The 82-year-old musician Ted Milton has been making waves in London's post-punk scene with his band Blurt and latest album with duo the Odes, defying expectations at nearly three quarters of a century old.
Ted Milton's early life was marked by an unstable home environment. His parents moved to West Africa when he was 11 years old, leaving him to attend boarding school where he found solace in music through his Dansette record player featuring Elvis and Carl Perkins. To cope with the emotional turmoil at home, Milton turned to art studies and jazz scenes in Cambridge before eventually falling into London's bohemian crowd.
A chance encounter at a festival allowed Milton to meet poet Pete Brown who encouraged him to explore poetry as well. His writing even made it into The Paris Review in 1963. Milton has often stated that he invoked the persona of struggling poet simply to get free drinks from strangers.
The musician's path eventually led him into puppetry, an area he would become renowned for with Tony Wilson featuring his puppetry on So It Goes TV show in 1976 which caught the attention of Graham Lewis of post-punk band Wire. A connection that paved way for Blurt being featured on Wilson's Factory Records label and for Milton to form a bond with his son George, who has now directed a new film The Last Puppet Show, centered around his father's work and their complex relationship.
Milton attributes the power behind his performances back to what he calls charisma - "a form of psychosis." He points to Alice Miller's book The Drama of the Gifted Child for understanding how children are often forced into suppressing themselves. Since Milton is no longer in that state, he now views himself as having more control over his actions.
With a long history marked by touring and performing all around Europe with Blurt and various other collaborations, Milton seems to still be going strong at 82 years old while not taking anything for granted anymore.
Ted Milton's early life was marked by an unstable home environment. His parents moved to West Africa when he was 11 years old, leaving him to attend boarding school where he found solace in music through his Dansette record player featuring Elvis and Carl Perkins. To cope with the emotional turmoil at home, Milton turned to art studies and jazz scenes in Cambridge before eventually falling into London's bohemian crowd.
A chance encounter at a festival allowed Milton to meet poet Pete Brown who encouraged him to explore poetry as well. His writing even made it into The Paris Review in 1963. Milton has often stated that he invoked the persona of struggling poet simply to get free drinks from strangers.
The musician's path eventually led him into puppetry, an area he would become renowned for with Tony Wilson featuring his puppetry on So It Goes TV show in 1976 which caught the attention of Graham Lewis of post-punk band Wire. A connection that paved way for Blurt being featured on Wilson's Factory Records label and for Milton to form a bond with his son George, who has now directed a new film The Last Puppet Show, centered around his father's work and their complex relationship.
Milton attributes the power behind his performances back to what he calls charisma - "a form of psychosis." He points to Alice Miller's book The Drama of the Gifted Child for understanding how children are often forced into suppressing themselves. Since Milton is no longer in that state, he now views himself as having more control over his actions.
With a long history marked by touring and performing all around Europe with Blurt and various other collaborations, Milton seems to still be going strong at 82 years old while not taking anything for granted anymore.
he's like a rockstar or something! i mean i feel for him tho, his childhood was super rough and stuff. but honestly its amazing that he found music as an escape from all the drama at home. and wow how did he even get into puppetry?? it sounds so cool!! i love that he credits charisma as the reason behind his performances, like mental health or something... anyway gotta say im loving this story about ted milton, totally inspires me to keep doing what i do 
meanwhile i'm over here thinking about the puppetry connections and it seems like that whole thing is just a cover for something deeper, you know? like what if its not just about the art but also about keeping secrets and manipulating people's perceptions 
! I love how he turned his unstable childhood into fuel for his creativity - that's some deep stuff right there 
. And wow, the fact that he's working with his son on a new film project? That's some beautiful bonding time 
. It just goes to show you're never too old to chase your passions and make a name for yourself 
. I'm totally in awe of this man's determination and charisma 
- keep doing you, Ted!
. He's like a true rockstar, defying age expectations and still bringing the heat to London's post-punk scene 
. It's also really cool to see how his experiences influenced him to try out different creative pursuits like puppetry 
. And can we talk about how he's still got charisma for days? 
His story is like something out of a film – from puppetry to So It Goes TV show, and now even his son's directing a movie about him 
. What I love most though is how he's found this newfound confidence at 82, crediting "charisma" for his power on stage. 
Yeah, let's give it up for Ted Milton – the ultimate Renaissance man! 
and now he's still making waves in london's post-punk scene 
gotta respect his charisma 
maybe it's the psychosis but whatever works for him 
anyway, cant wait to check out his latest album with the odes 
. It's amazing how he turned that pain into creativity and went on to achieve so much at such an old age 
. I think it just goes to show that life doesn't have to be defined by our past experiences – we can always find new ways to channel ourselves positively 
. And let's be honest, who wouldn't want a dad like Ted Milton? 
I'm kinda fascinated how Ted Milton's past struggles led him to find solace in art & music 
... does anyone else think that's a pretty cool way to turn emotional turmoil into something positive? 
. And let's be real, 82 years old and still performing? That's what I call dedication 
! Some people might say he's just trying to get free drinks from strangers by calling himself a poet, but I think that's part of his charm 
but also can't help but feel a bit bad for him, all that emotional turmoil from his childhood & then havin' to grow up with it 
maybe that's the key to his 'charisma' tho? like how some ppl are just wired differently & you gotta respect that 
anyway, he's still killin' it in the post-punk scene, props to him for stayin' true to himself and all 
at nearly THREE. QUARTERS. OF. A. CENTURY old! 
. Anyways, just thinking about how Ted Milton's life is like one epic rollercoaster ride from Dansette record players to So It Goes TV show puppetry 
...
. and now he's inspiring his son george with his new film 
... i love how milton says charisma is like a form of psychosis lol what even is that?! 
.
I think its pretty awesome that Ted Milton is killing it in the post-punk scene 
i'm literally dying over here 
i also found out that he started doing puppetry and his son george directed a movie about him 
it's so cool to see how he's still performing and touring around europe at 82! charisma is def a key to his performances according to him 
but honestly i think it's just because he's lived through so much and learned from his experiences 
at 82? that's some kinda superhuman