….to be 90 today so Happy Birthday to Sir Ken Dodd. I went to see him a few years ago with my friend Brian Jenkins. Neither of us particularly enjoyed his act but we enjoyed the fact that we were seeing the last of the great music hall performers. It was as you would expect: the tickling stick, the endless conveyor belt of corny gags and, of course the admirable stamina required to do this for hours and hours. The packed out show was fun rather than funny and just very odd. Even odder is the fact that in 1965, when both The Beatles and The Stones were at the height of their fame, this record outsold any of theirs. It’s still one of the best-selling UK singles of all time and it’s dreadful. So so, if we’re honest, is Ken Dodd. But isn’t that what makes him rather wonderful.
How tickled he must be….

- The man who m...19th May 2014
- The reason I'...18th May 2014
- Highbury and ...17th May 2014
- Cruising.16th May 2014
- It's not that...15th May 2014
- Beautiful day...14th May 2014
- The Radio Aca...13th May 2014
- I watched Son...12th May 2014
- A song about ...11th May 2014
- If Nigel Fara...10th May 2014
- To Soho House...9th May 2014
- Ever wondered...8th May 2014
- The session s...7th May 2014
- From Chav Gra...6th May 2014
- It's sunny.5th May 2014 prev next