Paul Sinha's Perfect Pub Quiz returns, as his book goes on sale

ExclusiveWednesday 15th November 2023, 11:01am by Jay Richardson

Paul Sinha's Perfect Pub Quiz is returning for an end of year special on Radio 4, as a title and publication date has emerged for his memoir.

Recording on 18th December at the Backyard Comedy Club in London, the one-off episode will see the stand-up and The Chase star challenging a team of Radio 4 presenters on the facts that came into existence in 2023.

Capping the extended second series of the show, in which Sinha asks the audience for their favourite quiz questions, free tickets are available via the BBC website.

Meanwhile, One Sinha Lifetime: A Bengali Boy's Search For The Meaning Of Life, will be published on 29th February by Ebury Press, which has recently released Shaparak Khorsandi's account of living with ADHD, Scatter Brain, and autobiographies by the likes of Mo Gilligan and John Bishop.

Speaking to British Comedy Guide in June, Sinha said that his memoir, which shares a title with his 2022 Edinburgh Fringe show, will "unapologetically be played for pathos", a "conventional autobiography of an unconventional life".

He added that "when you write an autobiography, you suddenly realise how fragile everything was.

"Those various moments that made you who you are. If The Chase had decided to go in a different direction. If the comedy award panel in 2007 had rewarded Stephen K Amos or Shappi Khorsandi rather than me. It was my second show. If it had been my first, I'd probably have got nominated for best newcomer and would have had a very different life."

One Sinha Lifetime is available to pre-order now.

December 2023 update: The Christmas special recording was cancelled, due to an "unforeseen medical issue".

Paul Sinha - One Sinha Lifetime: A Bengali Boy's Search For The Meaning Of Life

By Paul Sinha

Paul Sinha is an award-winning comedian, a quizzing mastermind and a happily-married husband. But it hasn't always been this way.

As a boy, Paul struggled to find his place in a world where he didn't quite fit. Who was he? A smart young man with the world's knowledge at his fingertips? A traditional Bengali son, destined for a career in medicine that he didn't want? A gay man who couldn't quite come out? A man on a self-destruct mission?

Amid life's chaos, it was general knowledge - the security of clear questions with correct, if not always simple, answers - that kept Paul sane, even as he struggled into a new life as a stand-up comedian. And it was an unexpected introduction to a pub quiz team that took things even further, introducing him to a new life, a new identity, and, eventually, new love...

A hilarious and moving coming-of-age memoir of one man's search for meaning, One Sinha Lifetime is an unforgettable story of love, family, and the joy of general knowledge.

First published: Thursday 20th June 2024

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