Editing Spike Milligan (section)

==Career==
===''The Goon Show''===
Milligan returned to jazz in the late 1940s and made a precarious living with the Hall trio and other musical comedy acts. He was also trying to break into the world of radio, as a performer or script writer. His first success in radio was as writer for comedian [[Derek Roy (comedian)|Derek Roy]]'s show. After a delayed start, Milligan, [[Peter Sellers]], [[Harry Secombe]] and [[Michael Bentine]] joined forces in a comedy project, ''[[The Goon Show]]''. During its first season the BBC titled the show as ''Crazy People'', or in full, ''The Junior Crazy Gang featuring those Crazy People, the Goons'', an attempt to make the programme palatable to BBC officials, by connecting it with the popular group of theatre comedians known as [[Crazy Gang (comedy group)|The Crazy Gang]].<ref name="McCann">{{cite book|last=McCann|first=Graham|title=Spike & Co.|year=2006|publisher=Hodder & Stoughton|location=London|isbn=0-340-89809-7}} p. 186.</ref>

The first episode was broadcast on 28 May 1951 on the [[BBC Home Service]].<ref>Carpenter, 2003, p. 112.</ref> Milligan did not perform as much in the early shows, but eventually became a lead performer in almost all of the ''Goon Show'' episodes, portraying a wide range of characters including [[Eccles (character)|Eccles]], [[Minnie Bannister]], Jim Spriggs and the nefarious [[Count Moriarty]].<ref>Carpenter, 2003, p. 119.</ref> He was also the primary author of most of the scripts, although he co-wrote many scripts with various collaborators, most notably [[Larry Stephens (scriptwriter)|Larry Stephens]] and [[Eric Sykes]]. Most of the early shows were co-written with Stephens (and edited by [[Jimmy Grafton]]) but this partnership faltered after Series 3. Milligan wrote most of Series 4 but from Series 5 (coinciding with the birth of the Milligans' second child, Seán) and through most of Series 6, he collaborated with Eric Sykes, a development that grew out of his business collaboration with Sykes in [[Associated London Scripts]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC - Radio 4 - Comedy - Associated London Scripts |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/comedy/als.shtml |access-date=2024-11-10 |website=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref><ref>Carpenter, 2003, p. 182.</ref> Milligan and Stephens reunited during Series 6 but towards the end of Series 8 Stephens was sidelined by health problems and Milligan worked briefly with [[John Antrobus]]. The Milligan-Stephens partnership was finally ended by Stephens' death from a brain haemorrhage in January 1959; Milligan later downplayed and disparaged Stephens' contributions.<ref>Carpenter, 2003, p. 190.</ref>

''The Goon Show'' was recorded before a studio audience and during the audience warm-up session, Milligan would play the trumpet, while Peter Sellers played on the orchestra's drums.<ref name="Robson">{{cite book|title=Spike Milligan: His Part in Our Lives|author=Ventham, Maxine|chapter=Jeremy Robson|year=2002|publisher=Robson|location= London|isbn=1-86105-530-7|pages=46–47}}</ref> For the first few years the shows were recorded live, direct to 16-inch [[transcription disc]], which required the cast to adhere closely to the script but by Series 4, the BBC had adopted the use of magnetic tape.<ref name="Carpenter, 2003, p.120">Carpenter, 2003, p. 120.</ref> Milligan eagerly exploited the possibilities the new technology offered—the tapes could be edited, so the cast could now ad-lib freely and tape also enabled the creation of groundbreaking sound effects. Over the first three series, Milligan's demands for increasingly complex sound effects (or "grams", as they were then known) pushed technology and the skills of the BBC engineers to their limits—effects had to be created mechanically ([[Foley (filmmaking)|Foley]]) or played back from discs, sometimes requiring the use of four or five turntables running simultaneously.<ref name="Carpenter, 2003, p.120"/> With magnetic tape, these effects could be produced in advance and the BBC engineers were able to create highly complex, tightly edited effects "stings" that would have been difficult using Foley or disc. In the later years of the series many Goon Show "grams" were produced for the series by members of the [[BBC Radiophonic Workshop]], an example being the "[[Major Bloodnok]]'s Stomach" effect, realised by Dick Mills.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/sound-alchemy-the-bbc-radiophonic-workshop/|title=Sound Alchemy: The BBC radiophonic workshop|date=April 2008}}</ref>

