Life can be a little too serious at times. Sure, existence is pretty important, but sometimes we can lose sight of how funny it all is. Was it Oscar Wilde who said that 'life is too important to take seriously?' Every now and then, we all need a good hearty laugh to lighten the load that is life, and Audible has plenty of options to get you started.
Audible's archives are chock-full of laugh out loud personal stories that will have listeners doubling over in fits of giggles as hilarity replaces the hassle of real life. From the self-deprecating powers of standing up to hate and the relentless cringe of a stand-up comedian's life lessons to an awkward American upbringing and the funniest man in Scotland, this is a list of five funny audiobooks that all happen to be narrated by the author. Who better to tell these very funny stories than some of the best comedy minds in the business?
They say that laughter is the best medicine, but comedy doesn't necessarily need to be for remedial purposes only. Sometimes it is just good to laugh, right? Head to Amazon and Audible and grab yourself a comedy bestseller, then settle down and let the hilarity ensue. Audiobooks don't come much better than these.
As far as modern stand-up comedians go, James Acaster is tailor-made for the audiobook world. This hilarious caper of an audiobook is just what you need to take yourself out of your own life for a few hours and into James’ disaster filled one, albeit a disaster filled life that took Acaster from an upbringing in Kettering to one of the most celebrated modern stand-up careers in the UK.
Acaster's deadpan style is perfect for mixing some seriously out-there moments with the drudgery of real life, blending together to create something that is just about as funny as funny audiobooks get. It all becomes quite Alan Partridge at times, and that is definitely a compliment. Acaster's narrative qualities have never been in doubt (his podcast with Ed Gamble is hilarious) but they come into their own here. Acaster is one of the funniest men on the circuit, and this audiobook telling his life story doesn't let him down, not in the slightest.
When I was a baby, I urinated into my own mouth. Now, I don’t remember doing it but my mother told me it happened and she has no reason to lie. As far as I can gather, I was lying on my back naked and I somehow managed it. To be honest, I’d rather not go into the details.
In this celebrated bestseller, Robert looks at the so-called rules for being a man (all the macho stuff) and sees where that did or didn’t apply in his own life journey to becoming a man, all through his trademark self-deprecating lens. It’s got pop culture references aplenty, snippets of cap-doffing that will have anyone born in the '70s or '80s nodding their head and laughing along. And there are some emotional and poignant passages in there too, just in case you need a break from all that chuckling, although the poignant parts are plenty chucklesome too. What else do you expect from one-half of one of Britain's funniest comedy duos?
Webb might be best known for his exploits alongside David Mitchell in that aforementioned double act, but this coming of age collection of personal stories may well be his finest work to date, no matter how cringe it gets from time to time, and plenty of listeners will be able to take real-life advice from his very funny words. Webb is also the perfect voice for this audiobook, creating a laugh out loud listen that offers up hilarity in buckets and spades. An Audible favourite, without a shadow of a doubt, best approached as a collection of essays focused on answering the difficulties hinted at in the title.
‘If I get this right, Tess Rampling will definitely want to have sex with me’. The idea slouches through my fifteen-year-old brain and disappears before I’ve had time to ask it exactly why at sixth-former of Rampling’s cosmic beauty would want to have sex with a GCSE pit-sniffer like me.
American actor Issa Rae sparkles in this witty look back at a laugh out loud life filled with curious turns and very funny mishaps. The dry sense of humour in this is spot-on, as is Issa’s delivery of the audiobook. Anyone who feels awkward can revel in this charming life story that doesn't pull any punches in detailing a real-life touched by places as distant as Dakar and Hollywood, New York and smalltown United States. Rae's journey from Maryland to a celebrated host of Saturday Night Live makes for magnificent reading.
If you’re a fan of Issa from her various films and shows (her turn in Netflix's 2020 film 'The Lovebirds' is fabulous) or her YouTube series Awkward Black Girl, this tale of American life gives you the chance to get to know her a little bit more. It was no great surprise when 'The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl' became a New York Times bestseller, and the audiobook only builds on that magic. Above all else, it is very, very funny.
Moving to Los Angeles instigated another present day fatty food obsession: Mexican food. Tortillas and beans and cheese, oh my! So much cheese, so many nachos, so many artery-clogging delectable filling foods that don’t even exist in Mexico. Whoever concocted these Mexican treats, I love you.
Scottish comedian Limmy doesn’t hold anything back in this autobiography, although has the funniest man in Glasgow ever been known for holding things back? It’s full of dark humour and brutal honesty as he takes you through his mental health battles, as well as many other snippets and mishaps of his life - right from school up to writing the book. Limmy's books have long been popular sellers on Amazon (his collection of short stories 'Daft Wee Stories' is stunning), but listening to the man himself narrate his unique outlook and dispense some unorthodox life lessons along the way? Yes, please. The BAFTA Scotland award winner somehow manages to twist and turn comedy almost into a bizarre type of sci-fi, and it absolutely works.
Reviewers on Audible are absolutely obsessed with this audiobook, and they aren't wrong. Limmy's thick Glaswegian accent takes some getting used to but it all adds to the charm of this audiobook, one of the best comedy releases in recent memory. Come to think of it, someone needs to book Limmy to host SNL too. A Limmy HBO special? You might as well just print money. One of the most unique minds in comedy, Limmy's autobiography is an Audible must-have.
It was a tiny ball, a tennis ball with cotton wool for hair and a face on it. I didn’t realise it at the time but I think it was a play on the word Golliwog. This was the late 70s, but other than the name, there was nothing potentially racist about it.
Memoirs don't come much more honest than Copenhagen-born Sofie Hagen's effort, released in 2018. It’s an ode to self-love, a discussion of fatphobia and standing up to prejudices of all kinds, all wrapped up in self-deprecating humour that hits the spot, every single time. And they manage to do that while making it incredibly funny, mixing hilarity with honesty and producing something special in the process.
Hagen is unflinchingly blunt about some of the, for want of a better word, sh*t that they have had to deal with through life, and the comedic approach adds layers of charm to an audiobook that was going to be a winner from the get-go. There are also some cheeky ad-libs in the audiobook that you won't find in the print version. Who doesn't love a little bit of bonus material? If you enjoyed Mindy Kaling's 'Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me', you'll love this, and be sure to check out Hagen's 'Made of Human' podcast immediately afterwards. But first, a very funny audiobook indeed. Also, how good is that cover?
Hello, it’s me, Sophie Hagen. Thank you so much for listening to my audiobook. I have decided to record it myself so, hello this is my voice. I hope you like it. This is also my accent, that’s something we just all have to live with.
So those were my five funniest autobiography audiobooks.
For more laugh-out-loud listens, why not check out Alan Partridge's new podcast From the Oasthouse or Romesh Ranganathan's top listens.
