Product Description

When Dave Allen passed away in March 2005, we lost a true comedy great. Sitting cross-legged on a high stool, whiskey in one hand, cigarette in the other, Dave Allen’s exasperated commentaries on the absurdities of modern life struck a chord with millions of fans in Britain, Ireland and Australia for over four decades. He was a compelling storyteller – able to spin shaggy dog stories out of the almost any subject, including the missing tip of his fourth finger of his left hand, for which he provided various unlikely explanations. But his gentle, laconic wit could also give way to ferocious attacks on the media, the state and, most famously, the Catholic Church. He was a unique talent – a comic who could make his audiences laugh, cry, and be shocked, all in one.

This official celebration of Dave Allen’s comedy has been drawn together by Graham McCann – Britain’s best-loved entertainment writer. It is a treasure trove of stories, stand-up routines, sketches, interviews and photos, which takes us on a journey from the cradle to the grave. It will delight Dave Allen’s million of fans, old and new alike.

'Dave Allen was our greatest storyteller and nobody ever came close to his ability to spin a yarn. He was unique, right up there with the greats.' Jack Dee

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #26484 in Books
• Published on: 2006-07-13
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Sean O’Hagan, Observer
‘The first stand-up to elevate the telling of the story above the punchline.’

Review

'The Essential Dave Allen does exactly what it says on the tin, taking all his best material from the last four decades and collating them into pertinent sections. A great man is sorely missed, The Essential Dave Allen reminds us what a unique brain we had in our midst for so long.'

(Irish Independent )

'I thought the jokes would fall flat without that mellow Irish delivery and impeccable timing, but they fly off the page like candy-coated barbs. McCann's book offers interesting observations, too, about the man himself.'

(Daily Telegraph )

‘He was an original. He carved his own path … and he was a torchbearer for all the excellent Irish comics who have followed in recent years.’ Eddie Izzard (Eddie Izzard )

‘He was the uncle to end all uncles, childlike yet oracular and possessed of a ravenous appetite for human folly. When he adjusted his waistcoat or shot his cuffs, dragons of unreason gasped and died at his feet.’ Dylan Moran

About the Author
Dave Allen, one of TV’s most successful comedians, died on March 10th 2005, aged 68. The suave Irish comic, a former journalist and Butlin’s redcoat, built up a massive following first on Channel 9 in Australia, then through the 60s, 70s and 80s with numerous shows on the BBC and ITV. Graham McCann is the acclaimed and best-selling author of Frankie Howerd, Morecambe & Wise, Cary Grant and Dad’s Army.

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Customer Reviews

Enjoy the craic!
Dave Allen was one of the great comedians. If you watched him on TV in the seventies and eighties and nineties, you loved him for the way he'd always treat you like an equal, never sought to be cruel and always sent you away smiling - and thinking. He was proof of the axiom that you don't have to be intelligent to be funny, but it certainly helps. This wonderful, wonderful collection of his best stories, jokes, one-liners and witty observations, organised to capture the ongoing nature of the humour as you move from age to age, is just about the nicest and most apt tribute to the man and his memory that I could have imagined (apart of course from more film of the man in action), and I'm so glad to have it. Dip into it, read it all the way through - whatever - it is the best of its kind that I've read. Classy cover, classy selection, classy man. Goodness me, how we miss him - but how good it is to have this of his to treasure.

A beautiful anthology
It`s taken me some time to write a review of this book, but I will try!
I hope alot of people will have received this wonderful book for Christmas, and been reminded of how brilliant and varied his material really was. Or found out for the first time - I really hope new people will continue discovering him.
Not only does the material zip off the page (which proves it wasn`t just about his delivery, as people often said),but Graham McCann, in his introductions to each chapter, gives him the intelligent analyses that he so deserves. He even, I think, provides an answer to why so many of my age group (late 30`s/early 40`s) have such happy memories of watching Dave Allen, supposedly so adult, in our 70`s childhoods. It`s because we recognised him as someone who was on our side. His targets were always authority figures, not the vulnerable, and he never laughed at people for being different.It set him apart then - and, sadly, would set him apart now.
Yes, alot of us miss him more than the media seems to realise - but at least Graham McCann realises, and has stepped in to fill the void. Unlike Carolyn Soutar`s book, this was compiled with the full assistance of Dave Allen`s family - he wanted to be known for his work, not his private life. They have allowed reproduction of his cartoons and pages from his notebooks - he was more than "just" a comedian. We can only hope that they also allow more material to be released on DVD in the near future.

I couldn't imagine this working - but it does!
Surely this is going to be Hamlet without the prince? The whole point about Dave Allen was his delivery, his timing, his charisma. How could a book capture that?

Yet somehow, against all odds, this book does just that. As you read the jokes and their punchlines, some pithy, some rambling monologues, you hear his voice in your head, imagine him sitting there with his drink and his cigarette (he gave up the latter later on - a cue for more hilarious material).

This is the man captured in book form - priceless!