Jim Bowen

"People don't just like him, they love the man. He's a deeply modest, unassuming and vulnerable human being and it's these qualities that shine through his comedy and win the hearts of audiences."

So says Bob Monkhouse in his foreword to Jim Bowen's autobiographical odyssey. The title is Jim's and it provides further evidence, if any were needed, of his lack of conceit, and of his belief that luck, more than talent, is what has given him his breaks. But everyone else knows that it is impossible to succeed in showbusiness, and particularly as a comedian, without talent. And succeed Jim did.

Right Time, Right Place tells the story of Jim Bowen's life from the point at which he was plucked from a children's home by the parents he came to adore, through his time as a dustman, his successful career as a teacher, to his rise to national fame with Bullseye, and up to the present day with his new-found cult status as guest on programmes such as Phoenix Nights, The Weakest Link and Bo' Selecta!.

Throughout his book, Jim pulls no punches; he doesn't shy away from recording the difficult times in his life: the times when he has failed; his troubled relationship with his father and his own shortcomings as a father in turn; his brief experience of depression. This is a warts-and-all account told with great wit and warmth and no-one who reads it will be able to resist Jim's disarming frankness.

These days, Jim can be found performing on the QE2, or playing his beloved trumpet (badly according to him!), or down at the local pub or village hall. He has all the trappings of success, with a nice house and posh cars, but has always seen himself as a simple, Northern man rather than a 'lovey' or a 'star'; a Tetley Bitter man rather than a croissant and paella man. And unlike many in his shoes, he has never moved to London, although he says he got the urge once in the seventies - his wife Phyllis said it was wind!

First published: Sunday 30th December 2007