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Topic: The Great McGonagall

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	BBC - h2g2 - William McGonagall: The World's Worst Poet
		William Topaz McGonagall was born of rather poor Irish parents in Edinburgh, Scotland, in March 1825.
		McGonagall lovers will have instantly recognised the phrase "most wonderful to be seen", for, like the epic writers of yore, McGonagall used certain phrases and couplets with great regularity.
		McGonagall always yearned to become Poet Laureate, and, upon the death of Alfred, Lord Tennyson he actually walked all the way to Balmoral Castle to ask Queen Victoria for the title.
	www.bbc.co.uk /dna/h2g2/A278732 (854 words)

	Bard of the Silv'ry Tay \| Review \| Guardian Unlimited Books
		McGonagall was a prototypical performance poet, his fame depending as much on a talent for theatrical oratory as on his tuppenny pamphlets.
		McGonagall could not have kept such rhythm going for the length of a couplet, never mind the skilful nine-line verses of this poem, nor was he capable of so neatly combining the charms of girl and town.
		McGonagall died in Edinburgh on September 29, 1902, having completed a poem for the coronation of Victoria's heir, Edward VII - "The Coronation ceremony was really very grand, / There were countesses present, and duchesses from many a foreign land" - and was buried in a pauper's grave.
	books.guardian.co.uk /review/story/0,,1690068,00.html (2765 words)

	Fans of Rowling.com: Reflections: Lily's Story (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-16)
		McGonagall paused for a moment, debating, "And Mr Black" she added, and walked through the great hall towards a small hallway in the back.
		Professor McGonagall, as bad as she felt, was watching the scene with interest.
		James was holding himself together also, which worried McGonagall, because she knew that when they finally did grieve it would be for longer and more painful than the other two.
	www.fans-of-rowling.com /lschapter7.html (1226 words)

	McGonagall Online
		McGonagall left us several accounts of his eventful life, all of which are presented here.
		McGonagall's works remain in print long after many of his more skillful contemporaries have been consigned to history.
		I certify that William McGonagall has for some time been known to me. I have heard him speak, he has a strong proclivity for the elocutionary department, a strong voice, and great enthusiasm.
	www.mcgonagall-online.org.uk (325 words)

	McGonagall
		According to "The Autobiography of Sir William Topaz McGonagall, Poet and Tragedian, Knight of the White Elephant Burmah," the bard was lucky recipient of the "divine inspiration".
		While readers in McGonagall's original audience might have seen the poem as a reflection of the poet's utter stupidity, reading it no doubt with a just a hint of sarcasm, it is important for us to recognize how cleverly the sarcasm has been "smuggled" to readers by a more intelligent author.
		But for the Great McGonagall the difference was that his disguise was not a costume that could be simply removed after the show: he had to live with it.
	www.geocities.com /williamtopazmcgonagall (4018 words)

	mcgonagall
		McGonagall had all the qualifications to be a great poet –; except for the talent.
		McGonagall is a genuine archetype: the fool who has a touching but totally unfounded faith in his own genius.
		McGonagall was indisputably Scotland’s first Dadaist: he drew out from all levels of the population their essential mistrust of poetry, and crystallised this philistinism in his totally anarchic performances.
	www.xen19.dial.pipex.com /mcgonagall.htm (1496 words)

	Dad's Army Memorabillia - LP Records - John Laurie as The Great McGonagall
		The Great McGonagall" is the most commonly found of his many albums.
		McGonagall has been derided for his attempts, especially by the English.
		McGonagall first came to John in the days when he used to recite poetry for the famous Apollo Society.
	home.btconnect.com /howejam/dadsarmy/discography/33_greatmcgonagal.htm (425 words)

	McGonagall Bibliography
		The Great McGonagall: Poetical Pearls from the pen of William McGonagall.
		McGonagall, Poet and Tragedian, with Biographical Sketch and Reminiscences by the Author and Portrait Dundee: Winter, 1976.
		The Great McGonagall: Poetical Pearls from the Pen of William McGonagall, Poet and Tragedian of Dundee.
	www.geocities.com /williamtopazmcgonagall/bibliography.htm (502 words)

	The Great McGonagall (William Topaz McGonagall): Scotland's Worst Poet. Brigadoonery Canada, by Neil Harding McAlister ...
		Given the abysmal quality of McGonagall’s work (of which this examples is, unfortunately, entirely representative) it seems scarcely credible that more than two hundred of his dreadful compositions found their way into print during the perpetrator’s lifetime!
		McGonagall did achieve a degree of local renown around Dundee as a thespian, chewing up the scenery in the role of Macbeth, and appearing in other Shakespearean tragedies.
		Contemporary newspapers described how the “poet” (their quotation marks, not mine!) was greeted with hoots of derision and showers of missiles including eggs, herrings, rotten potatoes and chunks of stale bread when he appeared for a reading at a circus in Paisley, Scotland.
	www.durham.net /~neilmac/great.htm (1384 words)

