Two Pilgrims

Sometimes I am impressed by pieces of useless information. Like this............

Whilst doing some research for my football blog 'Sing Up The River End!', I had to look up some things about Plymouth Argyle. I discovered they have two famous people listed as supporters.

Michael Foot, the Labour politician who recently passed away, was a lifelong fan of the Pilgrims. The scrap of UI relating to this was the fact that as a present to him for his 90th birthday, the club registered Foot as a player with the Football League and issued him with the number 90 shirt. This made him officially the oldest registered professional player in the history of football. Nice story that.

Slightly more bizarre but equally impressive involves American World Heavyweight Champion boxer Evander Holyfield. In March 2008, on the British TV show Soccer AM, Holyfield was asked to pick one team from a hat (containing all 92 Premiership and Football League clubs) to determine which team he would support for the remainder of his life (as he didn't already follow a team). He picked out 'Plymouth Argyle', thereby making him a fan of the club!

Today Is Paloma Faith Day

I have decided to make today Paloma Faith Day. I cannot recall the last time the music of a new artist has left me quite as exhilarated. Thinking about it, probably my schoolboy days in the early seventies, as favourite acts released new singles and I waited for them expectedly. But Paloma is all about now as far as my music taste is concerned. It is too easy for anyone, and especially someone of my ripening years, to totally overlook current work. And far too many people quickly decide it 'all sounds the same'. Paloma is always being compared with her contemporaries. Which is altogether ridiculous. Because she is far far better than any other female performer for a long time. I have posted videos of all her singles to date. Watch them a few times. Listen to the lyrics. Enjoy the melancholy and the passion, mop up the mood. This lady is good.

Paloma Faith was born in Hackney, London in 1985. She co-writes most of her work. She is also an accomplished actress, having appeared on TV and the movie re-make of St. Trinians. If her early career is anything to go by she is going to be a superstar - and I have a feeling this girl is so talented she may even have a few choices to make as to where she concentrates her efforts. If her musical output can be maintained I say keep it coming kid.................it's absolutely brilliant.

Harry Carpenter

Harry Carpenter passed away earlier this week. He was known as 'the voice of boxing', having covered the sport for the BBC for over 30 years. However, it should not be forgotten that he was also heavily involved in Wimbledon, golf and the university boat race, as well as presenting Grandstand and Sportsnight.

I will remember Harry Carpenter for two reasons. He was around in the days when the BBC seriously covered British sport. And he was around in the days when boxing was watched by a large TV audience. We tuned in especially. For a sport that was, essentially, alien to the daily living habits of the nation. Not to listen or see Harry I hasten to add - his delivery style relied on his abilty to be ordinary, in the backgound, and yet authorititive at the same time. So when he did get excited - you knew the action was worth watching. Harry Carpenter was a great broadcaster - and a damn nice man.

Graham Paddon - RIP

Born : 24 August 1950 Manchester

Died : 19 November 2007 Norfolk

Norwich City, West Ham United, Coventry City.

The hardest left foot shot I ever saw.

Quiz Ball

I wonder how many people remember Quiz Ball. It was screened on BBC TV between 1966 and 1972, in the early evening, around 6.30 to 7.00 if my memory is correct. The original presenter (referee) was David Vine. Stuart Hall took over later. I thought Alan Weeks was also involved, though research does not bear this out. I have vivid recollections of watching this programme, and getting upset when the 'wrong team' won !! The format was pretty simple. Football clubs were represented by three players/officials plus a guest supporter. Each week was a new match with the winners going forward to the next round. There were four ways to score a goal : 1) answer four easy questions correctly 2) answer three medium questions 3) two difficult , or 4) one really hard one. The opposition could stop you by answering your question. If they were correct they gained possession of the ball. But if they were wrong............goal to the team whose question it was. No tackle could be made on a route 1 (hard) question. The electronic scoreboard (shown in picture behind David Vine) lit up to show which route was being taken, and every goal was greeted with immense jubilation.

