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Follyfoot
''Follyfoot'' is a children's television series co-produced by the majority-partner British television company Yorkshire Television (for transmission on ITV) and the independent West German company ''TV München'' (for transmission on the ZDF channel). It aired in the United Kingdom between 1971 and 1973, repeated for two years after that and again in the late 1980s. The series starred Gillian Blake in the lead role. Notable people connected with the series were actors Desmond Llewelyn and Arthur English and directors Jack Cardiff, Stephen Frears, Michael Apted and David Hemmings. It was originally inspired by Monica Dickens' 1963 novel ''Cobbler's Dream'' (republished in 1995 as ''New Arrival at Follyfoot''); she later wrote four further books in conjunction with the series—''Follyfoot'' in 1971, ''Dora at Follyfoot'' in 1972, ''The Horses of Follyfoot'' in 1975, and ''Stranger at Follyfoot'' in 1976. Background and production The series, which was filmed on the Harewoo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monica Dickens
Monica Enid Dickens, MBE (10 May 1915 – 25 December 1992) was an English writer, the great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens. Biography Known as "Monty" to her family and friends, she was born into an upper-middle-class London family to Henry Charles Dickens (1878–1966), a barrister, and Fanny Dickens (née Runge). She was the granddaughter of Sir Henry Fielding Dickens KC. Disillusioned with the world she was brought up in – she was expelled from St Paul's Girls' School in London for throwing her school uniform into the Thames before she was presented at court as a debutante – she decided to go into domestic service despite coming from the privileged class; her experiences as a cook and general servant would form the nucleus of her first book, ''One Pair of Hands'' in 1939. ''One Pair of Feet'' (1942) recounted her work as a nurse, and subsequently she worked in an aircraft factory and on the ''Hertfordshire Express'' – a local newspaper in Hitchin; her experiences i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steve Hodson
Steve Hodson (born Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, 5 November 1947) is a British actor who played the role of Steve Ross in ''Follyfoot''. Hodson was working as a civil servant in Bradford when he won a place at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. From then-on he began appearing in roles on stage and later in television, appearing in ''The Grievance'' and '' The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes''. In 1971, he auditioned for role of Steve in ''Follyfoot'', but was initially unsuccessful. Another actor was employed, but later dismissed and Hodson was recruited to the part. He appeared in all three series of its run, from 1971 to 1973. During this period, there was a Steve Hodson fan club. In January 1973, he released a single called "Crystal Bay", written by Maurice Gibb and Billy Lawrie. Hodson appeared in a number of television series over the next few years, including '' All Creatures Great and Small'' and a six-episode children's series, ''Break in the Sun''. Hodso ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gillian Blake
Gillian Blake (born 10 May 1949), Buckingham, England is a retired British actress who became well known in the early 1970s as Dora in ''Follyfoot''. Blake studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and began her professional career in the late 1960s. She appeared in the 1969 film '' Goodbye Mr. Chips.'' She went on to perform additional roles on television. In 1971 she landed the lead role in a Yorkshire Television Production ''Follyfoot'', which ran for three series until 1973. Her last role of note was in two episodes of the ''BBC2 Playhouse'' series in 1980. Since then she has retired from acting, having spent some years concentrating on motherhood. She made a rare television appearance on '' This Is Your Life'' in 1995, celebrating the career of Desmond Llewelyn (her co-star in ''Follyfoot''). In 1977 she married actor Peter Whitbread Peter Bruce Pauling Whitbread (25 October 1928 – 26 October 2004) was an English actor and screenwriter. He wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christian Rodska
Christian Rodska (born Christian Rodskjaer; 5 September 1945) is an English actor who has appeared in many television and radio series and narrated a number of audiobooks, including Sir Winston Churchill's Nobel Prize winning ''The Second World War''. He is perhaps best known for his regular role as Ron Stryker in 1970s series, ''Follyfoot.'' Career Rodska began acting professionally in the late 1960s and got his first big break when he was chosen to appear in ''Follyfoot'', which ran for three years from 1971 to 1973. From then on, he appeared in numerous series such as the 1977 BBC adaptation of Rosemary Sutcliff's ''The Eagle of the Ninth'', in which he played Esca, and the film version of ''The Likely Lads'', ''Z Cars,'' ''The Tomorrow People,'' ''Coronation Street,'' ''Brookside,'' '' Bergerac'' and ''Casualty.'' More recently, he has worked extensively as a voice artist, featuring in many radio plays and on Audiobooks. He is known for his narration of ''Ice Road Truckers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Desmond Llewelyn
Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn (; 12 September 1914GRO Register of Births: DEC 1914 11a 490 NEWPORT M. – Desmond W. Llewelyn, mmn = Wilkinson – 19 December 1999GRO Register of Deaths: JUN 2000 A70E 247 EASTBOURNE – Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn, DoB = 12 September 1914, aged 85) was a Welsh actor. He was best known for his role as Q in 17 of the ''James Bond'' films between 1963 and 1999. Biography Early life Llewelyn was born on 12 September 1914 in Newport, Monmouthshire, the son of Mia (née Wilkinson) and Ivor Llewelyn. In 1921, Ivor purchased the very first Bentley production automobile, a Bentley 3-litre from W. O. Bentley. His father was a coal mining engineer, while his son originally wanted to be a minister, but during his education at Radley College, he worked as a stagehand in the school's productions and occasionally picked up small roles. In his youth, Llewelyn played rugby for Newport RFC and can be seen wearing the club tie in ''The Living Daylights'' as wel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arthur English
