Mathew Lyons

A rare combination of humour and pathos: the sublimely talented Neil Innes

The musician and parodist, whose mantra was ‘not to say no when there’s a way to say yes’, had a gift for creating happiness in private as well as public, as his widow poignantly attests

Neil Innes in 1970. [Getty Images] 
issue 07 December 2024

Fans of that beloved British cultural institution Doctor Who are wont to talk about ‘their’ doctor – that is, which iteration of the character was their entry point to the franchise. The same might be said of fans of Neil Innes, the much loved songwriter, musician and comedian who died in 2019, aged 75.

Creating happiness seems to have been one of Innes’s gifts, in public as well as private

In the 1960s, Innes was a key member of the exhilaratingly unpredictable Bonzo Dog Band, whose blend of verbal, musical and visual humour remains matchless in its absurdity, breadth and daring.

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