Merton has been a fan of silent comedy since he was a child, and his meticulous book is clearly a labour of love. Silent film, silent clowns, silent comedy paul merton. Strictly speaking the carthusians are not and have never been considered a branch of the benedictine family. On the surface it may seem slightly surprising that a master of verbal humor.
It offers insight into mertons reasons for leaving everything else in order to seek god. Why did paul merton and ian hislop hate angus deayton so much. We are currently listing 7,308 upcoming comedy events. Silent comedy by paul mertonmerton may be a master of impromptu verbal wit, but hes not a great writer, says aimee shalan. I would say that paul mertons book is a very good guide to the development of the silent comedy, and well worth a read. Known for his intelligent and often surreal humour, paul mertons weekly appearances on bbc1s have i got news for you as well as radio 4s just a minute and his travel documentaries have seen him become an artfully rebellious fixture in our lives for over 25 years. Known for his intelligent and often surreal humour, paul mertons weekly. Silent comedy by paul merton penguin books australia. Thomas merton wrote the silent life a decade after he took orders. Mertons loving commentary, and some pristine prints, concertina a century of entertainment, and make these clowns live again.
The silent life by thomas merton overdrive rakuten. Synopsis on the surface it may seem slightly surprising that a master of verbal humour should also be a devotee of silent comedy, but paul merton is completely passionate about the early days of hollywood comedy and the comic geniuses who dominated it. Merton to share his favourite funny stories in a new anthology book. Neither paul merton nor his fabulous troupe of impro chums need much introduction as they are already amongst the festivals most loved performers, but to celebrate the festivals 40th anniversary, and the 3rd comedy in the stables session, paul merton, suki webster, lee simpson, mike mcshane and richard vranch at the piano. Paul mertons silent clowns, buster keaton e1 youtube. He couldnt disguise the fact that he was reading an autocue.
St bruno, the founder of the grande chartreuse, spent some time in a priory dependent on the benedictine abbey of molesme, when he was deciding his vocation. The comedian, who is hosting a special silentcomedy festival. So, were ever so excited even more than if baileys flowed from the taps that paul mertons uncovered rare material of the. I thought, with a title like the silent life, that this book would be well if you want to be a monk or are interested in the monastic tradition, this is a great resource and you would probably find this book being a 455.
Chortle relies on advertisers to fund this website so its free for you, so we would ask that you disable it for this site. Chortle had 91,786 unique users in the seven days to april 12. Select any poster below to play the movie, totally free. Soon the shows popularity led to a move to bbc one and even a series recorded in las vegas. To celebrate the release of his autobiography, only when i laugh, we have compiled a selection of paul mertons best jokes. At the same time, paul brings a comedians insight to bear on the art of making people laugh, and explores just how the great comic ideas, routines, gags, and pratfalls worked and evolved. Mertons chums are some of the most seasoned performers in this field and know just how to work the games, the suggestions and the audience for maximum effect. Mertons early and orthodox work is insightful and illuminating and the silent life hails from this era. During his arduous days and nights in the silence of the monastery, the young thomas merton simultaneously advanced to priesthood and emerged as a surprising bestselling author when his spiritual autobiography, the seven storey mountain, was published in 1948. Bbc paul mertons weird and wonderful world of early cinema. Short series telling the story of londons worldfamous theatre, hosted by paul merton. Paul mertons life of comedy tv series 1995 quotes on imdb. Paul merton will introduce the clips, and neil brand will provide musical accompaniment. Paul merton and neil brands silent clowns at the cinema.
Well be honest we could quite happily spend the entire festive period eating dark chocolate digestives and watching these two muck about with angela rippon and prepare breakfast to the stripper. Paul merton makes a big noise about the age of silent comedy. Why paul merton thinks silence is golden telegraph. His first book for ten years, this richly illustrated history of silent comedy is destined to be a classic. Merton is a keen student of comedy, particularly the early silent comedians and in 2006, bbc four broadcast paul mertons silent clowns, a fourpart documentary series on the silent comedy craft of buster keaton, charlie chaplin, laurel and hardy and harold lloyd. Max linder paul merton goes in search of the origins of screen comedy in the forgotten world of silent cinema not in hollywood, but. Paul merton is a british comedian, actor and writer, best known for his appearances on have i got news for you, room 101 and the original tv series of whose line is it anywayhe was born in. On imdb tv, you can catch hollywood hits and popular tv series at no cost. Originally slated to be directed by ed bye, there was a delay. The main star was paul merton, who cowrote it along with john irwin. Im a massive fan of buster keaton and loved this mini series. Paul is also a regular panelist on bbc radio 4s just a minute. Theres a fair bit of snobbery around when it comes to improvised comedy.