Although the Goons elevated Milligan to national stardom, the demands of writing and performing the series took a heavy toll. During Series 3 he had the first of several serious [[mental breakdown]]s, which also marked the onset of a decades-long cycle of [[Bipolar disorder|manic-depressive]] illness. In late 1952, possibly exacerbated by suppressed tensions between the Goons' stars, Milligan apparently became irrationally convinced that he had to kill Sellers but when he attempted to gain entry to Sellers's neighbouring flat, armed with a potato knife, he accidentally walked straight through the plate-glass front door. He was hospitalised, heavily sedated for two weeks and spent almost two months recuperating; fortunately for the show, a backlog of scripts meant that his illness had little effect on production.<ref>Carpenter, 2003, pp. 136–139.</ref> Milligan later blamed the pressure of writing and performing ''The Goon Show'' for his breakdown and the failure of his first marriage.<ref>Spike Milligan, ''More Goon Show Scripts'' (Sphere Books, London, 1973, {{ISBN|0-7221-6077-1}}), p. 13.</ref>

===Television===
[[File:Spike Milligan.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Milligan during his prime years]]
Milligan made several forays into television as a writer-performer, in addition to his many guest appearances on interview, variety and sketch comedy series from the 1950s to the 2000s. ''[[The Idiot Weekly, Price 2d]]'' (1956), starring Peter Sellers, was the first attempt to translate Goons humour to TV; it was followed by ''[[A Show Called Fred]]'' and ''[[Son of Fred]]'', both made during 1956 and directed by [[Richard Lester]], who went on to work with the [[The Beatles|Beatles]]. During a visit to Australia in 1958, a similar special was made for the [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation|Australian Broadcasting Commission]], "The Gladys Half-Hour", which also featured local actors [[Ray Barrett]] and [[John Bluthal]], who would appear in several later Milligan projects. In 1961, Milligan co-wrote two episodes of the popular sitcom ''[[Sykes and a...]]'', co-starring Sykes and [[Hattie Jacques]] and the one-off "Spike Milligan Offers a Series of Unrelated Incidents at Current Market Value".

The 15-minute series ''[[The Telegoons]]'' (1963), was the next attempt to transplant the Goons to television, this time using [[puppet]] versions of the familiar characters. The initial intention was to "visualise" original recordings of 1950s Goon Show episodes but this proved difficult, because of the rapid-fire dialogue and was ultimately frustrated by the BBC's refusal to allow the original audio to be used. Fifteen-minute adaptations of the original scripts by Maurice Wiltshire were used instead, with Milligan, Sellers and Secombe reuniting to provide the voices; according to a contemporary press report, they received the highest fees the BBC had ever paid for 15-minute shows.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.telegoons.org/history_7_voice_actors.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060501091150/http://www.telegoons.org/history_7_voice_actors.htm |title=A Short History of ''The Telegoons'': Voice Actors, Puppeteers & Producers |last=Roxburgh |first=Alastair |website=The Telegoons |archive-date=1 May 2006}}</ref> Two series were made in 1963 and 1964 and (presumably because it was shot on 35mm film rather than video) the entire series has reportedly been preserved in the BBC archives.

