For Richer, for Poorer

Johnny Speight learned life the hard way, from London's Canning Town in the early 1920s to the world of Rolls-Royces and credit cards. In this book he takes the reader through the pre-war years, when he worked in factories by day, drummed for a local band at night and holidayed on the Woolwich Ferry. He wanted to be a professional drummer, but war was declared and he was invited to defend Canning Town from an enemy who wouldn't have wanted it anyway. The post-war years saw a return to factories, life on the dole and even a ... Read More

Johnny Speight learned life the hard way, from London's Canning Town in the early 1920s to the world of Rolls-Royces and credit cards. In this book he takes the reader through the pre-war years, when he worked in factories by day, drummed for a local band at night and holidayed on the Woolwich Ferry. He wanted to be a professional drummer, but war was declared and he was invited to defend Canning Town from an enemy who wouldn't have wanted it anyway. The post-war years saw a return to factories, life on the dole and even a spell as a hotel chef. He began to read widely - Shaw, Steinbeck and O'Casey - and developed the urge to write. His first breaks came in the mid-50s, when he wrote for leading radio comics such as Frankie Howerd, Vic Oliver, Arthur Askey and Cyril Fletcher. For television he wrote for the Arthur Haynes Show, Morecambe and Wise, and Peter Sellers, before creating his famous Garnett family for "Till Death Us Do Part" and "In Sickness and in Health". This revised edition of his autobiography continues from when he achieved fame through the character of Alf Garnett, whose metamorphosis into Archie Bunker took Speight to Hollywood. When Alf even made it to Australia, his creator went too, and learnt about crocodiles and spiders from Paul Hogan. Read Less