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{{short description|British comedian and broadcaster}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox comedian
| name              = Kenny Everett
| image             = Kenny Everett.webp
| birth_name        = Maurice James Christopher Cole
| birth_date        = {{Birth date|1944|12|25|df=yes}}
| birth_place       = [[w:Seaforth, Merseyside|Seaforth]], [[w:Lancashire|Lancashire]]<!--It was Lancashire until 1 April 1974 and Merseyside thereafter-->, England
| death_date        = {{Death date and age|1995|4|4|1944|12|25|df=y}}
| death_place       = [[w:London|London]], England
| medium            = Radio, television
| active            = 1962–1994
| genre             = Character comedy,<br/>[[w:surreal comedy|surreal comedy]], [[w:Sketch comedy|sketch]]
| spouse            = {{marriage|[[Lee Everett Alkin|Lee Middleton]]|1969|1984|end=div}}
| notable_work      = [[#Shows presented|See below]]
| website           = 
}}
'''Kenny Everett''' (born '''Maurice James Christopher Cole'''; 25 December 1944 – 4 April 1995) was an English comedian, radio disc jockey and television presenter. After spells on [[w:pirate radio|pirate radio]] and [[w:Radio Luxembourg|Radio Luxembourg]] in the mid-1960s, he was one of the first DJs to join [[w:BBC radio|BBC radio]]'s newly-created [[w:BBC Radio 1|BBC Radio 1]] in 1967. It was here he developed his trademark voices and surreal characters which he later adapted for television.

Everett was dismissed from the BBC in 1970 after making remarks about a government minister's wife. He joined commercial radio when it became licensed in the UK, and joined [[w:Capital Radio|Capital Radio]]. Starting in the late 1970s, he transitioned to television where he made numerous comedy series on ITV and BBC, often appearing with [[w:Cleo Rocos|Cleo Rocos]], whose glamorous and curvaceous figure was often used to comic effect. Rocos would be his assistant in the 1987 BBC gameshow ''Brainstorm''. He was a highly versatile performer, able to write his own scripts, compose jingles and operate advanced recording and mixing equipment. His personality also made him a regular guest on [[w:chat show|chat show]]s and game shows such as ''[[w:Blankety Blank|Blankety Blank]]''.

Everett openly supported the UK's [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] under [[Margaret Thatcher]] and made publicity appearances at conferences and rallies. However, as a [[closeted]] gay man, he would face criticism for supporting a [[Premiership of Margaret Thatcher|Conservative government]] that enacted [[Section 28]], a clause of the [[Local Government Act 1988|Local Government Act]] which made it illegal for councils to promote [[LGBT rights in the United Kingdom|gay rights and issues]]. He was diagnosed with [[HIV]] in 1989 and died in 1995.

==Early life==
Maurice James Christopher Cole was born on [[Christmas Day]] 1944 in [[Seaforth, Merseyside|Seaforth]],<ref name=Virgin>{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of Seventies Music|publisher=Virgin, Muze|year=1997|page=[https://archive.org/details/virginencycloped00lark/page/148 148]|isbn=0753501546|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/virginencycloped00lark/page/148}}</ref> {{cvt|5|mi|0}} north of Liverpool city centre. From a Catholic family, he attended [[Sacred Heart Catholic College|St Bede]]'s, the local [[secondary modern]] school, in [[Crosby, Merseyside|Crosby]] (now part of [[Sacred Heart Catholic College]]). Cole later attended a junior seminary at [[Stillington, North Yorkshire]], near [[York]], with an Italian missionary order, the [[Verona Fathers]], where he was a [[choirboy]].<ref name=Kenny/> After he left school, he worked in a bakery and in the advertising department of ''The Journal of Commerce and Shipping Telegraph''.

==Radio==

=== Radio London, Radio Luxembourg and BBC Radio 1 ===
Everett's first break (as Maurice Cole) came when he sent a tape to the [[BBC]] in 1962. He was interviewed at the BBC and offered a job as a presenter on the [[BBC Light Programme]], the forerunner to [[BBC Radio 2]].<ref name=Kenny>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00wp5hz|title=Wireless Kenny Everett – BBC Radio 2|website=BBC}}</ref> He declined, however, in favour of the less constrained world of [[pirate radio]], where he began his career as a DJ for [[Wonderful Radio London|Radio London]]. It was while working here that he was advised to change his name to avoid legal problems. He adopted the name "Everett" from a childhood hero, the American film comic actor [[Edward Everett Horton]].<ref name=Virgin/>

Everett teamed with [[Dave Cash (DJ)|Dave Cash]] for the ''Kenny & Cash Show'', one of the most popular pirate radio programmes. His offbeat style and likeable personality quickly gained him attention, but in 1965 he was dismissed after some outspoken remarks about religion on air. Like most of the pirate stations, Radio London carried sponsored American evangelical shows and Everett's disparaging remarks about ''[[The World Tomorrow (1934)|The World Tomorrow]]'' caused its producers to threaten to withdraw their lucrative contract with the station. Everett returned six months later, however, before being given his own show by [[Radio Luxembourg]] in 1966.