Silent comedy is a terrific history of props and pratfalls. On the surface it may seem slightly surprising that a master of verbal. One of our foremost comedians shares his passion for the greats of the silent comedy era. Why did paul merton and ian hislop hate angus deayton so. Mertons companion book to his bbc series silent clowns pays homage to his comic heroes. Librivox recording of merton of the movies, by harry leon wilson. He has been ranked by critics, fellow comedians and viewers to be among britains greatest comedians. Galton and simpon have a track record of hit comedy series hancocks half hour, steptoe and son but they have also written a number of one off shows as part of comedy playhouse type series over the years and it was a mix of well known hancock scripts and these oneoffs that form this. In 1990, paul merton and his schoolfriend and longterm collaborator, standup john irwin wanted to create a show for paul, following on from the big fun show on radio 4. At the same time, paul brings a comedians insight to bear on the art of making people laugh, and explores just how the great comic ideas, routines, gags and pratfalls worked and evolved. Memorable quotes and exchanges from movies, tv series and more. Merton, a trappist monk who resided at the our lady of gethsemani abbey in kentucky, focused his heart on god but kept his eyes open to the political and social storms of the modern world.
Paul mertons silent clowns, city varieties, leeds, tuesday may 8, 7. So successful was the programme that it spawned a spinoff, mrs merton and malcolm, depicting her. Paul james martin born 9 july 1957, known under the stage name paul merton, is an english writer, actor, comedian, radio and television presenter known for his improvisation skill, mertons humour is rooted in deadpan, surreal and sometimes dark comedy. This is certainly a series i remember and one that i was pleased was coming out on dvd. On the surface it may seem slightly surprising that a master of verbal humour should also be a devotee of silent comedy, but paul merton is. Merton of the movies is a comedy that centers around merton gill, an aspiring dramatic artist from simsbury, illinois who makes his way to hollywood to become a serious actor.
Paul mertons silent comedy book, silent clowns bbc series and uk tour, and his bbc tv documentary paul merton looks at alfred hitchcock. Paul mertons history of the twentieth centuryand a spoof autobiography, paul merton my struggle. It was commissioned by channel 4 to be made by hat trick, and was called paul merton the series. The series is a british sketch show that aired on channel 4 from 1991 to 1993. Just a minute episode list welcome to just a minute. Although books including his autobiography of faith, the seven storey mountain, have been presented as his greatest, the silent life is a clear presentation of monasticism. Laurel and hardy and harold lloyd charts the evolution of silent comedy through the 1900s, offering an indepth analysis of the mechanics of their jokes, pratfalls. In only when i laugh, his rich and beautifullyobserved. On the surface it may seem slightly surprising that a master of verbal humour should also be a devotee of silent comedy, but paul merton is completely passionate about the early days of hollywood comedy and the comic geniuses who dominated it. His first book for 10 years, this richly illustrated history of silent comedy is destined to be a classic. In his prologue, merton describes the book as a meditation on the monastic life by one who, without any merit of his own, is privileged to know that life on the inside. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
The slapstick of harold lloyd, charlie chaplin and buster keaton was cinema in its purest form, according to enthusiast paul merton. Yet mertons longrunning association with the leading. It is not currently available on dvd but every episode is available for viewing free via channel 4 service 4od. Paul mertons weird and wonderful world of early cinema. Browse paul merton tour dates and order tickets for upcoming comedy shows near you. Comedian paul merton to make a cameo in the hit west end. He was awful at the comedy awards and that was scripted too. Anyone who has read mertons silent comedy book or watched his recent tv programmes, will know that he is passionate about this subject, and if you only know him from the radio, youll know that he is exceedingly funny himself. Merton brings his considerable knowledge and comedic insight to bear upon the silent greats.
When he joined equity, paul changed his surname from martin to merton, after the area where he grew up. Despite first coming to public attention as a team captain on have i got news for you. Paul merton was born on july 9, 1957 in parsons green, london, england as paul martin. Merton brings his considerable knowledge and comedic insight to.
On the surface it may seem slightly surprising that a master of verbal humor should also be a devotee of silent comedy, but paul merton is completely passionate about the early days of hollywood comedy and the comic geniuses who dominated it. The artwork in thomas mertons dialogues with silence is equally thoughtprovoking and sure to engage your heart and mind. On tour with his impro chums, comedian merton talks making it up on the spot. Spanning the journal entries in an elevenyear period from december 12, 1941, to july 5, 1952, entering the silence. Official website of british comedian and improviser paul merton, his autobiography only when i laugh, his impro chums, and books and television series about silent comedy, clowns and. A guide to paul mertons palladium story, the 1994 bbc one tv documentary.