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Six-Five Special
''Six-Five Special'' is a British television programme launched in February 1957 when both television and rock and roll were in their infancy in Britain. Description ''Six-Five Special'' was the BBC's first attempt at a rock-and-roll programme. Its title was derived from its broadcast time, as it aired at 6:05 on Saturday evening. It began immediately after the abolition of the Toddlers' Truce, in which programming ceased between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. so that children could be put to bed. Jack Good was the show's original producer, and Josephine Douglas and (initially) disc jockey Pete Murray were its presenters, with Murray using the catchphrase "Time to jive on the old six five." Its resident band was Don Lang and His Frantic Five. The show opened with film of a steam train accompanied by the programme's theme song, played and sung by the Bob Cort Skiffle Group, which began with the words "The Six-Five Special's comin' down the line, The Six-Five Special's right on time . ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack Good (producer)
Jack Good (7 August 1931 – 24 September 2017) was a British television producer, musical theatre producer, record producer, musician and painter of icons. As a television producer, he was responsible for the early popular music shows ''Six-Five Special'', ''Oh Boy!'', ''Boy Meets Girls'' and ''Wham!!'' TV series, the first UK teenage music programmes. Good managed some of the UK's first rock and roll stars, including Tommy Steele, Marty Wilde, Billy Fury, Jess Conrad and Cliff Richard. Early years Good was born in Greenford, London, England, and was brought up in Palmers Green. His father was a piano salesman in Bond Street. Jack Good attended Trinity County Grammar School and, after national service, studied philology at Balliol College, Oxford, where he became president of the university debating society and of the college drama society. Initially intending to become an actor, he studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, and worked as half of a c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Adam Faith
Terence Nelhams Wright (23 June 1940 – 8 March 2003), known as Adam Faith, was an English singer, actor, and financial journalist. A teen idol, he scored consecutive No. 1 hits on the UK Singles Chart with "What Do You Want?" (1959) and "Poor Me" (1960). He became the first UK artist to lodge his initial seven hits in the top 5, and was ultimately one of the most charted acts of the 1960s. He was also one of the first UK acts to record original songs regularly. Faith also maintained an acting career, appearing as Dave in the teen exploitation film ''Beat Girl'' (1960), the eponymous lead in the ITV television series '' Budgie'' (1971–1972) and Frank Carver in the BBC comedy drama ''Love Hurts'' (1992–1994). Early life and education Terence Nelhams Wright was born on 23 June 1940 at 4, East Churchfield Road, Acton, Middlesex (now London), England, son of coach driver Alfred Richard Nelhams and cleaner Ellen May (née Burridge), formerly wife of Cecil G. Wright, from whom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tommy Steele
Sir Thomas Hicks (born 17 December 1936), known professionally as Tommy Steele, is an English entertainer, regarded as Britain's first teen idol and rock and roll star. After being discovered at the 2i's Coffee Bar in Soho, London, Steele recorded a string of hit singles including "Rock with the Caveman" (1956) and the chart-topper "Singing the Blues" (1957). Steele's rise to fame was dramatised in ''The Tommy Steele Story'' (1957), the soundtrack of which was the first British album to reach number one on the UK Albums Chart. With collaborators Lionel Bart and Mike Pratt, Steele received the 1958 Ivor Novello Award for Most Outstanding Song of the Year for "A Handful of Songs". He starred in further musical films including '' The Duke Wore Jeans'' (1958) and ''Tommy the Toreador'' (1959), the latter spawning the hit "Little White Bull". Steele shifted away from rock and roll in the 1960s, becoming an all-round entertainer. He originated the part of Kipps in ''Half a Sixpence' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Dallas Boys
The Dallas Boys were a five-piece vocal group from Leicester, England who were regular performers on British television in the 1950s and 1960s. They have been described as "Britain's first boy band". History The group formed in Leicester and comprised four former pupils of Moat Community College, Moat Boys School (Joe Smith, Stan Jones, Bob Wragg, and Leon Fisk) and London-born Nicky Clarke.'First boy band' singer Joe dies , ''Leicester Mercury'', 28 July 2012. Retrieved 8 September 2013 After winning a Butlins talent content, they became a fixture on the TV show ''Six-Five Special'', becoming household names.Eder, Bruce [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marty Wilde
Marty Wilde, (born Reginald Leonard Smith; 15 April 1939) is an English singer and songwriter. He was among the first generation of British pop stars to emulate American rock and roll, scoring several 1950s hit singles including "Endless Sleep", "Sea of Love" and " Bad Boy". During the 1960s and 1970s, Wilde continued to record and, with Ronnie Scott, co-wrote hit singles for others including the Casuals' "Jesamine" and Status Quo's "Ice in the Sun". He is the father of pop singer Kim Wilde and co-wrote many of her hit singles including "Kids in America" with his son Ricky. He continues to perform and record. Career Wilde was born in Blackheath, London. He was performing under the name Reg Patterson at London's Condor Club in 1957, when he was spotted by impresario Larry Parnes. Parnes gave his protégés stage names such as Billy Fury, Duffy Power and Dickie Pride, hence the change to Wilde. The 'Marty' came from the acclaimed 1955 film of the same name. Wilde was signed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wee Willie Harris
