Customer Reviews

The Life and Legacy of Spike Milligan

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If you are an afficionado of the Goon Show, and of the many books that Spike wrote, then this video is a "must see item". If you are unfamiliar with the works of Milligan, or do not appreciate his humour, then this DVD is not for you. The DVD is full of personal family involvement and is of interest to those who aspire to greater knowledge of an unusual, talented, brilliant, comical and somewhat unbalanced personality. Many of the world's greatest comics have been manic depressives (Tony Hancock committed suicide) and Milligan fell into the category of manic depressive.
I will watch the DVD many times. I consider Spike Milligan to be one of the greatest humorists of all time.

Spike Milligan what can be said about the MADMAN? A comic genius!
To obvious. In a world of his own? Waiting for him to land on
any planet would be nice. Spike was part of THE GOON SHOW part
of three gifted actors/comedians who were so off the wall that
the phrase ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN complements them. To tell the
truth I am just now discovering the very rare/bizarre talent
of the late Milligan who's humor has greatly influenced such
talents as Monty Python and Kids In The Hall(also like to point
out that both Richard Lester's H.E.L.P. and the t.v. show THE
MONKEES stole a lot from MILL) He was the first to do t.v. show
sketches that if they were getting to weird(and they surely would)
he just stop them! Also was the first to pull the script out from
the back shirt to see where the act was going or if it should keep
going(something that every comedy act has stole since) Milligan
was not ahead of his time he was just not in our time. I myself
find his humor more to my liking and some of my Amazon friends as well.
His tombstone does read I TOLD YOU I WAS ILL...
The late great actor Peter Sellers said he was a living cartoon.
Some of his biggest fans are Emo Phillips-Frank Zappa & Terry Gilliam.
Give me punch but please SPIKE IT FIRST (sic)

A poignant look at Spikes life through the eyes of those closest to him. Most Milligan fans are aware of his bouts of depression, but here we can see it's effect on his family and friends.
There are home movies which show a side of the man few of us have seen before, playing with his kids whom he adored.
The film makers almost break your heart by fading from a home movie of Spike in his living room at Christmas, to a shot of the same room, now empty since Spikes death.
I would have liked to see more clips from his TV shows, but you can't have everything can you?
The world is a sadder place without Spike in it, but Heaven must be a riot!

There's no way I have the time to go through the various aspects, scenes or issues included in this documentary but there are a few points that bear mentioning from my point of view.

Although I have purchased this product via Amazon (and I am not sorry that I have purchased it), I find it most incongruous that I have purchased it from an outlet in America when the whole lot of it seems to have been assembled by the A.B.C. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) mainly in Adelaide, South Australia. I have paid for it what I have paid, but if it had been available locally, it would have been MUCH less...especially postage, handling etc. since I am a permanent Australian resident who lives only 75 minutes from where Spike's parents retired to!!!

This item was sent "post haste" (although not by express) but arrived at my address with no tax invoice (which I found to be quite peculiar) well inside the time parameter.

The documentary material (most of which I'd seen on S.B.S. in Australia some years ago) was certainly up to par and I'm not holding any of "the players", production team nor Spike himself up to any sort of critical scrutiny by myself. It was a sad (and realistic) indictment on a very funny and tortured soul whose apparent life of agony was certainly show - cased in this work for the viewer to appreciate...unless you were not paying attention! There was a slight cross - over with Spike's presence and my awareness of him. However, it was borne out quite clearly through his influence on the Monty Python boys (of whom I am a faithful disciple!) and their obvious respect for his earlier "trail - blazing"!

If that were not enough, it seems that issues still exist between the bulk of Spike's original (and surviving) family and his third wife whose "credentials" and apparent motives did not warm the cockles of my heart!

I have no hesitation in recommending this documentary, but you will have to make up your own mind.