'Private' Coogan to publish memoirs
Actor Steve Coogan, who has been an ardent privacy campaigner and a leading light in calls for press reform, has struck a deal to publish his autobiography.
The star, known for his bumbling TV creation Alan Partridge as well as his Hollywood roles, will publish the book next year.
The 47-year-old has previously had literary success with his bestselling spoof book about his alter-ego I, Partridge: We Need To Talk About Alan.
Coogan has been protective of his personal life and has been involved with the Hacked Off campaign. Last year he settled a High Court claim after his phone was hacked by the News Of The World newspaper, receiving an apology and an award of £40,000.
In November 2011 he appeared before the Leveson Inquiry and emphasised how he liked to keep out of the public eye other than through his work, saying: “I don’t sell myself as a personality. I like to keep myself private.”
Coogan, who recently starred as porn baron Paul Raymond in the movie The Look Of Love, will have his memoir published in September 2014 in hardback with a paperback the following year.
Ben Dunn, publishing director at Cornerstone who has acquired the rights, said: “’I am absolutely thrilled to be publishing Steve’s autobiography; it’s the book I’ve always wanted to work on and I absolutely can’t wait to get started.’
Coogan said: ’I’m delighted to be writing my memoir. It promises to be a sojourn through the faltering first steps of a lower middle-class boy who watched television to the dizzy heights of a man who achieved not only a multi-Bafta-winning status on television but also became fully middle-class and managed to annoy the Daily Mail at the same time. Wow.“
Coogan, from Middleton in Greater Manchester, landed the Perrier Award in 1992 and went on to have TV success with characters such as Paul and Pauline Calf, together with Saxondale and Partridge. He has starred in films such as 24 Hour Party People, A Cock And Bull Story and will be seen in Alpha Papa and Philomena later this year.
His production company Baby Cow has also been behind a number of hits shows including Gavin And Stacey and The Mighty Boosh.
