BEST POSSIBLE TASTE - THE KENNY EVERETT STORY

Hey you! What are you looking at, pal? Me? Why you ugly sod. If you keep that up I'll jump out of this f*king screen and smash your bloody face in. What? You're daring me, are you? Alright, I will. But only after I watch this film Produced by the BBC; and Starring: Oliver Lansley and Katherine Kelly. It lasted for 90 minutes in 2012, and all done in the best possible taste.


Best Possible Taste: The Kenny Everett Story

THE STORY:

After being shunned by the BBC because he wouldn't read from the script, and then sacked by a Pirate Radio station because he pissed off the church; who in their right minds would love camp-comical DJ, Kenny Everett (Oliver Lansley)? Yes. I know that his parents, Lily and Tom (Angela Lonsdale and Tony Pitts), love him. But I was thinking more along the lines of Lee Middleton (Katherine Kelly).

Wait a minute! You know who Lee is, right? She's the bohemian model that takes a liking to our Kenny nigh on straight away. Heck, Lee even goes so far as to marry this clown, although deep down inside her she knows he's a bit of a poof. Still, that doesn't worry her all that much. Or the fact that Ken keeps on bucking the system, chopping and changing radio stations due to his rebellious ways and raunchy leanings.

However, at the end of a two year sabbatical in the countryside, Kenny's life starts to change when he comes' face to face with Dick. That's Dickie Attenborough (Simon Callow) of course. The thespian. The raconteur. And the very nice chap who gets Kenny a job on a new London radio station, thus thrusting him into infamy and beyond.

Granted, not exactly 'infamy' per-say. Though I suppose that is why what next transpires kicks off when Kenny make a pass at a straight-man and annoys his wife in one single stroke. As television acts as a vice - Freedom has a price - its not easy coming clean - and who would have guessed that Kenny was a close friend of Queen (James Floyd).

Now f*ck off.

THE REVIEW:

Now like many other people who grew up in Britain during the eighties, I just loved watching Kenny Everett on the television. He was irreverent. He was current. He was a nutter. And his cast of characters were so outrageous to the ear and to the eye, that a fool like me found it just irresistible to imitate him whenever the opportunity presented itself.

Picture the scene. Me. The mid-nineties. Studying at university. And desperately needing a part-time job, just to stay afloat. Then, one day, a mate of mine told me that a cafe nearby needed a waiter, prompting me to go to this establishment and apply for job there. However, when I met the lady-boss who was in charge of recruitment, I was slightly taken back when she told me; she was only willing to employ ladies in this post. Ops! Wrong move. Because me being me, the very next day I channeled the spirit of Everett, and returned at this 'fine eatery' dresses as a woman -- beard and all -- and... err... lets just say I found our confrontation very funny indeed. Not the lady-boss or any of her customers. Granted. Still, tough sh*t, huh?

  

Hey! Do you know what dear reader? I just thought of something. In a round about way my tale and 'Best Possible Taste - The Kenny Everrett Story' share quite a bit in common. Well, not only are they jovial, revealing, and poignant, but they also both have something about them that I will always hold close to my heart for a very long time to come.

Please allow me to tell you why in bullet point form. (1) Now like some of the more recent bio-pics -- like 'Nowhere Boy' or 'Rather You Than Me' -- this film manages to do three things in hindsight. Firstly, it tells an origin story whilst not being too fractured in tone. Secondly, it tells a 'coming of age' tale, without it feeling too melancholy or over-dramatized. And thirdly, it allows the characters to just be, without empathizing a judgmental stance on their thoughts or their actions. (3) Although this film mainly focuses on Kenny's relationship with his wife, Lee, that is not to say that certain 'key moments' of his career were left by the wayside. Granted, I would have liked to have seen more of Kenny's disagreements with the BBC and LWT, as well as his other relationships too. Nonetheless, we would have needed more than 90 minutes for all of that, right? (4) By in large all of the actors pulled off some very memorial performances in this flick. James Floyd channels Queen so well, that I knew who he was before he even opened his mouth. Katherine Kelly channels such a beautiful version of a mank Avant-Garde Paris Hilton -- with some real character behind her -- that I couldn't help but fall in love with this creation straight away. And even though I thought Oliver Lansley wasn't one hundred percent Ken -- apart from in those 'insert scenes' -- he still had an Everett way about him that more than compensated for one or two minor blemishes here and there. (5) Honest to God, I just loved the relationship between Ken and Lee in this piece. Heck, at times I could feel Kenny's frustration about his own sexuality, as he -- and Lee -- made you believe that a model could really love a poof.

And on that note dear reader, let's have some facts now, shall well? (1) Kenny Everett's real name is Maurice James Christopher Cole, and he was born on the 25th of December, 1944, in Seaforth, Lancashire, England. (2) At a young age, whilst attending a seminary near York, Kenny became a choirboy for an Italian missionary order. Moreover, after his schooling, he worked as an apprentice baker and in the advertising department for 'The Journal of Commerce and Shipping Telegraph'. (3) Ken got his big break on the BBC in 1962, when he sent them a demo tape of his 'comedy shtick'. (4) His first screen appearance was in the 1965 musical 'Dateline Diamonds', with such acts as 'The Small Faces', 'The Chantelles', 'Kiki Dee' and 'Mark Richardson'. (5) Not only was Kenny good friends with 'The Beatles', but he previewed their 'Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' album, produced two of their Christmas records, and also accompanied the fab-four on their 1966 tour of America [click here for their section]. (6) During his time in 'television land', Kenny made: 'Nice Time' for 'Granada' in 1968; 'The Kenny Everett Explosion', 'Making Whoopee' and 'Ev' for LWT throughout the 1970's; 'The Kenny Everett Video Show' and 'The Kenny Everett Video Cassette' for Thames between 1978 and 1981; plus 'The Kenny Everett Television Show', 'Brainstorm', and 'Gibberish' for the BBC between 1981 and 1992. (7) In 1984 Kenny and the cast of his television series made a horror movie with Vincent Price and Pamela Stephenson called 'Bloodbath at the House of Death'. It was his only major filmic work. (8) Everett's wife, Lee Middleton, was once the girlfriend of rock-star, Billy Fury. (9) It's believed that Kenny contracted Aid's from the same person who gave it to 'Queen's' Freddy Mercury. He died of this dreadful disease on the 4th of April, 1995.

All in all 'Best Possible Taste - The Kenny Everrett Story' is a marvellous movie, and is a must see for any fan of the man, his style of comedy, or relationships with some real heart behind them. Don't you agree Ken? 

Bless you crazy Ken. You won't be forgotten. 

THE RATING: A