I’ve had the house to myself tonight, so have been able to mooch about and do the things i want to do. One of the things I tend to do is flick through the channels to see what’s on – I suppose I’m a typical man in that regard. What I landed on tonight was a retrospective documentary on the life of Tony Hancock, a much loved radio and television personality.
I’ve only really come across him when finding out information on other comedians, such as Kenneth Williams and Bob Monkhouse, so it was refreshing to see a programme dedicated just to him. I knew, of course, of the tragic end to his life, and as you’d expect, the programme is dwelling on this towards it’s conclusion.
With some of the TV footage it’s not hard to see the weight that is on his shoulder – he looks serious, tired and world-weary. At the time, he was battling against alcoholism, a battle he was ultimately to lose. It’s interesting to note his affection for the Disney film Bambi.
It’s kind of sad that there were so many people around and about him, who on reflection could see the course that his life was taking, but felt powerless to intervene. I only hope that if I’m ever presented with a similar situation, that I will know what to do.