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Hopeful
- An Autobiography
- Narrated by: Omid Djalili
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
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Hopeful
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Summary
Omid Djalili's fascinating story begins with an unconventional childhood spent at his family's London guesthouse for visiting Iranians. At school he is kept busy with the beginnings of a passionate love affair with football but he hopes one day to live a more intellectually fulfilled life. For one wonderful summer in California it seems that maybe he will find his spiritual home at UCLA. Sadly his exam results don't quite hit the mark (it's difficult to study astrophysics at one of the world's top universities without O-level maths) and so, ever hopeful, Omid returns home to spend the next three years sitting his A-levels again, and again, and again.
Eventually, in a moment of madness, he concludes that the best way to achieve the desired A-level results is to 'improve' his certificates. Travelling to the university of Ulster he finds true connection and relaxing solitude despite the backdrop of Northern Ireland at the height of the Troubles and nearly being killed by paramilitaries. Here he decides that a life in show business is the only secure option he has left, and what follows is a hilarious and captivating insight into the life of a young performer who embraces his cultural identity, works harder than anyone else, and doesn't give up until he has hung out with Brad Pitt in Morocco, injured himself severely while showing off in front of Kate Winslet, and shared an 'intimate moment' with Oliver Reed in Gladiator.
Full of the warmth and intelligence that makes Omid such a successful comedian and sought-after actor, this memoir takes us on a joyously vivid journey through an unusually British life.
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What listeners say about Hopeful
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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
- tracy
- 06-08-18
Brilliant
A highly entertaining listen- definitely a repeat listening book! Would highly recommend buying this one!
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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
- kampamba chomba
- 06-07-21
thank you
An amazing and weirdly relatable story. you have lived life Omid, thank you for sharing it with us 🙏🏾
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Simon Zohhadi
- 06-12-15
Funny British Iranian Guy
I am also British-Iranian (English mother & Persian father). So Omid's autobiography has some relevance. His performance reading this book is very good and amusing, who could have done it better ? I have also seen him live at the Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith; he was very funny. My only criticism is that he could have written more about his comedy act and career. Recommended.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 06-08-19
Good laugh by an interesting guy
Loads of funny content and a good story of how to overcome rejection. 7/10 for me.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Lella
- 15-02-24
Inspiring, funny & well worth the listen
Loved listening to this autobiography! Having enjoyed Omid’s live show and having Iranian in-laws I knew this would be fun. It was also inspiring, fascinating, informative and moving. I could’ve continued listening non stop. Highly recommend!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Tareq W. Muhmood
- 28-11-16
Beautiful read but a bit all over the place
Read with integrity, humour and pace it was an enjoyable listen. The story though felt like it jumped around too much.
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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
- O. J. Jones
- 30-07-21
Hilarious and heartfelt
Brilliantly narrated, fascinating story of his life, with hilarious stories mixed with some very heartfelt and moving moments too. Highly recommended.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Terry Vanner
- 07-09-17
Just brilliant!
From beginning to the end I was captivated by this very funny, interesting and just a bloody nice bloke!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 08-04-24
superb listening
very interesting delve into the life of a lovely and funny gentleman full of laughter and interesting anecdotes
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Brian
- 15-01-19
Not as funny as I hoped
I’ve listened to other comedian/actor autobiographies and found them much more engaging and amusing (ie Stephen Fry, Kevin Hart, Kevin Bridges) - the book is well written and well read, but missed really funny stories to make you laugh out loud
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