Alan John Randle (10 June 1934 – 9 April 2005), known professionally as Alan Randall, was an English multi-instrumentalist and entertainer, who became best known for his impersonations of

George Formby George Formby, (born George Hoy Booth; 26 May 1904 – 6 March 1961) was an English actor, singer-songwriter and comedian who became known to a worldwide audience through his films of the 1930s and 1940s. On stage, screen and record he s ...

Biography

Born in

Bedworth Bedworth ( or locally ) is a market town and unparished area in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth, Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : It is situated between Coventry, 6 miles (9.5 km) to the south, a ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

, he began playing music as a child, and learned both piano and

vibraphone The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist,' ...

. He played many instruments in

dance band ''Dance Band'' is a 1935 British musical film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Charles "Buddy" Rogers, June Clyde and Steven Geray. It was shot at Welwyn Studios with sets designed by the art director David Rawnsley. Plot When dance band ...

s in the 1950s, including trumpet, trombone and drums as well as the vibraphone, which became his main instrument and on which he was recognised as one of the leading British exponents. In 1957, he appeared at the

Windmill Theatre The Windmill Theatre in Great Windmill Street, London, was a variety and revue theatre best known for its nude ''tableaux vivants'', which began in 1932 and lasted until its reversion to a cinema in 1964. Many prominent British comedians of t ...

in London, and was booked to tour the country with emerging

pop star A pop icon is a celebrity, character, or object whose exposure in popular culture is regarded as constituting a defining characteristic of a given society or era. The usage of the term is largely subjective since there are no definitively object ...

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 reco ...

and, later,

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...

. As a musician and entertainer, he featured regularly in summer shows and

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

s around Britain.Roy Hudd and Philip Hindin, ''Roy Hudd's Cavalcade of Variety Acts'', Robson Books, 1998, , pp.149-150 Obituary: Alan Randall", ''The Times'', 19 April 2005
Retrieved 28 December 2020 "Alan Randall", ''Grand Order of Water Rats''
Retrieved 28 December 2020 Randall was a lifelong fan of the

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

singer and entertainer George Formby. After Formby's death in 1961, Randall began interspersing his act with performances of Formby's songs, singing and accompanying himself on the ukulele-banjo. His singing voice was naturally similar to Formby's, and the popularity of his Formby songs meant that they increasingly became the focus of his performances. It was said that "his voice was so perfect that even Formby's fiancée, Pat Howson, and members of his family could not tell the difference between Alan and his hero." He recorded Formby's songs from 1968, and made many radio and television broadcasts. He also toured internationally, appeared in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

with

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

and

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli is among a rare group of performers awarded an Emmy, Grammy ...

, and was part of the 1986

Royal Variety Performance The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal f ...

. He co-wrote a biography of Formby with Ray Seaton in 1974, and appeared in a theatrical show, ''Turned Out Nice Again'', co-written with

Vince Powell Vincent Joseph Powell (6 August 1928 – 13 July 2009) was a British television scriptwriter. He collaborated with a writing partner, Harry Driver, until 1973. Early life Powell was born as Vincent Joseph Smith to Roman Catholic parents in Mi ...

. He acquired an important collection of Formby

memorabilia A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...

, including many items given to him by Pat Howson."Alan Randall", ''GeorgeFormby.co.uk''
Retrieved 28 December 2020 He died in

Nuneaton Nuneaton ( ) is a market town in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth in northern Warwickshire, England, close to the county border with Leicestershire and West Midlands County.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : Nuneaton's ...

in 2005, aged 70, after suffering from

motor neurone disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...

."Funeral plan for Alan", ''Coventry Telegraph'', 19 April 2005
Retrieved 28 December 2020

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Randall, Alan 1934 births 2005 deaths British ukulele players English banjoists British novelty song performers Neurological disease deaths in England Deaths from motor neuron disease