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For the record, the Finals were as follows : 1966-1967 Arsenal 7 Dunfermline Athletic 3 1967-1968 Nottingham Forest 1 West Bromwich Albion 2 1969-1970 Celtic 3 Hearts 1 1970 (Champions Series) Celtic 7 Everton 5 1970-1971 Derby County 4 Crystal Palace 2 1971-1972 Dunfermline Athletic 3 Leicester City 1

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Guest supporters included Jimmy Young (Arsenal 1966 & 1967), Ted Moult (Nottingham Forest 1966 & 1967 when Ted scored 8 goals in 3 games including all five in the First Round victory over Celtic - little wonder he went on to get that lucrative double glazing ad contract!!), Tommy Trinder (Fulham 1967), John Arlott (Southampton 1966), Percy Thrower (West Bromwich Albion 1966), Brian Close (Leeds 1966), Sam Kydd (Chelsea 1966), Leonard Sachs (Sheff Weds in 1966 then, suspiciously, Leeds in 1970 - who did he really support?), Gordon Jackson (Dunfermline Ath 1966), Pete Murray (Fulham 1966), Brian Moore (Tottenham 1967), Sam Leitch (Leicester City 1967), Magnus Magnusson (Kilmarnock 1967), Harry Carpenter (Fulham 1967), Mike Smith (Coventry City 1967), Kenneth Cope (Everton 1967 - ghosting in at the far post no doubt), Alfie Bass (Crystal Palace 1967), James Bolam (Sunderland 1969), John Laurie (doomed to failure with Dundee in 1969 as they lost 3-1 to Arsenal), Lance Percival (Chelsea 1970), Ed Stewart (Everton 1970), Kenny Lynch (Manchester City 1970), Peter Cook (Tottenham 1970), Richard Wattis (Crystal Palace 1970), Nicholas Parsons (Leicester City 1971), Hugh Lloyd (Chelsea 1971), Roy Kinnear (Colchester 1971), Jimmy Logan (Dunfermline Ath 1971) and Jon Pertwee (Dunfermline Ath in the 1971 Final).

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Alex Ferguson played for Falkirk in 1970, scoring in the 1-0 win over Huddersfield. He found the net again in the semi final but lost 2-1 to Everton (Brian Labone 2)!! In 1969 Arsenal were represented by Bertie Mee, Bob Wilson and Terry Neill, Ian Ure appeared in earlier seasons. Tottenham in 1971 played Alan Mullery, Martin Chivers and Joe Kinnear. What fantastic memories.

Ronnie Hazelhurst - RIP

Born : Dukinfield, Cheshire 1928

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Died : Guernsey, 1 October 2007

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Composer, jazz musician and conductor.

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See tribute blog dated June 3rd 2007.

Donald Campbell And 4th January 1967

I have two very early memories of being emotionally moved. The first was England winning the World Cup final against West Germany in 1966 and I remember crying. More of that in a future blog no doubt. The second instance came early in the following year - January 4 1967 to be precise. I came home from school and the TV news showed black and white images of a high speed boat crash in which the driver was killed instantly. I was seven and a half years old and still to this day remember the shock and emptiness of the occasion. The suddenness of tragic death. Even when it involved someone I had never heard of before from a world I knew nothing of. It was without doubt the first occasion in my short life that I had been touched by death.

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On Friday I read a story that the two parts of the destroyed boat had finally been joined together after so many years. It was the culmination of the efforts of diver Bill Smith and a team of people involved in The Bluebird Project. Work can now begin to restore Bluebird K7, the boat of Donald Campbell, the man killed on that fateful day. It happened on Coniston Water, in the Lake District. Campbell ,who was born in Horley, Surrey in 1921, was a famous car and motorboat racer who had broken 8 world speed records in the 1950's and 60's. He was the son of Sir Malcolm Campbell who himself had held 13 world speed records in the 20's and 30's. On the day in question, Donald Campbell had completed a perfect north-south run. The plan had been for him to re-fuel and allow the wash to settle before going back and attempting to break the world record but he chose to go straight into the south-north run. Bluebird reached a speed of 320 mph at one stage before somersaulting and plunging nose first into the lake. The body of Campbell was not found in the wreckage though his mascot teddy bear, Mr Woppit, was floating in the debris.

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The nation was stunned by the events of that day. For many years thereafter, The Bluebird Project worked towards rescuing the boat from the bottom of Coniston Lake and finally achieved it in March 2001. A few months after this, Donald Campbell's body was also recovered, and he was finally laid to rest later that year in the Parish Cemetery in Coniston.

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Incredibly, the recovery and restoration of Bluebird has failed on more than one occasion to receive backing from the Heritage Lottery Fund, and its success rests solely with Bill Smith, Campbell's daughter Gina, The Ruskin Museum in Coniston, and the enthusiasts who rightly believe that the story of the life and death of Donald Campbell should be told. More details of the project can be found at www.bluebirdproject.com

Luciano Pavarotti - RIP

Born : October 12 1935 Modena, Italy

Died : September 6 2007 Modena, Italy

Mike Reid - RIP

Born : Hackney, London 19 January 1940

Died : Marbella, Spain 29 July 2007

The Comedians, EastEnders

My First Car

I learnt recently of the death of Jack Odell. I must immediately admit that I had never heard of this man but when I read his story I realised I must acknowledge the influence he had on my childhood.

