The Complete Acid Drops

Book excerpt: This is Kenneth Williams' collection of his favourite barbed stories and malicious bon mots in an A to Z of unsurpassed cruelty, including cartoons by Graeme Garden and introduced by Gyles Brandreth who knew Williams for many years and is an executor of Williams' estate. Kenneth Williams is regarded as one of the great raconteurs and comedy actors of the century. His bestselling diaries, edited by Russell Davis, reveal a complex, deeply insecure character whose bitter, excoriating wit alienated just about everyone who crossed his path. The brilliantly crafted vitriol in his private diaries found life through his TV interviews and appearances on radio shows such as Just a Minute. These outbursts have made him synonymous with the wicked story and the caustic put down. Since his suicide in 1988, his popularity has grown. A two part Omnibus programme on his life appeared on ITV and a touring one man show of Williams' life has been playing to full houses for the last two years. Terry Johnson's play Cleo, Camping, Emanuelle and Dick, exploring Williams' relationship with Barbara Windsor and Sid James, ran to rave reviews and 'The Diaries' continue to sell.