Milligan's next major TV venture was the sketch comedy series ''[[The World of Beachcomber]]'' (1968), made in colour for [[BBC Two|BBC 2]];<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/82fb61e49d744ebc8306fefa6ffc1a49|title=BBC Programme Index|date=22 January 1968 }}</ref> it is believed all 19 episodes are [[Lost television broadcast#Wiping|lost]]. In the same year, the three Goons reunited for a televised re-staging of a vintage ''Goon Show'' for [[Thames Television]], with [[John Cleese]] substituting for the late [[Wallace Greenslade]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wilmut |first=Roger |title=The Goon Show Companion: A History and Goonography |publisher=Sphere |year=1977 |isbn=9780722191828 |publication-date=1977 |pages=171}}</ref>

In early 1969, Milligan starred in [[brownface]] in the situation comedy ''[[Curry and Chips]]'', created and written by [[Johnny Speight]] and featuring Milligan's old friend and colleague Eric Sykes. ''Curry and Chips'' set out to satirise [[Racism|racist]] attitudes in Britain in a similar vein to Speight's earlier creation, the hugely successful ''[[Till Death Us Do Part]]'', with Milligan 'browning up' to play Kevin O'Grady, a half-Pakistani–half-Irish factory worker. Milligan was also involved in the programme ''[[The Melting Pot (television programme)|The Melting Pot]]''.<ref name="Broadcast - BBC Programme Index">{{Cite web|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/2fc384a2064a49969934a41416b35107|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=11 June 1975 }}</ref>

Director [[John Goldschmidt]]'s film ''The Other Spike'' dramatised Milligan's nervous breakdown in a film for [[Granada Television]], for which Milligan wrote the screenplay and in which he played himself. Later that year, he was commissioned by the BBC to write and star in ''Q5'', the first in the innovative [[Q... (TV series)|''Q...'']] TV series, acknowledged as an important precursor to ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'', which premiered several months later. There was a hiatus of several years, before the BBC commissioned ''Q6'' in 1975. ''Q7'' appeared in 1977, ''[[Q (TV series)|Q8]]'' in 1978, ''Q9'' in 1980<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2019/06/spike-milligan-q-comedy-show-monty-python.html|title=How Spike Milligan's ''Q'' Paved the Way for Monty Python|first=Ramsey|last= Ess|website=[[vulture.com]]|date=11 June 2019}}</ref> and ''[[There's a Lot of It About]]'' in 1982.

Milligan's daughter, Laura, conceived and co-wrote an animated series called ''[[The Ratties]]'' (1987). Milligan narrated the 26 five-minute episodes. He later voiced the animated series ''[[Wolves, Witches and Giants]]'', which aired on ITV from 1995 to 1998.

===Poetry and other writings===
Milligan also wrote verse, considered to be within the genre of [[literary nonsense]]. For example: '''''"It's due to pigeons that alight; on Nelson's hat that makes it white."''''' His poetry has been described by comedian [[Stephen Fry]] as "absolutely immortal—greatly in the tradition of [[Edward Lear|Lear]]."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1844487.stm|title=Fry's Milligan memories|access-date=12 June 2008|last=Fry|first=Stephen|date=27 February 2002|work=BBC News}}</ref> One of his poems, "[[On the Ning Nang Nong]]", was voted the UK's favourite comic poem in 1998 in a nationwide poll, ahead of other nonsense poets including [[Lewis Carroll]] and Edward Lear.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/190291.stm|title=Top poetry is complete nonsense|access-date=12 June 2008|date=10 October 1998|work=BBC News}}</ref> This [[nonsense verse]], set to music, became a favourite Australia-wide, performed week after week by the ABC children's programme ''[[Play School (Australian TV series)|Playschool]]''. Milligan included it on his album ''[[No One's Gonna Change Our World]]'' in 1969, to aid the [[World Wide Fund for Nature|World Wildlife Fund]]. In December 2007 it was reported that, according to [[OFSTED]], it is among the ten most commonly taught poems in primary schools in the UK.<ref>{{cite news|title=Laureate attacks poetry teaching|publisher=BBC|date=7 December 2007|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7131133.stm|access-date=7 December 2007}}</ref>

