The Best Way to Walk The Chic Murray Story

Seldomhasthephrase'Gonebutnotforgotten'beensoaptasinthecaseoftheextraordinaryChicMurray,who,sincehisdeathin1985,hasremainedoneofthemostimpersonatedcomediansintheworld.Murraydevelopedhisowninimitablestyle,basingitonhisnaturalsenseofsurrealismandagiftforstorytelling.Therewerejokesalongtheway,butmostofthestorieshetoldweregentlemeandersthroughlife.Puttingonefootinfrontoftheother,Chicreckoned,was'TheBestWaytoWalk'.AndrewYule'sabsorbingbiographyisanuproariousjourneythroughMurray'scareer.FromhumbleoriginsinGreenock,hemadehisprofessionaldebutinthe1940saspartofadoubleactwithhiswife,MaidieDickson,andtheytouredthelengthandbreadthofScotlandasthe'TheTallDrollwiththeSmallDoll'.Thepairreachedtheircareerpinnacleinthe'50s,appearinginLondon'sWestEndandbeinginvitedtotakepartintheRoyalVarietyPerformance.Murray'scareerenteredanewphaseinthe1980swithafilmroleinGregory'sGirl,triumphonstageinYou'llNeverWalkAloneandfilmoffersfromluminariessuchasFrancisFordCoppolaandSamFuller.InTheBestWaytoWalk,theauthordoesnotflinchfromdetailingChic's'impoftheperverse',whichledtohismarriagebreak-upandasolocareerthathadmanyfalsestarts.Setagainstthecolourfulbackgroundofold-timemusichallandtopinternationalshowbizvenues,itisanenthrallingcelebrationofatrulyunique,originalspiritconstantlyintheprocessofre-inventinghimself.