Open the Cage, Murphy!

To describe Open the Cage, Murphy as action-packed is a massive understatement. The book takes us on a roller coaster ride through a decade of Paul O'Grady's life and is stuffed to the gunwales with hilarious stories, extreme situations and outrageous one-liners. At the end of Paul's previous volume of autobiography, Still Standing, his brilliant comic creation Lily Savage stood on the brink of fame. Here, Lily embraces success as to the manner born, and world domination beckons! Along the way, the stories come thick and fast. Paul is involved in a plane crash, gets caught up in the LA riots and has a close encounter with Madonna. He takes us with him to a gay-themed weekend in Butlin's in Skegness, on a rowdy tour with Prisoner Cell Block H - the Musical and into the depths of the Australian rainforest, where he befriends a rare bird that can disembowel a man with a single kick. The dramatis personae include a family of dolphins, Charlton Heston and the ghost of Joan of Arc - and there's a starring role for a certain remarkable dog, Buster Elvis Savage.
But whether he's writing about star-studded Hollywood parties, the devastating loss of close friends to AIDS, or late night shenanigans at the end of Blackpool Pier, Paul's wit and humanity never desert him. Open the Cage, Murphy is a genuine delight - all the more so for being delightfully genuine.