Jack Odell was partly responsible for the greatest of all toys..................the 'Matchbox'. And I had a bucket full of them, mainly cars, and played with them for thousands of hours. Strangely I have no recollection of having them bought for me, though I must assume I received some as Christmas or birthday presents. I think they were more likely given to me by someone who had grown out of playing with them. I kept them in a metal kitchen bin. I would tip them out onto the floor and 'drive' them to all corners of the room, and indeed all around the house. They were battered and scratched and some had various parts missing. But oh how I loved them. I had some favourites............I particularly remember the Coca Cola lorry with its carefully stacked crates. And a little brown/maroon coloured van, which has left me with some vague re-collection that it had an advert for cocoa on the side. I used to push them from the top of the stairs, the winner being the one that got closest to the bottom. On other days it was a knock-out competition - the one closest to the top being eliminated, culminating some hours later in a 'grand final'. I also remember Matchbox producing a folding cardboard race track, complete with hairpin bends and a pit lane. I would painstakingly push my cars and trucks around the circuit, sometimes for hours on end. I have no idea what force actually determined the winner, it was probably quite simply whichever one I felt worthy of the trophy on the day! It was fantastic witnessing the snazzy sports car being out manoeuvred on the final bend by the excavator. It was to be my own version of Wacky Races. I don't know exactly what happened to them nor the bucket. I did pass them down to my nephew and I seem to remember they were often buried in the back garden and dug up again a few days later. I would love to have them now, not that they would have any particular value given the condition they were in.

Jack Odell was 87 when he died. He was an engineer by trade who, after World War Two, joined a business owned by Leslie Smith and Rodney Smith. The company was called Lesney Products ( taking the first three letters of one of the Smiths' christian names and the second three from the other) and they made parts for real cars. In 1952, Odell made a red and green steam roller for his daughter. She wanted to take it to school but to do so it had to be small enough to fit into a matchbox. Her schoolfriends thought the toy was marvellous and soon Odell was knocking out more steam rollers. Lesney thereby decided to market these finely detailed toys, and soon added a Land Rover, London bus ( I had one of them), bulldozer and a fire engine (had one of them too). In 1954 Matchbox produced their first car - the MG TD Roadster. By 1962 they were making a million cars a week. They were affordable to buy and kids collected them with great passion and enthusiasm. They were popular all around the world and there was never any let up in the attention to detail in order to get as close to the real thing as possible.Lesney eventually hit bad times and went into receivership in 1982. The Matchbox brand has continued since, albeit it the hands of various other companies.

Charles Hawtrey

Sentences containing the words Charles and Hawtrey often also include 'comic', 'legend' and 'icon'. Certainly there have been few people in the history of mankind who could more easily and instantly bring a smile to my face. As a youngster, I would watch Carry On films, and the characters portrayed by Charles Hawtrey, were often the funniest and most memorable. I am not altogether certain what was so funny about him. Maybe the vulnerability......... he was of course scrawny and wimpish visually. Or his ineptitude to get things right. Probably it was his absurdity. With his posh voice and stubborn but camp disposition, I used to love the appearance of Charles Hawtrey into a Carry On scene because suddenly the laughter possibilities were endless. He was a superb comedy foil, most especially to Sid James whose nature was a complete opposite. This was never better witnessed than in Carry On Cabby in 1963, with Hawtrey playing the willing but largely incompetent Terry 'Pintpot' Tankard, alongside James' typically aggressive and opportunistic character, taxi company owner Charlie Hawkins. Perhaps the memory that stuck with me the longest was his part in Carry On Doctor (1967) in which he played Mr Barron, who was in hospital because he thought he was having a baby!!

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In all, Charles Hawtrey appeared in 23 Carry On films between 1958 and 1972. Other roles in the series that I have enjoyed were as Eustace Tuttle in Carry On Abroad in 1972 ( the last time all the regulars appeared together) and as Professsor James Widdle in Carry On Up The Khyber in 1968. The writers were always generous in the gags handed to Hawtrey. He provided some of the best one-liners from the series. I remember a great gag from Carry On Don't Lose Your Head. He played the Duc De Pommfrit, who ,when at the guillotine and about to get be-headed, was told an urgent letter had just arrived for him. He replied 'Oh, drop it in the basket. I'll read it later'. However, he was never top of the bill, usually appearing fourth or fifth on the film publicity material. 'Abroad' was to prove to be his final Carry On appearance. Hawtrey was disillusioned with not being top of the bill and after a drink fuelled argument with producer Peter Rogers, was never again seen in a Carry On film.

