Tim Curry, RIP

I’ve never seen The Rocky Horror Show (on stage or on screen) but I did see Tim Curry - the original Dr Frank-N-Furter - in the musical Spamalot in 2005.

I was in New York and Spamalot was a hot ticket - so hot that it was officially sold out and I had to pay the concierge at my hotel rather more than the advertised price to see the show.

I think I paid around $100 (which would be $176, or £150, today) but that’s cheap compared to some West End/Broadway shows in 2026. I didn’t regret it though because it was enormous fun and the American audience loved it so much it made me proud to be British.

Co-written by Eric Idle and based loosely on Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Spamalot was essentially a series of sketches (and songs) but it was performed with so much brio it was impossible to resist the waves of laughter that echoed around the packed auditorium.

My understanding is that the other Pythons (Cleese, Palin, Jones et al) were sceptical about the project but came round to the idea when the largely positive reviews (and royalties!) started to come in!

The show ran from 2005 to 2009 in New York, with a concurrent London production opening in 2006. The latter also ran until 2009 and Curry, who died this week, starred in both productions, playing the role of King Arthur. I have a vague recollection of going to see the London production as well, but it’s the New York show I remember because, apart from Curry (who received a Tony nomination), the NY production also featured David Hyde Pierce (aka Niles Crane in Frasier) who arguably stole the show.

As for Curry, I’ve been reading the reports of his death (and the obituaries) and it’s impossible not to warm to him as both a person and an actor. As well as starring in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, he also appeared in many other movies including The Hunt for Red October, Home Alone 2, and Muppet Treasure Island. The BBC also reports that:

His performance in 2008 video game Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 found him fame with a new generation of fans online.

As Soviet Premier Anatoly Cherdenko, Curry's bombastic delivery of one line, and his apparent efforts to stifle a giggle as he said it, became a legendary meme online: "I'm going to escape, to the one place that hasn't been corrupted by capitalism... space!"

The report adds that ‘One clip of the moment [posted below] has more than 10 million views on YouTube, and has been endlessly shared across social media’.

See: Rocky Horror star Tim Curry dies at 80 (BBC News)”

Update: To give me something to read over the weekend I’ve just purchased Vagabond, the ‘riotously funny new memoir from the actor, rock 'n' roll singer and star of the Rocky Horror Picture Show’ published last year.

Tim Curry never married, nor had children. He kept his personal life to himself which makes this clip - in which he finally confessed to his one great love - even more poignant. What a star.

Home page photo credit: Unsplash