Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing
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4.4 • 860 Ratings
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- £9.99
Publisher Description
'There's never been a more honest or raw memoir . . . and it may just save lives' Daily Mail
'Funny, fascinating, compelling . . . also a wonderful read for fans of Friends' The Times
'HI, MY NAME IS MATTHEW, although you may know me by my full name. My friends call me Matty.'
So begins the riveting story of acclaimed actor Matthew Perry, taking us along on his journey from childhood ambition to fame to addiction and recovery in the aftermath of a life-threatening health scare. Before the frequent hospital visits and stints in rehab, there was five-year-old Matthew, who travelled from Montreal to Los Angeles, shuffling between his separated parents; fourteen-year-old Matthew, who was a nationally ranked tennis star in Canada; twenty-four-year-old Matthew, who nabbed a coveted role as a lead cast member on the talked-about pilot then called Friends Like Us . . . and so much more.
In an extraordinary story that only he could tell - and in the heartfelt, hilarious, and warmly familiar way only he could tell it - Matthew Perry lays bare the fractured family that raised him (and also left him to his own devices), the desire for recognition that drove him to fame, and the void inside him that could not be filled even by his greatest dreams coming true. But he also details the peace he's found in sobriety and how he feels about the ubiquity of Friends, sharing stories about his castmates and other stars he met along the way. Frank, self-aware, and with his trademark humour, Perry vividly depicts his lifelong battle with addiction and what fuelled it despite seemingly having it all.
'An unflinching and often harrowing must-read for 90s pop culture fans' Guardian
'Written with Chandler's trademark sarcasm and self-deprecation' Telegraph
'A hopeful read . . . I started to think of [it] not as a celebrity memoir about addiction, but as an addiction memoir written by a man who understands his own history through the prism of showbiz' Independent
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
As the sardonic Chandler Bing in seminal TV sitcom Friends, actor Matthew Perry has brought endless humour to millions of people around the world for the past 30 years. Perry’s own life, however, has been far from the gilded existence one might expect of a beloved entertainer with a net worth of over $100 million. In his memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big, Terrible Thing, Perry narrates his decades-long struggle with addiction with devastating candour, revealing how alcoholism and drug abuse have marred his experiences, both during his time on one of the most acclaimed shows of all time, and long after. Beginning with the culmination of the physical destruction that gave him a two per cent chance of surviving the night, leaving him in a coma for two weeks and hospitalised for five months, Perry recounts his highs and lows, sprinkling some Hollywood gossip into the reflections of a man astounded to be given a second chance at life.
Customer Reviews
Friends, Lovers And The Big Terrible Thing
‘Friends, Lovers And The Big Terrible Thing’ by Matthew Perry is the late actors autobiography. Matthew Perry who died in 2023 was well known for his acting roles in television and film, most famously known for his role as Chandler Bing in the much loved comedy series ‘Friends’.
I absolutely love the television series ‘Friends’ so I always knew I wanted to read this book especially following Matthew Perry’s untimely death. I really enjoyed this book, I listened to it as a audiobook and it was weird but really good to hear Matthew Perry telling you his own story. Matthew Perry doesn’t stray away from the truth, he discusses his problems and addictions in so much detail and you really do understand what demons he faced. This was a great autobiography and was a great read. Unfortunately it just makes you think that sadly he was an actor taken before his time.
A must buy!
Brilliant insight into his life, couldn’t stop listening.
What a man ! 🙏
What a man ! And we think they have everything! Read the book and you will understand ,how lucky you are still being alive! After this 📕 ,we will see life in other perspective and will be like a rainbow 🌈 because life it’s so precious and beautiful!