Charles William Harris (born 25 March 1933), better known by his stage name of Wee Willie Harris, is an English rock and roll singer. He is best known for his energetic stage shows and TV performances since the 1950s, when he was known as "Britain's wild man of rock 'n' roll". Life and career Born in Bermondsey, Harris left his job at a Peek Freans bakery in London to start his music career. He began performing at The 2i's Coffee Bar in Soho, London, where he was the resident piano player, performing with Tommy Steele, Adam Faith, Screaming Lord Sutch and others. He was named for his 5' 2" height, and in tribute to Little Richard. In November 1957, he was picked by the TV producer, Jack Good, to appear in the BBC show ''Six-Five Special''. His appearances on the show led to concerns being expressed in the media about the BBC's role in "promoting teenage decadence". His debut single, the self-penned "Rockin' At the 2 I's", was released on the Decca label in December 1957, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Finlay Currie
William Finlay Currie (20 January 1878 – 9 May 1968) was a Scottish actor of stage, screen, and television.McFarlane, Brian (28 February 2014). ''The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition''. Oxford University Press. pp. 175-176; He received great acclaim for his roles as Abel Magwitch in the British film ''Great Expectations'' (1946) and as Balthazar in the American film '' Ben-Hur'' (1959). In his career spanning 70 years, Currie appeared in seven films nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, of which ''Around the World in 80 Days'' (1956) and '' Ben-Hur'' (1959) were winners. Career Currie was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He attended George Watson's College and worked as organist and choir director. In 1898 he got his first job in Benjamin Fuller's theatre group, and appeared with them for almost 10 years. After emigrating to the United States in the late 1890s, Currie and his wife, Maude Courtney, did a song-and-dance act on the stage. He made his first ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joan Regan
Joan Regan (born Joan Bethel or Siobhan Bethel; 19 January 1928 – 12 September 2013) was an English traditional pop music singer, popular during the 1950s and early 1960s. Biography Regan was born in either Romford, Essex, or West Ham, London, (sources disagree) the youngest of six children to Irish parents. She had rheumatic fever as a child which left her with a damaged mitral valve, although this did not cause problems until she was in her seventies. Regan married an American serviceman, Dick Howell, a friend of her brothers who met in the Navy. She and Howell married on her 18th birthday in 1946. For a time they lived in Burbank, California. They had three children, one of whom died at an early age. The marriage eventually broke down. Regan, a Catholic, was able to obtain a legal dissolution, rather than a divorce. Before becoming a singer, Regan worked at a number of jobs, including re-touching photographs. Her successful singing career began in 1953, when she made a dem ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cleo Laine
Dame Cleo Laine, Lady Dankworth (born Clementine Dinah Bullock; 28 October 1927)Cleo Laine birth registry in Uxbridge via Free UK Genealogy CIO, a charity registered in England and Wales, Number 1167484, under the auspices of the General Register Office of England and Wales Accessed 22 November 2022. is an English and pop singer and an actress, known for her and for her vocal range. Though her natural range is that of a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Russ Hamilton (singer)
Russ Hamilton (born Ronald Hulme, 19 January 1932 – 11 October 2008) was an English singer and songwriter. Hamilton made the Top 10 in the United Kingdom with "We Will Make Love", but in the United States, it was the B-side, "Rainbow", which made the Top 10. Biography Early Life Russ Hamilton was born as Ronald Hulme in Everton, Liverpool, Lancashire in 1932. Prior to his fame, he worked as a cost clerk. Career he was one of the first singer-songwriters of pop music to have come out of the city, and he was the first Liverpool artist to hit the United States music scene with his song "Rainbow", several years before the Beatles. In 1957, chart success in the U.S. was very unusual for a British performer, and Hamilton commuted from one side of the Atlantic to the other to meet the demands for live performances. A former Redcoat, Hamilton's first hit in the United Kingdom was "We Will Make Love", which he recorded in 1957 for Oriole Records. However, in the U.S., it ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lonnie Donegan
Anthony James Donegan (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002), known as Lonnie Donegan, was a British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician, referred to as the "King of Skiffle", who influenced 1960s British pop and rock musicians. Born in Scotland and brought up in England, Donegan began his career in the British trad jazz revival but transitioned to skiffle in the mid-1950s, rising to prominence with a hit recording of the American folk song "Rock Island Line" which helped spur the broader UK skiffle movement. Donegan had 31 UK top 30 hit singles, 24 were successive hits and three were number one. He was the first British male singer with two US top 10 hits. Donegan received an Ivor Novello lifetime achievement award in 1995 and in 2000 he was made an MBE. Donegan was a pivotal figure in the British Invasion due to his influence in the US in the late 1950s. Life Donegan was born in Bridgeton, Glasgow, Scotland, on 29 April 1931. He was the son of an Irish mother and a Scots ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Terry Dene
Terry Dene (born Terence Williams, 20 December 1938) is a British rock music singer popular in the late 1950s and early 60s. He had three Top Twenty hits between June 1957 and May 1958. Career Dene was born in Lancaster Street, Elephant & Castle, London, and was discovered by Paul Lincoln at the 2i's Coffee Bar (the London club that helped launch Tommy Steele, Adam Faith and Cliff Richard) in Soho in the late 1950s. Jack Good, producer of ''Six-Five Special'', and Dick Rowe helped him obtain a recording contract with Decca. At the time he was regarded as the British Elvis and recognised as one of the best voices of the rock and roll era of pre-Beatles Britain. In 1957, his first single, "A White Sport Coat", sold in excess of 350,000 copies in the first seven weeks and together with his own version of " Start Movin'" at number 14, put his records in the Top 20 of the UK Singles Chart twice in the same year, securing his name in the ''Guinness Book of Records''. His recording ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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