Edmund Comber (8 January 1886 – 1 March 1942),5 March 1942, "Chit Chat", ''The Stage'', p.4, accessed vi
The Stage Archive
2 February 2014 known professionally as Bobbie Comber, was a British comedian, singer and actor. He was born in

Bury St Edmunds Bury St Edmunds (), commonly referred to locally as Bury, is a historic market town, market, cathedral town and civil parish in Suffolk, England.OS Explorer map 211: Bury St.Edmunds and Stowmarket Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

. He first appeared on stage in 1904 in

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

, and worked as a civil servant in the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

before forming his own concert party in 1912.

Denis Gifford Denis Gifford (26 December 1927 – 18 May 2000)Holland, Steve, Obituaries: Denis Gifford', ''The Guardian'', 26 May 2000. was a British writer, broadcaster, journalist, comic artist and historian of film, comics, television and radio. In h ...

, ''The Golden Age of Radio'', B.T. Batsford Ltd, London, 1985, , p.55 He served in the military in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and then toured the country in musical

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

s and the comedy ''

Chu Chin Chow ''Chu Chin Chow'' is a musical comedy written, produced and directed by Oscar Asche, with music by Frederic Norton, based (with minor embellishments) on the story of ''Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves''. Gänzl, Kurt"''Chu Chin Chow'' Musical Tale of ...

''. He first appeared on stage in London at the

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiv ...

in a production of ''

The Naughty Princess ''The Naughty Princess'' is an opéra bouffe with music by Charles Cuvillier, book by J. Hastings Turner, and lyrics by Adrian Ross. The work, adapted from ''La reine joyeuse'' by Cuvillier and Andre Barde, depicts a princess with very modern i ...

'' in 1920. "Bobbie Comber in ''Between Ourselves''", ''V&A Museum''
Retrieved 16 March 2021 Comber's first broadcasts were in excerpts from the show ''Clowns in Clover'', and he made more regular appearances as a comedian on

BBC radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...

from 1929, sometimes with Paul England,

Claude Hulbert Claude Noel Hulbert (25 December 1900 – 23 January 1964) was a mid-20th century English stage, radio and cinema comic actor. Early life Claude Hulbert was born in Fulham in West London on Christmas Day 1900. He was the younger brother of J ...

and Eddie Childs (later replaced by Arthur Clay, and subsequently by H. B. Longhurst) as "Those Four Chaps". He also performed in a

double act A double act (also known as a comedy duo) is a form of comedy originating in the British music hall tradition, and American vaudeville, in which two comedians perform together as a single act. Pairings are typically long-term, in some cases f ...

with Hulbert, and recorded light comedy songs, such as a cleaned-up version of " Barnacle Bill". He appeared in films, including ''

Elstree Calling ''Elstree Calling'' is a 1930 British comedy musical film directed by Adrian Brunel and Alfred Hitchcock at Elstree Studios. Synopsis The film, referred to as "A Cine-Radio Revue" in its original publicity, is a lavish musical film revue and wa ...

'' (1930), '' Lazybones'' (1935), and '' Be Careful, Mr. Smith'' (1935). The BBC's entertainment programmes were broadcast from

north Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and Comber died there, in Bangor, in 1942 aged 56.

Selected filmography

* ''

Brother Alfred ''Brother Alfred'' is a 1932 British comedy film directed by Henry Edwards and starring Gene Gerrard, Molly Lamont and Elsie Randolph. After she finds him embracing one of the maids, a man's fiancée ends her engagement to him. In an effort to ...

'' (1932) * ''

The Fortunate Fool ''The Fortunate Fool'' is a 1933 British comedy film directed by Norman Walker and starring Hugh Wakefield, Joan Wyndham and Jack Raine. It was made at Ealing Studios as a quota quickie.Chibnall p.272 The film's sets were designed by the art ...

'' (1933) as Marlowe * ''

There Goes Susie ''There Goes Susie'' is a 1934 British comedy film directed by Victor Hanbury and John Stafford and starring Gene Gerrard, Wendy Barrie, and Zelma O'Neal. Based on a story by Charlie Roellinghoff and Hans Jacoby, it was made by British Intern ...

'' (1934) * '' Lilies of the Field'' (1934) * '' Be Careful, Mr. Smith'' (1935) * ''

The Ace of Spades ''The Ace of Spades'' is a 1935 British drama film directed by George Pearson and starring Michael Hogan, Dorothy Boyd and Richard Cooper. Cast * Michael Hogan as Nick Trent * Dorothy Boyd as Nita Daventry * Richard Cooper as Tony Cosgra ...

'' (1935) * ''

Sporting Love ''Sporting Love'' is a musical written by Stanley Lupino with music by Billy Mayerl, lyrics by Desmond Carter and Frank Eyton. Produced by Lupino, it opened at the Gaiety Theatre, London on 31 March 1934 and ran for 302 performances, closing o ...

'' (1936) * ''

Mother, Don't Rush Me ''Mother, Don't Rush Me'' is a 1936 British comedy film directed by Norman Lee and starring Robb Wilton, Muriel Aked and Peter Haddon. It was made at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith.Wood p.85 It is based on a sketch by the celebrated music h ...

'' (1936) * ''

A Romance in Flanders ''A Romance in Flanders'' is a 1937 British drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Paul Cavanagh, Marcelle Chantal, Olga Lindo and Alastair Sim. It is set during the First World War with the British Expeditionary Force in Flanders. It ...

'' (1937) * '' The Singing Cop'' (1938)

References

External links

* 1886 births 1942 deaths English male film actors Actors from Bury St Edmunds English comedy musicians 20th-century English male actors 20th-century British comedians Musicians from Bury St Edmunds {{england-film-actor-stub