Location via proxy:   [ UP ]  
[Report a bug]   [Manage cookies]                
Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    From $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Irish Comedy Greats
    Irish Comedy Greats
    Irish Comedy Greats
    Ebook116 pages1 hour

    Irish Comedy Greats

    By Liam McCann

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Ireland has produced some of the world's most popular comedians. This ebook explores the lives and professions of its finest exports, such as Jimmy O'Dea, Cork's favourite son Niall Tóibín, Dublin-born Maureen Potter, Hal Roach who spent 26 of his 60 years in showbusiness performing at Jury's Irish Cabaret and Frank Kelly, a comedian who graduated from a bit part in the original Italian Job to the outrageous Father Jack Hackett in Father Ted, a series that also introduced Dermot Morgan as the title character.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherG2 Rights
    Release dateJun 30, 2020
    ISBN9781782819165
    Irish Comedy Greats

    Read more from Liam Mc Cann

    Related to Irish Comedy Greats

    Related ebooks

    Entertainers and the Rich & Famous For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • UNLIMITED

      Patrick’s Pages

      Apr 30, 2021

      THE SCENE: A country cottage, back in the old days, where the only entertainment within miles is the wireless on a shelf beside a log fire. The adults are listening to a variety show and there’s lots of audience laughter as various characters come ov

      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      STREET CRED! 60 years of Coro

      Dec 22, 2019

      1 Coronation Street first screened in the UK on December 9, 1960. 2 The idea was dreamed up by actor turned scriptwriter Tony Warren. He was inspired by an incident that occurred when he was working on a children’s radio programme. During an unexpe

      9 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Old Un’s Notes

      Jan 10, 2024

      Stanley Price (19312019), the playwright and screenwriter, had many lucky encounters. His witty stories, which all appeared in The Oldie, have been collected by his son Munro Price into a delightful book My Lunch with Marilyn and Other Stories. As a

      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Old Un's Notes

      Apr 3, 2024

      * Stone me! This 12 May marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Tony Hancock (1924-68), the wonderfully lugubrious comedian with his trademark homburg and astrakhan-collared coat, and the somewhat dilapidated lodgings at 23 Railway Cuttings, East

      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      QUEENS Of Comedy

      Mar 29, 2023

      Nothing feels better than a good chuckle, so thank goodness for these home-grown comedy geniuses who always knew just how to tickle our funny bones. Tracey Ullman’s first comic turns were performed standing on the counter of her father’s shop in Slou

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Old Dog

      Oct 12, 2018

      The Old Dog
      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Heroes And Hearthrobs QUIZ

      Feb 28, 2021

      Heroes And Hearthrobs QUIZ
      1 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Old Un's Notes

      Oct 18, 2023

      The Old Un's Notes
      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      This week's TV COMING SOON

      Oct 5, 2023

      ITV2 ● Five years after the reality show came to an end on Channel 5, it’s coming to ITV2. As usual, an assortment of housemates from all walks of life will enter the brand new Big Brother house, where cameras will capture their every move for the ne

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Old Un’s Notes

      Jun 2, 2021

      * Our radio correspondent, Valerie Grove, has just unearthed a shaming letter she received from the great comedian Barry Cryer in 1970. At the time she was, briefly, standing in as TV previewer for the Evening Standard. ‘Dear Valerie,’ wrote Barry, ‘

      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      TV & REVIEWS

      Sep 17, 2024

      TV & REVIEWS
      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Old Un's Notes

      Feb 7, 2024

      The Old Un's Notes
      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Your TV PICKS

      Jun 13, 2023

      Your TV PICKS
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Old Un’s Notes

      Aug 25, 2021

      ✻ How quickly time flies! It is already ten years since the death, on 22nd September 2011, of the much-loved British comic actor Jonathan Cecil (19392011), once described by the Spectator as ‘one of the finest upper-class-twits of his era’. Upper-cla

      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Just for FUN!

      Jul 31, 2024

      Just for FUN!
      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      90 Years Of The ABC Let's Press Rewind!

      Jun 26, 2022

      The late trailblazer Caroline Jones made this weekly documentary series her own until she left in 2016, with her impact being so great that the format was changed after her departure, meaning that episodes were no longer introduced by a presenter. Au

      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Do Talk Nonsense

      May 31, 2023

      Do Talk Nonsense
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Tv Picks Of The Week

      Nov 25, 2024

      Tv Picks Of The Week
      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      20 Favourite Moments

      Aug 13, 2024

      20 Favourite Moments
      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      20 Favourite Moments

      Aug 13, 2024

      20 Favourite Moments
      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Christmas Prize Quiz

      Oct 18, 2023

      1 Who was the only actor to appear in all 295 episodes of Last of the Summer Wine? 2 The album version uses the name ‘CocaCola’ and the single uses ‘cherry cola’ instead, to avoid a BBC ban. Who flew from Minneapolis to London just to sing the words

      2 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Irish Comedy Greats

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Irish Comedy Greats - Liam McCann

      HUGH FRANCIS ‘FRANK’ CARSON KSG

      Born: November 6, 1926, Belfast, Northern Ireland

      Died: February 22, 2012, Blackpool, England

      Known for: Opportunity Knocks, Tiswas, The Comedians

      Catchphrase(s): It’s a cracker!, It’s the way I tell ’em!