	William Topaz McGonagall - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		McGonagall has been widely acclaimed as the worst poet in British history.
		The memory of McGonagall was resurrected by comedian Spike Milligan.
		The Real McGonagall gives a different interpretation of McGonagall's work, suggesting he was a deliberate satirist.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/William_Topaz_McGonagall (989 words)

	HPL: Quotes by and about Minerva McGonagall
		Professor McGonagall gave him a piercing look, but he was sure she had almost smiled.
		Professor McGonagall was still staring at him, and for a moment, Harry thought she was going to explode, but when she spoke, it was in a strangely croaky voice.
		Professor McGonagall looked suspiciously at him, as though she thought he was trying to be funny.
	www.hp-lexicon.org /wizards/mcgonagallsez.html (7668 words)

	William McGonagall Life Stories, Books, & Links
		On this day in 1902 William McGonagall, poet and tragedian of Dundee, died.
		McGonagall was a middle-aged weaver when he heard his muse; today he is a cult figure, his many collections of poetry translated into over a dozen languages and selling well to those wishing to investigate a reputation for "the worst poetry ever written, in any language, at any time."
		He was a man without talent who thought he was a great poet and tragedian and only needed an opportunity to prove it.
	todayinliterature.com /biography/william.mcgonagall.asp (526 words)

	Harry Potter and the Idolatry of Yore
		McGonagall was sitting at the round table in the middle of the Great Hall where she and Harry had eaten dinner.
		McGonagall escorted Harry into the Great Hall, which was decorated with spectacular flare.
		McGonagall took Harry straight to the Gryffindor table, which had been arrayed with a burgundy satin tablecloth and a brilliant gold table runner along the middle; large flower arrangements with dozens of vibrant burgundy roses were placed along the table.
	www.dprophet.com /iofy/chap5pg2.html (1259 words)

	Inadvertent Doggerel
		Included are examples from the pen of the heroic William McGonagall, together with a couple of blunders from a lesser Poet Laureate (Alfred Austin), and even something awkward from the great Francis Thompson.
		McGonagall, Poet and Tragedian”, but history knows him better as “the world’s worst poet”, or at least as Punch once put it, “the greatest Bad Verse writer of his age”.
		As all-conquering as he was at bad poetry, however, McGonagall was not exactly alone during his lifetime, for the Victorian era seems to have been peculiarly prone to fits of unconscious bad verse composition.
	www.bikwil.com /Vintage05/Inadvertent-Doggerel.html (1494 words)

	BBC - h2g2 - William McGonagall - Poet
		Dundee City Council, in claiming McGonagall as a favourite son, describes him as the World's Best Bad Poet, and it is hard to disagree.
		Although followers of McGonagall all have their favourite poems, the first two stanzas, from his ode The Ancient Town of Leith is a wonderful example of his indifference to practically everything but rhyme:
		The poetry of McGonagall is still in print today, not just in English but also in Russian, Japanese, Thai, Bulgarian, Romanian and Chinese, among others.
	www.bbc.co.uk /h2g2/guide/A416341 (973 words)

	[minstrels] Grand Rapids Cricket Club -- Julia A. Moore
		Brave Kelso, he's considered great, Chief of the club he is found; Great crowds he draws to see him bowl The ball upon the ground.
		Follet is very brave, A lighter player than the rest, He got struck severe at the fair ground For which he took a rest.
		Dennis does well play, His courage is full great, And accidents to him occur, But not much, though, of late.
	www.cs.rice.edu /~ssiyer/minstrels/poems/948.html (598 words)

	Actors - William Topaz McGonagall
		William Topaz McGonagall (1825 – 29 September, 1902) was a Scottish weaver, actor, and poet.
		Although the play ended with Macbeth's death at the hands of Macduff, McGonagall believed that the actor playing Macduff was trying to upstage him, and so refused to die (see http://www.scotlandmag.com/issue/5/scottish_poets/169).
		Dundee held a McGonagall Supper on 12 June, 1997.
	listing-index.ebay.com /actors/William_Topaz_McGonagall.html (795 words)

	The triumph of self-esteem over excellence \| csmonitor.com (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-16)
		Widely considered to be the worst poet in the English language, McGonagall (1830-1902) was so bad that he would regularly be hired to perform for audiences wishing to derive entertainment at his expense rather than from his talents.
		Still, skepticism is only natural, as the quality of McGonagall's works stagger the imagination, and his writing technique tests any reader's ability to wrestle the words into a recognizable meter.
		McGonagall reached for greatness, in his art as well as in his personal status, and fell so spectacularly short in both that he has become a legend.
	www.csmonitor.com /2005/0921/p25s01-stct.html (942 words)