While depressed, he wrote serious poetry, much of which is compiled in ''Open Heart University''.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Milligan|first1=Spike |others=illustrations by Laura Milligan and Jack Hobbs and Spike Milligan |title=Open Heart University: poems|date=1979|publisher=M. and J. Hobbs|location=Walton-on-Thames|isbn=0718117573}}</ref><ref>[http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1338618.Open_Heart_University ''Compassionate, perceptive, outraged and tender'' - Evening News quoted at the entry for Open_Heart_University at goodreads.com] Retrieved 20 February 2017</ref> He also wrote a novel ''[[Puckoon]]'' and a series of war memoirs, including ''[[Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall]]'' (1971), ''[["Rommel?" "Gunner Who?"|"Rommel?" "Gunner Who?": A Confrontation in the Desert]]'' (1974), ''[[Monty: His Part in My Victory]]'' (1976) and ''[[Mussolini: His Part in My Downfall]]'' (1978). Milligan's seven volumes of memoirs cover the years from 1939 to 1950 (his call-up, war service, first breakdown, time spent entertaining in Italy and return to the UK).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-17 |title=As it announced Spike! is coming to Blackpool's Grand Theatre we share 10 facts about the late Spike Milligan |url=https://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/arts-and-culture/theatre-and-stage/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-the-late-spike-milligan-as-award-winning-production-comes-to-blackpool-grand-theatre-3696159 |access-date=2022-10-09 |website=www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk |first=Nicola|last=Adam|language=en}}</ref>

Milligan also wrote comedy songs, including "Purple Aeroplane",<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFSEDPjnRhk |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/lFSEDPjnRhk| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|title=Spike Milligan ::: Purple Aeroplane ::: Yellow Submarine|date=18 June 2009 |via=www.youtube.com}}{{cbignore}}</ref> which was a parody of the Beatles' song "[[Yellow Submarine (song)|Yellow Submarine]]". In addition he wrote the lyric to saxophonist/composer [[Duncan Lamont (musician)|Duncan Lamont]]'s "English Folk Song," heard on jazz singer [[Tina May]]'s 2021 album, ''52nd Street (and Other Tales)''.<ref>Croft, Paul (21 January 2021). [https://www.proquest.com/docview/2479500814 "First degree Lockett's four is well worth streaming"]. ''Lincolnshire Echo''. p.&nbsp;4. Retrieved March 30, 2022.</ref><ref>Spillett, Simon. [ "Tina May: 52nd Street (and Other Tales): Sings the Songs of Duncan Lamont"]. ''Jazzwise''. Retrieved March 30, 2022.</ref> He was the narrator for Lamont's ''Sherlock Holmes Suite'', commissioned by the City of London to commemorate the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes in ''The Strand'' magazine.

===Theatre===
====''Treasure Island''====
[[Bernard Miles]] gave Milligan his first straight acting role, as [[Treasure Island#Theatre and radio|Ben Gunn]], in the [[Mermaid Theatre]] production of ''[[Treasure Island]]''. Miles described Milligan as:

{{blockquote|...&nbsp;a man of quite extraordinary talents&nbsp;... a visionary who is out there alone, denied the usual contacts simply because he is so different he can't always communicate with his own species.<ref name="ScudamoresMilliganbio198">Scudamore (1985), p. 198.</ref>}}

''Treasure Island'' played twice daily through the winter of 1961–62 and was an annual production at the Mermaid Theatre for some years. In the 1968 production, [[Barry Humphries]] played the role of Long John Silver, alongside [[Willie Rushton|William Rushton]] as [[Squire Trelawney]] and Milligan as Ben Gunn. To Humphries, Milligan's "best performance must surely have been as Ben Gunn&nbsp;..., Milligan stole the show every night, in a makeup which took at least an hour to apply. His appearance on stage always brought a roar of delight from the kids in the audience and Spike had soon left the text far behind as he went off into a riff of sublime absurdity."<ref name="Humphries">Barry Humphries, in Ventham (2002), pp. 92–97.</ref>

