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Dave Allen: The Biography
 
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Dave Allen: The Biography (Hardcover)

by Carolyn Soutar (Author)
3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 272 pages
  • Publisher: Orion; First Edition edition (13 Oct 2005)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0752873725
  • ISBN-13: 978-0752873725
  • Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.6 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 320,279 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

GLASGOW HERALD
'A warm-hearted tribute to a man whose individual success helped to revolutionise all British comedy'

Review
'A warm-hearted tribute to a man whose individual success helped to revolutionise all British comedy' (GLASGOW HERALD )

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Customer Reviews

7 Reviews
5 star:
 (4)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (2)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.6 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars He deserved better, 28 April 2006
By Jeffrey Tyler - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Even if the author doesn't know when to use 'Dave and I' and when to use 'Dave and me' her editor should.

Apart from that the book was simply a collection of other people's anecdotes strung together with a few joining words. It wasn't really 'a' biography' let alone 'the' biography.

What's the story about his mother? Either it is possible to find out when she died, with a little bit of effort, or there is a mystery there that needed exploring.

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13 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Remotely Remembered, 24 Nov 2005
Soutar's work suffers from, for a biographer, fatal flaws: Very few actual facts, and nothing revelatory or incisive.
It's a genial enough piece of work but far too general. This can only be expected: Soutar worked with Allen for a comparatively short period (One short tour) and his family declined to contribute. (they felt it far too early for such a book).
The result is a reworking of what is already known and "stab in the dark" inaccuracies. (Her story of how he died is very touching but completely innaccurate)
Soutar is unable to bring her subject to life. But who could be surprised: relying upon distant memories of a brief association.
Allen was an intensley private man and Soutar, without any authorised substance, fails to offer anything more than is already in the public domain.
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9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Happy someone is keeping his memory alive, 3 Nov 2005
By Mb Sherman - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Anyone concerned that this book has appeared rather too soon after Dave Allen`s death need not worry. It`s clear that Carolyn Soutar, and Dave Allen`s many friends, were anxious to pay tribute to this truly lovely man and make sure his memory is kept alive.
Carolyn Soutar worked as Dave Allen`s stage manager on his 1988 British tour. She makes it sound like the best job in the world, and her first-hand description of this amazingly unglitzy tour is, for me, the best part of the book. Allen toured the country with just "a girl and a car". Soutar was the girl. Completely unshowbizzy, Allen took her for Chinese meals after most of the shows, and always insisted on paying. Her main challenge seemed to be dealing with his dry-cleaning obsession - well, I guess all famous people have to have their "thing".
Dave Allen made up so many stories about his life that I wonder if even he knew what was true and what was not. However, a few events that have been presented as facts are over-turned here - apparently, he didn`t have an affair with Eartha Kitt, after all!
This is such a warm and endearing portrait that it makes the ending even sadder - especially since the actual cause of death was not published in any paper I saw. So be warned - you will cry. Maybe even sadder than that is the thought that this great man is likely to be forgotten. He didn`t allow his shows to be repeated while he was alive, and, it seems, this is likely to continue after his death. To be fair to the BBC, I guess this is why they have not produced a tribute to him. Reading extracts from his act makes you realise just how fantastic, intelligent and daring he was. Thank you to Carolyn Soutar for bringing that to everyone`s attention.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars A quick fix for the greatest stand up of all time.
Dave Allen

a legend and the greatest comic to grace us in a century, sorely let down by a book of vaguely connected and disjointed annecdotes. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Mr. W. P. Pearce

5.0 out of 5 stars A tale worth telling, well told
As a firm fan of Dave Allen, I hoped for two things from a new biography, to have my general impressions of him as a ‘good guy’ confirmed, and to learn something new... Read more
Published on 14 Dec 2005 by Andrew Killian

5.0 out of 5 stars a love of stories
The man who loved to tell stories would be proud of Carolyn's virtuosic reportage: she weaves the suspense and drama and character and detail with a skill that easily matches... Read more
Published on 12 Dec 2005 by Mr. D. M. Pimm

5.0 out of 5 stars A delight
I am pleased to have had an opportunity to read thsi excellent book.

Like many people of my age, Dave Allen was an icon during our early years. Read more

Published on 9 Nov 2005 by David Thompson

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