Much underrated

[DaveB]

Gotta say I always thought Spike Milligan was overrated as a comedian. To me he always seemed a sad case, literally, who never got over World War 2 (which was surprising, as I think he spent most of it in the Home Guard, not exactly the most stressful and dangerous posting).

Note, I'm not sneering at anyone, young or old, who was in the Home Guard. For a start, anyone who was short-sighted or flat footed, or with a dodgy ticker etc would be turned down for the regular forces and thus have little choice.

Talking about comedians, often actors/actresses who normally play tough guys and baddies turn out to be surprisingly funny in comedies. Herbert Lom almost stole the show as the mad commissioner in the Pink Panther films, and Robert de Niro was hiliarious in Midnight Run.

He actually spent a large part of the war fighting in North Africa and Italy as a gunner in the Royal Artilliery, before being invalided out after being wounded in action and suffering from shell shock. It was almost certainly a contributing factor to the Bi-Polar disorder he suffered from for most of the rest of his life, including at least 10 major mental breakdowns.

If you havn't read his memoires - "Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall", "Rommel?" "Gunner Who?": A Confrontation in the Desert, "Monty: His Part in My Victory" and "Mussolini: His Part in My Downfall" - then you should. They are very funny and very poingant and give a real idea of what life was like for an ordinary soldier in the ranks during the African and Italian campaigns.

Milligan is one of those comedians you like or you don't, no in between really. He has given us some of the best british comedy ever created - The Goon Show - and although his TV work was arguably not as good it still has some gems. Many of thsoe who came after such as Python, The Goodies etc owe a huge debt to him in terms of inspiration, style and presentation.

He is also credited with writing the worlds funniest joke, based on a goon show sketch he wrote.