Rebel, rebel.

"...in the summer of 1981. It was lush. There was something in there I'd never come across before, a tangy flavour my taste buds had never previously known the pleasure of."

That's arguably the most sensual passage in Teenage Revolution, Alan Davies' engaging memoir of the 1980s. Alas (for me), the author is not describing a summer romance nor his sexual awakening, but his first bite into a McDonald's hamburger.

And yet I can still relate. In fact, it's remarkable how similar my own teen years were to the ones he describes, despite our being born on separate continents. We're both the same age, both from single-parent homes, and both grew up watching eye-wateringly long hours of television. I never had a CND badge, but just like young Alan I had a series of very carefully-chosen wall posters in my bedroom: No Nukes, Monty Python, Steve Martin, gay rights, John Lennon. We shared ideals and heroes, even if I was a girl who preferred Bob Dylan to Blondie and supported the L.A.Dodgers instead of Arsenal F.C. But where teenage Alan felt himself part of a current and vital lefty revolution in the UK, I always felt that I'd been born too late, that the flower power movement in America had passed me by. I was proud of being a non-conformist but I never quite felt like a rebel. For me, right after university came marriage, a baby, divorce, and a long period of time during which I was mainly concerned with keeping myself and my son safe and provided for. But I still had ideals. And heroes. I still do have heroes. And now I count Alan Davies among them. Because, although my life is a lot nicer now than it was 15 years ago, I still sometimes need to know that at the end of a sucky day, I'll get a chance to just forget all the shit and laugh. TV comedy has provided that for me my whole life, especially Python, Saturday Night Live (not SNL, please) and David Letterman ("Your TV Friend"). And it's still really, really important to me to know that I can switch on the AppleTV, search for a QI or one of Alan's other shows, and get that precious comfort of a laugh whenever I need to.

After reading the wonderfully honest Teenage Revolution and watching the TV series, I really have to marvel at how much you can know about someone you don't actually know. I mean, I realize that most actors are just that -- performers, who present only a portion of their true-life persona to the public. But I can't help feeling there's something special about a stand-up comedian, which is what Alan Davies started out as, and what I particularly treasure him for being. It's difficult to follow a comedian's performances (and tweets!) over time and not come away with at least some impression of him as a person. And my impression is that Alan Davies is a good guy. I can't help hoping he'll write about his post-80s life someday. But for now, he has every reason to be proud of the young man he was, as well as the author, performer, and grown-up person he is.