A tragically overlooked series that broke all the rules of standard comedy and opened the flood gates to a wave of new anarchic TV comics. All too often are Monty Python hailed as the creators of anarchic, surreal comedy on television. This is not the case. There is no doubting that Monty Python's Flying Circus contributed some of the finest sketches in the genre, but they were pipped to the post by the grand master of comedy, Spike Milligan. While Milligan's stream of consciousness style proved to be far more hit and miss than Python's organised comic offerings, that only added to the shows raw energy. Spike Milligan was a true surrealist and amazingly funny. Some of the material did fall flat and was sometimes charmlessly corny, but this is because we are viewing a show that knows no bounds and is aimlessly sprawling through locations and ideas at a far greater rate than Python's overly structured shows could ever concieve of doing. It is doubtful the Q... series will ever be recognised for its worth by the masses. I strongly recommend you find a tape of this series and see just how great it was. And if that doesn't convince you, listen to a tape of the legendary Goon Shows also written by Milligan. A radio series that went further and funnier than Python ever could almost twenty years before them!
Review of Q5
