The Complete Talking Heads

Bennett's character sketches in Talking Heads are devastating. The grown man whose safe little existence begins to unravel as he discovers his dear old mum has taken a lover, the vigilent, upright busybody who ends up in prison for invading her neighbor's privacy, the widow of "Soldiering On" whose emptiness of purpose is revealed through her inability to grieve--each uncomprehending character Bennett has created in these astonishing soliloquies is undone by his or her brave and steadfast unwillingness to acknowledge the bare-knuckled truth of human emotion.

Bennett is not cruel in revealing the weaknesses of his characters, but he is uncompromising in revealing those weaknesses. This is the Teddy Bear who brings to the picnic the sharp knives that cut through the bread and fat prepared and packaged by his companions.

Also recommended are Bennett's Writing Home, The Clothes They Stood Up In, and any and all of his other plays, particularly The Old Country; and, for those who just must have the soft and fuzzy version of the Teddy Bear, listen to Bennett's reading of Winnie the Pooh, or go see his stageplay of The Wind in the Willows.


I thought the story was....   November 16, 2000
coolio (Hawaai)
5 out of 71 found this review helpful

Honestly I thought the story was quite dull he tells us about the dull part of their lives, I'm surprised I didn't sleep reading it. It's the worst book I've ever read. You probably won't put this on display on the computer, but you asked what I thought of it and I told you the truth, I'm sure many others agree with me that the story was boring. . Thankyou


talking heads   February 3, 2000
tiffanny (england)
9 out of 19 found this review helpful

I have been studying Alan Bennett and like many others find it highly amusing. It works remarkably well as a television series and not just on the page. The personalisation and connection to the viewer draws you in and makes it appear that each character is actually talking to you. Excellent work


These people are everywhere   May 7, 1999
26 out of 29 found this review helpful

I suppose I am a bit biased because I grew up in the same town as Alan Bennett (Leeds, Yorkshire) but this book is truly remarkable. The characters are a mixture of people we all know. A chip in the sugar is the man who lives down the street, A lady of Letters is always in the post office (usually in front of me !). All these people exist, what Alan Bennett does is drag them out of their lives and our heads and put them there in front of us. We may read about them and dismiss them as characters in fiction but they all exist and in most cases there's bits of them inside each of us. Thanks Alan Bennett for entertaining us and teaching us at the same time.


British Genius   July 23, 1998
19 out of 21 found this review helpful

I can't believe I'm the first person to review this masterpiece! Maybe it's because Bennett seems so very British, English even, that he's not appealled to American readers. I'm sure you're missing something worth having.

Bennett is a masterful observer of character and the six monologues gathered in this collection all display strong characters revealled with a sharp eye and a compassionate heart. Bennett is witty and controlled in his approach, allowing his characters to reveal themselves and their foibles subtley. I find these little tales deeply moving as well as funny, despite the apparently mundane subjects he's dealing with.

I can't think of a comparison to make to illuminate his style, especially since monologue is very rarely seen these days. I can see an affinity to A. Maupin and R.Rodi in terms of waspish observations of people and their social milieu. Bennett's characters aren't blatantly queer like Maupin's or Rodi's, they're not young and tre! ndy things either, but Bennet's own sensibilites and sensitivities give queer readers pause for thought, especially about the older, isolated members of society.

He takes us right inside the heads of six very ordinary people and lays bare their lives, their self-delusions and their petty snobberies in their own words. The texts were originally written as television plays and were broadcast on the radio by the BBC too, however, they work perfectly well on the page, rather like short stories. Why not try it and see for yourselves!