[[Johnny Beerling]], a BBC producer, secretly visited Radio London at this time and observed Everett at work: "I saw this man Everett doing everything. In the old way of doing things, the DJ sat in one room with a script. Someone else played the records and somebody else controlled the sound. Yet I see this man who has control of everything."<ref name="Lister">David Lister [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/the-pirate-who-made-auntie-swing-1362372.html "The pirate who made Auntie swing"], ''The Independent'', 8 September 1996.</ref> An audition tape submitted to the BBC was assessed in March 1967 by a panel:
<blockquote>
"'''Member one''': 'A pseudo-American voice. Sounds experienced and seems to fancy his luck. Yes.'<br />
'''Member two''': 'By far the most original of the young DJs. I found the stilted bits in bad taste but with suitable restraint and encouragement, Kenny Everett could be one of the BBC's best DJs. Yes.'<br />
'''Member three''': 'Without the hard sell and the occasional phoney American accent, a good pop DJ. Must be made to curb the funnies and the voices. Yes.'<br />
'''Member four''': 'I found the continuous changes of voices irritating and his personality supercilious but he certainly has some talent. Should be available but would need very firm production. Yes.'"<ref>Spencer Leigh [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/what-the-bbc-really-thought-about-some-of-the-biggest-names-in-entertainment-789112.html "What the BBC really thought about some of the biggest names in entertainment"], ''The Independent'', 29 February 2008.</ref>
</blockquote>

Everett was heard in May 1967 on the BBC's soon-to-be-discontinued BBC Light Programme previewing [[the Beatles]]' forthcoming album ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'', and was one of the DJs on the new pop music station [[BBC Radio 1|Radio 1]] from its launch at the end of September 1967.<ref name="indyobit">{{cite news|author=Anthony Hayward|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-kenny-everett-1614235.html|title=Obituary: Kenny Everett|work=[[The Independent]]|date=April 5, 1995}}</ref> Everett had struck up a friendship with the Beatles and accompanied them on their [[The Beatles' 1966 US tour|August 1966 tour of the United States]], sending back daily reports for Radio London. He also produced their 1968 and 1969 [[The Beatles' Christmas Album|Christmas records]].

At Radio 1 Everett continued to develop his distinctive presentation style, encouraged by producer Angela Bond who had persuaded her superiors to give him his first programme,<ref name="telegraph243">[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/tv-radio-obituaries/9951389/Angela-Bond.html Obituary: Angela Bond], telegraph.co.uk, 24 March 2013.</ref> although he later reacted against her as a representative of the BBC.<ref name="Lister"/> Everett's Radio 1 show featured zany voices, surreal characters, multi-tracked [[jingle]]s and [[Trailer (film)|trailers]], all of his own creation and compilation. It was Everett who had persuaded Johnny Beerling and station controller [[Robin Scott (BBC)|Robin Scott]], at a lunch meeting before his appointment, of the importance of the new station having jingles.<ref name="Lister"/> Everett's shows on Radio 1 included ''Midday Spin'' and in 1968 he took over a Saturday show from 10{{nbsp}}am to noon.

In 1970, Everett again found himself dismissed, this time after suggesting on air that Mary Peyton, the British [[Secretary of State for Transport|Transport Minister]]'s wife, had bribed her [[driving test]] examiner. The remark was a spontaneous quip, following a news item describing how Peyton had finally passed after many attempts. The BBC thought the comment "indefensible",<ref name="telegraph243"/> although shortly before the incident Everett had given a controversial interview with ''[[Melody Maker]]'' contrary to a BBC embargo<ref name=Kenny/> preventing him from giving interviews. In negotiations with the record companies and the [[Musicians' Union (UK)|Musicians' Union]] over [[needle time]], a limit on the playing on-air of commercially recorded music, the MU representatives would complain about Everett, the one BBC broadcaster who persistently mocked them.<ref name="Lister"/> In fact, in the year after Everett's death, it was stated that the bribery quip was merely an excuse and that the real reason was because he threatened to go public on the restrictive practices and deals with the [[Musicians' Union (United Kingdom)|Musicians Union]] that were not only frustrating him and his listeners, but also making Radio One much less popular than the pirate stations it had been set up to displace.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/the-pirate-who-made-auntie-swing-1362372.html|title=The pirate who made Auntie swing|website=[[Independent.co.uk]]|date=8 September 1996}}</ref>

Following an interview on the [[BBC Radio Solent]] children's show ''Albert's Gang'', Everett submitted weekly shows to the station that he had pre-recorded at home. This afforded the BBC the opportunity to vet the shows before broadcast. Everett was then heard on various BBC local radio stations before being reinstated at Radio 1 in April 1973.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/schedules/radio1/england/1973-04-08#at-13.00 |title=BBC Radio 1 England – 8 April 1973 – BBC Genome |publisher=Genome.ch.bbc.co.uk |access-date=2017-06-02}}</ref> Here he recorded a weekly show from his home in [[Wales]] and it went out at 1:00 on a Sunday afternoon.