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Being the age I am, I can only remember Charles Hawtrey from the Carry On's. He had though been a child star. He was born in November 1914 in Hounslow, Middlesex. His real name was George Frederick Joffre Hartree. He took the name Charles Hawtrey from a celebrated and knighted actor of the time and encouraged rumours that he was his son in an attempt to further his own chances in the business. His father had in fact been a mechanic. The Charles Hawtrey we all know and love started his career as a boy soprano, making records and appearing on the radio in Children's Hour. He was in fact a very good musician. Aged 11 he made his stage debut in Boscombe, playing a street Arab. He was to go on to appearing at the London Palladium. As far as films were concerned, he was in Tell Your Children as early as 1922. His first prominent roles were alongside Will Hay in Good Morning Boys (1937) and Where's That Fire (1939). Hawtrey also produced a film in 1945, Dumb Dora Discovers Tobacco, starring Flora Robson, in 1945. His TV career took off in 1957 when he appeared as Private 'Professor' Hatchett in The Army Game, with Alfie Bass, Bill Fraser and Bernard Bresslaw. In 1960 he played Simon Willow, a council official in Our House, a sitcom also starring Carry On favourites Bresslaw, Hattie Jacques and Joan Sims (as well as Hylda Baker).

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The Carry On period was to prove to be the pinnacle of Charles Hawtrey's life, both personally and professionally. After 1972 he made a handful of TV appearances, but was largely reduced to playing pantomime roles, using his enormous former popularity to great effect. But his private life took on a darker side as he turned increasingly to drink. He retired to Deal in Kent, where he gained the reputation of being a lonely and unpredictable man. He had never hidden his homosexuality, and alcohol and cigarettes led him to an unhealthy and promiscuous lifestyle. Any publicity he received often portrayed him as a broken and pathetic figure. In 1988, ironically following a fall in a Public House, he faced the reality of having to have his legs amputated. He refused an operation and died a month later, aged 73.

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Back to happier times. Charles Hawtrey will go down in comedy history. He was much loved by the British public because of his Carry On connection. Anyone around at the time and those who have caught the series since will remember his voice, his snooty mannerisms, his campness, his granny glasses and his mummy boy ways.They may simply remember him saying 'Oh. Hello' and giggling. He was a natural comic, funny just entering the room. Regrettably, his private life would suggest he had much emotional turmoil. It is quite probable we never saw the real George Frederick Joffre Hartree.

Jake Thackray

Sometimes people slip out of your life for a lot of years. This happened with me and Jake Thackray. I remembered him from the early 70's with his appearances on That's Life, the bad company bashing, consumer help programme. The particular shows went out late on Saturday nights, after Match Of The Day, and Jake Thackray would have a three or four minute slot in which he sang a song. And Jake Thackray songs were like nothing else before or since.

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I have often mentioned Jake Thackray to other people of a similar age to me and drawn a complete blank. His fame, in truth, was more deeply rooted in places other than TV...........folk clubs, civic halls and pubs. As a man of Leeds, he was very popular and well known in Yorkshire and in the 60's this spread nationwide thanks to his appearances in shows such as The Frost Report, Braden's Beat (which I also remember watching late on Saturday nights so it might well have been here I first caught up with JT), and Beryl Reid Says Good Evening. His mix of satire, attitude and irreverence was not to everyone's taste. In fact, I think it safe to say you either loved him or hated him. He had the most unique delivery ; a truly down to earth bloke singing in a chanson style (that is, a song with French words and strong on lyrics) but in English. And most of his songs contained big dollops of innuendo and sometimes were simply rude and provocative. Class, sex, family relationships, religion, animals and observations of the odd world in which we live were his lyrical targets.

Jake Thackray was born in 1938, grew up as a Roman Catholic, and was a clever man who graduated from Durham University and looked destined for a teaching career. In fact, he used his musical talents on his kids in class as an aid to educating them. He subsequently spent four years living in France, hence the Gallic influence of his later work. He went on to make over 1000 TV and radio appearances and numerous albums. He had a significant following, though his style did go out of favour. In his later life he was disillusioned with 'showbiz', and crippling nerves disallowed performing in public. He moved to South Wales and became increasingly more religious. Jake died on Christmas Eve 2002, news of which led to a revival of interest in his work.

As I said, Jake Thackray disappeared from my life for a long time. But his clever wit and inimitable material is still funny and I am very pleased to have caught up with him again. A brilliant performer, of that I have no doubt.

An example of the great man's work can be found on the post Jake Thackray - I Stayed Off Work Today March 27th 2010.