====''The Bedsitting Room''====
In 1961–62, during the long pauses between the matinee and the evening show of ''Treasure Island'', Milligan began talking to Miles about the idea he and [[John Antrobus]] were exploring, of a dramatised post-nuclear world. This became the one-act play ''[[The Bedsitting Room (play)|The Bedsitting Room]]'', which Milligan co-wrote with John Antrobus and which premiered at the [[Marlowe Theatre]], [[Canterbury]] on 12 February 1962. It was adapted to a longer play and staged by Miles at London's Mermaid Theatre, making its debut on 31 January 1963. It was a critical and commercial success and was revived in 1967 with a provincial tour before opening at London's [[Saville Theatre]] on 3 May 1967. [[Richard Lester]] later directed [[The Bed Sitting Room (film)|a film version]], released in 1969.<ref name="ScudamoresMilliganbio200,202-204&242-243">Scudamore (1985) pp. 200, 203–204, 242–243.</ref><ref name="McCann157-159">McCann (2006) pp. 157–159.</ref>

====''Oblomov''====
[[File:Title page for the program of Spike Milligan's Oblomov.jpg|thumb|Title page of the program to ''[[Oblomov]]'', before its name change and move to the [[Comedy Theatre]]]]
Tiring of comedic roles, Milligan sought out more serious material. He had read Ivan Goncharov's ''[[Oblomov]]'' and felt a kinship with the title character, who declines to leave his bed to face the world. According to Scudamore's biography:

{{blockquote|Milligan's fans and the theatrical world in general found it hard to believe that he was to appear in a straight play&nbsp;... He refused to be serious when questioned about his motives. In the story, Oblomov decides to spend his life in bed. Spike decided to identify with his character, and told disbelieving reporters that he thought it would be a nice comfortable rest for him. This was of course, prevarication. Spike was actually intrigued with Oblomov and had read a translation of Ivan Goncharov's novel.<ref name="ScudamoresMilliganbio214-215">Scudamore (1985) pp. 214–215.</ref>}}

The novel had been adapted for the stage by Italian writer [[Riccardo Aragno]].<ref name=":72">{{Cite web |title=Spike Milligan"OBLOMOV" Joan Greenwood/Bill Owen 1964 Pre-West End Playbill at Amazon's Entertainment Collectibles Store |url=https://www.amazon.com/Milligan-OBLOMOV-Greenwood-Pre-West-Playbill/dp/B07X1SZL3V |access-date=2022-09-14 |website=www.amazon.com}}</ref> Aragno's script for ''Oblomov'' was bought by Milligan's production company in early 1964. Milligan had long nurtured hopes of transitioning from comedy to serious drama. To this end, Milligan rehearsed for seven weeks with director [[Frank Dunlop (director)|Frank Dunlop]] and castmates [[Joan Greenwood]], [[Bill Owen (actor)|Bill Owen]], and [[Valentine Dyall]] at the [[Lyric Theatre (Hammersmith)|Lyric Hammersmith]].

The first preview was on 6 October 1964. During this performance Milligan was struck by stage fright and forgot nearly all of his lines. He quickly began making up things to say to the cast, turning the drama into an impromptu improv session. Noticing that a drama critic who'd given rave reviews to Milligan's other stage comedies was in the audience, Milligan ended the first performance by shouting "Thank God, [[Milton Shulman]]'s in!"<ref name=":52">{{Cite web |title=Ad lib – ad infinitum |url=https://www.theoldie.co.uk/blog/ad-lib-ad-infinitum |access-date=2022-09-14 |website=The Oldie |language=en-gb}}</ref>

The play was savaged in the theatrical press. However, ''Oblomov''{{'s}} producers had booked the play into the Lyric for three weeks. Anxious to recoup their investment by any means, they gave Milligan carte-blanche on stage. Milligan's antics included starting the play while sitting with the audience, yelling for his castmates to entertain him. Another night he wore a false arm that fell out of his sleeve when co-star Ian Flintoff, playing Oblomov's doctor, shook Milligan's hand. When Flintoff complained to [[Bill Kerr]], a longtime friend of Milligan, that he was making a mockery of their hard work Kerr replied: "We have to put up with all the shit, mate, because it pays the rent."<ref name=":52" />

