Memories of Milligan, By Norma Farnes
Spike: the man, but not his work
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference."He left an indelible blank on my mind," Spike Milligan once quipped of an underwhelming stand-up.
Milligan himself, of course, was nothing if not memorable. In this book, friends and colleagues recall their encounters with the man whose anarchic humour, showcased in The Goon Show, changed the landscape of British comedy. He emerges as a mercurial character: Michael Palin saw him as "affectionate"; Barry Humphries found him to be "envious and yet very generous"; Jonathan Miller discerned a deeper "resentment". But while his complex personality is analysed at length here, his seminal work receives curiously little attention, and as a result this is likely to be of interest only to the most enthusiastic Milligan fan.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments