Last night: with Daniel Clift to the Jacksons Lane Community Centre. We see David Benson's brilliant one-man stage show, "Think No Evil Of Us – My Life With Kenneth Williams".
It's the same play he's been doing since 1996. He revises it slightly to keep it 'current'(the ghost of KW makes references to weapons of mass destruction at one point) and improvises around it (asking the audience halfway through if they want an interval or not, based on a show of hands).
The show defies your expectations all the way. Portrayals of the 'Carry On' star are blended with excerpts from Mr Benson's own arguably more interesting life, featuring his mentally ill mother who was eventually, as the euphemism goes, 'taken away'. Sample quote from her: "It's only the voices in my head that keep me sane." The show is at turns, hilarious (most of it), unexpectedly erotic (a shower scene from Mr Benson's schooldays) unsettling / tender (the sections on Mr B's mother), and tearjerking (a KW death scene – the one moment where it seems he really is possessed by the spirit of Mr Williams).
Mr B connects directly with audience members when he speaks of his formative years as a zealous fan of classic BBC comedy . Yet it was Spike Milligan, not KW, he wanted to be. At this point in the show, he says "Now, I know not everyone is keen on Spike Milligan. (addresses young woman in front row). You, madam – your expression suggests you don't like Spike Milligan, do you?"
Woman: (deadpan, far too quickly) No.
It's the voice of a thousand wives of Goon Show obsessives.
Elswhere, he recounts one vivid scene from the age of five. The Benson family are seated at dinner when his mother suddenly hurls a fork in the child Benson's face. The boy is sent to his room, but after a few moments can't resist peeking in through the door. He sees his parents locked in a standing grapple, the father holding back the mothers' fists above her head.
Father: (<i>still struggling to keep being hit</i>) What did you do that for? You could have blinded him!
Mother: He was trying to KILL ME! (<i>spies the boy looking in, voice switches to light motherly cooing</i>) Hello David! Come in, give your mother a hand!
This last line gets a big laugh. Black comedy doesn't come much blacker than this.
Mr Benson plans to keep touring 'Think No Evil Of Us' sporadically, so if the show plays at a venue near you, I highly recommend you see it, Dear Reader. <a href="http://www.thinknoevil.com/index.htm">Check the On Tour page of Mr Benson's website</a>. Londoners can see him at Highgate tonight (Sat March 5th).
I can also recommend the BBC double CD album <a href="http://www.bbcshop.com/invt/0563529369">"The Private World Of Kenneth Williams"</a>. Here, Mr Benson reads entries from Mr W's diaries, punctuated with appropriate clips from the BBC radio and TV archives. This was the programme recently broadcast on Radio 4, but the CD version has about a third more clips and readings.
Afterwards, I go to the club Stay Beautiful to see the band Client. Perfect glacial pop music for a snowy London night. Far too many gorgeous young people there. One has the conflicting sensation of lust and resentment. I say hello to Ms Davina, Mr Price, Mr Gullo, Ms Seaneen, Ms Anwen, Mr Sarll, Mr Jeff Automatic, Ms Hazel & Ms Groom, Ms Laura, Mr James Nemo, amongst others. Then I leave in time to catch the last tube home.
That's the right party etiquette: arrive at a point when most people will be there, say hello or make eye contact with everyone one is familiar with (easier to do with contact lenses), then don't outstay one's welcome.
I am accosted by a drunken Default Man who insists on comparing me to someone in front of his similarly Nike-wearing mates. Business as usual, except it's one I haven't heard before:
"Hey Niles Crane! Where's Daphne? Har har har!"
Mr Clift enjoys Client, whose new songs are even better than the ones from their second album, 'City'.
DC: The singer's voice really reminds me of someone.
DE: The chanteuse from Dubstar, perhaps?
DC: Yes, exactly.
DE: It is she.
DC: That would explain it.