John Arlott

This man might seem a strange choice in a tribute to people who have made me laugh. But he did provide me with one of the funniest stories for my very limited party piece repertoire. More of that in a moment. First, a little more background on a great man and legend of broadcasting.

John Arlott was a Hampshire man, blessed with a rich and glorious burr. His voice was perfect for radio and in particular, cricket. For 34 years, from 1946 to 1980 he was the BBC's 'voice of cricket', as a member of the Test Match Special team. Anyone who loved the game, loved John Arlott and his commentaries. He was also a brilliant writer, a poet, and a lover of wine. In his later life he lived in Alderney in the Channel Islands. John Arlott died on 14 December 1991. I shed a small tear that day.

So, what was that funny moment? In truth, Arlott produced quite a few over the years. More of them another time along with other cricket funnies. The one I want to blog today came not from a radio commentary, but from TV. In the late seventies, the BBC televised John Player Sunday League fixtures. They took up the whole schedule from 2pm through to the finish of the match. There were no other sports events on Sundays in those days. Just cricket. Forty overs a side, Arlott commentating on the first twenty of each innings, the great Jim Laker taking the other twenty. Anyway, one Sunday, and I have no idea when exactly, Arlott, in his customary manner, told viewers that a particular player, Andy Murtagh (who I think played for Hampshire), was Irish. A few moments later he told us again. Next time he touched the ball, he told us again. Such repetition was not in keeping with Arlott's usual polished performances. But the old devil was leading up to a great joke. Moments later a player called Rice was called into the attack. The ball was played into the covers to Murtagh. John Arlott said, simply.........Rice bowls, paddy fields !!!!

That made me laugh and has stuck with me for the best part of thirty years. As I have said, I was very saddened by John Arlott's death in 1991. He had brought another tear to my eye a few years earlier, on September 2nd 1980, the day he commentated on cricket for the final time. I had plenty of holiday owing from work and took a day off especially, in order to witness it on TV. It was the last Test of that summer, England versus Australia. Upon finishing his stint at the microphone, his hand over was without fuss and typically modest. At the end of the next over play was halted. The crowd rose to their feet and, along with the players on the field, they applauded this great man. It was one of the most emotional moments in cricketing and broadcasting history.

Cash In A Flash

Old favourite, Reg Varney, has been in the news today. On 27th June 1967, forty years ago, he was the first person to use a cash machine. He withdrew £10, the maximum in those days, from a hole in the wall at Barclays Bank, Enfield. A small crowd witnessed the event. To put that historic moment into some perspective, it is believed there will be 2 million cash machines around the world by 2010. The busiest time for cash machines is the one hour period between midday and 1pm on the Friday before Christmas - last year a staggering £57 million was withdrawn in that sixty minutes.

Nearly every report I have seen refers to Reg Varney, 'from On The Buses'. He was of course famous for his role of Stan Butler in that series, but in actual fact On The Buses did not start until 1969. In 1967, Reg was starring in another hit sit-com, Beggar My Neighbour.

The Bard Of Knotty Ash

Later this year, Ken Dodd will be 80. He made his first stage appearance at the Empire Theatre, Nottingham over fifty years ago in 1954 and still plays regularly to full houses. We rarely see Ken on our TV screens these days. He has remained faithful to the theatre , and has been a regular tourer of the provinces for many a year now, normally spending four months out of twelve on the road. If you like your comedy to be quickfire one liners , I suggest you catch his show in a town near you. Oh , and go prepared for a long night out. A Ken Dodd stage show typically starts about 7.30, with an interval around 10.30. He normally has a support act but the show is mainly Ken. Expect the second half to end somewhere between 12.30 and 1 am. This man goes on and on and the longevity of his act has become a joke in itself. At the break he warns his audience 'we'll let you out for a few minutes but no running away'. From midnight onwards he often looks at his watch between gags and is by now threatening the audience - 'I'll follow you home and shout jokes through your letterbox '. When you go to see Ken Dodd for a second time you know to take a few biscuits and a drink with you to help get you through! He is amazingly funny, he is saucy but somehow not rude. The experience has a music hall feel to it in keeping with Doddy's roots and you leave the theatre feeling that life is a lot more fun than when you went in.

