My story – Bruno Tonioli
with Matt Allen
Hardback ISBN – 978 0 7553 6407 7
RRP : £20.00
Publisher: Headline Publishing Group
Synopsis : Meet Bruno Tonioli – Strictly Come Dancing judge, wildcat choreographer and stardust magnet. With his irrepressible personality and Italian exuberance, Bruno has become a TV sensation, settling the fate of Britain’s ballroom hopefuls during the nation’s favourite Saturday night show.
But behind Bruno’s entertainment alter-ego and the handmade shoes from Bologna is a man who has worked tirelessly to escape the rigid confines of his upbringing in a small Italian town so he could follow his dream and become the best in the business.
Bruno’s journey is mind-blowing. He fled from home at eighteen to join the dance company La Grande Eugene and travelled around Europe; he later coached the actress Goldie Hawn as a dance instructor, and orchestrated lavish productions for TV, film and pop videos, where he worked alongside The Rolling Stones, Freddie Mercury, Duran Duran and Tina Turner.
Along the way Bruno has Tangoed with high fashion, performed the Cha Cha Cha with untameable pop vixens Bananarama and danced an emotional Waltz with bereavement and breakdown before settling in the perfect location – a seat on the judging panel of Strictly Come Dancing, where he wowed the nation at home and in Hollywood with his passion for dance and an excitable turn of phrase.
Full of emotional drama and OMG! moments of high adventure, My Story tears away the glittery wrapping of this most flamboyant and loveable of TV stars. Strap yourself in for a wild and sexy ride with more frills than Versailles.
My thoughts : The short answer to this is that I absolutely adored this book. Given that I didn’t really know much about Sig. Tonioli before reading his book, I have learnt a lot about him and his humble working class background in Ferrara and his absolute determination to follow his dreams and get out of Italy. It is written in conversational style, so you almost feel that you are having a friendly chat with him. I was glued to the recent Strictly Come Dancing series which is a main reason why I wanted to read the book in the first place. When Sig. Tonioli appeared on a Sunday morning program and mentioned his book, I knew I had to seek it out. I secured a copy courtesy of the local library. Even the librarian when I was borrowing the book, agreed that it would probably make for very interesting reading.
Tonioli’s background is fascinating and his path to Strictly is very interesting. Through true grit and determination he has ended up having a most interesting, varied career.
I could tell straight away that the buzz would be long-lasting because the format of the show was ever-changing; the cast were chopped every season, the dances changed every show; every scene was different.
(p.251-252)
The way that Tonioli came across on Strictly was that he was unpredictable. He added such a fun element to the program. You could never be sure exactly what his reaction would be in relation to the dancers.
I suggest you read his book to see if the ‘real’ Sig. Tonioli is the same.