      Frank Carson was born in Belfast in 1926 to a family of Irish and Sicilian descent. He was raised in the Little Italy area of the city and went to St Patrick’s School. He joined the local Roman Catholic church choir but eventually went into the building trade, first as an electrician and then as a plasterer.

      Carson joined the elite Parachute Regiment at the end of the Second World War. He made more than 40 jumps and spent most of the next three years helping to police the Middle East. He shot and killed an armed terrorist and was himself shot in the leg in a separate incident. Seven of his colleagues were killed when a car bomb exploded outside a cinema, but Carson miraculously survived.

      In July 1946 militant Zionists bombed the British administrative headquarters for Palestine, which was housed in the King David Hotel in Jerusalem. The hotel’s southern wing was destroyed, killing 91 people and injuring another 46. Carson was called in to secure the scene and helped recover bodies in the aftermath.

      Having returned to Ireland, Carson found his vocation as a comic performer of considerable talent and timing, and he made several appearances on television. In 1951 he moved to England to perfect his stand-up routine and he soon joined the BBC’s long-running light-entertainment show, The Good Old Days, which ran from 1953 until 1983. The programme transported viewers back to the Victorian music hall era but with contemporary artistes delivering the sketches, skits and songs. With Leonard Sachs as the compere, cast members included Morecambe and Wise, Reg Varney, Eartha Kitt, Rod Hull, Bruce Forsythe, Roy Castle, Larry Grayson, Edward Woodward, Jimmy Cricket, Bernard Cribbins, Les Dawson and, of course, Carson.

      Illustration

      Carson was such a popular edition to the cast that he was asked to appear on Opportunity Knocks. This national talent show was the forerunner of, and inspiration for, Britain’s Got Talent. Carson won the telephone vote for three series and was catapulted into mainstream comedy. He then joined The Comedians, a half-hour quick-fire show that challenged the cast to deliver non-stop stand-up comedy. Working alongside Russ Abbot, Lennie Bennett, Stan Boardman, Jim Bowen, Bernard Manning, Tom O’Connor, Mike Reid and Roy Walker helped Carson hone his skills. As most of the comedians made their names in the working men’s clubs, particularly in the northeast of England, the humour was frequently racist and sexist but this was acceptable in a less politically correct era. Carson was an exception in that his humour revolved around anecdotes where he was often the butt of the joke.

      Illustration

      Carson was an exception in that his humour revolved around anecdotes where he was often the butt of the joke.

      The show’s success led to Carson making frequent appearances on Granada Television’s The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club, which was set in a fictional working men’s club. It gave more up-and-coming performers like Paul Daniels and Cannon & Ball a stage and helped them achieve fame and fortune.

      Carson was so popular in the mid-1970s that he was asked to join the cast for the Royal Variety Performance and he remained a TV stalwart. Spike Milligan and Neil Shand wrote the part of Paddy O’Brien, an Irish Republican landlord and coalman, especially for him but the BBC cancelled the series of The Melting Pot after one episode because of political tension between England and Ireland. The show, which featured Milligan as an illegal Asian immigrant, was also accused of being racially insensitive at a time when immigration to the UK from Asia and the Caribbean was a political hot potato.

      Carson underwent heart surgery in 1976 but decided not to retire and was soon appearing on the children’s show Tiswas (Today is Saturday, Watch and Smile). The show began life as a filler between programmes but the presenters soon became so popular that they were given their own series by ATV. ITV then took it on and boosted the careers of Chris Tarrant, Sally James, Lenny Henry, Jim Davidson and Bob Carolgees, the latter after a recommendation by Carson. Carolgees and his sidekick Spit the Dog were so popular that they became a regular feature on the show.

      Carson was a keen football fan and often watched Blackpool at Bloomfield Road. He also became director of Chasetown FC in Staffordshire and was then appointed vice-president of Newport County in South Wales. Despite several minor health scares, Carson continued to perform stand-up, cabaret and pantomime, and he was awarded a papal knighthood by John Paul II in recognition of his tireless charity work in 1987. He also found time to make two feature films, open Mary Black’s shows in Dubai in 1998, and embark on a national tour. He was also a golfer of considerable skill, although he was better known for his tomfoolery in the 19th hole after a round at St Anne’s.

      Illustration

      Carson was asked to appear on I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! in 2004 but by then he was in poor health and producers couldn’t insure him. In 2009 he underwent a knee replacement but he also had cracked a rib that caused a hernia. Despite undergoing a second operation, he was back on stage at the end of the summer for a midweek season of The Comedians in Blackpool. He also continued raising money for charity, but he suffered another health setback when he had to have a stomach tumour removed.

      This incomparable comedian died from cancer in Blackpool in 2012 at the age of 85. His funeral was at St Patrick’s Church in Belfast where he’d married wife Ruth 60 years earlier. The funeral was attended by stars of stage, stand-up and screen, as well as sporting heroes and politicians.

      Frank’s greatest jokes:

      My father fought in World War I and single-handedly destroyed the German lines of communication when he ate their pigeon.

      Paddy calls a wrong number at 3am. Is that O’Malley’s Bar? he asks.

      No, this is a private residence.

      I must have the wrong number, says Paddy. Sorry to have troubled you.

      No trouble, says the stranger. I had to get up to answer the phone anyway.

      A fella walks into a pet shop and says: Give me a wasp.

      The shopkeeper replies: We don’t sell wasps.

      The fella says: Well there’s one in the window.

      "Someone threw a petrol bomb at Alex Higgins

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1