Norman had no choice but to live on the streets … Salvation came in the form of the army. ibid.
He became the Flyweight champion of the British troops. ibid.
He de-mobbed to launch himself as a variety artist. ibid.
Rank’s The Trouble in Store ... broke box office records. ibid.
The Square Peg … An authoritative figure memorably played by Edward Chapman: ‘Mr Grimsdale!’ ibid.
The Bulldog Breed and On the Beat … Throughout the 1950s and ’60s Norman was one of the nation’s best loved film stars, seldom out of the news. ibid.
‘Growing up with Norman Wisdom as your dad was as much fun as you can imagine.’ ibid.
By the 1970s Norman was a screen and stage star, but the pressure was now on to make it in television. ibid.
BAFTA established Norman as a serious actor. ibid.
I said, Mum gave it to me. He [father] grabbed it [bicycle] out of my hand and stomped and stomped and stomped. Smashed it to bits. Unkind. When I left school, he opened the door, looked at me and said, ‘Out!’ And he opened the door. And I went out ... I was then sleeping rough. Norman Wisdom
Don’t Laugh At Me. Norman Wisdom, sung Royal Variety Performance 1959
I spent virtually all of those years on the road. You could keep incredibly busy just performing in pantomimes and revues. There was a whole generation of performers who learned everything on the stage. Norman Wisdom
Everything I did myself. Norman Wisdom
I was born in very sorry circumstances. Norman Wisdom
Norman Wisdom – The Successful Failure. Poster billing
Like every other kid in the ’50s I saw every single one of them. He was the British Laurel and Hardy rolled into one. Rick Wakeman
What I like about Norman Wisdom is that he chose the style of Don Quixote. That is tragi-comedy where tears and laughter exist at the same time. Slava Polounin, celebrated Russian clown
His main quality is that we see a child in him. Slava Polounin
He [Norman Wisdom] was the last of the proletariat comedians. A lot of his comedy comes clearly from a very very difficult childhood. Michael Grade
Everybody liked him. Vera Lynn
You always feel warmly about him. Honor Blackman
The most amazing personality in Show Business. Nicholas Parsons
Norman was as big a star as we could make in Britain. Esther Ranson
The godfather of British comedy. Spike Milligan: Love, Light and Peace, BBC 2014
In 1951 Spike met June Marlowe through Peter Sellers’ then girlfriend Anne Howe. ibid. caption
In 1956 ITV made the first attempts to translate Goon humour to television. ibid.
‘I always felt very inferior to all of them.’ The Life and Legacy of Spike Milligan, Spike interview
‘How long was I in the army? Five foot ten.’ ibid.
Spike marries June Marlow, London 1952. ibid. caption
It was the perfect marriage – she didn’t want to and he couldn’t. ibid.
‘All I ask is the chance to prove that money can’t make me happy.’ ibid.
I think Spike Milligan is probably the most important influence in British comedy since World War II. Terry Wogan
Spike is the godfather of alternative comedy. Eddy Izzard
The Goons were absolutely right for their time. John Cleese
Ken Dodd is a national institution. He’s been a professional comedian for fifty-three years. He’s had twenty hit records. Ken Dodd’s Happiness: Arena, BBC 2007
‘I am a commercial comedian … My ambition is to play every theatre in Britain.’ ibid. Doddy
‘Why does the human being laugh?’ ibid.
‘You always think you could have done better.’ ibid.
‘You still have to bring your own soap.’ ibid.
Sir Ken Dodd – or Doddy as we fondly called him – was one of Britain’s favourite entertainers for an incredible seven decades, the undisputed crown prince of comedy. Ken Dodd: How Tickled We Were, BBC 2018
He was an intensely private man. ibid.
By his 20s, Ken was performing under his own name. ibid.
Ken was riding the 60s Mersey wave. By now Ken was a major star. ibid.
He sometimes found the technicalities of television so frustrating. ibid.
‘When you leave here tonight, you’ll know what a hostage situation is really like.’ ibid. Doddy
I’ve never done the same show twice. Ken Dodd
The basic building block of most comedy is to twist the world out of shape. Ken Dodd
There’s quite a lot of anarchy in every comic. Ken Dodd
All imagination ... A lot of us seem to lose that spirit of play. Lose that spirit of imagination. Ken Dodd
My father wrote my first script. And I did my very first show at the age of about eight at St Edward’s orphanage just about a mile up the road from Knotty Ash. And the father superior gave me half a crown. Ken Dodd
Ken Dodd to ventriloquist dummy: What do you want to sing?
Dummy: What do you know?
I can tell a joke in Glasgow and they won’t laugh in Manchester. They can’t hear it. Ken Dodd, The Parkinson Show, 1980
There’s one thing about my shows. You always go home in the daylight. Ken Dodd
A comedian asks for approval, and sometimes gets rejection, at the end of every line. Ken Dodd
Freud’s theory was that when a joke opens a window and all those bats and bogeymen fly out, you get a marvellous feeling of relief and elation. The trouble with Freud is that he never had to play the old Glasgow Empire on a Saturday night after Rangers and Celtic had both lost. Ken Dodd, Guardian 30th April 1991
Laughter is the greatest music in the world and audiences come to my shows to escape the cares of life. They don't want to be embarrassed or insulted. They want to laugh and so do I – which is probably why it works. Ken Dodd
Think on. Don’t trust any bugger. Ever. Keep yourself to yourself. Work hard. Never let up. Don’t fall for girls. Keep your bankbook close to your heart. Eric and Ernie 2011 starring Bryan Dick & Victoria Wood & Reece Shearsmith & Jim Moir (Vic Reeves) & Emer Kenny & Daniel Rigby & Hannah Steele & Josh Benson & Thomas Atkinson & Thomas Aldersley & Ted Robbins et al, director Jonny Campbell, BBC, dad to Ernie
Eric Bartholomew, ladies and gentlemen. ibid. stage announcer
If fooling around is what you are good at, then why not do it for a living then, eh? ibid. mum to Eric
I’m letting you go. ibid. Jack Hylton
You don’t need Jack Hylton, you need Eric. ibid. Eric’s mum