Playing Under the Piano

August 15, 2022
A memoir from Downton Abbey's Earl of Grantham. One can easily imagine Bonneville (b. 1963), a debut memoirist but no novice as a storyteller, dining out for years on the tales jovially recounted here: coming up through Britain's National Theatre and Royal Shakespeare Company; being turned down for a part in Four Weddings and a Funeral; mistaking Melanie Griffith "for a local real estate agent"; getting angry at an annoying boy who was being disrespectful about Martin Scorsese's unibrow and learning it was Leonardo di Caprio; and the crackpot stories Shirley MacLaine told on the set of Downton. The memoir is warm, funny, leisurely paced, and generously stocked with the lore of the author's profession. Bonneville seems aware that the worst things that have happened to him--rupturing an Achilles tendon on stage, getting marooned in Los Angeles during the gestation of a TV series marked for failure--are not what one would call Serious Narrative Conflict (he likes capital letters), but he does his best. There are a few well-handled sober moments, For example, he chronicles a time when, visiting the White House as part of a promotional tour, he hand-delivered a letter from his young son to Barack Obama asking questions about guns and violence in America. The letter was answered; the questions were not. After the Sandy Hook massacre a few months later, his conclusion is simply worded and to the point: "Has anything changed?" Bonneville is also good at thumbnail characterizations, bringing less well-known players affectionately and vividly to life. The casting director for the National Theatre during the 1980s, Gillian Diamond, "was famously intimidating, with short Jean Seberg hair and strong lips. She wouldn't have looked out of place wearing a beret and smoking Gitanes while overseeing a printing press during a run of angry revolutionary pamphlets." Readers will be entertained and come away with a watch list, from Mansfield Park to W1A to the new Downton movie.

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August 29, 2022
Acting memoirs don’t come much better than this humorous and self-effacing account by Bonneville, best known for his roles as the Earl of Grantham on Downton Abbey and Henry Brown in the Paddington movies. Bonneville makes the vicissitudes of his profession accessible while never taking himself too seriously, or his successes for granted. Born Hugh Williams in London in 1963, Bonneville had a pleasant childhood, forming close bonds with his parents; his father was a urologist, and his mother a government worker whose true employer, MI6, he only learned after her passing in 2015. He was attracted to acting at an early age, starting modestly: when he was about nine, he impersonated Davy Crockett to impress a girl he had a crush on. He became a member of the National Youth Theatre in 1980, joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1991, and went on to perform with masters of his craft, including Judi Dench and Kenneth Branagh (who ended up giving him his first movie role, a small part in the 1994 film Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein). There are behind-the-scenes looks at Downton, as well as an entertaining account of Bonneville’s experiences with Courting Alex, an unsuccessful American sitcom. He also provides genuine insights into the actor’s craft as well as moving sections detailing his aging father’s diminishing mental capacities. This one’s a winner.

Starred review from November 1, 2022

In a perfect blend of dry wit, sparkling prose, and a dash of self-deprecating humor, Bonneville's memoir proves he's got more fun tales to tell besides his experiences playing Downton Abbey's Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham, on the small and big screen, and Henry Brown in two Paddington movies. Bonneville offers childhood memories and surveys his work in theatre, film, and television. He shares anecdotes and advice to aspiring actors and drops more than a few names in the process. His theatre career started with the Britain's National Youth Theatre and continued with the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, where he played Laertes to Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet. He has also performed to acclaim at the Chichester Festival Theatre. The book includes delightful tales of filming Notting Hill with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant (including learning about film continuity, while filming scenes of eating), his being in awe when he worked with Maggie Smith, and Shirley MacLaine, who regales the Downton Abbey cast with tales of her numerous affairs. VERDICT Bonneville's delightful memoir will be enjoyed by Downton Abbey fans, Anglophiles, and aspiring actors.--Carolyn M. Mulac

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