[[Joan Greenwood]], who played Olga, later recalled that her husband [[André Morell]] thought the first performance was so appalling that they should get Greenwood out of her contract. According to Scudamore:

{{blockquote|Nobody seemed at all comfortable in their roles and the audience began to hoot with laughter when Milligan's slipper inadvertently went spinning across the stage into the stalls. That was the end of Spike's playing straight. The audience demanded a clown, he became a clown. When he forgot his words, or disapproved of them, he simply made up what he felt to be more appropriate ones. That night there were no riotous first night celebrations and most of the cast seemed to go home stunned. The following night Milligan began to ad lib in earnest. The text of the show began to change drastically. The cast were bedevilled and shaken but they went along with him&nbsp;... Incredibly, the show began to resolve itself. The context changed completely. It was turned upside down and inside out. Cues and lines became irrelevant as Milligan verbally rewrote the play each night. By the end of the week, ''Oblomov'' had changed beyond recognition. Andre Morell came again&nbsp;... and afterwards said 'the man is a genius. He must be a genius—it's the only word for him. He's impossible—but he's a genius!'.<ref name="ScudamoresMilliganbio215-216">Scudamore (1985) pp. 215–216.</ref>}}

The play continued running as an improv comedy. The decision soon caused it to break all box office records at the Lyric. After five weeks it was rechristened ''Son of Oblomov'' and moved on 2 December 1964 to the [[Harold Pinter Theatre|Comedy Theatre]] in the [[West End theatre|West End]]. It would run there for a total of 559 performances. As the play was substantially new each night it drew record numbers of repeat traffic.<ref name=":52"/><ref name=":7">{{Cite web |title=Spike Milligan"OBLOMOV" Joan Greenwood/Bill Owen 1964 Pre-West End Playbill at Amazon's Entertainment Collectibles Store |url=https://www.amazon.com/Milligan-OBLOMOV-Greenwood-Pre-West-Playbill/dp/B07X1SZL3V |access-date=2022-09-14 |website=www.amazon.com}}</ref>

On 22 April 1965, [[Elizabeth II|Queen Elizabeth]] and [[British royal family|her family]] attended as part of her 39th birthday celebration. Just after the curtain rose, a group of four latecomers attempted to slink to their seats directly in front of the royal family. Milligan immediately shouted: "Turn up the house lights! Start everything again!" He pointed to the blushing foursome and cried: "That's cost you your knighthood!"<ref name=":6">{{cite news |date=1965-04-22 |title=Queen's birthday party turns into hilarious act |pages=1 |work=The Manchester Evening Herald |url=http://www.manchesterhistory.org/News/Manchester%20Evening%20Hearld_1965-04-22.pdf |access-date=2022-09-14}}</ref>

Then, noticing that [[Peter Sellers]] was seated between [[Charles III|Prince Charles]] and [[Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon|Princess Margaret]], Milligan asked in a loud voice: "Is there a Sellers in the house?" Sellers immediately shouted, "Yes!" Milligan launched into a vaudeville routine about [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh|Prince Philip]]'s suspenders, with Sellers participating from his seat with the royals. This culminated in Milligan giving a high-kick, lobbing one of his bedroom slippers at Sellers, only just missing Prince Philip's head. Once back in bed with co-star Joan Greenwood, Milligan spent the rest of the performance poking fun at the Queen for bringing her son to such a racy play. The play ended with Milligan unsheathing a [[katana]] on stage and asking the Queen to knight him for his efforts that night. She declined. The performance ran 45 minutes over its scheduled ending. Prince Charles reportedly saw the play five times.<ref name=":52"/><ref name=":6" />