=== Capital Radio ===
During this time, legislation had been passed allowing the licensing of commercial radio stations in the UK. One of the first, [[Capital Radio]], began broadcasting to London and the [[Home Counties]] in October 1973. Everett joined the station and was given a weekend (recorded) show, where he further developed his distinctive ideas. From January 1974, following poor audience figures which in turn followed a difficult start for Capital during a time of industrial strife, the station changed to a more pop based, rather than light music, format, with Everett presenting the breakfast show with his former colleague and friend from the pirate station Radio London (Big L) days, Dave Cash, and so reactivating the "Kenny and Cash" show. When Cash moved to the lunchtime slot in 1975, Everett continued alone on the breakfast show. Everett had a great love of sound recording equipment, in particular using [[reel-to-reel tape]] recorders and mixing equipment, often adding sound-on-sound to his recordings and stereo/multi-track recordings of his pseudo-singing voice. These were broadcast on air regularly and he often created his own radio jingles. Everett created many comedy characters on ''The Breakfast Show'' with Cash on Capital.

In May 1975, Everett found early mornings too much for his lifestyle and he vacated the breakfast show to [[Graham Dene]] and moved to less high-pressure weekend timeslots at Capital on Saturday and Sunday lunchtimes. Here he further developed his style and his cult following, and featured both what he thought the best in music ([[Queen (band)|Queen]], [[Chris Rainbow]]) and the worst, which led to the popular ''Kenny Everett's World's Worst Record Show'' programmes, later released as an album in 1978, with slightly different tracks.

In 1975, Everett played a pivotal role in getting Queen's "[[Bohemian Rhapsody]]" released as a single.<ref>{{cite news|author=James Rampton |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/kenny-everett--the-best-possible-way-to-remember-a-true-pioneer-8191316.html |title=Kenny Everett – The best possible way to remember a true pioneer – Features – TV & Radio |work=The Independent |date=1 October 2012 |access-date=26 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://performingsongwriter.com/freddie-mercury-queen-bohemian-rhapsody/ |title=The Story Behind Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" |date=5 September 2012 |publisher=Performingsongwriter.com |access-date=26 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mmusicmag.com/m/2012/11/bohemian-rhapsody-queen/ |title=M Music & Musicians Magazine " "Bohemian Rhapsody" QUEEN |date=11 November 2012 |publisher=Mmusicmag.com |access-date=26 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Jackson|first=Laura|year=1957|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/812732103|title=Freddie Mercury : the biography|others=Revised and updated edition|isbn=978-0-7499-5608-0|location=London|oclc=812732103}}</ref> In 1976, he also presented a pre-recorded programme on Saturday lunch-time for [[Radio Victory]] in [[Portsmouth]], later providing Captain Kremmen to the station for transmission in Dave Christian's late show.

=== BBC Radio and back to Capital ===
On 5 February 1980, Everett made his only appearance on the [[BBC Radio 4]] show ''[[Just a Minute]]'', where he spoke on the subject of [[marbles]] for 90 seconds. The extended improvisation was imposed by [[Nicholas Parsons]] as a [[practical joke]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://just-a-minute.info/jam435.html |title=JAM:KWilliams, CFreud, PJones, KEverett |publisher=Just-a-minute.info |date=5 February 1980 |access-date=26 July 2014}}</ref>

In October 1981, Everett returned to [[BBC Radio]], this time on [[BBC Radio 2|Radio 2]], on Saturdays from 11:00{{nbsp}}a.m. to 1:00{{nbsp}}p.m, but the show was cancelled in 1983, after he made a risqué on-air joke about [[Margaret Thatcher]].<ref name="indyobit"/>

Everett returned to [[Capital Radio]] in June 1984, reviving his Saturday lunchtime show. In May 1985, he was called in to replace [[Graeme Garden]] for one episode of the Radio 4 game show ''[[I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue]]''. After Capital split its frequencies in 1988, he returned to daily broadcasting on [[Gold (radio network)|Capital Gold]], as part of a strong presenting line-up including [[Tony Blackburn]] and [[David Hamilton (Radio DJ)|David Hamilton]]. Everett presented daytime shows on weekdays until 1994, when his health deteriorated to the point he was unable to continue. During that same year, he was awarded the Special Gold Award at Sony's Radio Academy Awards for his contribution to radio.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.radioawards.org/about/ |title=The Sony Radio Academy Awards – About the Awards – The Sony Radio Academy Awards |access-date=2017-06-02 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110517152238/http://www.radioawards.org/about/ |archive-date=17 May 2011 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-UeveLMilioC&q=sony+awards+1994+everett&pg=PA900 |title=Encyclopedia of Radio 3-Volume Set – Google Books |date= 2 December 2003|isbn=9781135456498 |access-date=2017-06-02|last1=Sterling |first1=Christopher H. }}</ref>

===Timeline===
* ''Kenny & Cash Show'', [[Wonderful Radio London|Radio London]], 1964{{ndash}}65
* ''Kenny Everett Audio Show'', [[Radio Luxembourg]], 1966
* ''Midday Spin'', [[BBC Radio 1]], 1967
* ''Foreverett'', [[BBC Radio 1]], Monday to Friday 6.45{{nbsp}}p.m.{{snd}}7.30{{nbsp}}p.m., 22 July 1968{{snd}}6 December 1968
* ''Everett is Here'', BBC Radio 1, Saturdays 10{{nbsp}}a.m.{{snd}}noon, 25 January 1969{{snd}}18 July 1970
* ''Kenny Everett Radio Show'', [[BBC Local Radio]], 1971
* ''Kenny Everett Radio Show'', [[BBC Radio 1]], Sundays 1{{nbsp}}p.m.{{snd}}3{{nbsp}}p.m.,1973
* ''Breakfast Show'', [[Capital Radio]], 1973{{ndash}}74
* ''Kenny Everett Audio Show/Cassette'', [[Capital Radio]], 1974{{ndash}}1980
* ''Kenny Everett Audio Show/Cassette'', [[Radio Victory]], 1975{{ndash}}76
* ''Captain Kremmen'', [[Radio Victory]], 1976
* ''Kenny Everett Radio Show'', [[BBC Radio 2]], Saturdays 11{{nbsp}}a.m.{{snd}}1{{nbsp}}p.m., 1981{{ndash}}1983
* ''Kenny Everett Audio Show'', [[Capital Radio]], Saturdays 11{{nbsp}}a.m.{{snd}}1{{nbsp}}p.m., 1984{{ndash}}1988
* Weekday afternoons, [[Gold (radio network)|Capital Gold]], 1{{nbsp}}p.m.{{snd}}4{{nbsp}}p.m., 1988{{ndash}}1991
* Weekday mid-mornings, Capital Gold, 9{{nbsp}}a.m.{{snd}}noon, 1991{{ndash}}1994

==Television==

Everett's first screen appearance was in the 1965 film ''[[Dateline Diamonds]]'', which had a plot based around the pirate ship [[MV Galaxy (radio ship)|MV Galaxy]]. He also appeared in several television series, beginning in 1968 with a production for [[Granada Television]] called ''Nice Time'' which was co-presented by [[Germaine Greer]] and [[Jonathan Routh]]. In 1970 he made three series for [[London Weekend Television]] (LWT): ''The Kenny Everett Explosion'', ''Making Whoopee'' and ''Ev''; and he also took part (along with such talents as [[Willie Rushton]] and [[John Wells (satirist)|John Wells]]) in the 1972 BBC TV series ''[[Up Sunday]]''.

In 1973, Everett provided the voice of the cat 'Charley' in the ''[[Charley Says]]'' animated series of [[public information films]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-26787448 |title=Walliams revives Charley Says films – BBC News |work=BBC News |date=28 March 2014 |access-date=2017-06-02}}</ref> Everett was the announcer on the original version of [[Associated TeleVision|ATV]]'s "big box game" ''[[Celebrity Squares]]'' which ran on [[ITV1|ITV]] from 1975 to 1979.

He was a frequent panel guest on the BBC quiz show ''[[Blankety Blank]]''. On his first appearance in 1979, he unexpectedly bent [[Terry Wogan]]'s microphone, the so-called [[Blankety Blank#Wogan's Wand|Wogan's Wand]].<ref>{{YouTube|bZgZbhfe2fI|Kenny Everett on "Blankety Blank" – '79}}</ref> This became a running joke whenever Everett appeared on the show. He also hosted two short-lived quiz shows late in his career, ''[[Brainstorm (TV series)|Brainstorm]]''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/Brainstorm |title=Brainstorm|publisher=[[UKGameshows.com]]|access-date=24 June 2009}}</ref> and ''Gibberish''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.celador.co.uk/productions_programmes.php?id%3D22 |title=Gibberish Hosted by Kenny Everett|publisher=[[Celador]]|access-date=17 February 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051228170132/http://www.celador.co.uk/productions_programmes.php?id=22 |archive-date=28 December 2005 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0960374/ |title=Gibberish |publisher=[[IMDb]] |date=16 March 1992|access-date=24 June 2009}}</ref> He was a team captain on ''[[That's Showbusiness]]''.

=== ''The Kenny Everett Video Show'' ===
{{main|The Kenny Everett Video Show}}
In 1978, London's [[Thames Television]] offered him a new venture, which became the ''Kenny Everett Video Show''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.orange.co.uk/article/news/bbc_biopic_of_everett_announced |title=BBC biopic of Everett announced |date=3 April 2012 |access-date=5 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121106130023/http://web.orange.co.uk/article/news/bbc_biopic_of_everett_announced |archive-date=6 November 2012 }}</ref> This was a vehicle for Everett's characters and sketches (his fellow writers were Ray Cameron, [[Barry Cryer]] and [[Dick Vosburgh]]), interspersed with the latest pop hits, either performed by the artists themselves, or as backing tracks to dance routines by [[Arlene Phillips]]' risqué dance troupe [[Hot Gossip]] (which featured [[Sarah Brightman]]).

Various pop and TV stars made cameo appearances on the show, including [[Rod Stewart]], [[Elkie Brooks]], [[Billy Connolly]], [[Kate Bush]], [[Cliff Richard]], [[Freddie Mercury]], [[Terry Wogan]] and [[Suzi Quatro]]. Classical musicians such as [[Julian Lloyd Webber]] also appeared.

There were also the stories of [[Captain Kremmen]], a science fiction hero voiced by Everett and originally developed for his Capital Radio shows, who travelled the galaxy battling fictional alien menaces, along with his assistant Dr Gitfinger and his voluptuous sidekick Carla. In the first three series these segments were animations created by the [[Cosgrove-Hall]] partnership (responsible for the successful children's cartoon series ''[[Danger Mouse (1981 TV series)|Danger Mouse]]'', among many others). In the fourth series (''Video Cassette''), Kremmen was featured as live action with Anna Dawson playing Carla; the segments were comedy shorts rather than the earlier stories.

Other characters included: ageing rock-and-roller Sid Snot, unsuccessfully flipping cigarettes into his mouth – at one point Everett managed to catch one in his mouth, to the amusement of the studio crew; [[Marcel Wave]], a lecherous Frenchman played by Everett wearing an absurdly false latex chin; and "Angry of Mayfair", a right-wing  upper middle class [[City of London#Economy|City]] gent complaining of the permissive, risqué content of the show, banging the camera's [[lens hood]] with his umbrella before storming off, turning his back to the camera to reveal him wearing women's lingerie in lieu of the entire back half of his suit.

He also created the never-seen character of "Lord Thames", supposedly the owner of Thames Television (the company was actually owned by two conglomerates). The character was often the butt of Everett's rants and was said to symbolise his contempt for senior management at the company, claiming they lived behind an ancient, cobweb-covered door marked as the "Office of Saying 'No'". Thames never disciplined him for these comments, unlike prior employers such as the BBC.

The show ran for four series on ITV. The last episode of Series 3 ended with Everett giving a farewell speech as the set and scenery was being stripped down by the crew. The final shot before the closing credits was Everett himself being picked up and placed inside an oversized dustbin.

The fourth series was retitled ''The Kenny Everett Video Cassette'' and was more of a comedy programme than the previous three series, which relied more on music acts.

=== ''The Kenny Everett Television Show'' ===

{{main|The Kenny Everett Television Show}}
Everett fell out with Thames regarding the management of his show, including the scheduling against the BBC's top-rated ''[[Top of the Pops]]'' on Thursday evenings. The BBC offered him a live-audience sketch-format comedy programme, starting with a Christmas special on [[BBC1]] in 1981, followed by five primetime series between 1982 and 1988. The writing team was bolstered by the addition of [[Andrew Marshall (writer)|Andrew Marshall]], [[David Renwick]] and Neil Shand and the production standards were raised by the heavier investment from the corporation.

Thames Television claimed copyright on Everett's characters and tried to prevent their use by the BBC. Although this action failed, it did lead to the creation of new characters such as General Cheeseburger whose monologues were seen as a satire on US foreign policy, agony aunt Verity Treacle, mime artist Maurice Mimer whose drawings turn into real objects, upper class socialite Jeremy Mince who was perpetually drunk on champagne, orange-haired punk Gizzard Puke (intended to replace Sid Snot) and the [[spoonerism|spooneristically]] named Cupid Stunt, a blonde glamorous American [[B-movie]] actress with pneumatic breasts. Played in full drag but with no attempt to disguise Everett's beard, she told a chat show host 
– implied to be [[Michael Parkinson]] (and later [[Terry Wogan]]) but depicted as a skeleton in a suit – about her latest trashy film projects, and lurid tales of life on set with [[Burt Reynolds]] and other male stars of the era. Her final action in each sketch was to uncross her legs then swing them wildly to recross them (brazenly giving viewers an eyeful of her racy red lingerie) as she uttered the catchphrase "It's all done in the best possible taste!" Inept TV handyman Reg Prescott became another firm viewers' favourite, as each week he managed to visibly injure himself with tools whilst attempting to demonstrate [[Do it yourself|DIY]] tips. Revived characters from the previous series included Sid Snot, Marcel Wave, Brother Lee Love, Angry of Mayfair and the Constable. Each episode in season 3 featured a version of "Snot Rap – Part II" by one or more of Everett's main characters.