Arthur Leslie Norman English (9 May 1919 – 16 April 1995) was an English television, film and stage actor and comedian from the music hall tradition. Early life English was born at 22 Lysons Road in Aldershot,'Arthur English, ''Aldershot Historical & Archaeological Society'' (AHAS), Yearbook 23 (2010) pg7 Hampshire, the son of Walter Frederick English (1856–1948) and Ethel English (Married and maiden names, née Parsons) (1886–1975), who married at Holy Trinity Church, Aldershot, Holy Trinity church in Aldershot in 1909. Arthur English had two older brothers: Walter (born 1910) and John Edgar (born 1912). All three boys were born in their parents' bedroom in Lysons Road and all three were baptised at Holy Trinity church. He attended West End Boys School in Aldershot (now the West End Centre, Aldershot, West End Centre) from the age of 5 to 14. His first stage appearance was aged 10 when he joined a group from Gale & Polden called the 'Five O'clock Follies' as an acrobat. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gillian Bailey
Gillian Bailey (born 14 June 1955 in Wimbledon, London), also known as Gilli Bush-Bailey, is a British academic and former actress. She was a child actress and appeared as Billie in ''Here Come the Double Deckers'' (1970–71). Other roles included Phyllis in a television version of ''The Railway Children'' (1968), Janey in '' The Witch's Daughter'' (1971), Lavinia in '' Thursday's Child'' (1972–73) and Callie in ''Follyfoot'' (1971–73). As an adult actress she was cast in roles such as Jinny Carter in series 1 of ''Poldark'' (1975), Ravella in the first episode of ''Blake's 7'' " The Way Back" (1978), Southern TV Live: (1980)‘Together’ Julie Dunn and Maureen Galbraith in the BBC TV series ''County Hall'' (1982). In the 1990s she found that work dried up and began working as a script reader. In 1992, she returned to complete her education at Kingston University. After a period at the Drama and Theatre department at the Royal Holloway, University of London she is now ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frederick Treves (actor)
Frederick William Treves BEM (29 March 1925 – 30 January 2012) was an English character actor with an extensive repertoire, specialising in avuncular, military and titled types. Early life Treves attended the Nautical College, Pangbourne and in World War II he served in the Merchant Navy. On his first voyage his ship, the refrigerated cargo liner , was part of the Operation Pedestal convoy to Malta. On 13 August 1942 ''Waimarama'' was bombed by a German Junkers Ju 88 The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called '' Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast ... aircraft. The ship's deck cargo included containers of aviation spirit that burst into flame. ''Waimarama'' exploded and 83 of her 107 crew were killed. Officer cadet, Cadet Treves helped save several of his shipmates, including the only ship's officer to su ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Follifoot
Follifoot is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the A658 road and south-east from the town centre of Harrogate. History The village name is derived from Old Norse translating as "place of the horse fight" and the village has a long association with horse sports. Follifoot is not listed in the ''Domesday Book'' and the earliest known record is as ''Pholifet'' in the 12th century. Anglo-Saxon remains have been discovered in and near to the village and an Anglian cross is displayed at the crossroads at the top of the village. In the 19th century the village was a thriving community supported by such commerce as the flax industry, tanning, tailors, joiners, a wheelwright, cordwainer and blacksmiths. Amenities The village has two pubs the Radcliffe Arms and the Harewood Arms, both Sam Smiths. The village has one shop and post office and opposite a small school. There is one Anglican church, St. Joseph and St. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Look-in
''Look-in'' was a children's magazine centred on ITV's television programmes in the United Kingdom, and subtitled "The Junior ''TVTimes''". It ran from 9 January 1971 to 12 March 1994. Briefly in 1985 a BBC-based rival appeared called ''''; another was launched in 1989, '''', which went on to outsell ''Look-in''. Format ''Look-in'' had interviews, crosswords and competitions, and it had pictures and pin-ups ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kathy Staff
Kathy Staff (born Minnie Higginbottom; 12 July 1928 – 13 December 2008) was an English actress known for her work on British television. She is best known for her portrayal of Nora Batty in ''Last of the Summer Wine'', the longest running sitcom in the world. Career Early career She began her acting career with touring repertory companies in 1946, changing her name to Katherine Brant. After she married John Staff in 1951, she adopted the surname as her stage name, hence Kathy Staff. She retired from the stage at this point to raise her family, but started working as an extra for Granada Television in Manchester in the 1960s. In her autobiography, Staff revealed herself to be a Conservative, and noted that she had once stood as an election candidate for the party. This appears to have been in 1971, when a Ms. M. Staff contested the Central ward in the Municipal Borough of Dukinfield. The seat was comfortably held by Labour, with the Liberals beating all three Conservative can ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gretchen Franklin
Gretchen Franklin (7 July 1911 – 11 July 2005) was an English actress and dancer with a career in show business spanning over 70 years. She was born in Covent Garden, Central London. She played Ethel Skinner in the long-running BBC 1 soap opera ''EastEnders'' on a regular basis from 1985 until 1988. After this she returned to the show intermittently. These appearances became briefer and more widely spaced. Her final appearance was in 2000, when her character was killed off. Early life Gretchen Franklin was born into a theatrical family, the only child of her parents Gordon and Violet Franklin. Her father had a song-and-dance act, while her grandfather was a well-known music-hall entertainer at the turn of the 20th century. Her younger cousin was the comedian Clive Dunn (1920-2012). She entered show business as a teenager, making her début as a pantomime chorus girl in Bournemouth. In 1929, she took dancing lessons at the ''Theatre Girls Club'' in Soho in London's West End ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
