As usual, my list of 'departures' is limited to those I noted down at the time. Of course there were plenty of others who will be sorely missed.
June Whitfield (above); national treasure. A true 'star' of stage and screen. Her legacy is simply enormous.
Paddy Ashdown; swashbuckling politician.
Chas (Hodges) of Chas-n-Dave fame; Rabbit rabbit rabbit.
Denis Norden; don't worry Denis, it'll probably be alright on the night.
Dudley Sutton; a.k.a. Tinker.
Fenella Fielding; my firstborn son, Kimbo, was born after a hilarious evening in her company.
Eric 'The Crafty Cockney' Bristow; frew arrers.
Bill Maynard; character actor, early member of the 'Carry on' team.
Ken Dodd; comedian's comedian.
Emma Chambers; 'Alice' in The Vicar of Dibley.
Bella Emberg; 'Blunderwoman' to Russ Abbot's 'Cooperman'.
RIP to all those above, and to all others that I've failed to mention. Goodbye; you all influenced my life for the better!
Happy New Year Cro, Lady M and Bok x
ReplyDeleteMerci. You seem to have settled into your new life very well. It should be a good year. Cro x
DeleteSo many 'classic' English actors have gone. Only heard of a few of these, June Whitfield, bill Maynard,two of the best
ReplyDeleteJune was an amazing actress. So much wonderful work during her long career. She'll be missed.
DeleteWe watched the Abb Fabb film last night shown as a tribute to June W. We had seen it before but enjoyed just as much a second time. She loved her part in the series and film and it was a wonderful way for her acting to play out.
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen the film, but did see a few episodes of the TV series. I can remember listening to her on radio (before we had TV) with Jimmy Edwards and Co. She seems to have been around ever since I was very small.
DeleteHappy New Year Cro!
ReplyDeleteThank you Elaine. I wish you the same. Cro x
DeleteI have a framed front cover of the Big Issue on my landing, because it is Ken Dodd and he always made me laugh..each time I pass it I am reminded of trying to smile and see the lighter side of life...and my little granddaughter points at him and says 'funnyman'. Happy New Year Cro x
ReplyDeleteEveryone tells much the same story about Dodd, but I had a friend who went to see him (reluctantly), and ended up having one of the best nights of his life. The show was supposed to last 2 hours, but went on for about five. A genius.
DeleteI was at a Ken Dodd show in Batley Variety Club, and it was the same story. My mother loved him more for his singing. She had several of his LPs.
DeleteYour post made me ponder a bit. Having grown up with, watching and listening to those mentioned made me realise that, of course, I am now at an aged when those I looked up to are getting old - even older than I am. It's a rather sobering thought.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean; my advice is, don't start checking the Obits.
DeleteAll of those mentioned were part of my childhood and into older age .... a bit depressing really !!! I always thought June Whitfield would go on forever.
ReplyDeleteHappy 2019 dear Cro. XXXX
Mine too Jacqueline; especially June Whitfield. I still think of her as 'Eth' in The Glums. I thought she was the funniest thing on earth... I must have been under 10.
DeleteI looked up who died this year, so many that I grew up with.
ReplyDeleteIt is snowing at my home in Tucson Arizona I am taking this as a good sign. Of course my battery died on my phone !
Happy New Year !
cheers, parsnip
Not snowing here, but quite cold. Happy new year to you too. Cro x
DeleteI adored June Whitfield.
ReplyDeleteAs I just wrote above, her 'Eth', in The Glums, played a major part in my introduction to comedy.
DeleteInfluencing life for the better is about the best accolade one can receive - and I second it Cro. Happy New Year.
ReplyDeleteThat's all we have to go by. Those who leave the world in a better state, and those who leave it worse.
DeleteJune Whitfield was wonderful - we watched a very interesting programme about her last night which showed clips of her with Tony Hancock and in a Noel Coward production as well as the more well known parts she played.
ReplyDeleteHer catalogue was huge; I don't think she spent a single day without working, and all was superb.
DeleteYou paint a sad picture there, I'd forgotten about most of them, June though will be sadly missed
ReplyDeleteThey were simply the one's I'd bothered to note down. I'm sure I've missed lots who were more 'important'.
DeleteHappy New Year, sir. I am relatively new to your blog, but I am enjoying your writing. I agree with you concerning the anti-hunting folks.
ReplyDeletePipeTobacco
Good morning Pipe. Good to see you here, and I'm pleased to hear that you are anti the antis. Not nice people!
DeleteHappy New Year, Cro! I was surprised to hear about June Whitfield yesterday and I know her best from AbFab. Although she was always called Old Woman by Edina on the show, I imagined she'd just be around forever.
ReplyDeleteI haven't looked on Wiki, but I imagine she started very young. From my own experience her career spanned over 60 years.
Delete