Brazilian-born [[Cleo Rocos]] co-starred in the BBC series. She often appeared in nothing more than frilly underwear and high heels.

===Timeline===
* ''Nice Time'', [[Granada Television]], 1968
* ''The Kenny Everett Explosion'', [[LWT]], 1970
* ''[[The Kenny Everett Video Show]]'', [[Thames Television]], 1978{{ndash}}1980
* ''The Kenny Everett Video Cassette'', Thames Television, 1981
* ''[[The Kenny Everett Television Show]]'', [[BBC1]], 1981{{ndash}}1988
* ''[[Brainstorm (TV series)|Brainstorm]]'', BBC1, 1988
* ''[[That's Showbusiness]]'' (team captain), BBC1, 1989{{ndash}}1991
* ''Gibberish'', BBC1, 1992

==Video==
In 1981, Everett, Cryer and Cameron teamed up with Brothers Music to target the emerging home video market with a VHS release called ''The Kenny Everett Naughty Joke Box'', which was followed a year later by another Brothers Music VHS release called ''The New Kenny Everett Naughty Video''. Produced and directed by co-writer Ray Cameron, this 'too rude for television' production would get a nationwide Freeview broadcast under the name ''Kenny Everett Naughty Video'' by That's TV in January 2022. The video was recorded with an audience (in-vision beside Everett for much of the time), whilst co-writer Barry Cryer has an on-screen role, appearing as a guest alongside Lionel Blair and Willie Rushton. Sheila Steafel, Cleo Rocos, Debbie Linden, Linda Lusardi and Jane Score also feature in the cast, while Nikolai Grishanovich turns up at the end to make a comment about the Soviet Union. Characters appearing in the video include Gizzard Puke, Marcel Wave, Sid Snot and a caricature of an Australian called Bris Troop, whilst the video has a running joke about people at a line of urinals.<ref>''Kenny Everett Naughty Video'' as broadcast on That's TV in January 2022 (repeated on various nights)</ref>

==Film==
{{main|Bloodbath at the House of Death}}
Everett made one foray into film with 1984's ''[[Bloodbath at the House of Death]]'', a spoof of [[Hammer Studios|Hammer]] horror films, which was penned by Everett's usual writing partners [[Barry Cryer]] and Ray Cameron (who also directed the film). [[Vincent Price]] was featured as the villain, credited only as the "Sinister Man", and a number of other popular comedians and actors also appeared, including [[Pamela Stephenson]], [[Gareth Hunt]] and [[Don Warrington]]. Several regulars from Everett's television series also appeared.

==Music ==
In 1977, Everett collaborated with Mike Vickers to release the single ''Captain Kremmen'', based on one of his comedy characters. It peaked at number 32 in the UK charts on 12 November.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/20267/kenny-everett/ |title=kenny-everett &#124; full Official Chart History &#124; Official Charts Company |publisher=Officialcharts.com |date=1983-03-26 |access-date=2017-06-02}}</ref> 
In 1983 Kenny Everett released the single "Snot Rap", ostensibly sung by two of his TV characters, Sid Snot and Cupid Stunt. This would peak at number 9 in the UK charts for the week ending 16 April.<ref>{{cite web |last=Wallace |first=Gary |url=http://www.britishchartsingles.com/index.php/2013/04/10/snot-rap-kenny-everett/ |title=Snot Rap – Kenny Everett |publisher=British Chart Singles |date=2013-04-10 |access-date=2017-06-02 }}{{Dead link|date=February 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> the song peaked at number 91 in Australia.<ref name=aus>{{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, N.S.W.|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6|page=106}}</ref> A sequel single, "Snot Rap - Part II", again performed in character, was released in 1985.

==Personal life==
Everett married the singer and psychic [[Lee Everett Alkin|Audrey "Lady Lee" Middleton]] at Kensington Register Office on 2 June 1969.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2012-10-03/kenny-everett-by-the-women-in-his-life/|title = Home}}</ref> By September 1979, they had separated, and he stopped publicly denying his homosexuality in the late-1980s. His co-host David Cash, in the documentary ''Unforgettable Kenny Everett'', states that "Once I got to know him socially off the ship, it was very obvious that his sexual tendencies were homosexual and he looked at it as bad and so he fought it all the way." One of his first boyfriends, a waiter called Dave Nealon, was a [[Matchmaking|match]] found for Everett by his former wife.<ref>''Cupid Stunts'' – David and Caroline Stafford (London: Omnibus 2013). [https://TonyPike.com Tony Pike], recalls many stories about Kenny in his Autobiography</ref> In 1985 after coming out, he introduced his "two husbands" – Nikolai Grishanovich and Pepe Flores – to the media; Everett contracted HIV from Grishanovich, who died of AIDS in 1991.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-kenny-everett-1614235.html|title=Obituary: Kenny Everett|last=Heyward|first=Anthony|work=The Independent|date=4 April 1995}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/sep/15/hello-darlings-kenny-everett-review|title=Hello, Darlings!: The Authorized Biography of Kenny Everett by James Hogg and Robert Sellers – review|last=Cooke|first=Rachel|work=The Guardian|date=15 September 2013}}</ref>

