The Greedy Bastard Diary: A Comic Tour of America

An edited and improved version of a blog for his website in the mid 2000s, while on the road on a tour of North America and Canada. I read it expecting to be amused - and was; I didn't expect to be moved quite so much. Written in his early 60s, he was clearly besotted with his wife, absolutely doted on his young daughter, who he missed a lot and enjoyed being a stand up comedian for the first time and playing in front of an audience with his small group of performers.

Many descriptions of traveling, the towns and cities he played but quite often his blog would meander off into other areas. Some (having a good time with a famous friend) seemed a bit like name dropping and "whoo look at me with my famous mates" but he writes movingly and show more in detail about his friendship with George Harrison (a real bromance, if ever there was one), when Harrison and his wife were nearly killed in a break in at home by a madman, his death, and how he has grown tired of losing friends. Perhaps most movingly was the ending, when he writes of being back home, the delight of his daughter waking up to find him there and how happy he was to be home with family and dogs.

It's the kind of book you can pick up and read anytime; the chapters are generally short, relating to each tour date. As a bonus there's also a chapter at the end on the genesis of Spamalot - how it came about, the response from the other Pythons, etc.

Idle (unsurprisingly) writes very well, despite by his own admission never having been able to keep a diary for long. I was fortunate to pick this up for very little in a charity bookshop in 2018 but I think I'd have been more than happy to buy when it came out in 2005, if I'd known of its existence back then. show less

Funny but raunchy (what did you expect?) on-the-road diary of Eric Idle's 2005 cross-country "Greedy Bastard Tour".

As might be expected, many of the reflections in the diary involve the Monty Python crew and their work. Less expected, and actually quite affecting, are stories about his childhood, his eventual reconciliation with his mother, and his friendships with performers like Robin Williams and George Harrison.

Worth the read.

I haven't seen much Monty Python, but that didn't prevent me from loving The Greedy Bastard Diary. Eric Idle is hilarious, whether he's describing time on the tour bus or a wonderful weekend with George Harrison. Idle eloquently and memorably describes cities throughout the U.S. and Canada, and you get a real sense of the local flavor. Reading this book makes me sad that I missed this tour -- from the quotes and songs interspersed here and there, it sounds like a winner. A great read for Python fans, or those that like a good joke.

If you're looking for the backstory of the creative process of the tv show and the movies, this isn't the book. This is Eric's road trip book and along the way, you get a look at his early life and several of his great friendships. It's a good read if you're already somewhat familiar with the Python scene.

Funny in parts but realistically, the title is not all that ironic, even if it is meant to be. Comes across as a cynical gimmick of a book, which even though written with feeling, seems like it was done just to fill out a marketing plan.

Very funny book, with lots of inside info on
Monty Python and the Beatles.