Comedy genius Spike Milligan dies at 83

london: spike milligan, the man who is credited with spawning a whole new generation of comic writers and comedy shows and became famous around the world for his ironic witticisms, has died at the age of 83. milligan, who became a celebrity comic alongwith his fellow funnies peter sellers, michael bentine and harry secombe for the goon show, was equally wellknown for his string of quotable quotes."money couldn''t buy you friends, but you get a better class of enemy," milligan once deadpanned with the sort of snobby disdain that could only come from a working class lad born in the shadow of the british raj. milligan’s friends and colleagues said that milligan did not often speak of it, but his early experience of british "naboblike behaviour" and "solar-topi arrogance" in india may have first set him laughing. the man who was later to reinvent british humour to fit a modern, less deferential age, minus the empire, was born to a british army soldier who served in india till he retired. milligan received much of his early education at indian and burmese schools. milligan''s oneliners have become something of an industry, constantly recycled and reproduced, not least by his army of devoted fans, which includes prince charles whom he once called "a grovelling little bastard". but even as the prince said he was saddened to hear of milligan’s death, many insisted the comic writer must be given the last word, in line with his humourous challenge to death: "i don''t mind dying. i just don''t want to be there when it happens". perhaps he was, said his fans, and he died laughing.