===Politics===
During the [[1983 United Kingdom general election|1983 general election]] campaign, the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Young Conservatives]] invited Everett to their conference in an attempt to attract the youth vote. Egged on by film director [[Michael Winner]], Everett bounded onto the stage, wearing the enormously oversized foam rubber hands familiar from his mock-evangelical character Brother Lee Love. He shouted [[slogan]]s such as "Let's bomb Russia!" and "Let's kick Michael Foot's stick away!" to loud applause.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/shortcuts/2012/apr/23/do-tories-have-sense-humour | work=The Guardian | title=Do Tories have a sense of humour? | date=23 April 2012}}</ref> ([[Michael Foot]] was the ageing leader of the [[British Labour party|Labour Party]] at the time, who used a walking stick.) Everett later said he regretted the appearance and said that he had taken the foam hands to the rally because the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Tories]] "asked me first".<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3746865.stm | work=BBC News | title=Ugly business for show people? | first=Brian | last=Wheeler | date=26 May 2004}}</ref>

In an interview on Ireland's ''[[The Late Late Show (Ireland)|The Late Late Show]]'' with [[Gay Byrne]] and [[Sinéad O'Connor]] in February 1989, Everett was challenged by O'Connor about his support for the Conservative Party in the light of his homosexuality and the party's [[Section 28]] addition to the [[Local Government Act 1988|Local Government Act]]. Everett clarified that he was not a "full [[Tory]]", but that he had been appalled by the actions of [[Arthur Scargill]], whom he saw as "inciting violence" and "rabble rousing" and who he thought looked like "[[Hitler]] reborn". He had consequently supported the actions of [[Margaret Thatcher]] in opposing Scargill. He said he would stand up for [[LGBT rights in the United Kingdom|gay rights]] if he were asked providing "it was a jolly occasion", but he also felt that being in a minority and in the public eye, he could do more for gay rights by showing that he was funny and human rather than by marching in the streets.<ref>{{cite episode |series=The Late Late Show|title= Kenny Everett|network=Raidió Teilifís Éireann|airdate=3 February 1989}}</ref>

===Friendship with Freddie Mercury===
[[File:Kenny Everett 91 Lexham Gardens blue plaque.jpg|thumb|Plaque at 91 [[Lexham Gardens]], Kensington, London, Everett's home from 1981 to 1995]]
Everett became close friends with [[Freddie Mercury]], the lead singer of [[Queen (band)|Queen]], after they met on Everett's breakfast radio show on Capital Radio in 1974.

In 1988, Middleton, who had subsequently remarried to actor [[John Alkin]], published an autobiography with a foreword from Everett. After its publication and newspaper serialisation, however, Everett denounced the book for [[outing]] him.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2012-10-03/kenny-everett-by-the-women-in-his-life/|title=Kenny Everett – by the Women in His Life|date=3 October 2012|work=[[Radio Times]]|access-date=13 September 2017}}</ref>  Mercury reportedly sided with Middleton. The fallout resulted in Middleton and Everett communicating only via their [[lawyers]].

A year later, Everett and Mercury were reconciled when both were suffering with health issues due to complications with HIV.<ref>''When Freddie Mercury Met Kenny Everett'' – 2002 Channel 4 documentary.</ref> Mercury died in November 1991.

==Death==
Everett was diagnosed as [[HIV]] positive in 1989 and he made his condition known to the public in 1993.<ref>{{cite book |title=The unknown country: death in Australia, Britain and the USA |first1=Kathy |last1=Charmaz |first2=Glennys |last2=Howarth |first3=Allan |last3=Kellehear |page=162 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=44HpMBgEZhgC&pg=PA162 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=1997 |isbn=0-312-16545-5}}</ref> He died from an [[HIV/AIDS|AIDS]]-related illness on 4 April 1995, aged 50. A Catholic [[Requiem|requiem mass]] was held at [[Immaculate Conception Church, Farm Street|Church of the Immaculate Conception]] in [[Mayfair, London]]. His body was cremated at [[Mortlake Crematorium]].<ref>{{cite journal |journal=The Advocate |title=Transitions |date=16 May 1995 |page=19 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y2MEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA19 |number=681 |issn=0001-8996 |publisher=Here Publishing}}</ref>

