Spike Millgan Could Write? Well Who Would a Thunk it

Of those whom claim to thoroughly love Spike Milligan there is a portion who, to a certain degree, I hate. They will say about his infamous appearance on the magical box but know nothing else of him. He was a comic genius whose strange insanity and quick quips has, does and will always amuse. One of his great forgotten talents is that of writing, odd to me that it should be forgot as most that hope to entertain find it necessary to write something at some point. And of the several works of Milligan’s that I have read one stands above the other. Not only does it contain humour far beyond that of his other work it also carries a grave amount of depth.

Adolf Hitler and my Part in his Downfall is a strange a worrying title to start with but as Spike Milligan draws upon his very real experiences as a member of the army stationed at home the book that follows is a master piece. With parts being lifted from his own experience exactly and others tweaked for the greatest amusement there are moments where I found myself in tears of laughter. The characters of his friends and colleagues as well as his superiors and the odd civilian with which he interacts are characters that hold truth and also a vivid image within the mind. As he spins his tale as a member of the home guard who plays in a band, of his incidents upsetting those above and of getting into mess with those bellow a fondness grows for his character. He gives brief but good descriptions of the places he is in and how they are run as well as good command of language to perfectly describe the sometimes-peculiar situations he ends in. hilarity ensures from the everyday activities often being shirked to incidents unimagined. One of the funniest moments in the book is where on practice firing an artillery unit they forget to put blocks at the wheels and it rolls off a cliff. But funny moments are also found in the simple tasks of getting from A to B and ending confusingly in C.

At this point this book has already outstripped most in its genuine comedy, solid background, characters and odd occurrences. Something makes it better. The fact often returns that this is a book written based on the experiences that he had, there is a great sense of realism. This realism is no more felt when in jarring juxtaposition to great comedy he reflects on the unimaginable tragedy of war and the ugly things he knew. He talks of seeing fires far in the distance, of knowing many old friends have died, and of knowing the papers he read lied or brushed over such incidents, off his fears he might be involved in them. Occasionally he reflects on how he has met characters later in life past the events to which he primarily relates, and of how many are missing. It is rare to find a book that at points is so sombre and truthful. There are facts mentioned that many with rose tinted glasses would rather ignore. And on top of this we are still returned to a smile by his comedy.