Only When I Larf

Len Deighton's Only When I Larf is a 1968 British comic thriller describing the activities of a team of three confidence tricksters led by Silas Lowther (late 40s), his girlfriend Liz Mason (late 20s) and wannabe apprentice and Liz-worshipper Bob (early 20s). It was published in 1968 by Michael Joseph and in paperback by Sphere. It is currently (2012) printed by Harper in the UK.

Only When I Larf
First edition cover
AuthorLen Deighton
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
GenreComic thriller novel
PublisherSphere Books
Publication date
1968
Media typePrint (Paperback)
ISBN0-7221-2986-6
OCLC255886426

The novel interleaves first-person narratives from Bob (76 pages in 7 chapters), Liz (78 pages in 6 chapters) and Silas (88 pages in 5 chapters). Their increasingly contradictory descriptions of shared experiences contribute to the humour. This unreliable narration adds to the atmosphere around deceiving "the marks". The title is explained in a variety of unlikely anecdotes where in each case a critically injured third party bravely replies this when asked "Does it hurt?"

Adaptations

A film adaptation of Only When I Larf, directed by Basil Dearden,[1] was released in 1968 starring Richard Attenborough as Silas, David Hemmings as Bob and Alexandra Stewart as Liz and has been well reviewed.[2][3][4]

References
  1. "Only When I Larf". Variety. 31 December 1967. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  2. Channel4.com
  3. Vincent Canby. The New York Times. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  4. Variety. Retrieved 28 April 2013.


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