Only When I Larf - Misplaced Pages

1968 comic thriller by Len Deighton

Only When I Larf
First edition cover
Author	Len Deighton
Language	English
Genre	Comic thriller novel
Publisher	Sphere Books
Publication date	1968
Publication place	United Kingdom
Media type	Print (Paperback)
ISBN	0-7221-2986-6
OCLC	255886426

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.

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, was released in 1968 starring Richard Attenborough as Silas, David Hemmings as Bob and Alexandra Stewart as Liz and has been well reviewed.

References

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

Works by Len Deighton

"Unnamed hero" novels

Bernard Samson novels

Berlin Game (1983)
Mexico Set (1984)
London Match (1985)
Winter (1987)
Spy Hook (1988)
Spy Line (1989)
Spy Sinker (1990)
Faith (1994)
Hope (1995)
Charity (1996)

Other novels

Only When I Larf (1968)
Bomber (1970)
SS-GB (1978)
XPD (1981)
Goodbye, Mickey Mouse (1982)
MAMista (1991)

Non-fiction

Len Deighton's Action Cook Book (1965)
Len Deighton's London Dossier (1967)
Fighter: The True Story of the Battle of Britain (1977)
Blitzkrieg: From the Rise of Hitler to the Fall of Dunkirk (1979)
Blood, Tears and Folly (1993)

Screenplay

Oh! What a Lovely War (1969)

Adaptations

Harry Palmer	The Ipcress File (1965) Funeral in Berlin (1966) Billion Dollar Brain (1967) Bullet to Beijing (1995) Midnight in Saint Petersburg (1996) The Ipcress File (2022)
Other	Only When I Larf (1968) Spy Story (1976) Game, Set and Match (1988) SS-GB (2017)

v t e Films directed by Basil Dearden
The Black Sheep of Whitehall (1942) The Goose Steps Out (1942) The Bells Go Down (1943) My Learned Friend (1943) The Halfway House (1944) They Came to a City (1944) Dead of Night (1945) The Captive Heart (1946) Frieda (1947) Saraband for Dead Lovers (1948) Train of Events (1949) The Blue Lamp (1950) Cage of Gold (1950) Pool of London (1951) I Believe in You (1952) The Gentle Gunman (1952) The Square Ring (1953) The Rainbow Jacket (1954) Out of the Clouds (1955) The Ship That Died of Shame (1955) Who Done It? (1956) The Green Man (1956) The Smallest Show on Earth (1957) Violent Playground (1958) Sapphire (1959) The League of Gentlemen (1960) Man in the Moon (1960) The Secret Partner (1961) Victim (1961) All Night Long (1962) Life for Ruth (1962) The Mind Benders (1963) A Place to Go (1963) Woman of Straw (1964) Masquerade (1965) Khartoum (1966) Only When I Larf (1968) The Assassination Bureau (1969) The Man Who Haunted Himself (1970)

Films directed by Basil Dearden

The Black Sheep of Whitehall (1942)
The Goose Steps Out (1942)
The Bells Go Down (1943)
My Learned Friend (1943)
The Halfway House (1944)
They Came to a City (1944)
Dead of Night (1945)
The Captive Heart (1946)
Frieda (1947)
Saraband for Dead Lovers (1948)
Train of Events (1949)
The Blue Lamp (1950)
Cage of Gold (1950)
Pool of London (1951)
I Believe in You (1952)
The Gentle Gunman (1952)
The Square Ring (1953)
The Rainbow Jacket (1954)
Out of the Clouds (1955)
The Ship That Died of Shame (1955)
Who Done It? (1956)
The Green Man (1956)
The Smallest Show on Earth (1957)
Violent Playground (1958)
Sapphire (1959)
The League of Gentlemen (1960)
Man in the Moon (1960)
The Secret Partner (1961)
Victim (1961)
All Night Long (1962)
Life for Ruth (1962)
The Mind Benders (1963)
A Place to Go (1963)
Woman of Straw (1964)
Masquerade (1965)
Khartoum (1966)
Only When I Larf (1968)
The Assassination Bureau (1969)
The Man Who Haunted Himself (1970)

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