Hancock: The Lad Himself

by Stephen Walsh, Keith Page (Artist)

Foreword by author and Private Eye journalist, Louis Barfe.

Tony Hancock – The Lad Himself tells the story of the legendary comedian in words, pictures, and not without a few interruptions from The Lad Himself, who proves to be a little infuriated at how his story is told… as those who know and love his work would fully expect!

Tony Hancock somehow seems a natural subject for a comic – and, of course, he’s been in them before. At the height of his television fame, he appeared in Britain’s top-selling weekly, Film Fun. Since his death, he’s been the subject of biographies, radio dramas, and even a couple of television films. With the advent of satellite TV and DVD, he seems to be everywhere.

This funny, powerful and poignant graphic novel charts the life of the often troubled comedian with searing honesty but great affection – with Hancock contributing acerbic commentary in the telling. It’s a unique approach to recounting Hancock’s life story – as you would expect when dealing with such an extraordinary talent, whose enduring appeal is testament to his comedy genius.

288 pages, Hardcover

Published April 1, 2023

About the author

Professor Walsh was educated at Kingston Grammar School, St Paul’s School and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. From 1963, he worked as a music journalist in London, at first freelance, writing for The Times, Daily Telegraph, and Financial Times, then from 1966 as deputy music critic of The Observer. He has broadcast regularly on musical topics for the BBC; a major feature of BBC Radio 3 programming in 1995 was his six two-hour broadcasts 'Conversations with Craft', in which he talked to Stravinsky's close associate, Robert Craft. Professor Walsh joined Cardiff University as a Senior Lecturer in Music in 1976, and now holds a personal chair in the School. He still contributes music criticism to The Independent and has since published a series of books and long papers on Bartok, Stravinsky, Kurtág and Panufnik, among others. The first volume of his major biography of Stravinsky — Stravinsky: A Creative Spring (Knopf, 1999) — won the Royal Philharmonic Society Prize for the best music book published in the UK in the year 2000. Volume Two — Stravinsky: The Second Exile (also Knopf) — was published in 2006.

Reviews

[Simon Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining and very novel approach to re-telling a familiar story. I enjoy meta-fictional stuff so I think it was a great choice to use the Hancock persona as a character for the purposes of meta-commentary, though the other recurring image - that of Mr Punch - provides a sinister motif.

The scenes with other contemporary stars, such as John Le Mesurier and especially Kenneth Williams, give tantalising glimpses of what a similar approach could yield for their own stories.

The art is excellent and, while the frequent references to how they're taking artistic licence hint at some insecurity in their chosen mode, this is a thoroughly enjoyable book which is lovingly made and well worth a look for anyone interested in post-war British comedy, not just fans of the Lad Himself.

[Bo Malpas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, really captures the spirit of Mr Hancock