Rikki Fulton's The Reverend I.M. Jolly: How I Found God and Why He was Hiding from Me

by Roper Tony Fulton Rikki, Rikki Fulton (Introduction)

The Reverend I. M. Jolly always has a few wee problems, but life goes from bad to worse when he finds out he may soon be out of a job, thinks his beloved wife Ephesia is having an affair and that his parishioners want rid of him. And if that’s not enough to wipe the smile off his face, he then gets involved in an investigation by the polis in which he’s the victim of a strange and criminally insane mind. But who is the mysterious felon stalking Rev. Jolly? Take your pick, from his weird and dysfunctional family, a barber with a penchant for blood, his long-suffering wife, and just about anybody else who has ever met him. The Reverend I. M. Jolly is one of the funniest and most enduring television characters ever created, brought to life by Scotland’s best-loved comedian Rikki Fulton. Now, for the first time, his adventures are set in novel form by award-winning author and actor Tony Roper.

203 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 19, 2002

Reviews

[David Johnston · Rating 3 out of 5]

A funny wee story that read like an extended I.M. Jolly sketch or perhaps many short ones together. I picked this up from the library as they’d put it on their featured shelf, no doubt due to Rikki Fulton stuff usually being on the TV about this time of year - and I’m sure for many this does a good job of filling the I.M. Jolly-shaped gap since the man himself has now sadly passed away.

The story begins with the Reverend trying to find more members for his church after receiving a threatening letter from the higher-ups in the CoS but about halfway through it takes a turn and becomes a comedy-thriller with the Reverend working with two daft police officers to try and find out who is sending him would-be blackmail material. It was enjoyable enough but I don’t think I’ll read the second one.

[Steve Mitchell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although this book does have a few quite funny lines, most of the jokes are of a kind that don’t work as well written down and need to be said out loud: picture Abbott and Costello’s “who’s on first” routine and you’ll get the idea.

[Steve Mitchell · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Reverend I. M. Jolly is one of the funniest characters that has ever been created and this first volume of his memoirs lives up to that high standard.

[Craig Thomson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I couldn't stop laughing while reading this book, it reminded me so much of the great I.M. Jolly sketches in the tv show Scotch & Wry.