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Sandy Powell (comedian)

2022-05-07T08:27:01Z

2A02:C7D:D627:9100:20ED:D042:8AD4:417B: /* Radio and film */

{{Short description|English comedian}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
[[File:Comedian_Sandy_Powell.jpg|thumb|right|Publicity still for ''[[All at Sea (1940 film)|All at Sea]]'' (1940)]]
'''Albert Arthur Powell''' [[Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire|MBE]] (30 January 1900 – 26 June 1982), known as '''Sandy Powell''', was an English [[comedian]] best known for his radio work of the 1930s and for his catchphrase "Can you hear me, mother?". He first said this in a theatre in Coventry. Fifty years later, deciding he needed a rest from the business (he planned a cruise around the world with his wife, Kay White), he again said it in a Coventry theatre, for the last time.

== Early life ==
Born in [[Rotherham]], Yorkshire, England, in 1900, he attended White's school in [[Masbrough]], where he helped his mother (stage name of Lily le Maine) to put on a [[marionette]] show. At age nine, she put him in a velvet suit with a lace collar and he went on stage and sang. After he left school he became a [[music hall]] entertainer, often wearing a kilt in the guise of a 'Scottish' comedian. During this part of his career he was associated with the singer [[Gracie Fields]], and released several records where he collaborated with her.

== Stage and recording ==
He made a total of eighty five 78rpm records between 1929 and 1942,<ref>''British Music Hall on Record'' by Brian Rust (1979)</ref> mostly double-sided sketches with him in various occupations. He sold seven and a half million records, earning a penny a side, so over £60,000. The first, ''The Lost Policeman'' on the cheap Broadcast label, sold almost half a million copies (he had turned down a flat fee of £60 for this), and his subsequent recordings for Broadcast and Rex were extremely popular. He said in a 1982 interview<ref name="Wilmut">''Kindly Leave The Stage'' (1985) by Roger Wilmut</ref> that he used his stage work to advertise the records, rather than the other way about, though it was later said of him that his records introduced him so wherever he went to put on a show, they already knew him.

Powell's stooge in his act during the 1930s, the boy soprano, Jimmy Fletcher, father of the actor [[Gerard Fletcher]], of ''[[Emmerdale]]'', ''[[Coronation Street]]'' and other TV. From 1930 he took his own revue, ''Sandy Powell's Road Show'', on tour – it ran for ten years and was extremely popular despite having only a handful of performers and two backdrops.<ref name="Wilmut"/>

== Radio and film ==
In the 1930s he began to work on the radio, always introducing his show with the [[catchphrase]] "Can you hear me, mother?". Powell said that the catchphrase originated on an occasion when he had dropped his script and was killing time at the microphone while rearranging the pages. It is also attributed to his mother's coercion and her [[hearing impairment|hardness of hearing]], during his early career. At his next booking, the theatre manager asked him to say it again as everyone was saying it now. He also appeared in a number of films during the 1930s, usually as himself. In 1939, he was voted the fifth most popular British star at the local box office.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article46303803 |title=POPULAR PLAYERS. |newspaper=[[The West Australian]] |location=Perth |date=24 February 1939 |accessdate=24 April 2012 |page=3 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref>

A popular figure, he worked continually on radio, television and [[pantomime]] through the 1940s and 1950s. Aged 21 at the time, [[Pat Phoenix]] was brought in to play Sandy's wife and played four parts in the film. After that he went onto a variety tour and she came with him as his wife, earning £12 a week. He performed with his Starlight company in the [[Eastbourne Pier]] theatre for over fifteen seasons in the 1950s and 1960s, earning himself the sobriquet 'Mr Eastbourne', and he was still performing occasionally up to his death in 1982. Part of his act was a comedy [[ventriloquism]] act, where the dummy would fall apart. After being on stage for a few weeks with a series of awful ventriloquists, he bought a dummy himself and did his own act as a ventriloquist. When Pat Phoenix as his wife who "fed him lines" asked if the dummy could sing something, he replied "If I know it, he can sing it!" His real-life wife, Kay White, often appeared with him.<ref name="HuddHindin1997">{{cite book|author1=Roy Hudd|author2=Philip Hindin|title=Roy Hudd's Cavalcade of Variety Acts: A who was who of Light Entertainment, 1945-60|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iydaAAAAMAAJ|year=1997|publisher=Robson Books|isbn=978-1-86105-115-8|page=47}}</ref>

He performed twice in a [[Royal Variety Performance]]: both 1935 and 1970. In the latter he appeared with his wife performing his ventriloquist act gone-wrong.

He was the subject of ''[[This Is Your Life (British TV series)|This Is Your Life]]'' in 1971 when he was surprised by [[Eamonn Andrews]]. He was awarded the MBE in 1975.<ref>[http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/46593/supplements/7384] {{dead link|date=November 2021}}</ref>

==Death==
For a day or two, he thought he had bad indigestion, but it was worse than he realised and he died of a [[heart attack]] in [[Eastbourne]] on 26 June 1982, aged 82.

A pub in Powell's native Rotherham was named "The Comedian" in his honour.<ref>{{cite book|title=Dictionary of Pub Names|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k-4SrdUPNFoC&pg=PA92|date=September 2006|publisher=Wordsworth Editions|isbn=978-1-84022-266-1|pages=92}}</ref>

==Marriages==

In 1942 he married Katie Hughes, who died in 1947. He married Kay White in 1951.

==Filmography==
*''[[The Third String (1932 film)|The Third String]]'' (1932)
*''Can You Hear Me, Mother?'' (1935)
* ''[[Soft Lights and Sweet Music]]'' (1936)
*''Leave It to Me'' (1937)
*''[[It's a Grand Old World]]'' (1937)
*''[[I've Got a Horse]]'' (1938)
*''[[Home from Home (1939 film)|Home from Home]]'' (1939)
*''[[All at Sea (1940 film)|All at Sea]]'' (1940)
*''[[Cup-tie Honeymoon]]'' (1948)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb name|id=0694308|name=Sandy Powell}}
*[http://www.itsahotun.com/thestars.html Photo and info on Sandy Powell together with details of other Mancunian Film stars]

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Sandy}}
[[Category:1900 births]]
[[Category:1982 deaths]]
[[Category:English male comedians]]
[[Category:20th-century English comedians]]
[[Category:British male comedy actors]]

The Army Game

2022-05-07T02:41:21Z

2A02:C7D:D627:9100:20ED:D042:8AD4:417B:

{{short description|British sitcom}}
{{more footnotes|date=February 2013}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| image = The Army Game TV.jpg
| caption = Imagery from the board game
| genre = [[Sitcom]]
| creator = [[Sid Colin]]
| starring = [[William Hartnell]] [[Michael Medwin]] [[Geoffrey Sumner]] [[Alfie Bass]] [[Charles Hawtrey (actor, born 1914)|Charles Hawtrey]] [[Bernard Bresslaw]] [[Norman Rossington]] [[Bill Fraser]] [[Ted Lune]] [[Frank Williams (actor)|Frank Williams]] [[Harry Towb]] [[Mario Fabrizi]] [[Robert Desmond]] [[Dick Emery]]
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| num_series = 4
| num_episodes = 154
| runtime = 30 minutes
| company = [[ITV Granada|Granada]]
| distributor = [[ITV Studios]]
| network = [[ITV Network|ITV]]
| first_aired = {{Start date|1957|6|19|df=y}}
| last_aired = {{End date|1961|6|20|df=y}}
}}

'''''The Army Game''''' is a British television [[sitcom]] that aired on [[ITV Network|ITV]] from 19 June 1957 to 20 June 1961. It was the very first [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] sitcom and was made by [[ITV Granada|Granada]], and created by [[Sid Colin]]. It follows the exploits of Hut 29, a dysfunctional group of soldiers and their [[National Service#United Kingdom|National Service]] [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|conscription]] into the [[British Army]] during the post war years.

The original cast consisted of [[William Hartnell]], [[Michael Medwin]], [[Geoffrey Sumner]], [[Alfie Bass]], [[Charles Hawtrey (actor, born 1914)|Charles Hawtrey]], [[Bernard Bresslaw]] and [[Norman Rossington]]. The cast would change over the years with actors such as [[Bill Fraser]], [[Ted Lune]], [[Frank Williams (actor)|Frank Williams]], [[Harry Fowler]] and [[Dick Emery]] appearing in subsequent series.

The popularity of the series inspired a film spin-off, ''[[I Only Arsked!]]'' (1958), and a top ten hit. It also produced the successful sitcom ''[[Bootsie and Snudge]]'' starring the popular characters played by Bass and Fraser.

==Background==
The creator, Sid Colin, was inspired by a 1956 film, ''[[Private's Progress]]'', that starred [[Ian Carmichael]], [[Richard Attenborough]] and [[Terry-Thomas]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780199916108.001.0001/acref-9780199916108-e-0303|title=Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable|first1=John AytoJohn|last1=Ayto|first2=Ian CroftonIan|last2=Crofton|editor-first1=John|editor-last1=Ayto|editor-first2=Ian|editor-last2=Crofton|date=9 August 2011|publisher=Chambers Harrap Publishers|via=www.oxfordreference.com|doi=10.1093/acref/9780199916108.001.0001/acref-9780199916108-e-0303}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b6b38d979|title=Private's Progress (1956)|website=BFI}}</ref> William Hartnell had a supporting role similar to that of Sergeant-Major Bullimore in ''The Army Game''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/544973/index.html|title=BFI Screenonline: Hartnell, William (1908-1975) Biography|website=www.screenonline.org.uk}}</ref>

Writers included [[Sid Colin]], [[Larry Stephens]], Maurice Wiltshire, Lew Schwarz, [[John Jowett]], [[John Antrobus]], [[John Foley (author)|John Foley]], [[Marty Feldman]], [[Barry Took]], David Climie, David Cumming, Derek Collyer, Brad Ashton, [[John Junkin]], [[Talbot Rothwell]], Sidney Nelson, Stan Mars, Bob Perkins and Alan MacKinnon. At least three episodes are uncredited.

==Cast==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! Character !! Series 1 !! Series 2 !! Series 3 !! Series 4
|-
| Maj. Upshot-Bagley || [[Geoffrey Sumner]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="2"| || Geoffrey Sumner
|-
| Sgt. Maj. Percy Bullimore || [[William Hartnell]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="2"| || William Hartnell
|-
| Cpl. Springer || colspan="2"| [[Michael Medwin]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="2"|
|-
| Pte. Montague "Excused Boots" Bisley || colspan="3"| [[Alfie Bass]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" |
|-
| Pte. "Cupcake" Cook || [[Norman Rossington]] Keith Banks (some episodes) || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="3"|
|-
| Pte. "Professor" Hatchett || [[Charles Hawtrey (actor, born 1914)|Charles Hawtrey]] [[Keith Smith (actor)|Keith Smith]] (some episodes) || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="3"|
|-
| Pte. "Popeye" Popplewell || [[Bernard Bresslaw]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="3"|
|-
| Sgt. Maj. Claude Snudge || colspan="3"| [[Bill Fraser]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" |
|-
| Capt. Pilsworthy || Bernard Hunter || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="3"|
|-
| Maj. "Fishy" Upshot-Bagley || [[Jack Allen (actor)|Jack Allen]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="3"|
|-
| Pte. Leonard Bone || style="background-color:lightgrey;"| || colspan="3"| [[Ted Lune]]
|-
| Cpl. "Flogger" Hoskins || style="background-color:lightgrey;"| || colspan="3"| [[Harry Fowler]]
|-
| Capt. T. R. Pocket || style="background-color:lightgrey;"| || colspan="3"| [[Frank Williams (actor)|Frank Williams]]
|-
| Maj. Geoffrey Gervais Duckworth || style="background-color:lightgrey;"| || C.B. Poultney || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="2"|
|-
| L/Cpl. Ernest "Moosh" Merryweather || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="2"| || colspan="2"| [[Mario Fabrizi]]
|-
| Pte. Dooley || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="2"| || [[Harry Towb]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" |
|-
| Pte. Billy Baker || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="2"| || [[Robert Desmond]] || style="background-color:lightgrey;" |
|-
| Pte. "Chubby" Catchpole || style="background-color:lightgrey;" colspan="3"| || [[Dick Emery]]
|}

==Plot and characters==
The show centres on a group of conscripts assigned to the Surplus Ordnance Department at Nether Hopping, [[Staffordshire]]. Billeted in Hut 29, the men are determined to work little and have fun.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://televisionheaven.co.uk/reviews/the-army-game|title=The Army Game|first=Laurence|last=Marcus|website=Television Heaven}}</ref>

Geoffrey Sumner played Major 'Piggy' Upshot-Bagley, the commanding officer, with William Hartnell as Company Sgt Major (CSM) Percy Bullimore, the bane of Hut 29's army life. Michael Medwin was the [[spiv]]-like Cpl Springer in charge of Hut 29, with the original conscripts consisting of Bernard Bresslaw's IQ deficient Pte Popplewell, Alfie Bass's Pte 'Excused Boots' Bisley, Charles Hawtrey's Pte 'Professor' Hatchett and Norman Rossington's Pte 'Cupcake' Cook.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nostalgiacentral.com/television/tv-by-decade/tv-shows-1950s/army-game/|title=Army Game, The | Nostalgia Central|website=nostalgiacentral.com}}</ref>

Later series saw Frank Williams as Capt T. R. Pockett take over the running of the camp, with Bill Fraser's Sgt Claude Snudge replacing Bullimore; although Sumner and Hartnell would return for the final series. Other popular characters included Harry Fowler's Cpl 'Flogger' Hoskins (a replacement for Medwin's Springer) and Ted Lune's Pte Leonard Bone, a sort of northern England variation on Bresslaw's Popplewell.

Arguably the break-out character of the series was Bresslaw's Popplewell who would go on to be the lead of the film version, ''I Only Arsked!'' (1958), which used his catch-phrase as its title.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/842027/index.html|title=BFI Screenonline: Bresslaw, Bernard (1934-1993) Biography|website=www.screenonline.org.uk}}</ref> On the back of the series Bresslaw became a star of the late fifties and would also use the Popplewell characteristics for other roles of the period, such as the 1959 films ''[[Too Many Crooks]]'' and ''[[The Ugly Duckling (1959 film)|The Ugly Duckling]]''. After Bresslaw left, Bass and Fraser's Bootsie and Snudge would become the most popular characters, and would get their own spin-off series, ''[[Bootsie and Snudge]]'', after ''The Army Game'' finished.<ref name=nostalgiabootsie>{{Cite web|url=https://nostalgiacentral.com/television/tv-by-decade/tv-shows-1960s/bootsie-snudge/|title=Bootsie and Snudge | Nostalgia Central|website=nostalgiacentral.com}}</ref>

==Episodes==

===Series One (1957–58)===
#"The Army Game" (19 June 1957)
#"The Misguided Missiles" (3 July 1957)
#"The Convicts Return" (17 July 1957)
#"Open Day" (31 July 1957)
#Episode 5 (14 August 1957)
#Episode 6 (28 August 1957)
#"The Mad Bull" (11 September 1957)
#"The Still" (25 September 1957)
#"The Volunteers" (9 October 1957)
#"The Civilian Clerk" (23 October 1957)
#"Security" (6 November 1957)
#"The Rise And Fall of Private Popplewell" (20 November 1957)
#"The New Officer" (4 December 1957)
#"The Thing From Outer Space" (20 December 1957)
#"W.R.A.A.C.S." (27 December 1957)
#"Getting Shot Of" (3 January 1958)
#"The Quarrel" (10 January 1958)
#"Any Complaints" (17 January 1958)
#"To A Haggis" (24 January 1958)
#"The Marshall's Baton" (31 January 1958)
#"Brothers in Law" 8 (7 February 1958)
#"That's The Ticket" (14 February 1958)
#"The Kindest Man in Britain" (21 February 1958)
#"Brother Officers" (28 February 1958)
#"The Recruits" (7 March 1958)
#Episode 26 (14 March 1958)
#Episode 27 (21 March 1958)
#"Bring on the Dancing Girls" (28 March 1958)
#"Quiz Kids" (4 April 1958)
#"Guinea Pigs" (11 April 1958)
#"The Investigator" (18 April 1958)
#Episode 32 (25 April 1958)
#"Money To Burn" (2 May 1958)
#"The Initiative Test" (9 May 1958)
#"A Piece of Cake" (16 May 1958)
#"Treasure Trove" (23 May 1958)
#"Derby Day" (30 May 1958)
#"Poetry Prize" (6 June 1958)
#"Insurance" (13 June 1958)

===Series Two (1958–59)===
#"The Special Investigator" (19 September 1958)
#"A Soldier's Farewell" (26 September 1958)
#"The Invisible Soldier" (3 October 1958)
#"The Garden Fete" (10 October 1958)
#"Fit as a Fiddle" (17 October 1958)
#"The Bogus Sergeant Major" (24 October 1958)
#"Happy Birthday Major Duckworth" (31 October 1958)
#"The Phantom Strikes Again" (7 November 1958)
#"The Flying Visitors" (14 November 1958)
#"Dodging the Draft" (21 November 1958)
#"Amateur Talent" (28 November 1958)
#"Dinner is Served" (5 December 1958)
#"X Marks the Spot" (12 December 1958)
#"The Happy Couple" (19 December 1958)
#"Ebeneezer Scrooge" (26 December 1958)
#"The Desperate Hours" (2 January 1959)
#"Officer Material" (9 January 1959)
#"Grand Hotel" (16 January 1959)
#"Bootsie's Butler" (23 January 1959)
#"The C.O.'s Aunt" (30 January 1959)
#Episode 21 (6 February 1959)
#"St Valentine's Day" (13 February 1959)
#"That's the Ticket" (20 February 1959)
#"The Folk Singers" (27 February 1959)
#"The Initiative Test" (6 March 1959)
#"Friday the Thirteenth" (13 March 1959)
#"The Old Car" (20 March 1959)
#"The Separation" (27 March 1959)
#"I Was Snudge's Double" (3 April 1959)
#"The Military Mission" (10 April 1959)
#"All Quiet on the Western Front" (17 April 1959)
#"The System" (24 April 1959)
#"The Eating Contest" (1 May 1959)
#"The Siege" (8 May 1959)
#"The Soldier's Chorus" (15 May 1959)
#"The Fiddler's Return" (22 May 1959)
#"Bang You're Dead" (29 May 1959)
#"The Trouble with Bootsie" (5 June 1959)
#"Strength Through Day" (12 June 1959)

===Series Three (1959–60)===
#"Snudge and Jimmy O'Goblin" (9 October 1959)
#"The Take-Over Bid" (16 October 1959)
#"Enter a Dark Stranger" (23 October 1959)
#"Snudge's Budgie" (30 October 1959)
#"Where There's Smoke" (30 October 1959)
#"The Camera Never Lies" (6 November 1959)
#"When the Poppies Bloom Again" (13 November 1959)
#"Miracle in Hut" 29 (20 November 1959)
#"Night Train to Itchwick" (27 November 1959)
#"Officers and Gentlemen" (27 November 1959)
#"Tiger Bisley" (4 December 1959)
#"The Bisley Court Martial" (11 December 1959)
#"The Long Walk" (18 December 1959)
#"Happy New Year" (1 January 1960)
#"The Invisible Man" (8 January 1960)
#"The Bowler Hatting of Pocket" (15 January 1960)
#"The Soft Life" (22 January 1960)
#"Son of Snudge" (29 January 1960)
#"A Rocket Called FRED" (5 February 1960)
#"Don't Send My Boy to Prison" (12 February 1960)
#"A Piece of Cake" (19 February 1960)
#"Never Volunteer" (26 February 1960)
#"A Marriage has been Arranged" (4 March 1960)
#"The Good Old Days" (11 March 1960)
#"A Question in the House" (18 March 1960)
#"The Claude Snudge Story" (25 March 1960)
#"April Fool" (1 April 1960)
#"Goodnight Ladies" (8 April 1960)
#"One of the Lads" (15 April 1960)
#"Holding the Baby" (22 April 1960)
#"Pen Pals Anonymous" (29 April 1960)
#"Are You Receiving Me" (6 May 1960)
#"The Efficiency Expert" (13 May 1960)
#"Bull by the Horn" (20 May 1960)
#"A Touch of the Other" (27 May 1960)
#"The Feud" (3 June 1960)
#"Out of this World" (10 June 1960)
#"Emergency Hut 29" (17 June 1960)

===Series Four (1960–61)===
#"The Return of the Pig" (27 September 1960)
#Episode 2 (4 October 1960)
#"The Do-Gooders" (11 October 1960)
#"The Marshal's Baton" (18 October 1960)
#"Insurance" (25 October 1960)
#"It's in the Book" (1 November 1960)
#"Waltzing Matilda" (8 November 1960)
#"The Kindest Man in Britain" (15 November 1960)
#"Say It With Flowers" (22 November 1960)
#"Music Hath Charms" (29 November 1960)
#"Suddenly This Write" (6 December 1960)
#"Quiz Kids" (13 December 1960)
#"The Artist" (20 December 1960)
#"Private Cinders" (27 December 1960)
#"Tunes of Glory" (3 January 1961)
#"Now It Can Be Told" (10 January 1961)
#"Keep It Out of the Draught" (17 January 1961)
#"Outward Bound" (24 January 1961)
#"All at Sea" (31 January 1961)
#"Decline And Fall" (7 February 1961)
#"My Funny Valentine" (14 February 1961)
#"Any Complaints?" (21 February 1961)
#Episode 23 (28 February 1961)
#"The Beast of Nether Hopping" (7 March 1961)
#"The Green Fingers" (14 March 1961)
#"Cold Cure" (21 March 1961)
#"The Man Who Never Was" (28 March 1961)
#"Poison Pen" (4 April 1961)
#"Into The Breach" (11 April 1961)
#Episode 30 (18 April 1961)
#"Vice Versa" (25 April 1961)
#"The Body in the Bath" (2 May 1961)
#Episode 33 (9 May 1961)
#"Fun And Adventure" (16 May 1961)
#"A Certain Thing" (23 May 1961)
#"Tea And Sympathy" (30 May 1961)
#"The D-Day Dodger" (6 June 1961)
#The Importance of Being Eric (13 June 1961)
#Episode 39 (20 June 1961)

==Other media==
A film based on the series, ''[[I Only Arsked!]]'', appeared in 1958, made by [[Hammer Film Productions]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b6ad40b5b|title=I only Arsked! (1959)|website=BFI}}</ref> The plot concentrated on Bernard Bresslaw's character and included Michael Medwin, Alfie Bass, Geoffrey Sumner, Charles Hawtrey and Norman Rossington playing their characters.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/i-only-arsked-v96070/cast-crew|title=I Only Arsked (1958) - Montgomery Tully | Cast and Crew | AllMovie|via=www.allmovie.com}}</ref> ''"I Only Arsked"'' became Bresslaw's [[catchphrase]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://televisionheaven.co.uk/biographies/bernard-bresslaw|title=Bernard Bresslaw|first=Laurence Marcus Early biography adapted from 'He Only Arsked' by Molly Douglas originally published in the 1959 'Girl Film and Television Annual' Number 3 Other sources: The Television Annual for 1960 and various|last=others|website=Television Heaven}}</ref>

A record was released sung by Michael Medwin, Bernard Bresslaw, Alfie Bass and Leslie Fyson. In June 1958, it reached number five in the [[UK Singles Chart]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/search/singles/the-signature-tune-of-%27the-army-game%27/|title=the signature tune of 'the army game' | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company|website=www.officialcharts.com}}</ref> Bresslaw's song "Mad Passionate Love", sung in the style of Private Popplewell, also did well in the charts.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-bernard-bresslaw-1491593.html|title=Obituary: Bernard Bresslaw|date=23 October 2011|website=The Independent}}</ref>

A paperback was produced, and [[Granada Television|Granada]] brought out a board game in 1959.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britishclassiccomedy.co.uk/thearmygame|title=ITV's First Sitcom - The Army Game|date=31 March 2020}}</ref>

Alfie Bass and Bill Fraser's characters turned up in a spin-off, ''[[Bootsie and Snudge]]'', between 1960 and 1963 and in 1974.<ref name=nostalgiabootsie/> Bootsie and Snudge also appeared in the 1964 sitcom ''[[Foreign Affairs (1964 TV series)|Foreign Affairs]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b71a16b69|title=Foreign Affairs (1964)|website=BFI}}</ref>

A year after the series debuted saw the first ''[[Carry On (franchise)|Carry On]]'' film, the very similar ''[[Carry on Sergeant]]'' (1958), which also featured Hartnell, Hawtrey and Rossington.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/466460/index.html|title=BFI Screenonline: Carry On Sergeant (1958)|website=www.screenonline.org.uk}}</ref>

==Royal Variety Performance==
In June 1959, Michael Medwin, Alfie Bass, Norman Rossington, Bill Fraser and Ted Lune performed a short ''The Army Game'' scene at the [[Royal Variety Performance]] in front of [[Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon|Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.royalvarietycharity.org/royal-variety-performance/archive/detail/1959-manchester-palace|title=Performances :: 1959, Manchester Palace | Royal Variety Charity|first=Royal Variety|last=Charity|website=www.royalvarietycharity.org}}</ref> This was the last Royal Variety Performance not to be televised, although highlights were broadcast on BBC radio on 29 June 1959.

==DVD releases==
Of the 154 episodes made, 52 are thought to survive. On 6 June 2005, Network released the first 26 episodes from series 3 on [[DVD]] under the title ''The Army Game – Volume 1''. On 14 August 2006, the remaining twenty-four episodes (including three surviving episodes from the first series) were released under the title ''The Army Game – Volume 2''. An episode of ''[[Bootsie and Snudge]]'' was included. ''The Army Game Collection'', containing every surviving episode, was released on 13 August 2008.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*[[Mark Lewisohn]], ''Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy'', BBC Worldwide Ltd, 2003

==External links==
*[http://www.nostalgiacentral.com/television/comedy/armygame.htm ''The Army Game''] at Nostalgia Central
*{{IMDb title|0149416}}
*{{British Comedy Guide|tv|the_army_game|The Army Game}}
*[http://www.phill.co.uk/comedy/armygame/index.html ''The Army Game''] at British TV Comedy

{{DEFAULTSORT:Army Game, The}}
[[Category:The Army Game| ]]
[[Category:1957 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:1961 British television series endings]]
[[Category:1950s British sitcoms]]
[[Category:1960s British sitcoms]]
[[Category:ITV sitcoms]]
[[Category:Military comedy television series]]
[[Category:English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Television shows adapted into films]]
[[Category:Television shows adapted into novels]]
[[Category:Television shows produced by Granada Television]]
[[Category:Black-and-white British television shows]]

Sam Kelly

2022-05-06T05:56:08Z

2A02:C7D:D627:9100:20ED:D042:8AD4:417B:

{{short description|British actor (1943–2014)}}
{{other people|Sam Kelly}}
{{EngvarB|date=June 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| birth_name = Roger Michael Kelly
| image = Sam Kelly Allo Allo portrait.jpg
| caption = Sam Kelly
| occupation = Actor
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1943|12|19|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Salford]], [[Lancashire]], England
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2014|06|14|1943|12|19|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Esher]], [[Surrey]], England
| years_active = 1967–2014
| domestic_partner = Grace Pieniazek (died 2009)
| education = [[Liverpool Collegiate School]] [[Liverpool Cathedral]]
| alma_mater = [[London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art]]
}}

'''Roger Michael Kelly''' (19 December 1943 – 14 June 2014),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.whatsonstage.com/west-end-theatre/news/06-2005/20-questions-withsam-kelly_23740.html |title=20 Questions With...Sam Kelly |publisher=Whats on Stage |date=20 June 2005 |access-date=10 February 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140112011900/http://www.whatsonstage.com/west-end-theatre/news/06-2005/20-questions-withsam-kelly_23740.html |archive-date=12 January 2014 }}</ref> known by the stage name '''Sam Kelly''', was an English actor who appeared in film, television, radio and theatre. He is best known for his roles as [[Captain Hans Geering]] in ''[['Allo 'Allo!]]'', [[Warren (Porridge)|Warren]] in ''[[Porridge (1974 TV series)|Porridge]]'', Sam in ''[[On the Up]]'', and Ted Liversidge in ''[[Barbara (TV series)|Barbara]]''.

==Early life==
Kelly was born in [[Salford]], [[Lancashire]] on 19 December 1943 and abandoned; he was adopted by a couple who moved to Liverpool.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2014/jun/15/sam-kelly|title=Sam Kelly obituary|author=Michael Coveney|website=The Guardian|date=15 June 2014|access-date=3 January 2021}}</ref> There he attended the [[Liverpool Collegiate School]] and was a chorister at [[Liverpool Cathedral]], where he showed early acting talent by reciting monologues. He worked for three years in the [[Civil Service (United Kingdom)|Civil Service]] in [[Liverpool]] before training as an actor at the [[London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art]]. After graduating in 1967, he appeared in repertory theatres around the UK.<ref name=Porridge>{{cite book|year=2001|author1=Richard Webster |author2=Dick Clement |author3=Ian la Frenais |isbn=978-0-7472-3294-0|title=Porridge The Inside Story|publisher=Headline Book Publishing}}</ref>

==Career==
His early roles included playing a film director in ''[[Tiffany Jones (film)|Tiffany Jones]]'' (1973) and appearances in two of the later ''[[Carry On (franchise)|Carry On]]'' films, ''[[Carry On Dick]]'' (1974) and ''[[Carry On Behind]]'' (1975). He then had a significant role in the [[British sitcom]] ''[[Porridge (1974 TV series)|Porridge]]'' as the affable and high spirited Slade Prison inmate [[Warren (Porridge)|Bunny Warren]] who relies on fellow prisoners to read his letters from home and blames his incarceration on his inability to read.<ref name=Porridge /><ref name=PorridgeOrg>http://www.porridge.org.uk/john-dair.html John Dair at Porridge The Unofficial Home Page. Retrieved 8 May 2012</ref> In the sitcom ''[['Allo 'Allo!]]'' he played German officer [[Captain Hans Geering]], leaving after the third series (something he later said that he regretted doing). He played the law-stationer Mr. Snagsby in the 1985 BBC adaptation of ''[[Bleak House]]''. In ''[[On the Up]]'' he played [[Dennis Waterman]]'s chauffeur and he appeared in ''[[We'll Think of Something]]'' as Les Brooks. From 1990 to 1992, he co-starred in the comedy television series ''[[Haggard (TV series)|Haggard]]''. In 1994, he appeared as Mr. Mould, the undertaker, in the BBC mini-series ''[[Martin Chuzzlewit (1994 TV series)|Martin Chuzzlewit]]''. From 1999 to 2003, he played Barbara's husband Ted in the British sitcom ''[[Barbara (TV series)|Barbara]]''.

In 1996, Kelly appeared at the [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] in [[Helen Edmundson]]'s adaptation of [[Leo Tolstoy]]'s ''[[War and Peace]]''. He played Bernard in ''[[Holding On (TV series)|Holding On]]'' (1997) and [[Carl Langbehn]] in the five-part television drama ''[[Christabel (1988 TV drama)|Christabel]]'' (1988). He appeared in ''[[Midsomer Murders]]'' episode "Down Among the Dead Men" as Jack Fothergill in 2006 and as the eccentric impoverished ghostwriter, Majors, in the ''[[Inspector Morse (TV series)|Inspector Morse]]'' episode "Second Time Around".

Kelly went on to play Sir Joseph Porter in ''[[H.M.S. Pinafore]]'' with the new [[D'Oyly Carte Opera Company]] in 2002,<ref>[http://www.doylycarte.org.uk/Inside_doyly_carte/recent_history.htm ] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050907045150/http://www.doylycarte.org.uk/Inside_doyly_carte/recent_history.htm |date=7 September 2005 }}</ref> having taken the role of Monsieur Jourdain "as a kind of Baroque Blackadder" in the 1912 version of Strauss's ''[[Ariadne auf Naxos]]'' with [[Scottish Opera]] at the 1997 Edinburgh Festival.<ref>Raymond Monelle. Report from Edinburgh Festival Theatre, August 20, 1997. ''[[Opera (British magazine)|Opera]]'', 1997 Annual Festival Issue, p127.</ref>
In 1998, Kelly appeared as George Spelvin in a concert version of ''[[Strike Up the Band (musical)|Strike Up the Band]]'' at the Barbican in London and also was seen in an episode of the first series of ''[[Cold Feet]]'', playing Algernon Gifford.

On radio, he played the part of Carter Brandon in the [[BBC Radio 4]] series of the continuing adventures of Uncle Mort and Carter Brandon in ''Uncle Mort's South Country'' and ''Uncle Mort's Celtic Fringe''. These were written by [[Peter Tinniswood]].

In 2004, he appeared in the ''[[EastEnders]]'' one-off episode ''Pat and Mo'' playing [[Stan Porter]], and he also appeared in the comedy series ''[[Black Books]]'' as the father of Manny. In 2006 he appeared as the villain Guy Carse in ''[[New Tricks]]''.

Kelly starred in [[Jean-Paul Sartre]]'s play ''Kean'' alongside [[Antony Sher]] at the [[Theatre Royal, Bath|Theatre Royal]], [[Bath, Somerset|Bath]] and in the West End in May 2007. In December 2007, a car struck and injured Kelly in the West End. He was due to have performed in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' episode ("[[Midnight (Doctor Who)|Midnight]]") filmed that month, but the role was taken by [[David Troughton]] instead. Kelly though did act in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' audio dramas "[[The Holy Terror (audio drama)|The Holy Terror]]" and "Return to the Web Planet" by [[Big Finish Productions]].

In 2008, he guest starred in the ''[[Sapphire and Steel]]'' audio drama ''Remember Me''. In November 2008, he starred in the title role of Christopher Reason's radio dramatisation of [[Jaroslav Hašek]]'s ''[[The Good Soldier Švejk]]'', broadcast on [[BBC Radio 4]].

From May 2009, Kelly starred as the Wizard in the [[West End theatre|West End]] production of the musical ''[[Wicked (musical)|Wicked]]'',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wickedthemusical.co.uk/cast/wickedCast_SAMKELLY.asp|title=Sam Kelly|publisher=Wicked!|access-date=2014-06-14|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515204644/http://www.wickedthemusical.co.uk/cast/wickedCast_SAMKELLY.asp|archive-date=15 May 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> replacing [[Desmond Barrit]].<ref>[http://www.wickedthemusical.co.uk/newsletters/ozmopolitan_issue_newcast09.html Ozmopolitan e-newsletter] {{dead link|date=April 2018|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> From 27 March 2010 he was succeeded by [[Clive Carter]].<ref>[http://www.playbill.com/news/article/136358-Lee-Mead-to-Join-Londons-Wicked-as-Fiyero-Principals-Confirmed Lee Mead to Join London's Wicked as Fiyero; Principals Confirmed] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100131073750/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/136358-Lee-Mead-to-Join-Londons-Wicked-as-Fiyero-Principals-Confirmed |date=31 January 2010 }}</ref>

He worked with director [[Mike Leigh]] on several occasions, including ''[[Knock for Knock]]'' (1976), ''[[Grown-Ups]]'' (1980), ''[[Topsy-Turvy]]'' (1999), ''[[All or Nothing (film)|All or Nothing]]'' (2002), ''[[A Running Jump]]'' (2012) and on stage at the [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] in ''Grief'' (September 2011).<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/8779692/Mike-Leigh-Profile-of-a-Playwright.html Mike Leigh: Profile of a Playwright, Daily Telegraph 22 September 2011.]</ref> His final film role was a cameo appearance in Leigh's ''[[Mr. Turner]]'' (2014).

Kelly's later roles were as the ARP warden in ''[[Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang]]'' (2010), and as the old boatman, John Merdell, in the ITV production of ''[[Dead Man's Folly]]'' in the final (2013) series of ''[[Agatha Christie's Poirot|Agatha Christie’s Poirot]]'', the last episode of the series to be filmed.

On 23 July 2010, Kelly guest starred as Martin in the sitcom ''[[My Family]]'' in the episode ''Desperately Stalking Susan''. From October 2010 to February 2011 he starred in ''When We Are Married'' at London's [[Garrick Theatre]].

==Last years and death==
Kelly was in a long-term relationship with journalist and psychotherapist Grace Pieniazek until her death in 2009.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2014/jun/15/sam-kelly|title=Sam Kelly obituary|newspaper=The Guardian|date=15 June 2014|access-date=16 June 2014|last1=Coveney|first1=Michael|last2=Leigh|first2=Mike}}</ref>

Kelly returned to ''Wicked'' as the Wizard on 18 November 2013.<ref>{{cite web|author=BWW News Desk|url=http://westend.broadwayworld.com/article/Savannah-Stevenson-Jeremy-Taylor-More-Join-West-Ends-WICKED-in-November-20130701 |title=Savannah Stevenson, Jeremy Taylor & More Join West End's WICKED in November |publisher=Westend.broadwayworld.com|access-date=14 June 2014}}</ref> It was reported in January 2014 that Kelly had temporarily departed the production due to ill health,<ref name=Telg10900325/> and that his replacement from 17 February 2014 would be Martyn Ellis.

He was admitted to a [[hospice]] on 13 June 2014 and died early the next morning aged 70 after a long battle with cancer.<ref name=Telg10900325>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/10900325/Allo-Allo-and-Porridge-actor-Sam-Kelly-dies-aged-70.html|title='Allo 'Allo and Porridge actor Sam Kelly dies aged 70|author=Oliver Duggan|publisher=Daily Telegraph|date=2014-06-14 |access-date=2014-06-14}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-27851420 |title=Allo Allo star Sam Kelly dies at 70 |publisher=BBC News|date=2014-06-14 |access-date=2014-06-14}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0446844|Sam Kelly}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Sam}}
[[Category:1943 births]]
[[Category:2014 deaths]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in England]]
[[Category:Male actors from Manchester]]
[[Category:People educated at Liverpool Collegiate Institution]]
[[Category:Alumni of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art]]
[[Category:English male stage actors]]
[[Category:English male television actors]]
[[Category:English male film actors]]
[[Category:English male radio actors]]
[[Category:English people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:20th-century English male actors]]
[[Category:21st-century English male actors]]
[[Category:British male comedy actors]]