalist Louis Theroux was given a one-off gig on Michael Moore’s TV Nation, presenting a segment on apocalyptic religious sects. Gawky, socially awkward and totally unqualified, his first reaction to this exciting opportunity was panic. But he’d always been drawn to off-beat characters, so maybe his enthusiasm would carry the day. Or, you know, maybe it wouldn’t . . .

In Gotta Get Theroux This, Louis takes the reader on a joyous journey from his anxiety-prone childhood to his unexpectedly successful career. Nervously accepting the BBC’s offer of his own series, he went on to create an award-winning documentary style that has seen him immersed in the weird worlds of paranoid US militias and secretive pro-wrestlers, get under the skin of celebrities like Max Clifford and Chris Eubank and tackle gang culture in San Quentin prison, all the time wondering whether the same qualities that make him good at documentaries might also make him bad at life.

As Louis woos his beautiful wife Nancy and learns how to be a father, he also dares to take on the powerful Church of Scientology. Just as challenging is the revelation that one of his old subjects, Jimmy Savile, was a secret sexual predator, prompting him to question our understanding of how evil takes place. Filled with wry observation and self-deprecating humour, this is Louis at his most insightful and honest best.

©2019 Louis Theroux (P)2019 Macmillan Digital Audio

Critic reviews

"Funny, engaging." (Sunday Times)

"Gripping." (Daily Mail)

"Absorbing and surprisingly candid." (Telegraph Magazine)

What listeners say about Gotta Get Theroux This

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great book

I could not recommend this book more. I listen to a lot of audio books when I am going to sleep. With this book, not only do I get to hear the interesting stories, I get to hear them told by Louis! What better way to end your day!

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45 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Was pretty much a rehash of all shows - him reading it made it worthwhile

I was hoping for more “off-screen” Louis Theroux. If you’re familiar with his TV shows this will be a familiar re-hashing of these shows in his own words. I felt it was too focused on Saville - for international audiences (or young millennials) who didn’t know this guy, it will probably feel like he spends too much time talking about him. It’s clear he’s trying to make sense of having had this particular person in his life, but his best works had nothing to do with this person. Louis lets the shadow of Saville dominate this book’s content too much - hopefully this means his next book won’t mention him at all. Louis has done so many great documentaries for TV - the other works deserved more discussion. I would have enjoyed hearing more about his thoughts on life vs verbal replay of what I can watch on Netflix. Looking forward to future works nonetheless.

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37 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I got Theroux it very quickly!

I absolutely loved this audiobook. I have always been fascinated by Louis and have been watching his documentaries long before it was age appropriate for me to do so and this book is a great companion to his series giving a greater insight into the real life beyond the camera.

I have always enjoyed listening to Louis since his book 'The Call of the Weird' and my only criticism is I would have liked to heard more from the one off episodes such as 'gambling' and 'hunting' however I'm aware that more people are interested in Louis' relationship with Jimmy Saville.

Overall though a fantastic book and I recommend it to anyone who has or has ever had an interest in his documentaries.

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19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Therouxly Enjoyable

loved it, would have liked more behind the scenes insight though. Louis is the best

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18 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Honest and fun read from an honest and fun guy

Really enjoyed this honest and entertaining summary of the path Louis has taken to get to where he is now. Very funny at times (loved all the commentary regarding the gap year!) but also deeply honest and relatable. It's kinda nice to know Louis is pretty much what you'd expect him to be like... although a bit more pretentious. You definitely sympathise and feel for the guy, but in the same way you feel bad for one of your really talented friends who can't see their own brilliance. He manages to tell his story without ever feeling self-indulgent or bragging.

My only issue was the at best embarrassing, and at worst, offensive, attempts at other people's accents in the book. Otherwise, excellent book.

I had fallen out of love with my audible account and had let my credits gather a bit, but this got me right back into it. Thank you very much Louis for this fun and interesting read!

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Not bad

I’m a big fan but found was not massively into this. Nice to find out a bit more about his personal life. However, his work stuff is largely repetitive if you’ve seen the shows. His attempt at voices and accents are a little annoying too :P

That said, I remain a massive admirer and there’s plenty to enjoy.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Interesting but focused on a few subjects

I am a huge fan of Louis Theroux’s documentaries so was very excited about this book.

The overall story is interesting but he does focus a large amount of time on the Jimmy Saville story with the rest being very short passages. I would have liked to hear more about the kookie characters he met.

This is a good book and well written as one would expect from a consummate profession such as him, although his voice got a little monotonous at times and monotone.

Overall well worth a read/listen.

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7 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A good retrospective of Louis' Career

I found this book much more enjoyable than Mr Theroux's previous book. If you are a fan of his documentaries then I would high recommend it.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

The ramblings of Saville

It started interesting. But soon turned into a ramble about saville. Even at the end of the book, he admitted to going on about saville to much throughout the book and decided to add some "bonus material ?" ....... And proceeded to ramble about saville again !!

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A must read/listen

Excellent content and story of louis' work, career and personal life. Although I have watched the majority of Louis' documentries, I found myself going back to and watching a fresh some as I made my way through the book for more context.

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5 people found this helpful