Steven Bowditch recalls an indelible memory from his youth, when he saw Spike Milligan perform in The Bed-Sitting Room at a London theatre in 1963. As a 16-year-old on a church youth club trip, Bowditch and his group were placed in a box next to the stage due to double-selling of tickets.
During the performance, Milligan climbed up the outside of the box and peered over, shouting: “There will come a time when all those in the box will sit at the back of the theatre and all those at the back will have the best seats!” He then added: “You’re not on complimentaries, are you?”
On the way home, the coach driver stopped to see why scores of people were on otherwise empty streets buying the late-night final. The date was 22 November 1963, and the headlines were about the assassination of John F Kennedy. Bowditch notes that some memories never leave you.
