John Barrowman: Anything Goes...

[fajrdrako]

I read Anything Goes by John Barrowman today.

What fun. What a delightful book. What great footnotes. What a vivid sense of life.

I love theatrical autobiographies.

Though I have read every Barrowman article I could find, and have seen every interview possible, the book overlaps surprisingly little. And though Barrowman's sister Carole did the actual typing of the book - and, clearly, the spelling - his voice comes through on every page.

Actually, most of his family sounds as if they are just like him. Which is a scary thought.

Barrowman's story is not told in chronological order, exactly, though his infancy and childhood are near the beginning of the book, his civil partnership with Scott and his tenure on Torchwood are near the end. While reading, I thought, "There should be a chronology at the end," and so there was. Handy.

Specific comments:

1. John Barrowman is a terrible tease; this seems to be typical of his whole family. There are countless recountings of practical jokes and silly pranks, and a fair amount of teasing of the reader.


2. Good passage: "Many people believe that as individuals we're the product of some preconceived plan, some grand design that God, whatever you may call Him or Her, has predetermined for us, but I've always believed that was rubbish. I am who I am firstly because of genetics, and, running a very close second, because of choices: ones my parents made, such a choosing to emigrate to America; ones their parents made; ...and very conscious ones that I've made for myself."


3. Quote from Noel Coward, that other wonderful theatrical biographer: "It is discouraging how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit."


4. I envy his wonderful travels - especially to historical sites (the Yucatan, Santorini, Masada, Rome, and so on) - and was somewhat surprised by his love of swimming and scuba diving. The man's half fish - not a drinker but a swimmer.


5. Surprising too that he is afraid of flying (though he does it all the time), and clearly loved his flight in a Hawk fighter jet. He also has a phobia about being touched on the face or neck, an ongoing difficulty when it comes to getting his make-up done. This seems particularly odd in that he is famous for kissing scenes in which he touches his partner's neck. And then there's that amazing tongue-flick-to-the-neck in Shark Attack 3: Megalodon, which has to be one of the sexiest things I've seen on film. And it isn't as if his co-kissers don't touch his neck in return, like the famous kiss with Ianto in "To The Last Man":
   


6. What a joy it was to be able to read a special 'limited edition' copy signed by the author. What a beautiful scrawl. I don't treasure many autographs, but I will certainly treasure this one.


7. Speaking of Captain Jack's kisses with Ianto: he tells an anecdote about kissing Ianto during the filming of "Adam", when (as a joke) they made the kiss continue. Since we didn't see a kiss between them in "Adam" (except on the forehead), I am sorry to hear the thing must have been edited out. Spoilsports.


8. As a child, Barrowman was crazy over Star Wars and collected Star Wars toys - pretty much like any kid of his generation. However, though he loved both Star Wars and Doctor Who, it seems clear that his very favourite television as a kid was Dallas and that he loved, and continues to love, the evening-soap genre. He has an ambition to do TV comedy in the style of The Carol Burnett Show.


9. A turning point in this life, from page 80:

   I was in a music practice room at high school one afternoon, struggling with a piece of flute music I needed to learn for the school band. I began to sing the piece aloud to help me get a grip on it, when David Damkwart, the school choir director] walked past the room. He knocked and stuck his head inside.
   
   'Was that you singing?'
   
   'Yes.'
   
   'Do you think you have talent?'
   
   'Yes.'
   
   'Are you arrogant?'
   
   I wasn't sure exactly what he meant by this, but I said 'yes' anyway.
   
   'Good. Those are both qualities I like in my performers. Come to the theatre and try out for the school musical.'

10. The man collects Barbie dolls. Well, he would. I love it.


11. On several occasions, Barrowman mentions something happening that must be the most wonderful feeling in the world: being admired by those you admire.


12. Favourite scenes, moments, and passages:
    • Barrowman charging into the audience to stop people from photographing a production of Anything Goes
    
    
    • Descriptions of being in The Producers, especially his rivalry with an actor he euphemistically calls "Peter Prick"
    
    
    • The stories of being in Matador - I do wish I could have seen that! But I guess... few people did.
    
    
    • The stories of the Barrowman family Hogmanay parties
    
    
    • The description of his and Scott's Civil Partnership ceremony
    
    
    • The ending of the Valentino story
    
    
    • The 'pay it forward' ideology
    
    
    • Backstage stories
    
    
    • The wonderful story of getting the lead role in Anything Goes

Do I have any quibbles or regrets about the book? Not really, but I can think of three things I wish were different: I wish it was longer - clearly he could full more 250-page books with anecdotes and memories and musings; I wish it had more specifics about the casts and filming of Doctor Who and Torchwood; and I wish he had delved a little more deeply into some of his thoughts and feelings about his philosophy of life, the roles he's played, his significant relationships - granted that he has a right to privacy, he could still delve deeper without compromising that. He talks about his first kiss, but his first serious love? Not at all. I'd like to hear more about his consideration of gay rights and animal rights, religion, sex and more. What he thinks is clear. Why he thinks it? I'd have liked to hear more.

Maybe in his next book.

Comments

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

even though of course it's none of my business, I'm curious if his face/neck touching phobia still applies with any long-term romantic partners he's had.

I wondered that too, and he doesn't answer the point. It could be only that he doesn't like people he doesn't know well touching his face and neck. It could be that because it's a sensitive area it's both a love/hate reaction - makes a strong point when he does it in a scene for that reason. Or not. But it's interesting that he describes it as a phobia when it comes across as such a strong, positive note in his work.

It's also interesting that it's a phobia shared by other members of his family. Does this mean it's genetic, or learned? And - either way - why?

Seems an odd quirk when, as you say, he comes across as so touchy-feely.