In a 1988 interview with [[Bernard Braden]], Milligan described theatre as being important to him:

{{blockquote|First it was a means of livelihood. And I had sort of lagged behind my confederates, that I&nbsp;... remained in the writing seat. And I realise that basically I was quite a good clown&nbsp;... and the one and only chance I ever had to prove that was in ''Oblomov'' when I clowned my way out of what was a very bad script&nbsp;... I clowned it into a West End success and uh, we kept changing it all the time. It was a tour de force of improvisation&nbsp;... all that ended it was I got fed up with it, that's all."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TZQ9RS8CnQ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/8TZQ9RS8CnQ| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|title=Spike Milligan interviewed by Bernard Braden |date=2 March 2009 |publisher=YouTube |access-date=23 May 2014}}{{cbignore}}</ref>}}

===Ken Russell films===
In 1959 [[Ken Russell]] made a short [[35 mm movie film|35 mm film]] about and with Milligan entitled ''Portrait of a Goon''. The making of the film is detailed in Paul Sutton's 2012 authorised biography ''Becoming Ken Russell''.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The authorised biography of Ken Russell. Vol. 1. Becoming Ken Russell.|last=Sutton.|date=2013|publisher=Bearclaw Publishers|isbn=9780957246232|oclc=840887170}}</ref> In 1971 Milligan played a humble village priest in Russell's film ''[[The Devils (film)|The Devils]]''. The scene was cut from the release print and is considered lost but photographs from the scene, together with [[Murray Melvin]]'s memory of that day's filming, are included in Sutton's 2014 book ''Six English Filmmakers''.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Six English Filmmakers|last=Sutton|first=Paul|year=2014|publisher=Buffalo Books |isbn=978-0-9572462-5-6}}</ref>

===Ad-libbing===
As illustrated in the description of his involvement in theatre, Milligan often ad-libbed. He also did this on radio and television. One of his last screen appearances was in the BBC dramatisation of [[Mervyn Peake]]'s ''[[Gormenghast (TV serial)|Gormenghast]]'' and he was (almost inevitably) noted as an [[Ad libitum|ad-libber]].

One of Milligan's ad-lib incidents occurred during a visit to Australia in the late 1960s. He was interviewed live on air and remained in the studio for the news broadcast that followed (read by Rod McNeil), during which Milligan constantly interjected, adding his own name to news items.<ref>{{cite web|title=Spike Milligan interrupts ABC News| date=28 October 2010 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eUSdL8bqJc |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/2eUSdL8bqJc| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|publisher=Youtube.com|access-date=10 October 2015}}{{cbignore}}</ref> As a result, he was banned from making any further live appearances on the [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation|ABC]]. The ABC also changed its national policy so that guests had to leave the studio after interviews were complete. A tape of the bulletin survives and has been included in an ABC Radio audio compilation, and also on the BBC tribute CD, ''Vivat Milligna''.

Film and television director [[Richard Lester]] recalls that the television series ''A Show Called Fred'' was broadcast live. "I've seen very few moments of genius in my life but I witnessed one with Spike after the first show. He had brought around a silent cartoon" and asked Lester if his P.A. took shorthand. "She said she did. 'Good, this needs a commentary.' It was a ten-minute cartoon and Spike could have seen it only once, if that. He ad-libbed the commentary for it and it was perfect. I was open-mouthed at the raw comedy creation in front of me."<ref name="Lester">Richard Lester, in Ventham (2002), pp.73–74.</ref>

