Book description
Tony Hancock was regarded as the best radio and television comic of his
era. A man whose star burned brightly in the eyes and ears of millions
before his untimely death. This is the first fully authorised account of
his life.
Tony Hancock was one of post-war Britain's most popular comedians - his
radio show 'Hancock's Half Hour' would clear the streets as whole
families tuned in to listen.
His peerless timing and subtle changes in intonation marked Hancock out
as a comic genius. His character 'Anthony Aloysius St John Hancock' was
an amplification of his own persona, a pompous prat whose dreams of
success are constantly thwarted. The original British loser that we
recognise in Victor Meldrew and Alan Partridge. Wonderfully supported by
a cast including Sid James, Hattie Jacques and Kenneth Williams, and
working with scripts from Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, Hancock became a
huge star. The show was commisioned for TV, showcasing his talent for
hilarious facial expression, and he became the first British comedian to
earn a thousand pounds a week.
Behind Tony Hancock's success however hid the self-destructive behaviour
that plagued him all his life. Prone to self-doubt, and wanting to be
the star of his own show, he got rid of James, and finally dismissed
Galton and Simpson who had created the platform for his success.
His private life was wracked by his ever increasing alcoholism and bouts
of depression, and his relationships shattered by his capacity for
violence. His ratings fell and, feeling washed up and alone after
divorcing his second wife, he committed suicide in an Australian hotel
room in 1968.
Now, forty years after his death John Fisher explores the turbulent life
of a man regarded by his peers as one of the greatest British comics to
have ever lived. 'Lives up to its title, dispelling myths and
replacing all previous accounts.'
Independent on Sunday
'an exceptional book'
Oxford TImes
'Packed to bursting point with painstaking attention to detail …a rich
gift from Fisher to anyone who was ever a fan.
Stage
'an indispensible book…a brilliant and much-needed account of Hancock's
extensive theatre work and its originality, a celebration of the
audacity of the television work, and a kind of voyage round the
comedian's mind and the nature of his comic enterprise.
The Guardian
Praise for Tommy Cooper: Always Leave them Laughing:
'A monumental and masterly biography of the great Cooper.' Daily Mail
' "The definitive biography of a comedy legend" - for once a
book lives up to its blurb.' Michael Parkinson John Fisher has a long
and distinguished career as a TV producer working in light entertainment
with such giants of comedy as Bob Monkhouse, Spike Milligan, Bruce
Forsyth & Tommy Cooper. His most recent work includes Channel 4's
Heroes of Comedy, and the critically acclaimed biography Tommy Cooper:
Always Leave Them Laughing.
