A Dustbin Of Milligan

by Spike Milligan

A Dustbin Of Milligan [Paperback] Spike Milligan

Genres: Humor, Comedy, Poetry, Fiction, Comics, Collections

Paperback

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

Terence Alan Patrick Seán Milligan, known as Spike, was a comedian, writer and musician. He was of Irish descent, but spent most of his childhood in India and lived most of his later life in England, moving to Australia after retirement. He is famous for his work in The Goon Show, children's poetry and a series of comical autobiographical novels about his experiences serving in the British Army in WWII. Spike Milligan suffered from bipolar disorder, which led to depression and frequent breakdowns, but he will be remembered as a comic genius. His tombstone reads 'I told you I was ill' in Gaelic.

Reviews

[Patrick Sherriff]

Hmmm. My proper review is here: https://patricksherriff.com/2024/10/2...

[Gabby Proice]

The bits about his life in Australia were really good

[Andrew]

One of Spike's earliest books, 'A Dustbin...' is a bit of an uneven grab-bag, dotted with some protean prose and poetry that demonstrates the best of Milligan's humour, and other short works that aren't fully realised or effective. This is no surprise because it partly reflects Milligan's personality and writing style, and it also a result of the inherent nature of the book.

I would argue that the best section of the book is the series of letters that Spike wrote to his Goon Show colleague Harry Secombe. They are an example of concentrated, classic Milligan, shot through with his signature surreal humour and glimpses of his acute observational prose. Aside from 'Puckoon' and arguably 'The Looney' Spike's narrative writing was always at its best when in short form, and the letters to Harry are the epitome of this. The last letter in the series is a classic, with its very Milliganesque take on a day fishing at Woy Woy.

The poetry included in the book has a couple of gems (e.g. 'Rain') and the short stories range from adequate to excellent ('The Violin' perhaps being the best). Milligan's doodlings on politics are not bad, but they lack the spark that other texts and programs offer. As for the two fairy tales, the first ('A Witches Tale) is better than the second ('The Gingerbread Boy'). They are obvious antecedents to 'Dip the Puppy', 'Badjelly the Witch' and Spike's other children's books.

Mention must also be made of Milligan's illustrations; as per other works of his that include his drawings those in 'A Dustbin...' are bizarre, ludicrous and at times very funny.

In summary, whilst this is not a major achievement in Spike's career as an author, 'A Dustbin of Milligan' does present his fans with an important volume. It is a book that might puzzle those not familiar with his style, and Milligan's style does take some learning (and in his case at this time in his literary career, practice). I would certainly recommend the book to anyone wanting to broaden their library of Spike's amazing creative texts.

[Jess]

Great, funny book. Loved all the cartoons and all the nonsense. Really easy to read but really enjoyable; I loved the fairy tales at the end especially the one about the witch. As well as this I love his poetry and his wonderful letters to Harry Secombe; which are full of ridiculous things but brilliant.

[Meema]

What excellent tomfoolery! But then it is written by Spike Milligan, author of Adolf Hitler, my part in his downfall. If you haven't read it, I urge you do so at once.

This book is full of puns and short writings including a section dedicated to political satire. It is simultaneously absurd and humorous and surprisingly real.

Perhaps the reason I recommend this and other books by comedians is, Milligan offers another perspective, the possibility of looking at things differently and laughing while also crying.

Joy!

[Dane Cobain]

The “dustbin” in the title here is pretty accurate, because this was easily my least favourite of all of the Milligan that I’ve read so far. It really is just a bunch of random stuff that’s thrown into a little paperback.

It also includes some letters that he wrote to Harry Secombe, but they’re written in Milligan’s inimitable style and so because they’re so surreal at times, it can be difficult to tell what he’s actually talking about.

So yeah, I mean I guess it’s okay if you’re interested in Milligan, but I’d still say it’s one of his worst. Eh, whatevs.

[Jack the Reader]

Some funny poems, a couple of okay sketches, and two decent comic fairy tales to finish with. Also doodles. Some of it falls flat and it’s not very memorable, but a decent pastime.

[Diamond Axe]

Hysterical book, fantastic

[EstherCW]

3.5

[Cassandra]

I liked the early version of something related to Badjelly. And some of the nonsense stories, very Goonish. Actually his 'parents'' blurbs on front and back were the funniest!

[rabbitprincess]

By turns amusing, laugh-out-loud hilarious and odd, this is definitely an unusual assortment of writings from the pen of Mr. Milligan: poems, drawings, letters, fairy tales and short stories. Your enjoyment of this collection will depend on your tolerance for absurd humour. For me, what I like best about Milligan's work is his war memoirs, so my favourite pieces in this collection were the ones that most closely resembled them (the letters to Harry Secombe, for instance). I also really enjoyed the fairy tales that closed out the collection and wanted to march out immediately and read them to my friends' children. The rest of the collection was a bit hit or miss for me. My favourite of the poems was "So Fair is She", and the story "The Violin" reminded me of Roald Dahl. Overall the feel is similar to John Lennon's, with fewer instances of inventive spelling and grammar.

If you're just starting out with Milligan's work, I would suggest trying one of his war memoirs (my favourite is Volume 2, "Rommel? Gunner Who?") or listening to a couple of episodes of The Goon Show (via BBC Radio 4 Extra). Then try this collection and see what tickles your fancy.

[russell barnes]

Another one from my youth, and in the Letters to Harry Seacombe section, I found pretty much the sum total of me and my dad's shared fund of puns and jokes. Happy days...

[Iain Watson]

Dustbin of Milligan by Spike Milligan (1965)

[Rasha]

Wish I read it as a teenager.

[J. E.]

I remember the cover so I know I read this years ago but don't remember it as well as the war memoirs. I kept my paperback copy for ages so I must have liked it!