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Kenneth Arthur Dodd was born on 8 November 1927 in Knotty Ash, Liverpool. He was the son of a coal merchant. Throughout his life he has kept a strong affinity with his home town. Liverpool is proud of Ken and Ken is proud of Liverpool. He still lives in the same house he was born in. The Ken Dodd Show first appeared on the BBC in 1959 and as was the case with most comedians of that era, his popularity exploded through the medium of television. Ken was then, as he still is today, a family entertainer and therefore perfect for 'the box'. By the mid sixties he was also firmly established as a stage performer too. In 1965 he performed for a record 42 consecutive weeks at the London Palladium, appearing twice nightly. He also gained entry into The Guinness Book Of Records for the worlds longest joke telling session - 1500 jokes in three and a half hours. Ken Dodd has a reputation for his meticulous recording of jokes - which ones he used in each show, where the show was, and how well it went down. It is this dedication and self assessment that has kept him at the very top for over half a century.

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Ken Dodd is arguably the most bizarre comedian Britain has ever produced. He has many trademarks and his ability to get peoples chuckle muscles working (his term not mine) is hugely assisted by his appearance. There is his outrageous hairstyle for starters. As a young man he grew his hair long, allowing him to rough it up and give a 'just dragged through a hedge backwards' look. It made him immediately funny. His daft facial expression comes as a result of his hugely protruding teeth, the result of a fall from a bicycle as a young boy. So important to his act are his teeth, he reportedly insured them for £4 million. Ken Dodd is also immensely colourful and dresses in all kinds of weird and wonderful costumes , pantomime style. Then he has his feather duster tickling stick, a unique and much used prop, allowing him to use his catchphrase ' By Jove, how tickled I am................'. Add to all of this his six jokes a minute and you have a comic legend.

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There is something quite magical about Ken Dodd. He transports his audience to a far off land where a giggle is all that matters. His humour has a childlike innocence about it. It is incredibly warm.Your passport to his fantasy world comes in the shape of those other famous residents of Knotty Ash - those squeaky voiced midgets The Diddymen. Sometimes they appear as puppets, their leader Dickie Mint normally has an emotional spot in the stage show with Doddy again returning to his roots,this time as a ventriloquist. On other occasions they are actually children dressed as the Diddymen. They sing and they dance. Diddyland has the highest sunshine rate in the world, jam butty mines, snuff quarries, a moggie ranch where police cats are bred, a broken biscuit repair works and gravy wells.The richest Diddyman is the Hon Nigel Ponsonby-Smallpiece who owns a caviar allotment and a pond full of 18 carat goldfish! Pure fantasy and all wonderfully brought to life by Ken Dodd.

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Whilst Ken Dodd will always be remembered as a comedian, he also had two other major talents in his younger days as an actor and as a singer. On the stage he played serious Shakespearian roles and also appeared on television in Doctor Who. But it was as a singer that he made a huge mark in the 60's. He spent a total of 233 weeks in the charts in a recording career between 1960 and 1981. His most famous song was 'Tears' which was No 1 for five weeks in 1965, stayed in the charts for 24 weeks and sold over 2 million records. His trademark song is 'Happiness' which has become his signature tune and sums up Doddy and most of what his act stands for.

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Ken Dodd has never married but has had two long time partners, Anita Boutin whom he shared 24 years with before her death, and Anne Jones who has been with him even longer. He is a private man who is rarely in the news. He was the centre of attraction in 1989 in a tax evasion court case in which he was acquitted. Typically, references to it are sprinkled throughout his act : '' I told the Inland Revenue I didn't owe them a penny because I lived near the seaside''.

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I will never, if I can possibly help it , choose my all time favourite comedian. To do so would mean having to place too many legends further down the list. But I must admit Ken Dodd would come very close to being at the top. In an age where filth and nastiness passes for humour, he represents all that has ever been great in the history of laughter. My final tribute is six Ken Dodd jokes that I have just pulled off the internet. About a minutes worth !!

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My act is very educational.I heard a man leaving the other night saying 'Well that taught me a lesson'.

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I haven't spoken to my mother in law for 18 months. I don't like to interrupt her.

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Honolulu - it's got everything. Sand for the children. Sun for the wife. Sharks for the wife's mother.

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Of course I believe in safe sex. I've got a handrail around the bed.

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I know a glazier who repaired 146 windows before he realised he had a crack in his glasses.

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My Dad always knew I was going to be a comedian. When I was a baby he looked at me and said ' Is this a joke ? '

Redcoats

Billy Butlin opened his first holiday camp in 1936, in the Lincolnshire seaside town Skegness. A few days into it , his customers were struggling to get into the holiday spirit and in order to whip up some enthusiasm, Butlin had his staff involved in entertaining the guests. Soon after he dressed them in red blazers so they would be more noticeable.

