White Male Stand-Up cover art

White Male Stand-Up

 Preview

Get 30 days of Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30-day free trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for £15.99

Buy Now for £15.99

About this listen

 On the Waterstones Best Books of 2025 List

'Davies has done it again, damn him. Irritatingly good. Maddeningly funny. Annoyingly fine.' STEPHEN FRY

'Emotional, entertaining and startlingly honest. I was totally engrossed.' AMY LIPTROT, author of The Outrun.

'Really honest and really funny' Lorraine Kelly

Following Just Ignore Him, the bestselling memoir of his traumatic childhood, White Male Stand-Up is what happened next to Alan Davies.

It's the story of how he threw himself into the joyous and idealistic world of stand-up comedy, leading to a television career, but how echoes from the past, and the thought that everyone might prefer it if he disappeared, saw him repeatedly dismantle everything around him.

With a cast of well-known comedians, actors, agents and producers, Alan awkwardly navigates his life from the camaraderie of the comedy circuit via life-changing fame as TV's Jonathan Creek, to the unwelcome realisation that most people know him from a bank advert and think he's had a perm.

Often very funny and always honest, this very personal memoir is a rich tale of uplifting highs and painful lows, of success and excess, and the dangers of both. How Alan Davies survived it - and very nearly didn't - is the compelling tale of White Male Stand Up.©2025 Alan Davies Entertainment & Celebrities Entertainment & Performing Arts Film & TV Music Performing Arts Comedy Celebrity Funny Heartfelt Inspiring Witty Thought-Provoking Feel-Good

Critic reviews

'Reading White Male Stand-up made me nostalgic for the 90s/00s. I could feel the strong friendships and also the pain. Alan Davies is so perceptive on the drive to success and the seeking of an alternate family. This book is emotional, entertaining and startlingly honest. I was totally engrossed.' (Amy Liptrot)
'Davies has done it again, damn him. Irritatingly good. Maddeningly funny. Annoyingly fine.' (Stephen Fry)
'Really honest and really funny' (Lorraine Kelly)
'An unvarnished account of his life...often amusing in its brutal honesty'
A simply astonishing achievement. The quality, depth, emotional power and terrifying honesty of Alan Davies's story-telling take the breath away (Stephen Fry on Just Ignore Him)
'An unvarnished account of his life...often amusing in its brutal honesty'
All stars
Most relevant
A very raw narration of a man who we are all familiar with, but perhaps not as familiar as we thought. I will forever adore Alan Davies for his honesty, his humour, and his simply being human.

Heartbreakingly Hilarious

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Funny, honest, brave, heartbreaking and heartwarming. Just as great as Just Ignore Him, if not better.

Another masterpiece.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Alan was the first stand up I ever saw live so I’ve always followed him. Just Ignore Him was excellent but obviously tough so I wanted to read the next part. If you started being an adult in the 90s you’ll love this, particularly the anecdotes about other comedians and the way the live circuit worked. The book is funny, but also honest about the problems Alan has had over the years. Well worth it.

A really honest book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Alan Davies delivers a powerful memoir that balances humour with heartbreak in White Male Stand-Up. This is the follow-up to Just Ignore Him which I have previously having listened to, have never forgotten. There is something even more moving as the narration is candid and compelling, drawing listeners into the chaotic, idealistic world of stand-up comedy while never shying away from the darker undercurrents of his personal life.

What makes this audiobook truly stand out is the way Alan Davies explores the long shadow cast by his father’s abuse. With insight and emotional clarity, he reflects on how those early experiences shaped his relationships and sense of self. This is such an important message, the trauma of his mother's death and the abuse can not be erased. It’s not just a story of survival this is the author coming to terms with the impact, told with wit, vulnerability, and a surprising tenderness.

I laughed and I cried, and I came away with a deeper respect for the resilience behind the performer. Highly recommended for anyone who appreciates memoirs that don’t flinch from the truth.

Funny, raw, and deeply affecting

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
With seamless transitions between humor and heartbreak, the author intertwines past and present as he confronts the lingering impact of childhood abuse on his adult life.

humor and heartbreak

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews