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Eric Morecambe was born on 14 May 1926 in Buxton Street, Morecambe, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968), Night Train to Murder (1984) and The Intelligence Men (1965). He was married to Joan Morecambe. He died on 28 May 1984 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, UK.with- Actor
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Ernie Wise was born on 27 November 1925 in Bramley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968), Night Train to Murder (1984) and Two of a Kind (1961). He was married to Doreen Blythe. He died on 21 March 1999 in Wexham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK.make Morecambe & Wise- Actor
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Ronnie Barker's remarkable versatility as a performer can be traced back to his time in repertory theatre, where he was able to play a wide range of roles and develop his talent for accents, voices and verbal dexterity. It was during this time that he met Glenn Melvyn, who taught him how to stammer (something he would later use to great effect in the sitcom Open All Hours (1976)). Melvyn also gave Ronnie his break into television by offering him a role in I'm Not Bothered (1956). During the 1960s, Ronnie became well-established in radio, providing multiple voices for "The Navy Lark" and working with comedy great Jon Pertwee. He also became a regular face on television, appearing in The Frost Report (1966) (perhaps most memorably in a sketch about Britain's class system, with John Cleese and Ronnie Corbett) and playing character roles on The Saint (1962) and The Avengers (1961).
In 1971, Ronnie teamed up with Ronnie Corbett again, this time for a BBC sketch series called The Two Ronnies (1971). This series proved enormously popular, continuing until the late 1980s. In addition to "The Two Ronnies", Barker starred on the popular BBC sitcoms Porridge (1974) (as a cockney prisoner) and Open All Hours (1976) (as a stammering Northern shopkeeper). In fact, only Leonard Rossiter could be said to have rivaled him during this time for the crown of British television's most popular comedy star. In 1982, he revived silent comedy in By the Sea (1982). Despite his extrovert performances on television, Barker remained a quiet, retiring individual in his personal life, much preferring to spend time with his family rather than mix with the celebrity crowd. This humility, combined with memories of his extraordinary abilities, meant that he continued to be greatly respected by his fellow professionals. In a BAFTA special shown by the BBC in 2004, stars as diverse as Gene Wilder, Peter Kay and Peter Hall paid tribute to his contribution to comedy and British television in general. Ronnie Barker died on 3 October 2005 after suffering from heart problems.with- Actor
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Ronnie Corbett began his successful show business career in the early 1950s. Amongst many other things he performed on stage with Danny La Rue in a cacophony of well received variety and cabaret shows.
It was whilst performing in these shows that Corbett attracted the attention of several top TV producers and executives who were impressed with his abilities as a stand up comedian, compare and all round entertainer.
Before too long Corbett found himself being offered roles in various sitcoms, films and family shows.
His varied film roles include "Polo" in the spoof Bond film Casino Royale (1967), "Drooby" in Mad Little Island (1958) and finally the hapless "Chumleigh" in Fun at St Fanny's (1955).
On television he provided light hearted comedy in Crackerjack! (1955) for many years.
His big break came during the 1960s when he was asked to join the cast of the hugely popular The Frost Report (1966) which included the likes of John Cleese and of course David Frost.
The show also saw him performing alongside Ronnie Barker for the very first time. All aspects of "The Frost Report" were very funny but some of the most enjoyable involved Barker and Corbett who shared a rare comic chemistry between each other.
TV producers recognized this chemistry and there were talks of giving the pair their own comedy series.
Corbett had numerous projects in the late sixties including the enjoyable The Corbett Follies (1969) and No - That's Me Over Here! (1967). Then in 1971 Barker asked him to star in the comedy sketch series The Ronnie Barker Yearbook (1971).
The rest is history - the Two Ronnies had arrived together - it was simply comic genius, Barker and Corbett were made for each other, a pairing that was just destined to be. Later on that year The Two Ronnies (1971) show was born on BBC 1 and remained incredibly popular well into the late eighties when Barker sadly announced his retirement from television.
There is no doubt that Ronnie Barker is the best comedy actor of his generation, but over the years many critics have unfairly overlooked the brilliant talents of Corbett - he is a fantastically versatile comedy actor in his own right. He was an equal part in the relationship - put simply he complemented Barker and Barker complemented him.
As well as being a wonderful comedy actor Corbett is also an accomplished after dinner speaker and of course a very very funny stand up comedian. During the filming of the "Two Ronnies" Corbett found time to branch off into a whole host of other projects as did Ronnie Barker.
First there were his own shows such as The Saturday Special: All This and Ronnie Corbett Too (1975), The Prince of Denmark (1974) and The Ronnie Corbett Special (1979). Then came his excellent sitcom Sorry! (1981) which ran for over seven years. There were also films such as No Sex Please - We're British (1973).
Ronnie Corbett has enjoyed continued success in both film and television. He starred alongside old friend John Cleese, and Jamie Lee Curtis in the film Timbuctoo (1998), has done numerous pantomimes with Frank Skinner and Paul Merton and is one of the stars in The All Star Comedy Show (2004) with Steve Coogan, Vic Reeves, Matt Lucas and David Walliams.
In 2005 Corbett reunited with Barker to present a special six part series looking back at their favorite moments from the "Two Ronnies".
Corbett is a charismatic and extremely likable man - there is absolutely no doubt that he will be fondly remembered by millions of people as being not only half of one of the most successful comedy duos of all time, but also as a truly brilliant entertainer.make the Two Ronnies- Actor
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His father Ken was born in Co Durham, he married Vera and together took over her family's greengrocers shop in Quick Road, Chiswick, London. He convinced her that the way forward was to convert the shop into a bookmakers and before long they'd moved to a semi-detached house. Mel was born in 1952 and educated at Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith. where at the age of 12 he played Falstaff. He was captain of the school rugby team from the second form to the sixth. In 1971 he won a place at New College, Oxford where he studied experimental psychology and lodged at New College Lane which was where Edmund Halley (of Halley's comet fame) had his observatory. His attendance record was so bad that he was asked if he would get busy and do some work for his finals or spend all his time acting and directing; he chose the latter and in 1973 he became assistant director at the Royal Court Theatre in London. Through the mid-1970s he had assistant-director jobs around the country until he met actor Bob Goody; together they wrote and directed several productions including 'Have You Heard the One About Joey Baker' and 'The Gambler,' which was revived in London's West End. In 1979 they attracted the attention of a television sketch show which they joined, doing send-ups of shows such as 'Blue Peter,' then moved on to 'Not the Nine O'Clock News' In 1981, Mel and Griff Rhys Jones formed Talk Back Productions, starting off with their series 'Alas Smith and Jones' plus such as 'I'm Alan Partridge', 'Never Mind the Buzzcocks', and 'They Think It's All Over.' Mel moved on to producing and directing films such as 'Radioland Murders', 'Bean, the Ultimate Disaster Movie', and 'The Tall Guy.'With- Actor
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Griff Rhys Jones was born on 16 November 1953 in Cardiff, Wales, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Alas Smith & Jones (1984), Not the Nine O'Clock News (1979) and The Misadventures of Mr. Wilt (1989). He is married to Jo Jones. They have two children.make Smith & Jones- Actress
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Dawn was educated at a weekly boarding school in Plymouth and spent the weekends with her grandparents who lived nearby She never felt at home at the school as it was too posh. She met Jennifer Saunders while training to be a teacher at the Central School of Speech and Drama and became flat mates and started writing together. When the Comedy Store opened they started attending and it was there that she met Lenny Henry who she later married.with- Actress
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Jennifer Saunders was born July 6, 1958 in Sleaford, Lincolnshire, to Jane, a biology teacher, and Robert Thomas Saunders, an RAF pilot. She attended Central School of Speech and Drama where she met her comedy partner Dawn French. Like many of the early 80s groundbreaking "alternative" comedians she began her career as comedienne/actress/writer with Dawn French at "The Comedy Store" in London, where she met fellow comedians Adrian Edmondson (later her husband), Rik Mayall, Nigel Planer, Alexei Sayle and Peter Richardson, who later opened his own club, "The Comic Strip", where these comedians quickly formed a regular format.
The Comic Strip team were transferred to television screens with great success as they all starred alongside each other in The Comic Strip Presents (1982). After The Comic Strip she starred in a few episodes of The Young Ones (1982), Girls on Top (1985) and Happy Families (1985). Afterwards she and Dawn French wrote a TV show of their own, French and Saunders (1987), which was an immense success due to the double act's genius writing, brilliant acting performances and hilarious spoofs of world famous blockbusters and bands.
It was in one of the episodes of "French and Saunders" that the audience had the pleasure of watching a sketch about an uptight daughter and a crazy, neurotic mother that became a comedy classic sitcom. When the BBC next asked Saunders to write something, she just couldn't come up with any ideas, so she decided to expand on that sketch, making it more outrageous and therefore funnier - Absolutely Fabulous (1992) was born.
Perhaps by coincidence Saunders had created one of the most loved, funny, and creative TV Shows in BBC history. Three series were made, in 1995 the show was put on hold until Saunders began writing again and came back with a fourth series in 2001. She is always ready for charity as well, she has been doing "Comic Relief" with a lot of her comedy companions ever since 1986. Jennifer Saunders, one of the most loved TV faces in Britain, will hit the screens with her fifth series of Absolutely Fabulous in 2003.make French & Saunders- Actor
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Writer, actor, comedian, doer of good works, excellent good friend to the famous and not, Fry lives in his London SW1 flat and his Norfolk house when not traveling. Famous for his public declaration of celibacy in the "Tatler" back in the 1980s, Emma Thompson has characterised her friend as "90 percent gay, 10 percent other."
Stephen Fry was born in Hampstead, London, to Marianne Eve (Newman) and Alan Fry, a physicist and inventor. His maternal grandparents were Hungarian Jewish immigrants, while his father's family was of English background. He grew up in Norfolk and attended Uppingham School and Stout's Hill. After his notorious three months in Pucklechurch prison for credit card fraud, he attended Queens College, Cambridge in 1979, finishing with a 2:1 in English in 1981/2. While at Cambridge, he was a member of the Cherubs drinking club, and Footlights with Thompson, Tony Slattery, Martin Bergman, and Hugh Laurie (to whom he was introduced by E.T.). His prolific writing partnership with Laurie began in 1981 with resulting Footlights revues for (among others) Mayweek, Edinburgh Festival, and a three month tour of Australia. In 1984, Fry was engaged to do the rewrite of the Noel Gay musical "Me and My Girl," which made him a millionaire before the age of 30. It also earned him a nomination for a Tony award in 1987. (Sidenote: It was upon SF's suggestion that Emma Thompson landed a leading role in the London cast of this show.) Throughout the 1980s, Fry did a huge amount of television and radio work, as well as writing for newspapers (e.g. a weekly column in the "Daily Telegraph") and magazines (e.g. articles for "Arena"). He is probably best known for his television roles in Blackadder II (1986) and Jeeves and Wooster (1990).
His support of the Terence Higgins Trust through events such as the first "Hysteria" benefit, as well as numerous other charity efforts, are probably those works of which he is most proud. Fry's acting career has not been limited to films and television. He had successful runs in Alan Bennett's "Forty Years On," Simon Gray's "The Common Pursuit" with John Sessions, Rik Mayall, John Gordon Sinclair, and others. Michael Frayn's "Look Look" and Gray's "Cell Mates" were less successful for both Fry and their playwrights, the latter not helped by his walking out of the play after only a couple of weeks. Fry has published four novels as well as a collection of his radio and journalistic miscellanea. He has recorded audiotapes of his novels (an unabridged version of "The Liar" was released in 1995), as well as many other works for both adults and children.with- Actor
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Hugh was born in Oxford, England on June 11, 1959, to Patricia (Laidlaw) and William George Ranald Mundell "Ran" Laurie, a doctor, both of Scottish descent. He was educated at Eton and Cambridge. Son of an Olympic gold medalist in the sport, he rowed for the England youth team (1977) and for Cambridge (1980). He met Emma Thompson at Cambridge in 1978 when both joined "Footlights" and was introduced to Stephen Fry by Emma in 1980. Hugh is married and lives in Los Angeles. His wife and three children, who previously lived in London, are moving to Los Angeles to live with him. Besides acting and comedy, he has written the best-selling thriller The Gun Seller. A second novel, titled The Paper Soldier, is forthcoming.make Fry & Laurie- Actor
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Matthew Richard Lucas is a British-German actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He is perhaps best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series Little Britain (2003-2006, 2020) and Come Fly With Me (2010-2011). Lucas portrayed the role of Nardole in the BBC series Doctor Who (2015-2017). He has also appeared in films, including Alice in Wonderland (2010), Bridesmaids (2011), Small Apartments (2012), and Paddington (2014). Since 2020, Lucas has presented The Great British Bake Off, alongside Noel Fielding.with- Actor
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David Walliams was born on 20 August 1971 in Banstead, Surrey, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Little Britain (2003), Dinner for Schmucks (2010) and Run Fatboy Run (2007). He was previously married to Lara Stone.make Little Britain- Actor
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Alexander Armstrong was born on 2 March 1970 in Rothbury, Northumberland, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The Armstrong and Miller Show (2007), Match Point (2005) and Plunkett & Macleane (1999). He has been married to Hannah Bronwen Snow since 27 August 2003. They have three children.with- Actor
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Halfway through a PhD in physics at Cambridge University, Ben met Alexander Armstrong (who was also studying there) in 1992. Instead of finishing his PhD, Ben chose to scrap science for comedy and started playing at the Comedy Club Footlights, Cambridge. After four years of touring pubs and underground comedy clubs, the pair appeared on 'Saturday Night' as (now one of their most well-known sketches) Euro-Rock duo 'Strijka.' The year 1996 saw the pair nominated for the Perrier Award and were given their first commissioned series, Armstrong and Miller (1997). Broadcast first on the Paramount Channel, which was then followed by three further series shown on Channel Four (1997, 1999 & 2001). Ben and Alexander took "The Armstrong and Miller Show" on tour in November 2001 and did a 17-day back-to-back stint. The success of "Armstrong and Miller" (1997)_ gave Ben a springboard to work on other projects. _Passion Killers (1999)_ and The Blind Date (2000) are just two of the television films that enabled Ben to go more mainstream and show that he is capable of straight acting as well as his cheeky-chappy side shown in Armstrong and Miller (1997). Ben is not shy of the big screen either. August 2001 saw the release of Steve Coogan's: The Parole Officer (2001), in which Ben played small-time criminal Colin; in 1999, he starred alongside Ray Winstone and Robert Carlyle in the comedy drama_ There's Only One Jimmy Grimble (2000)_. Most people may not recognize Ben as the voice of ITV's Digital Monkey that stars alongside fellow comedian Johnny Vegas in the infamous adverts, which has led to a wad of merchandise and a string of 15-minute programs yet to be shown. March 2002 saw Ben as a snotty hotel concierge in Jez Butterworth's film Birthday Girl (2001). With further future projects lined up for 2002 (including a six-part series called The Book Group (2002), to be shown later on), only time will tell if the 35-year-old will remain underground or leap out into the mainstream audience.
Since 2003, Ben has continued his successful solo and comedy career. He played Rowan Atkinson's sidekick Bough in the 2003's blockbuster Johnny English (2003). He went to Canada to film The Prince and Me (2004). Mainstream audiences started to take notice in 2005, when The Worst Week of My Life (2004) aired in BBC1. It was so successful that a second series was commissioned for the following year. In 2006, the BBC wanted a pilot comedy show from Ben and Alexander - they hadn't made a show together since Armstrong and Miller (1997) (4th series) which aired in 2001. This pilot led to The Armstrong and Miller Show (2007) not only coming back to television but to a more mainstream audience - being shown on BBC1 on Friday nights in 2007. After 14 years on the comedy circuit, the pair were finally rewarded with a BAFTA for best comedy program in 2010. Four series later, the duo decided to tour the UK again and played 62 shows up and down the country between September and November 2010.
Summer of 2011: He released his directorial debut film Huge (2010).
Winter of 2011 saw Ben in the Caribbean for the BBC's Death in Paradise (2011).
His first book, "It's Not Rocket Science," is being released in summer 2012.
Ben was in the theater production of "The Ladykillers" in the West End.make Armstrong & Miller- Actor
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Julian Barratt was born on 4 May 1968 in Leeds, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The Mighty Boosh (2003), Mindhorn (2016) and Nathan Barley (2005).with- Actor
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Noel Fielding was born to Dianne Fielding and Ray Fielding, on May 21 1973. He has once revealed on The Russell Brand Show, on Radio 2, that he has a French grandmother. Fielding once stated that he was never baptised, he hasn't got a middle name and he does not follow any religion. He was once educated at Croydon art college and Buckingham Chilterns University College.
Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt's Edinburgh Festival debut in 1998 won them the much coveted Perrier Award for Best Newcomer. In 2001, The Mighty Boosh came to Radio 4. This proved to be very successful and was made into a television series for BBC 3 and took it by storm.
Outside of the Boosh, Fielding has had bit parts in several of Channel 4's off-beat comedy programmes. These included Nathan Barley, The IT Crowd and Garth Marenghi's Darkplace. On quite a few occasions he has starred alongside fellow Boosh star Julian Barratt.make the Mighty Boosh- Actor
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Vic Reeves was born on 24 January 1959 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Catterick (2004), Vic Reeves Big Night Out (1990) and House of Fools (2014). He has been married to Nancy Sorrell since 25 January 2003. They have two children. He was previously married to Sarah Vincent.With- Actor
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Bob Mortimer was born on 23 May 1959 in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for House of Fools (2014), Catterick (2004) and Shooting Stars (1993). He has been married to Lisa Matthews since October 2015. They have two children.make Reeves and Mortimer- Actor
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Gareth Hale was born on 15 January 1953 in London, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Family Affairs (1997), A Pinch of Snuff (1994) and The Young Ones (1982).with- Actor
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Norman Pace was born on 17 February 1953 in Dudley, Worcestershire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for A Pinch of Snuff (1994), The Young Ones (1982) and Three of a Kind (1981). He has been married to Beverley since 27 December 1976. They have three children.make Hale & Pace- Additional Crew
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Steve Punt was born on 15 September 1962 in Dhekelia Cantonment, Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Cyprus. He is a writer and actor, known for Carrott Confidential (1987), Spine Chillers (2003) and Now, Something Else (1986).With- Actor
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Hugh Dennis was born on 13 February 1962 in Kettering, Northamptonshire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for My Hero (2000), No Time to Die (2021) and Mock the Week (2005). He was previously married to Catherine Louise (Kate) Abbot-Anderson and Miranda Carroll.make Punt and Dennis- Actor
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One of four stars of the London and New York revues Beyond the Fringe and Beyond the Fringe (with Jonathan Miller, Alan Bennett, and Dudley Moore). Later created scatological comedy routine "Derek & Clive" with Moore.with- Actor
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Dudley Moore, the gifted comedian who had at least three distinct career phases that brought him great acclaim and success, actually started out as a musical prodigy as a child. Moore -- born in Dagenham, Essex, England to working class parents in 1935 -- won a music scholarship to Magdalen College, Oxford, to study the organ. At university, he also studied composition and became a classically trained pianist, though his forte on the piano for public performance was jazz. After graduating from Magdalen College in 1958, Moore was offered a position as organist at King's College, Cambridge, but turned it down in order to go to London and pursue a music and acting career. Fellow Oxonian Alan Bennett (Exter Colelge, B.A., Medieval History, 1957) had already recommended him to John Bassett, who was putting together a satirical comedy revue called "Beyond the Fringe". "Beyond the Fringe" was to be Moore's first brush with fame, along with co-stars Bennett, future theatrical director Jonathan Miller (now Sir Jonathan, who studied Medicine at Cambridge and was a physician), and Peter Cook, who was destined to become Moore's comic partner during the 1960s and '70s.
It was Miller who had recommended Cook for "Beyond the Fringe", in much the same way that Bennett had bird-dogged Moore. Cook, who had studied modern languages at Cambridge, had been part of the famous Cambridge theatrical, the Footlights revue in 1959, had subsequently gone to London to star in a West End revue for Kenneth Williams, "Pieces of Eight". This old-fashioned review was such a success there was a sequel, "One Over the Eight". He was advised by his agent not to star in the Fringe with the three others as he was a professional, whereas they were amateurs. Ironically, the great success of "Beyond the Fringe", which was a new kind of satirical comedy, would doom the very old-fashioned reviews that Cook had just tasted success in. "Beyond the Fringe" not only won great acclaim in the UK, but it was a hit in the U.S.. The four won a special Tony Award in 1963 for their Broadway production of "Beyond the Fringe" and there was a television program made of the revue in 1964.
Moore and Cook were offered the TV show Not Only... But Also (1965) by the BBC in 1965. Peter Cook was on as a guest. Their pairing was so successful, it enjoyed a second season in 1966 and a third in 1970. They were particularly funny as the working-class characters "Pete" and "Dud". The duo then broke into the movies, including The Wrong Box (1966) and Bedazzled (1967). In 1974, the duo won their second Tony Award for their show "Good Night", which was the stage version of their TV series "Not Only... But Also".
In the mid- to late 1970s, they issued three comic albums in the guise of the characters "Derek" and "Clive" (Moore and Cook, respectively), two lavatory attendants that many viewed as reincarnations of their earlier TV characters "Pete" and "Dud". The albums, ad-libbed in a recording studio while the two drank vast quantities of alcohol, were noted at the time for their obscenity. Their typical routine was a stream-of-consciousness fugue by Cook, interspersed with interjections by Moore. With their obscenity-laden, free-formed riffs, Derke and Clive presaged the more free-wheeling shock comedy of the 1980s and '90s.
They subsequently split up as Moore could no longer tolerate Cook's alcoholism. Under the influence, Cook would become abusive towards Moore, whose acting career was undergoing a renaissance in the late '70s while his career has stalled. Ironically, it was playing an alcoholic that brought Moore to the summit of his success as an actor.
After marrying American actress Tuesday Weld in 1975, Moore moved to the U.S. and began a second career as a solo screen comedian, stealing the show from Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn as the horny conductor in the movie comedy, Foul Play (1978). When George Segal dropped out of the movie 10 (1979), director Blake Edwards cast Moore in the lead role as the composer undergoing a mid-life crisis. It was a huge hit, but was surpassed by his Oscar-nominated turn as the dipsomaniac billionaire in Arthur (1981). In the early 1980s, Moore was a top box office attraction. In 1983, the National Alliance of Theater Owners named him the Top Box Office Star-Male of the Year.
His career began petering out after he turned down the lead in Splash (1983), a role that helped establish Tom Hanks as a top movie comedian and position him for his transition into movie drama and super-stardom. As Hanks star waxed, Moore's star waned, and by 1985 he was reduced to playing an elf in Santa Claus: The Movie (1985), one of the all time turkeys. Even a second turn as "Arthur" in Arthur 2: On the Rocks (1988) couldn't revive his box office, the dependent clause of the title all too well describing his career. His TV series Dudley (1993) was a bust, and the 1990s proved a wasteland for the once-honored and prosperous comedian.
Moore was deeply affected by the January 1995 death of Peter Cook by a gastrointestinal hemorrhage at the age of 57. Moore organized a two-day memorial to Cook in Los Angeles that was held in November 1995. Less than four years later, in September 1999, Moore announced that he was afflicted with progressive supra-nuclear palsy, a disease for which there is no treatment.
Dudley Moore was invested as a Commander of the Order of The British Empire (one step below knighthood) in June 2001. Moore personally attended the ceremony at Buckingham Palace to accept his CBE from Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales (later King Charles III), despite being unable to speak and being wheelchair-bound. He died in Watchung, New Jersey on March 27, 2002, a month shy of his 67th birthday, from the pneumonia related to progressive supra-nuclear palsy.
Dudley Moore was married four times, to actresses Suzy Kendall, Tuesday Weld, Brogan Lane and Nicole Rothschild, and had two sons, one with Tuesday Weld and one with Nicole Rothschild.Make Not Only But Also- Actor
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Robert Harper (Bobby Ball) and Thomas Derbyshire (Tommy Cannon) were both born in Oldham. They met in the early 1960s while working as welders in the same factory.
Becoming friends, they formed a club act known as Bobby and Stevie Rhythm, which became the Sherrell Brothers then The Harper Brothers. Initially they were a vocal duo, but over time started to introduce more comedy into their act. They turned professional in the late 1960s, and eventually changed their name to Cannon and Ball.
Their first TV appearance was on Opportunity Knocks in 1968, where they came last. Other early TV work included appearances on Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club during the 1970s. However, during this time their work remained predominantly in clubs and theatres.
Their last TV series was in 1991, by which time tastes had changed and they were no longer 'fashionable' on TV. Despite this, they continued their theatre summer seasons and pantomimes, where they still drew large audiences. Guest appearances on TV shows have also continued.
Although things seemed to be going well in the 1980s, things off-stage looked much bleaker. Over the years they had gradually grown apart, to the extent that they no longer spoke to one another except when work demanded. Bobby was drinking heavily, womanizing, and had gained a reputation for violence. In 1986 Bobby became a Christian, and Tommy followed in 1992.
During the 1990s and 2000s Cannon and Ball have continued working, with theatre tours, summer shows, pantomimes and TV appearances keeping them busy. They now also perform regular Christian concerts and 'evening with...' shows where they talk about their life story and their faith.With- Actor
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Robert Harper (Bobby Ball) and Thomas Derbyshire (Tommy Cannon) were both born in Oldham. They met in the early 1960s while working as welders in the same factory. Becoming friends, they formed a club act known as "Bobby and Stevie Rhythm", which became the Sherrell Brothers, then The Harper Brothers. Initially they were a vocal duo, but over time started to introduce more comedy into their act. They turned professional in the late 1960s, and eventually changed their name to Cannon and Ball.
Their first TV appearance was on "Opportunity Knocks" in 1968, where they came in last. Other early TV work included appearances on The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club (1974) during the 1970s. However, during this time their work remained predominantly in clubs and theaters. Their last TV series was in 1991, by which time tastes had changed and they were not as popular on TV. They continued their theatre summer seasons and pantomimes, where they still drew large audiences. Guest appearances on television continued.
Although things seemed to be going well in the 1980s, things off-stage were darker. Over the years they had gradually estranged to the extent that they no longer spoke to one another except when work demanded. Bobby was drinking heavily, womanizing, and had gained a reputation for violence. In 1986, Ball became a Christian, as did Cannon in 1992. During the 1990s and 2000s, the duo continued working, with theatre tours, summer shows, pantomimes and TV appearances keeping them busy. They performed regular Christian concerts and "evening with..." shows where they spoke about their lives and faith.Make Cannon and Ball- Actor
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Syd Little was born on 19 December 1942 in Blackpool, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The ITV Play (1968), The Little and Large Tellyshow (1976) and Who Do You Do (1972).With- Writer
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Eddie Large was born on 25 June 1941 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for The Impressionable Jon Culshaw (2004), Opportunity Knocks (1956) and The ITV Play (1968). He was married to Patsy Ann Scott and Sandra Baywood. He died on 2 April 2020 in Bristol, England, UK.Make Little and Large- Writer
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David Mitchell was born on 14th July 1974 in Salisbury, England. His parents, Ian and Kathy Mitchell, worked as hotel managers in Salisbury. David also has a brother. In 1977 the family moved to Oxford, where his parents taught a course in hotel management at Oxford Brookes University. David was educated at Abingdon School in Oxfordshire. He has been writing comedy material since his schooldays when he used to write comedy sketches with his friends. A year before he went to college, David worked for a while as a proofreader for the Oxford University Press. He studied History at Peterhouse College, Cambridge. Whilst he was studying at Cambridge University he joined the Cambridge Footlights, where he met his comedy partner, Robert Webb. David became President of the Cambridge Footlights and after graduation he and Robert staged a two man show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Early in his career David worked as a freelance writer on comedy sketch shows including 'Armstrong and Miller' and 'Big Train'. He also appeared as Owen, the IT specialist, in 'Think the Unthinkable', a BBC Radio 4 situation comedy about a firm of management consultants. David made a guest appearance as Owen in one episode for the first series. This episode was broadcast on 6th November 2001. His character proved to be so popular that Owen was co-opted as a full member of Unthinkable Solutions and David appeared in all six episodes of Series 2 of 'Think the Unthinkable'. These episodes were broadcast on BBC Radio 4 from 7th November 2002 to 12th December 2002. In 2001 David and Robert co-wrote a six part comedy sketch show 'The Mitchell and Webb Situation', which was broadcast on Play UK. The series was directed by David Kerr, who would later work with David and Robert on their BBC2 sketch show, That Mitchell and Webb Look (2006), and several sketches featured the actress Olivia Colman. Also in 2001, David bought his first home, a small flat in the Kilburn district of London.
In 2003 David was cast as Mark Corrigan in the Channel 4 situation comedy, Peep Show (2003). This series follows the lives of Mark and his friend Jeremy, played by Robert Webb, who share a flat in Apollo House, a London apartment block. Mark works for a company called JLB Credit. His work colleagues include Sophie Chapman, played by Olivia Colman. The show has a distinctive look because of its extensive use of subjective camera angles, as viewers are shown events from Mark and Jeremy's point of view. The series also makes use of voice overs in which Mark and Jeremy reveal their innermost thoughts. The first series was broadcast in six episodes between 19th September 2003 and 24th October 2003. Peep Show (2003) was an instant success. The show was nominated for the BAFTA television award for best situation comedy in 2004, and a second series was quickly commissioned. This was broadcast in six episodes on Channel 4 between 12th November 2004 and 17th December 2004. As a result of David's filming commitments for the second series of Peep Show (2003), he was only available to record some of the episodes for the third series of the Radio 4 sitcom, 'Think the Unthinkable', which was broadcast in six parts between 13th July 2004 and 17th August 2004. To explain his absence, the writers devised a storyline in which David's character Owen went into hiding, and a new IT consultant, Jed, played by Robin Ince, was drafted in to cover for him.
The first series of 'That Mitchell and Webb Sound', a comedy sketch show, was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 28th August and 2nd October 2003. All of the characters in the radio show were played by David, Robert, Olivia Colman and James Bachman. It was in Episode 5 of Series One, broadcast on 25th September 2003, that a character called Sir Digby Caesar Salad made his first appearance. Sir Digby was played by Robert and David took the role of his trusty sidekick Ginger. These characters would later feature prominently in the sketch show when it transferred to BBC2 in 2006. After the success of the first run of six episodes, 'That Mitchell and Webb Sound' was commissioned for a second series, which was broadcast in six parts between 10th February and 17th March 2005. Episode 5 of the second series, which went out on 24th February 2005, included a sketch about a game show called Numberwang. David returned to play Owen in the fourth and final series of 'Think the Unthinkable'. This consisted of four episodes broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 28th September and 19th October 2005. David ended 2005 by starring in the third series of Peep Show (2003). This was shown in six parts by Channel 4 between 11th November 2005 and 16th December 2005 and went on to win the best TV comedy award at the 2006 British Comedy awards. In the third series, Alan Johnson, an executive at Mark's firm JLB Credit played by Paterson Joseph, memorably explained his attitude to personnel issues by saying that in his opinion illness is weakness.
The format of the Mitchell and Webb radio series was used for a television sketch show, That Mitchell and Webb Look (2006), the first series of which was broadcast on BBC2 in six episodes between 14th September 2006 and 19th October 2006. The television series featured a number of sketches first used in the radio show such as the surprising adventures of Sir Digby Caesar Salad, now renamed Sir Digby Chicken Caesar. The Numberwang game show also featured in every episode of the first TV series. Usually Robert played the game show host, but in one episode David hosted a German language version of Numberwang. In 2006 David and Robert went on a tour of Great Britain with their stage show, 'The Two Faces of Mitchell and Webb'. This opened at the Pleasance Theatre in London on 12th October 2006 and ended at the Assembly Hall Theatre in Tunbridge Wells on 10th December 2006. In December 2006 David was the best man at Robert's wedding to Abigail Burdess.
In 2006 David hosted a pilot episode for a comedy panel game called 'The Unbelievable Truth'. In the game, the contestants each deliver a lecture on a given subject. Their talks consist almost entirely of lies, but the lectures always contain a few items of genuine factual information. The other contestants have to identify the items of true information, and points are won by correctly identifying true facts, and also for successfully smuggling truths past the other contestants. The pilot episode was broadcast by BBC Radio 4 on Thursday 19th October 2006, and it led to a full series of six episodes which ran from 29th April to 3rd June 2007. The writers of Peep Show (2003), Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain, wrote the screenplay for Magicians (2007), a comedy feature film starring David and Robert as rival stage musicians. This film went on general release in Great Britain on 18th May 2007. Peep Show (2003) returned in the spring of 2007 for its fourth season after a slightly longer break than usual. As usual David and Robert collaborated on the scripts with Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain by providing additional material. The series was shown on Channel 4 in six episodes between 13th April and 18th May 2007. David was nominated for the best TV comedy performance award at the 2008 Television BAFTAs for his portrayal of Mark in the fourth season of Peep Show (2003). The show itself won the award for best TV comedy at the 2007 the British comedy awards, and the best sitcom award at the 2008 Television BAFTAs. Just after Peep Show (2003) had completed its run on Channel 4, David co-wrote and starred in the third series of 'That Mitchell and Webb Sound', which was broadcast in six episodes on BBC Radio 4 between 24th May and 28th June 2007. The highlights included 'Celebrity Fame Zeppelin', a sketch which parodied reality television shows like 'Big Brother'. Since 2007 David is one of the team captains of Would I Lie to You? (2007) since the first series.
The first series of That Mitchell and Webb Look (2006) won a BAFTA award, and the sketch show was commissioned for a second series. This was broadcast on BBC2 in six episodes between 21st February 2008 and 27th March 2008. Later in 2008 David hosted the second series of 'The Unbelievable Truth', which went out on BBC Radio 4 between 5th May and 9th June 2008. There was also an 'Unbelievable Truth' Christmas special, which was broadcast by BBC Radio 4 on Monday 15th December 2008. In the late spring of 2008, Peep Show (2003) returned for its fifth season, which was broadcast in six episodes by Channel 4 between 2nd May and 6th June 2008. The fifth series featured a new character called Dobby played by Isy Suttie, who was nominated for the award for best female comedy newcomer at the 2008 British Comedy awards. Also at the 2008 British comedy awards, David was nominated for best television comedy actor, and Olivia Colman was nominated for best television comedy actress for her performance as Sophie Chapman. Unfortunately, none of the three Peep Show (2003) nominees won on the night, but David's role as Mark was recognized at the 2009 Television BAFTAs when he won the award for best comedy performance. In his acceptance speech at the awards ceremony which took place at London's South Bank on Sunday 26th April 2009, David said that the award should really have been shared with his comedy partner and co-star in the sitcom, Robert Webb.
In the spring of 2009, David hosted the third season of 'The Unbelievable Truth'. This was broadcast in six parts by BBC Radio 4 between 23rd March and 27th April 2009. One of the guests in the third season was Graeme Garden, who had originally helped to devise the format of the game show. David made a guest appearance in two episodes of the BBC Radio 4 topical debate show, 'Heresy'. The episodes in question went out on 5th and 19th May 2009. The third season of That Mitchell and Webb Look (2006) started on BBC2 on Thursday 11th June 2009.With- Actor
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Robert Webb was born on 29 September 1972 in Lincolnshire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for That Mitchell and Webb Look (2006), Peep Show (2003) and Back (2017). He has been married to Abigail Burdess since 2006. They have two children.make Mitchell and Webb- Writer
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Stewart Lee was born on 5 April 1968 in Wellington, Shropshire, England, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle (2009), This Morning with Richard Not Judy (1998) and Kombat Opera Presents (2007). He has been married to Bridget Christie since 2006. They have two children.With- Writer
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Richard Herring was born on 12 July 1967 in Yorkshire, England, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for Time Gentlemen Please (2000), You Can Choose Your Friends (2007) and This Morning with Richard Not Judy (1998). He has been married to Catie Wilkins since 7 April 2012. They have two children.make Lee and Herring- Actor
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Barry Chuckle was born on 24 December 1944 in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for ChuckleVision (1987), Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway (2002) and The Freddie Starr Showcase (1983). He was married to Ann Elliott. He died on 5 August 2018 in England, UK.With- Actor
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Paul Chuckle was born on 18 October 1947 in Rotherham, Yorkshire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for ChuckleVision (1987), Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway (2002) and The Madame Blanc Mysteries (2021). He has been married to Sue ? since 12 April 1988.make the Chuckle Brothers- Actor
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Rikki Fulton was born on 15 April 1924 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Local Hero (1983), Gorky Park (1983) and The Adventures of Francie and Josie (1962). He was married to Kate Matheson and Ethel Scott. He died on 27 January 2004 in Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland, UK.With- Jack Milroy was born on 28 December 1915 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was an actor, known for The Adventures of Francie and Josie (1962), Francie and Josie (1989) and Francie & Josie: The Farewell Performance (1996). He was married to Mary Lee. He died on 1 February 2001 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK.make Francie and Josie