Simon Callow Narrates “Possibly, the Funniest Book Ever Written”
Now as Audiobook: The Unexpurgated Code by J.P. Donleavy
Simon Callow, Narrator of The Unexpurgated Code
J. P. Donleavy, Author of The Unexpurgated Code
Manners, Mischief, Mortality and Mayhem: J. P. Donleavy’s outrageous manual of survival and manners comes to audio, hilariously performed by Simon Callow.
Described by The New York Times as “possibly, the funniest book ever written,” The Unexpurgated Code is Donleavy in full comic flight: part survival guide, part etiquette manual, part gleeful assault on good behaviour.
Originally published in 1975, the book offers advice on almost every social disaster imaginable: from being snubbed, insulted or socially outclassed to surviving funerals, flying saucers, bad manners, worse company and the general indignities of human life.
In this very first audio edition, Simon Callow gives Donleavy’s outrageous prose the kind of theatrical treatment it deserves. Known for his work across stage, screen and literature, Callow brings precision, timing and relish to a book that depends as much on rhythm and delivery as it does on the words themselves.
The release is part of CalebANDKyle Audiobooks’ growing English-language catalogue. Recent and upcoming productions include Rory Bremner narrating several of Mark McCrum’s cosy crime mysteries, Emilia Fox reading Hilly Barmby’s Never Forgive You, Rupert Graves narrating thrillers by C. J. Dunford, and award winning narrator John Lee performing Mac P. Lorne’s historical epic The Lion’s Claws.
“For us, an audiobook is not just a spoken version of a book,” said Marc Sieper of CalebANDKyle Audiobooks. “At its best, it becomes a performance. With Donleavy, the voice matters enormously. The timing, the irony, the sheer nerve of the language. Simon Callow was exactly the kind of performer this text needed.”
J. P. Donleavy, best known for The Ginger Man, remains one of the most singular comic voices associated with Irish and transatlantic literature. His writing is stylish, unruly, satirical and often gloriously improper. The Unexpurgated Code captures that spirit in a form that still feels startlingly fresh: a manual for anyone who has ever felt out of place, badly treated, socially doomed or simply surrounded by fools.
The audiobook invites listeners to rediscover Donleavy through one of Britain’s great acting voices and to hear a comic classic not merely read aloud, but performed. Callow is known to international audiences for films including Four Weddings and a Funeral, A Room with a View and Shakespeare in Love, and his stage career spans the West End, the National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company and Broadway. He also brings a personal connection to the project: Callow encountered Donleavy through his work on one of the author’s plays and came to admire him personally as well as artistically — making him an especially fitting voice for Donleavy’s mischievous prose.
"The Unexpurgated Code" by J. P. Donleavy, narrated by Simon Callow, is available on Audible as an unabridged audiobook with 9 hours runtime.
Marc Sieper
CalebANDKyle Publishing Ltd
publisher@calebandkyle.com
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Audiosample of J. P. Donleavy, The Unexpurgated Code
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