	William Topaz McGonagall, the Dundee Bard or the world's best bad poet
		William Topaz McGonagall was born in Edinburgh to poor Irish parents, in March 1825.
		The passing of the great poet and tragedian was marked by the following obituary following his death on the 29th September 1902.
		Milligan also appeared as a fictionalized William McGonagall in the 1974 movie The Great McGonagall, in which Peter Sellers co-starred as Queen Victoria.
	www.historic-uk.com /HistoryUK/Scotland-History/WilliamMcGonagall.htm (1968 words)

	Spike Milligan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		It was based on the Russian classic by Ivan Goncharov, and gave Milligan the opportunity to play most of the title role in bed.
		Unsure of his material, on the opening night he improvised a great deal, treating the audience as part of the plot almost, and he continued in this manner for the rest of the run, and on tour as 'Son Of Oblomov'.
		The Great McGonagall, untalented Scottish poet (based on William Topaz McGonagall) angles to become laureate, with Peter Sellers as Queen Victoria.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Spike_Milligan (2734 words)

	Movie Info for The Great McGonagall on MSN Movies
		That matchless British farceur Spike Milligan stars in The Great McGonagall.
		McGonagall might have a better chance of accomplishing this if he had any talent, but he is hilariously inept.
		The plot is abandoned somewhere in the middle of the film in favor of a series of virtually unrelated comic episodes.
	entertainment.msn.com /movies/movie.aspx?m=109620 (113 words)

	Oh the Vanity.
		Writers who are personally driven to show the world their masterpiece - whether it wants to see it or not.
		For these authors, the endeavour that went into their tome was so great nothing can better it.
		When it comes to their own work, like the Great McGonagall, a few can see no fault in it and are determined to get it into print at all costs.
	www.sfcrowsnest.com /sfnews/newsj1101.htm (1557 words)

	LIBERTAS » Blog Archive » The Great Raid Tanks
		Not that it was surprising, but The Great Raid tanked this past weekend at the box-office, finishing in 10th place and grossing only $3.4 million.
		My perception is that the title “The Great [insert your word here]” is too clichéd to elicit much interest from a potential audience.
		I was also puzzled that the ads on TV for it only came out just a week or two before the movie’s release.
	www.libertyfilmfestival.com /libertas/index.php?p=789 (2185 words)

	Haverford College Mediocrity Club (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-16)
		The club now boasts a mailing list of nearly 30 once-lost souls, and its events so far have included a mediocre tennis tournament and a slightly less mediocre (yet still mediocre in its own right) photo essay.
		(Great Britain, December 1998) The Mediocrity Club has achieved international fame, being interviewed on BBC Radio 4 in the most mediocre radio segment ever produced - hear it!
		The William McGonagall Home Page, dedicated to the worst poet in the history of mankind, is a site not to be missed by true connoisseurs of mediocrity.
	astrosun.tn.cornell.edu /~droth/mediocrity2.html (259 words)

	The Great McGonagall Film Review - Time Out Film
		Revue-type sketches inspired by the life of William McGonagall, the 19th century Scot and self-styled poet who wrote verse not unlike Milligan.
		The Goonery between Sellers (as Queen Victoria) and Milligan (as McGonagall) comes off, but elsewhere the humour is forced andthe social/political comment embarrassingly exposed.
		With its musical hall setting, it looks like some tiresome theatrical junket brought out in the wake of the departing Lord Chamberlain, crammed full of previously vetoed references to the Royal Family.
	www.timeout.com /film/70525.html (143 words)

	The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest
		Since 1982 the English Department at San Jose State University has sponsored the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest, a whimsical literary competition that challenges entrants to compose the opening sentence to the worst of all possible novels.
		No less impressively, Lytton coined phrases that have become common parlance in our language: "the pen is mightier than the sword," "the great unwashed," and "the almighty dollar" (the latter from The Coming Race, now available from the Broadview Press).
		Conscripted numerous times to be a judge in writing contests that were, in effect, bad writing contests but with prolix, overlong, and generally lengthy submissions, he struck upon the idea of holding a competition that would be honest and -- best of all -- invite brief entries.
	www.bulwer-lytton.com (1185 words)

	The Great McGonagall (1974) (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-16)
		A fine supporting performance by Peter Sellers and sporadic gratuitous female nudity (while appreciated) are insufficient to save this from being an albeit quirky and unique but simultaneously mediocre and repetitive low budget comedy.
		As an aside, the video copy of this film that I purchased features a full cover picture of Peter Sellers and in the short synopsis on the reverse states that Sellers stars as The Great McGonagall.
		For the benefit of those of you who have yet to see the film, this is entirely incorrect.
	www.imdb.com /title/tt0071579 (445 words)

	peter sellers \| biography (1925-80)
		When commercial cinema was breaking down in the late fifties, it adopted many novelties in a frenzied search for security.
		He was, beyond argument, a brilliant radio comedian, capable of inventing vivid fantasy characters with his great flair as a mimic.
		But there was no firmer grip on a character for himself, and the films got worse:
	www.leninimports.com /peter_sellers.html (611 words)

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