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A review by leesmyth
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography by Eric Idle
3.0
This is mostly a collection of anecdotes and other recollections, perhaps loosely framed through a recurring theme of occasions on which the author had an opportunity to sing "Bright Side" and the recurring quest for revenue. There is an awful lot of name-dropping, but then again, as he himself notes, the general public is generally more interested in hearing anecdotes about people they've already heard of – rather than ordinary unfamous folk like themselves.
Overall, I enjoyed it. I haven't really read anything about or by the Pythons before, so there was much new to me here. I'd never have suspected that he was friends with George Harrison, for example – but then again, I suppose the individual Beatles had to socialize with someone, didn't they? I particularly loved his fight to receive every penny of the 1£ the International Olympic Committee owed him.
As for his personal life, he comes across as fair in describing both the unraveling of his first marriage and the strength of his enduring second marriage – not necessarily an easy feat. One aspect he merely mentions in passing did give me pause, though: He suggests at one point that his wife helped trigger what turned out to be a 12-year relapse from sobriety, by stocking their tour bus with champagne. But such serious matters are not the subject or focus of this memoir, and he quickly returns to the breezy stories.
Overall, I enjoyed it. I haven't really read anything about or by the Pythons before, so there was much new to me here. I'd never have suspected that he was friends with George Harrison, for example – but then again, I suppose the individual Beatles had to socialize with someone, didn't they? I particularly loved his fight to receive every penny of the 1£ the International Olympic Committee owed him.
As for his personal life, he comes across as fair in describing both the unraveling of his first marriage and the strength of his enduring second marriage – not necessarily an easy feat. One aspect he merely mentions in passing did give me pause, though: He suggests at one point that his wife helped trigger what turned out to be a 12-year relapse from sobriety, by stocking their tour bus with champagne. But such serious matters are not the subject or focus of this memoir, and he quickly returns to the breezy stories.