Ever since 2004, when an errant now-ex-boyfriend introduced me to the glory of Spaced, I’ve been a huge fan of Pegg’s work on screens both big and small. Perhaps because of that, I had enormous expectations of Nerd Do Well, his autobiographical chronicle of how a small and comparatively innocent boy turned into the Grandmaster Flash of geekdom.

And with a huge amount of self-mockery and good-natured fun, Pegg describes his momentous rise from his Gloucester-based cradle to a man who is known for his sense of humour, his proud nerdiness, and his impeccable company in the form of Nick Frost and Jessica Hynes.

It turns out that what makes Simon Pegg so likeable on the screen translates perfectly into the written word. Sure, he talks about other people, but while he maintains a comedic tone, he never mocks others even when recounting embarrassing events or discussing ways in which the behaviour of others affected him negatively.

Through his parents’ divorce, his schooling and his various friendships and enmities he draws a picture of a small boy’s big dreams, describing the underpinnings of his thirst for showbusiness and his slow but steady climb, supported by his family and friends, to the warmth of the spotlight.

Autobiographies walk a thin line between self-aggrandisement and exaggerated humility, but Pegg never wavers in either direction, reined in by his unfailing sense of humour. He mocks himself and occasionally others, but never strays off the path of gentleness and into vicious pastures, lending the whole a thoroughly likeable air and allowing his pride in his own accomplishments to shine through in the most modest light.

Simon Pegg has achieved quite a lot, and he acknowledges as much when discussing his wish to step back in time and tell his childhood self about the things that will happen along the way; meeting his own heroes and working with people whose work he once (and, probably, still) slavishly admired. He conveys his excitement at the turns, both expected and unexpected, his life has taken to bring him to the work he adores and the career he excels at in a way that can only be described as infectious.

I suppose there may be people out there who don’t think Simon Pegg’s career is a thing of beauty. If you’re not one of them, however, Nerd Do Well promises entertainment and an endearing look into the mind of a bloke who remains, aside from a Jack-of-all-trades of silver and flat screen, just a bloke from Gloucester doing what he loves.

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