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An Actor's Alphabet

An A to Z of Some Stuff I've Learnt and Some Stuff I'm Still Learning

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An Actor's Alphabet

By: Julie Hesmondhalgh
Narrated by: Julie Hesmondhalgh
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About this listen

In this candid and empowering A to Z of being an actor, Julie Hesmondhalgh draws on her decades of experience on-stage and screen, including in massively popular television shows such as Broadchurch, Happy Valley and Coronation Street–to lift the lid on the realities of life in today's industry, and show you how to navigate it.

She shares practical advice on preparing for roles (don't be afraid of looking like a jerk), managing the ups and downs of your career (and how to be out of work without losing your mind), dealing with failure (and success), not constantly comparing yourself to others (bloody hard, but try), looking after your mental health, and the power of knowing when to say "no".

Passionate about the arts, she makes a compelling case for their importance to society, but also calls out the industry on where it continues to fall short–including a clear-eyed assessment of what needs to change to make it safer, healthier, more accessible, and inclusive.

Written with refreshing honesty and self-deprecating humour, An Actor's Alphabet is an audiobook for anyone who dreams of becoming an actor, wants to be a better one, or just wants to learn what being one is really like.

©2022 Nick Hern Book (P)2022 Nick Hern Books Acting & Auditioning Career Success Employment Entertainment & Performing Arts Career Inspiring Celebrity

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Critic reviews

"Like its author, this book is brimming with wisdom, intelligence, empathy and humanity... An absolute must!" (Maxine Peake)

"A generous gift to actors, full of honesty, hope and wit. There is loads of tangible advice, not just for acting, but for life." (Anna Jordan)
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Julie once again has produced a book which is insightful and helpful, it doesn’t matter if you’re an actor or anyone with an ambition especially in the creative arts. I’m a writer and it gave me motivation to crack on

Good for anyone in the creative industries

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I am a 50 year old man, and only recently, (4 years) by chance got into acting. For the first time in my entire life I had found something fulfilling, something that I truly love doing and now, each day I continue to try and be a better actor. At the moment I work as a SA, and I have enrolled with the amazing Jim Cartwright, to help me learn and grow. I am also an active member of Wigan Little Theatre. My goal is to work as a professional actor, and so I'm taking in as much information as I can to help me. Julies book has completely blown me away, and I've discovered that I have a few things in common with her, which is nice. I found it so helpful and inspiring, and I'll definitely be listening to it again, and again. I absolutely love this book.

Very informative and educational, brilliant 😁

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Loved the humour, anecdotes and all round honesty. Julie really shares the truth of the industry from a compassionate but practical point of view. I learned a lot, mainly how to manage my expectations, expenses and relationships within the industry! And most importantly, have fun! Thank you Julie!

A must read for any professional actor!

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Loved listening to Julie. Nothing to do with acting apart from thoroughly enjoying my Am Dram few years back. But this book applies to folk of all walks of life.
Love your accent Julie. Makes good listening. You are pure salt of the earth. But I consider so many northerners to be just that. Comforting accent & great humour.

Interesting

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What a book to kick off the new year. Highly recommend to any actor at any stage in their career. Julie is one of the best.

Glorious

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Terrible audio quality, but I persevered as much as I could until the content became difficult to stomach. From the opening where Julie proclaims she's an activist and doesn't care if you think she's too woke but is sorry if she's not woke enough it gives you a pretty clear view of the intentions of this book which don't seem to go beyond empty virtue signalling. I have no doubt she's a nice person, a book about why she's so nice isn't necessary.
I like to think I'm open minded enough to be able to extract wisdom and knowledge from those I don't necessarily agree with on everything, good advice is good advice no matter who the messenger is, yet there was next to no real, practical advice, just sanctimonious drivel and apparently if I don't share all her political views I "lack the empathy to become a good actor".
There was less than 5 minutes about finding work and creating your own work which can be summarised as follows: apply for grants. Then a chapter about self tapes, again less than 5 minutes: "I'm not good at them and never booked work from any".
What I hoped from this book was to gain insight into what it's like to be an actor, based in the North of England and practical lessons/tips/advice about how one might navigate this industry and how to improve on the craft of acting, what I got was a self indulgent lecture about how the world needs to change according to Julie.

Misleading Title

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