Employment as a Butlin Redcoat was to prove a stepping stone for many a famous funnyman. Long days ( and often rainy days at that ) trying to make the British working class laugh, was a great training ground. The following list is ten comedians who were Redcoats before they had their big break into TV or radio shows :
1 Roy Hudd
2 Jimmy Tarbuck
3 Dave Allen
4 Charlie Drake
5 Michael Barrymore
6 Freddy 'Parrotface' Davies
7 Terry Scott
8 Ted Rodgers
9 Johnny Vegas
10 Colin Crompton

Pat Coombs

This wonderful lady was one of the busiest and best loved British comedy actresses for over forty years before her death in 2002. Born a cockney, she was famous for her portrayal of weak, suppressed women and her grasp of funny voices. She started in radio before moving on into TV and film. Though best remembered for her comic roles she also played some more serious parts and was also a regular in game shows.

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Pat Coombs was born Patricia Doreen Coombs in Camberwell, South London in 1926. At the age of six she decided she wanted to be an entertainer, after falling in love with a gypsy violinist on a family holiday in Worthing. She began work as a kindergarten teacher before turning her hand to acting. Her first roles were in radio, where she appeared with comic legends such as Arthur Askey, Bob Monkhouse, Ted Ray, and Charlie Chester. With the advent of television Pat (or Pattie as she is often affectionately referred to) was to feature in so many of our finest comedy productions. Perhaps the best way to pay tribute to her is simply to list them and some of the great stars she appeared with :

Hancock's Half Hour, Beggar My Neighbour, Til Death Us Do Part and its sequel In Sickness And In Health,Up Pompeii, Don't Drink The Water, Dad's Army, Lollipop Loves Mr Mole, You're Only Young Twice,Carry On Doctor, Carry On Again Doctor, On The Buses (film), Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory, Ken Dodd, Roy Hudd, Roy Castle, Eric Sykes, June Whitfield, Reg Varney, Spike Milligan and Dick Emery. Towards the end of her career she was a regular in Noel's House Party, Celebrity Squares, and Blankety Blank.

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Pat Coombs was a constant face on our TV screens. She often played the dim, soppy, downtrodden female with a nervy giggle and twitch. Ironically, one of her more confident characters was to provide a lasting comic memory. She played a bus driver in the On The Buses film. Stan and Jack trap her in her cab and Pat is seen climbing out via the window, revealing a pair of large pink knickers.

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Pat's last major TV role was in 1989 in EastEnders where she was introduced as the character Marge Green in an attempt to add some humour to the soap. Her final sitcom role was in 1992 in an episode of Birds Of A Feather. Pat was tall and thin, which contributed greatly to her ability to play the puny, vulnerable woman. In 1995, she was diagnosed with the brittle bone disease, osteoporosis, which shrunk her by some six inches in size. She bore her illness with fantastic good humour and turned her time to fund raising for The National Osteoporosis Society. It is said she once raised £35,000 in just five days. She never married though apparently came close on a couple of occasions. She was 75 when she passed away in a West London nursing home, to which she had moved to in order to be close to her great friend (and another great comedy actress) Peggy Mount.

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I don't know, but I think Pat 'Pattie' Coombs was probably one of the most respected and well loved actresses of her time, not only by her audiences but by her fellow professionals as well.

Charlie Williams - Me Old Flower

In the early 70's, Charlie Williams was a household name and one of Britain's funniest and most loved comedians. He was unusual at the time for a number of reasons, partly because comedy was his second career, he had previously been a professional footballer, but mainly because he was black. And in the early 70's black people had no presence on UK TV. He also had the broadest of Yorkshire accents, which meant he was novel and definitively original. I truly believe few people had ever considered that this mixture of skin colour and voice could possibly go together. He delivered his jokes in a gentle, almost charming way, with a slight hesitant delay and cheeky grin. His material drew hugely on his own humble beginnings, deeply rooted in working class England and this was a large reason for his amazing popularity. He also joked about his own colour, something that had never been tackled before, his famous line to hecklers being 'If tha don't shut up, I'll come and move in next door to thee'. This was typical Charlie Williams - saying what he knew the white man was thinking and fearing. Some believe this merely added to the prejudice and negativity directed at black people at that time of racial tension. Others saw him as a pioneer - he was Britain's first black comedian. In 2000 this was finally recognised when he gained a lifetime achievement Black Comedy Award, having 'broken down barriers'.

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Charles Adolphus Williams was born on the 23 December 1927. He was mixed race, his father was a Barbadian who had moved to Yorkshire, become a greengrocer and married a local girl. Charlie was brought up in the village of Royston on the Barnsley Canal. He was a teenager during the war and at 14 worked at Upton Colliery where he turned out for the works football team. His talent was such that at 19 he signed as a professional for Doncaster Rovers. It took the centre half a number of seasons to break into the first team but he eventually did so in 1955 and by the time he retired in 1959 he had played 171 games for the Rovers. Just as he was Britain's first black comic he was also just about Britain's first black footballer, certainly a rarity in an exclusively white dominated sport. He is remembered as a hard defender, solid rather than spectacular. When asked if he was ever any good at football he replied 'No. But I was good at stopping those that were ' ! He scored just one goal in his career, ironically against Barnsley.

