Does God laugh out loud?
The comedian-turned-priest younger son of entertainer Jimmy Cricket has had a book published about God and humour.
Frankie Mulgrew, whose stage name was Frankie Doodle, compiled and edited Does God LOL? (LOL is internet slang for Laugh Out Loud), which went on sale recently.
Ken Dodd, Ricky Tomlinson, Tim Vine, Jo Brand, Milton Jones and the late Frank Carson are among the famous showbiz names to have contributed to the book, which is priced at £7.99 (and is available at all good bookshops and websites, including Amazon).
The foreword was written by top theologian Tom Wright and there are cartoons from Dave Walker, Simone Lia, Mike Kazybrid and Robert Duncan.
All proceeds from sales of the book will go towards the charity Mary’s Meals, an organisation which supports school feeding projects in some of the world’s poorest communities where hunger and poverty prevent children from gaining an education.
Fr Frankie (above right), who was ordained a Roman Catholic priest at Salford Cathedral last month, dedicated the book to his dad – “for introducing me to one of God’s greatest gifts” – when he celebrated his first Mass, and presented him with a special copy.
Does God LOL? develops a theme around whether the Almighty has a sense of humour, with an impressive array of well-known comedians, actors and performers – including Jimmy Cricket as well of course – all giving it some serious thought.
The book is published by Darton, Longman & Todd.
* Does God LOL? is clearly in demand: The popular Amazon website reported on 4 August that it had “only nine [copies] left in stock (more on the way)”, though there appears to be good availability again now (as of 11 August) – and it is currently available at just £5.99.