As an introduction and biography of the life of Chris Morris from his early days on local radio to the controversy that surrounded programmes like the Brass Eye Special, Lucian Randall’s Disgusting Bliss: The Brass Eye of Chris Morris is pretty much your only choice. Though it’s not necessarily particularly innovative in itself, despite its biographical focus on one of TV and radios most innovative personalities, it is fairly thorough and has more than a few insights into what made Morris tic and what happened behind the scenes of the productions that he was famous for.
For example it gives a very clear account of what Morris and others saw at the heart of the Special’s controversial subject matter without being one sided in the least, and it is for this that Randall’s Disgusting Bliss is an unmissable read for both Morrisophiles and Chris ‘aters alike.
However, there’s an equal amount of interest and engagement in the opening chapters too, which go into great detail about Morris’ first career steps, as well as containing a brief snapshot of his life growing up. These sections paint the picture of Morris’ probing, boundary pushing and apparently charming personality in a way that could easily have been overlooked.
With the sheer weight of the comedy might that has spun out of shows that Chris has worked on and the writing brilliance that went into producing them, Disgusting Bliss goes beyond the realms of being just a biography about Chris Morris to become a snapshot in the creation of much of Britain’s great comedy heavyweights, including Armando Iannucci, Steve Coogan, Charlie Brooker et al.
Lucian Randall’s Disgusting Bliss just misses the mark though in terms of sintilating fascination as it doesn’t contain a single new interview with Chris Morris himself, despite having a good few sound bites from the likes of David Quantick. The straight way in which the book is written also detracts from its interaction with its subject, which again dulls the effect of the book.
Disgusting Bliss: The Brass Eye of Chris Morris review: 3.5/5