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His entry into showbiz was as a singer with The Jeffrey Trio, where Charlie sang the songs of his hero Nat King Cole. His patter between songs was so funny that he eventually dropped the music for comedy and plyed his trade on the tough Northern working men's club circuit. Without a huge amount of talent, he would not have survived. His big break came in 1971 when he was given a regular TV spot on Granada's The Comedians, a programme for stand up comedians. The material in the series was largely racist or sexist and would not be acceptable on our screens today. But it brought Charlie into our homes each week and his infectious laugh and warm manner made him an instant hit. His jokes observed British working class life perfectly, easy for Charlie given his own up-bringing. 'So I said to the boss ' I've worked here for twenty years and this is the first time I've asked for a raise'. The boss said ' I know - that's why you've worked here for twenty years'. His catchphrase was ( in his lovely Yorkshire accent ) 'me old flower'.

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Charlie had a few good years in the limelight during which time he also had his own Granada series It's Charlie Williams and published an autobiography 'Ee-I've Had Some Laughs'. He also hosted the game show The Golden Shot for a short while. But by the second half of the 70's, Charlie's material was getting less acceptable for prime time TV and he largely returned to working the clubs. He retired in 1995 and was awarded the MBE in 1999 for his charity work. Charlie Williams died on the 2 September 2006 after a long illness.

Charlie was undoubtedly a very funny man. He was mild and affable. And we loved how he laughed at his own jokes. The audience listened as if drawn to a magnet.

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''This little lad was telling his teacher about their new house. 'It's smashin' teacher' he says. 'Ive got a room of my own, my brothers got a room of his own, and my two sisters have rooms of their own. But poor old mum - she's still in with Dad.'"

And finally a one liner that was typical of his act :

"My mother-in-law is a terrible cook. In fact she's got the only dustbin in her street with ulcers!"

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Charlie..............you were a good 'un. In fact, Charlie me old flower, thee were a right good 'un !

John Inman - RIP

Born : Preston 28 June 1935

Died : London 8 March 2007

Are You Being Served ? , Grace and Favour, Take A Letter Mr Jones.

Carry On..........The Most

It's been a few weeks since I posted a blog that is a list. I love lists and I also love Carry On films so I hereby combine the two.

In an idle moment , I wondered who, from that amazing cast of comedy legends, had appeared in the most Carry On films. On researching the subject I found it easy enough to get my answer though there is a slight contradiction as to how many films there actually were. The 'problem' film was That's Carry On from 1977. There is no doubt it was a film but was actually released as a support feature to a Richard Harris pic called Golden Rendezvous. It was a compilation Carry On starring Kenneth Williams and Barbara Windsor only. They were in a projectionist's room selecting 'the best bits' from the Carry On's made up until then. I have therefore not counted it in my appearance figures that follow.

So, there were in total 30 Carry On films made, starting in 1958 with Carry On Sergeant and ending in 1992 with Carry On Columbus. Before I list the top 10 Carry On stars by their number of films, it is worth noting a few people who did not make the list. There are some comedy actors who you would automatically think were always in the Carry On's but actually only made a few. Try Frankie Howerd (2), June Whitfield (4), Terry Scott (7). Yes I was surprised at that. Alternatively, I was also surprised that the great Patsy Rowlands made as many as 9, Jack Douglas and Julian Holloway 8, Valerie Leon 6 and Jon Pertwee and Leslie Phillips 4 each ( I would have guessed fewer ). The real shock was Barbara Windsor with a relatively low 9. She first appeared in 1964 in Carry On Spying and finished ten years later with Carry On Dick , leaving 'because she thought they had gone beyond the innocent sauciness which initially drew her to the series'. It was also the last Carry On featuring Sid James. The three stars pictured are, from top to bottom, Peter Gilmore, Valerie Leon and Julian Holloway.

The Top Ten then, was :

10th Peter Gilmore 11 films (nearly all minor roles)

9th Jim Dale 11 films

8th= Hattie Jacques 14 films

8th= Bernard Bresslaw 14 films

6th Peter Butterworth 16 films

5th Kenneth Connor 17 films

4th Sid James 19 films

3rd Charles Hawtrey 23 films

2nd Joan Sims 24 films

1st Kenneth Williams 25 films