==Legacy==
In 1981 Everett co-wrote a semi-fictitious autobiography entitled ''The Custard Stops at Hatfield''. It was published by Willow Books an imprint of [[William Collins, Sons|Collins]], in September 1982.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TJIdzAEACAAJ|title = The Custard Stops at Hatfield|isbn = 9781782815914|last1 = Everett|first1 = Kenny|date = 28 May 2020}}</ref>

Everett is the subject of a 1997 episode of the [[Thames Television]] series ''[[Heroes of Comedy]]'' which covers his life and career from his beginnings on [[pirate radio]] until his death. Celebrities such as [[Steve Wright (DJ)|Steve Wright]], [[Cliff Richard]], [[Cleo Rocos]], [[Barry Cryer]], [[Jeremy Beadle]], [[Terry Wogan]] and [[Barry Took]] appear and talk about their experiences, collaborations and friendships with Everett and his influence on them.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}

On 18 November 2007, ITV1 broadcast a tribute show to Everett entitled ''Licence to Laugh''. This celebrated the 30 years since he first appeared on ITV with the ''Kenny Everett Video Show'' ([[Thames Television]]). Friends and colleagues revealed what it was like to know and work with the man they affectionately dubbed "Cuddly Ken". Additionally, contemporary celebrities such as [[Chris Moyles]] and [[Chris Tarrant]] talked about their love for the funny entertainer and discussed the ways in which Everett had influenced them and their work. It also featured archive footage.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}

The documentary ''When Freddie Mercury Met Kenny Everett'', broadcast on [[Channel 4]], tells the story of the relationship between the two men from the moment they met in 1974 when Mercury was a guest on Everett's radio show, through lovers and drug taking to when both died of [[AIDS]]. It features affectionate interviews by many people who were close to him.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}

In March 2010 the BBC confirmed that it was producing a 90-minute TV biographical film called ''Number One in Heaven'', to be written by [[Tim Whitnall]] and focusing on Everett's unhappiness at secondary school.<ref>{{cite news|author= Dowell, Ben|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2010/mar/15/kenny-everett-bbc-to-make-biopic |title=Kenny Everett to return to TV as BBC announces plans for biopic|date= 15 March 2010|access-date = 4 June 2022|work = [[The Guardian]]}}</ref>

On 3 October 2012 the BBC broadcast a 90-minute TV biopic called ''The Best Possible Taste'' which focused on the performer's relationship with his wife, singer Lee Middleton. [[Oliver Lansley]] played the part of Everett and [[Katherine Kelly (actress)|Katherine Kelly]] that of Middleton.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17595070 Kenny Everett biopic for BBC Four 3 April 2012] Retrieved 3 April 2012.</ref>

Everett was portrayed by Dickie Beau in the 2018 [[91st Academy Awards|Oscar-winning]] film ''[[Bohemian Rhapsody (film)|Bohemian Rhapsody]]'', a biographical musical drama about the life of Freddie Mercury.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2018/11/02/sacha-baron-cohens-freddie-would-have-naked-homosexual-says/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2018/11/02/sacha-baron-cohens-freddie-would-have-naked-homosexual-says/ |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Sacha Baron Cohen's Freddie Mercury would have been very naked, very homosexual, says Stephen Frears |newspaper= The Daily Telegraph |date=2 November 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite ODNB
 | title = Everett, Kenny
 | year = 2004
 | doi = 10.1093/ref:odnb/59136
 | url   = http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/59136}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb name|id=0263547}}
*[http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/1039136/index.html Screenonline – Kenny Everett]
*[https://www.billyfury.com/gen/everett.htm Extract from 'The Custard Stops at Hatfield']
*[http://www.chronoglide.com/wwwshome.html Kenny Everett's World's Worst Wireless Show]
*[https://www.radiorewind.co.uk/radio1/kenny_everett_page.htm Radio Rewind – Kenny Everett]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071227045823/http://www.radioacademy.org.uk/record.jsp?type=celeb&ID=16 The Radio Academy Hall of Fame – Kenny Everett]
*[https://www.offshoreradio.co.uk/djse2h.htm Pirate Radio Hall of Fame E to G]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040820165924/http://www.geocities.com/thehotw/AirLegEverett.htm Aircheck Legends – Kenny Everett]
*[https://www.radiolondon.co.uk/jocks/kenny/kenmem.html Radio London Kenny Everett Tribute Pages]
*[http://www.chronoglide.com/wwwshome.html Kenny Everett's World's Worst Wireless Show, complete details of these shows]
*[https://archive.today/20130707000112/http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/networks/bbc7/aod.shtml?bbc7/kenny_everetts_radio_days ''Kenny Everett's Radio Days'' on BBC 7 Listen Again]
*[https://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/classic/kennyeverett/ BBC Everett Cult TV site]
*[https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-hampshire-36725200 Kenny Everett Portsmouth recordings found]

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