===Cartoons and art===
Milligan contributed occasional cartoons to the satirical magazine ''[[Private Eye (magazine)|Private Eye]]''. Most were visualisations of [[one-line joke]]s. For example, a young boy sees the [[Concorde]] and asks his father "What's that?". The reply is "That's a flying [[Tanganyika groundnut scheme|groundnut scheme]], son." Milligan was a keen painter.<ref name="ScudamoresMilliganbio">{{cite book|last=Scudamore|first=Pauline|title=Spike Milligan: A Biography|year=1985|publisher=Granada|location= London|isbn=0-246-12275-7}} pp.109–110, 258. (Published in 2003 as paperback under ''Spike'', or ''Spike Milligan'', depending on listing)</ref><ref name="SurvivingSpikeMilligan">{{cite book|last=Antrobus|first=John|title=Surviving Spike Milligan: A Voyage Through the Mind & Mirth of the Master Goon|year=2002|publisher=Robson Books|location=London|isbn=0-246-12275-7}} pp. 17, 24.</ref>

===Advertising===
In 1967, applying a satirical angle to a fashion for the inclusion of [[Superman]]-inspired characters in British television commercials, Milligan dressed up in a "Bat-Goons" outfit, to appear in a series of television commercials for [[BP]].<ref name=Autocar196704>{{cite journal|title=Camera spread: Taking a rise out of the serious supermen in TV commercials, Spike Milligan in Bat-Goons outfit leads BP's sales campaign&nbsp;... |journal=[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]]|volume=126 | issue = 3714 |page=22|date=22 April 1967}}</ref> A contemporary reporter found the TV commercials "funny and effective".<ref name=Autocar196704/> Milligan appeared with [[Peter Sellers]] in an advert for [[Benson & Hedges]] in 1973. Milligan requested that his fee was paid to ASH: Action on Smoking and Health. When this was refused, he gave the money to charity instead. The advert was popular with the public and also won several industry awards.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.comedy.co.uk/features/comedy_chronicles/sellers-and-milligan/|title = Close but no cigarette: When Milligan & Sellers met Benson & Hedges - Comedy Chronicles| website=[[British Comedy Guide]]|first=Graham |last=McCann |date = 18 April 2021}}</ref> From 1980 to 1982, he advertised for the [[VisitEngland|English Tourist Board]], playing a Scotsman on a visit around the different regions of England.

Other advertising appearances included television commercials for [[Kellogg's]] Corn Flakes, the Leyland [[Mini]], [[Commonwealth Bank]] of Australia and [[Planters]] nuts.

===Other contributions===
In the 1970s, [[Charles Allen (writer)|Charles Allen]] compiled a series of stories from British people's experiences of life in the [[British Raj]], called ''Plain Tales from the Raj'', and published in 1975. Milligan was the youngest contributor, describing his life in India when it was under British rule. In it he mentions the imperial parades there:

{{blockquote|The most exciting sound for me was the sound of the Irregular Punjabi Regiment playing the ''[[dhol]]'' and ''surmai'' [a type of drum]—one beat was dum-da-da-dum, dum-da-da-dum, dum-da-da-dum! They wore these great long pantaloons, a gold dome to their turbans, khaki shirts with banded waistcoats, double-cross bandoliers, leather sandals, and they used to march very fast, I remember, bursting in through the dust on the heels of an English regiment. They used to come in with trailed arms and they'd throw their rifles up into the air, catch it with their left hand—always to this dum-da-da-dum, dum-da-da-dum—and then stamp their feet and fire one round, synchronising with the drums. They'd go left, right, left, right, ''shabash''! ''Hai''! Bang! Dum-da-da-dum—it was sensational!<ref>{{cite book|editor=Allen, Charles|title=Plain Tales From the Raj|edition=1978|pages=141–2|publisher=Futura|isbn=0860074552|year=1975}}</ref>}}

===Music composition===
In 1988, while visiting his mother in [[Woy Woy]] (on the shores of [[Brisbane Water]]), Milligan composed and orchestrated a ''Grand Waltz for Brisbane Water'' and gave it to the symphony orchestra of nearby Gosford.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://issuu.com/centralcoastnewspapers/docs/ccn230|title=Issue 230 of COAST Community News|website=Issuu|date=20 February 2020 }}</ref> Symphony Central Coast has performed it occasionally since, including a 2020 YouTube video as a [[COVID-19]] isolation project.