his father had been an alcoholic, and farson himself had been a heavy drinker since his bohemian days in soho in the 1950s. in later years, the effects of alcoholism became more apparent. he knew he was dying of cancer in march 1997, when his self-deprecating autobiography, "never a normal man" (a phrase actually used to describe his father, not himself) was published. he was hungover when he appeared on the bbc radio 4 programme "midweek" to promote this book.