Product Description

I hereby bet Tony Hawks the sum of One Hundred Pounds that he cannot hitchhike round the circumference of Ireland, with a fridge, within one calendar month.Have you ever made a drunken bet? Worse still, have you ever tried to win one?In attempting to hitchhike round Ireland with a fridge, Tony Hawks did both, and his foolhardiness led him to one of the best experiences of his life.Joined by his trusty travelling companion-cum-domestic appliance, he made his way from Dublin to Donegal, from Sligo through Mayo, Galway, Clare, Kerry, Cork, Wexford, Wicklow - and back again to Dublin.In their month of madness, Tony and his fridge met a real prince, a bogus king, and the fridge got christened.They surfed together, entered a bachelor festival, and one of them had sex without the other knowing.And unexpectedly, the fridge itself became a momentary focus for the people of Ireland. An international bestseller, Round Ireland with a Fridge is a classic travel adventure in the tradition of Bill Bryson with a dash of Dave Barry. AUTHORBIO: TONY HAWKS lives in London and divides his time equally between writing, performing, and playing tennis.He makes regular appearances on British radio and is currently the host of The Best Show in the World.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20742 in Books
• Published on: 2001-02-20
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 264 pages

From Amazon.com
On his only prior visit to Ireland, English songwriter-comic Tony Hawks had seen a man hitchhiking with a refrigerator. For years, he was wont to tell the tale during late-night drinking matches, and after one particularly heavy-duty night of partying, he awoke to find a bet scrawled pillowside: a friend wagered 100 pounds that Hawks wouldn't travel Ireland for a month with a refrigerator at his side.

Out of this stupid premise, a ridiculously amusing book was born. Quickly discovered by the Irish media, the thumbing Englishman finds that he and his box fridge are elevated to celebrity status, and there's no dearth of rides, places to stay, or goofy people to meet, from kings to spoons players to locals who take his fridge surfing. As insightful about the strange inner workings of Hawk's mind as it is about charming peculiarities of Irishmen--it's doubtful that Hawks would have been similarly embraced by Germans, Italians, or the French--Round Ireland with a Fridge is an entirely silly, heartwarming tale told in a rollicking funny and refreshing style. --Melissa Rossi

From Publishers Weekly
When British writer, performer and musician Hawks makes a drunken bet for ?100 that he can "hitchhike round the circumference of Ireland, with a fridge, in one calendar month," he starts, in 1997, an unexpectedly wonderful adventure into the good-natured soul of the Irish people. Though the book begins inauspiciously as a bad parody of Dave Barry's travel books, with Hawks assuming a smug distance from the people and events he encounters, happily fate intervenes in the form of a jovial radio-show host who convinces Hawks to phone in daily to share updates about his travels with the fridge. Almost overnight, Hawks becomes a regional legendA"The Fridge Man"Awith all sorts of people willing to help him achieve his goal, however silly it may be. What could have been a convenient contrivance actually allows a kinder and far funnier Hawks to appear, as his daily talks with his radio "fans" bring him unexpected delights, including encounters with an overenthusiastic innkeeper and his family, the amazing champion surfer Bingo, various musicians and lots of pub visits. In the end, Hawks's book becomes a lively celebration of contemporary Irish society and the goodwill of its people that neither revels in irony nor descends into mawkishness. (Mar.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Yes, a fridge. People sometimes do the craziest things when they've had too many beers. Hawks, known throughout Great Britain for his humor and appearances on various radio and television shows, made a drunken bet with a friend that he could successfully hitchhike around Ireland with a refrigerator as his traveling companion. Once sober, he realized the magnitude of the task he'd set himself but agreed to honor the bet anyway. The result is a hysterically funny travelog, in which Hawks shares his warm regard for the Irish, his amusing contacts with the natives, anecdotes from places he stayed, and brief tales about those who gave him rides. Anyone who enjoys Bill Bryson or Dave Barry will greatly appreciate Hawks for a writing style that seems to be a stew made of one part Monty Python, one part Benny Hill, and two parts Barry. Highly recommended for public libraries and academic libraries with browsing collections.
-Sandra Knowles, Henderson Cty. P.L., Hendersonville, NC
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Most fun I've had in a while
What happens when a drunken British comedian bets his buddy he can circumnavigate Ireland with a fridge? You get a hilarious story of Tony Hawks and his travels across the green Isle.

Although the topic sounds contrived, you'll find yourself laughing as Tony takes the fridge surfing, sleeps in the (literal) doghouse, and gets adopted by a local radio station.

The humor is light, self-depracating (like all good travel stories) and quick to give you a smile. Some sections may even make you spit milk through your nose. Enjoy for some good laughs!

Fun Travel Story
Fun, easy, short, comical read

This is not supposed to be a travel book!
Many reviews here have critisised this book as being a rubbish travel book. This is not a travel book and was never intended to be a travel book. It is simply the story of a man who travelled around Ireland with a fridge - end of story. I am Irish and remember when all this happened - I remember listening in to the radio show every day to hear what he was up to and remember his arrival to Dublin when nobody came out to see him. It is therefore interesting to read his actual story and see what was really happening behind his story on the radio. But it's not a travel book!