From the box room of the suburban semi where I grew up I propagated a new and exciting me that few knew about. The clear-skinned schoolboy who doffed his cap, brushed his hair and polished his black slip-on shoes every Sunday had a secret alter ego.

Behind closed doors and under the blankets the other Julian spread his wings and opened his legs. He wanted fame and infamy. love and sorrow, money and boys, revenge and adoration. He wanted to be Jean Genet, Miss Jean Brodie and Larry Grayson...

Julian Clary is one of Britain's most loved entertainers and this is his story intimately told in his own words.

After a quiet suburban upbringing Julian went to St Benedict's where the unholy monks taught him the rudiments of glamour, alternative living and brutality. From there, he packed his bags for London, where he developed a taste for shameless performance. And, like any other self-respecting homosexual, Julian was having as much sex as possible. Graduating when the alternative comedy revolution was just in it's infancy, Julian added his own brand of glitter and smut to the mix. After pottering about in community theatre and working as a singing telegram, Julian took to the cabaret circuit as The Joan Collins Fan Club and never looked back. With his co-star Fanny the Wonderdog, and her uncanny impersonations of the Royal Family, the big time was but a step away.

Stardom on stage and TV and a place in the nation's hearts were his. Suddenly he was the most famous, uncompromsing queen in the country. Yet it was a time of mixed emotions, as Julian enjoyed the highs of success while privately suffering the compromises of celebrity and the life-altering pain of losing his lover.

A uniquely candid insight into the emotional life of a celebrity, Julian brings a voice to his private life with all the elegance, economy, integrity and charm that have always marked his comedy. And. possibly. the odd cheap gag.

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