Saturday 25 September 2010
The Rise Of the Young One: Author Teams Up With Rik Mayall For Hilarious & Disturbing Adventure
The Brighton Magazine is pleased to be able to catch up with Chris Wade, a talented young author who first caught our eye when he self-published the Hooverdam Companion, a book dedicated to the whys and wherefores surrounding the release of the latest album by ex-Stranglers frontman, Hugh Cornwell.
Chris, who runs his own small publishing company, Wisdom Twins Books, has now teamed up with renowned comic Rik Mayall, to release an audio book of Chris' very own novel, Cutey And The Sofaguard.
Mayall is the star of countless classic comedies including Bottom, The Comic Strip Presents, The New Statesman and Drop Dead Fred, and was an obvious choice to read the hilarious and often disturbing adventure.
The tale sends the listener into the most unexpected areas of the surreal and is full of surprises, as Mayall brings the twisted tale to life with his energetic versatility.
For the many fans of Rik Mayall this will be a treat, as he has plenty of room to make outstanding and genuinely funny characterizations throughout the book.
The anarchic feel of the tale is very fitting to the alternative comedy icon"s career, like a cross breed of his famed Jackanory appearance and the classic sitcom the Young Ones.
So how did Chris Wade make the step from the Hoover Dam Companion to the celeb read audio release of Cutey and the Sofaguard?
The Brighton Magazine (TBM): Since we caught up with you last time, following the publication of the Hooverdam Companion, you've brought to fruition an exciting project you were only able to hint at, an audio release of your novel, Cutey and the Sofaguard. So maybe you'd like to fill in some of the gaps since we last talked?
Chris Wade (CW): Yeah of course. Well I had written this surreal ficition story called Cutey and the Sofaguard, around mid 2008. I was just doing it as a laugh really, a kind of hobby, like when it was nice outside I would go and sit out and add bits to it and after a while it was growing into a full length novel.
I had just been re-reading Rik Mayall's mad autobiography, Bigger than Hitler Better than Christ, which is hilarious, and I kind of had Rik's voice in my head to help me go along with the story. It helped because I have always loved his style and I based the characters on him.
Then at the end of 2009 when I had started doing bits and bobs, writing and illustrating, I sent it to Rik's agent and they got back really quickly and that was it really. Rik loved the story and thought it suited his style really well.
TBM: Obviously for someone like yourself, who runs a small publishing company, securing a comedy legend with the reputation of Rik Mayall must"ve taken lots of wheeling and dealing?
CW: Ha ha! Well not wheeling and dealing exactly, but lots of sexual favours for Rik. No, only kidding. It all came together pretty quick, the recording was about a month after I had sent it, but it just took a bit of patience waiting for the release. But it was worth the wait because I couldn't be any happier with the results. I think it's brilliant.
TBM: I understand you were on hand during Rik's recording of Cutey and the Sofaguard. What was he like to work with?
CW: I was there, yeah. He was amazing. Every idea he had in mind for the characters matched my original aims and I was happy with every single moment of his work. It was just amazing to listen to him in the booth, I can't put it any lighter than that.
You don't get many people like Rik, well there's no one else like him and it was just the most fantastic thing to observe him at work, getting into all the characters and coming up with ad-libs and brilliant ideas.
He tackles, he told me, 24 or 25 characters in the script and they all just dive out of the speakers. To work with him was just one of the best experiences of my life, because not only is he a joy when it came to the work, he is also very kind, generous, obviously very funny and easy to get on with. Me and him kind of clicked.
TBM: How has Rik's reading of Cutey and the Sofaguard changed what was on the printed page, and also how has the audio book altered the tale from the time you first sat down to write it?
CW: Well, like I said before, it was written with his voice in my head. Although I never imagined at the time he would be narrating the audio version, I had these little bits in my mind that were just classic Rik.
There are two characters in the book, Rik's favourites in fact, called The Wisdom Twins. They are the most vile characters imaginable but they are also hilarious and they just capture something in Rik that is there in his truly great roles. You can tell when you listen to it that Rik realy loves these guys.
So really, he brought everything to life I had imagined, or kind of daydreamed about it so to speak, but never thought could realistically happen. It has altered in the fashion that I would much rather people listen to the audio than read any paperback book of the story. For me now, reading a book of it would be like reading a film script and not watching the film. Something, well a large part of it, would be lost because Rik just brings it to life. He really GETS it, which is amazing to listen to.
TBM: You recently hooked up with Rik again for a most surreal face-to-face chat. Does he ever have reflective periods or is he 'full-on Rik' 24/7?
CW: Well it WAS surreal, sitting there interviewing Rik for my magazine and talking about our project together. That was the real surreal part for me. But he is great to chat to and we have a great laugh. We got on well and have similar views, tastes and a similar outlook.
He is very intelligent of course, and very funny. As for the full on Rik 24/7 part, well that would be telling, ha ha. He does reflect and that comes across in the Hound Dawg Magazine interview. He really cares about his work and values it a lot, which is fantastic.
TBM: What are your hopes and aims for the audio book? Is Rik able to help you promote it?
CW: Well I am proud of what Rik and I have created together and I know his fans will love it. Our aim is to let people know this is a powerful audiobook, it grabs you by the scruff of the neck and pulls you in.
Rik's performance demands attention and he really gets into the characters. As Rik said in the Hound Dawg interview, it grabs you rather than interests your intellect. It's an area where you can really explore imagery; conjure up strange feelings, images and scenes.
It is also an area where we don"t get censored and Rik is free to challenge himself and the listeners. It's very exciting. We want to make people laugh and think about what exactly they are hearing.
TBM: What's next on the agenda for Wisdom Twins Books? Will you continue to produce the excellent Hound Dawg pdf magazines?
CW Yeah, I will carry on doing the magazine because I really enjoy it. It still gets good feedback and it's a nice free thing to do. I"ve been writing more fiction too; follow-ups to Cutey and the Sofaguard as well as some short stories.
People can download the audiobook from I Tunes and The wisdom twins Books site. They can also keep up to date on the site with news and read the free magazine if they want to.
And with that, we have just enough space to be able to lead you in the direction of the iTunes download of Cutey and the Sofaguard (as read by Rik Mayall), or, if you prefer, from the Wisdom Twins download store.
Plus, don't forget to check out the ten free downloads of Chris Wade's Hound Dawg Magazine .. issue 10 is available now and features an exclusive chat between Chris and Rik Mayall.
by: Mike Cobley
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Two's Company: Chris Wade & Rik Mayall
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