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Eric Longworth (20 July 1918 – 20 August 2008) was an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
actor, best known for his semi-regular role in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
comedy ''
Dad's Army
''Dad's Army'' is a British television sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and originally broadcast on BBC1 from 31 July 1968 to 13 November 1977. It ran fo ...
'' as Mr. Gordon, the town clerk of
Walmington-on-Sea.
Eric Groves Longworth was born in
Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton is a civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which contains the town of Shaw and lies on the River Beal at the foothills of the South Pennines. It is located north of Oldham, south ...
,
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 Lancash ...
.
He had decided from an early age to become an actor, but had his hopes dashed when his father died and he had to help support the family. He was 17 at the time. Up to his call-up in 1939 at the outbreak of
World War II
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 opposing ...
, which included a spell in
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...
, he had joined the Crompton Stage Society, a local amateur company, playing character parts to stall his ambitions.
After being
demobbed
Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and milita ...
he decided to turn professional, joining the
Oldham Coliseum Theatre
Oldham Coliseum Theatre is a theatre in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England.
Found on Fairbottom Street in the town centre, Oldham's Coliseum is a repertory theatre which celebrated its centenary in 1987. Its interior makes it a great period c ...
, and staying with them for 11 years.
He rose to become theatre manager at Oldham, and later became the manager of the old
Guildford Theatre until 1963; at both theatres he continued to act, and occasionally direct, as well as
managing
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
. His first television appearance was in 1963, and he was usually cast as civil servants or retired colonels.
Longworth appeared in a 1972 episode of ''Lollipop'' written by
Jimmy Perry
James Perry, (20 September 1923 – 23 October 2016)Simon Morgan-Russell, "Perry, James (Jimmy) (1923–2016)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, Jan 202available online Retrieved 25 August 2020. was an Engli ...
, which could have led to his being chosen for the part of the Walmington-on-Sea Town Clerk. During the
''Dad's Army'' Stage Show, Longworth understudied (but, as he states, was thankfully never used for)
Arthur Lowe. He also made a few films, and spent time flying around the globe visiting family, mixed in with the occasional
voice over
Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non- diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations. ...
work, and appearances for the
DAAS. He also appeared in another Jimmy Perry and
David Croft sitcom ''
Hi-de-Hi!
''Hi-de-Hi!'' is
a BBC television sitcom shown on BBC1 from 1 January 1980 to 30 January 1988.
Set in 1959 and 1960 in Maplins, a fictional holiday camp, the show was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who also wrote '' Dad's Army'' an ...
'' as a Head Waiter. He was active from 1963 to 1996.
He had been a regular at ''Dad's Army'' events over the years. His most recent public appearance was at the ''Dad's Army'' 40th Birthday celebrations at the
Imperial War Museum in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
shortly before his death.
He died on 20 August 2008 in
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
,
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...
, one month after his 90th birthday. His funeral was held on 5 September.
Eric Longworth's obituary at the Dad's Army Appreciation Society
/ref>
Film roles
* '''Turn-up for Tony (1968, TV film) - Foreman
* ''All Neat in Black Stockings
''All Neat in Black Stockings'' is a 1969 British comedy film directed by Christopher Morahan and starring Victor Henry, Susan George and Jack Shepherd.British Film Institute Film & TV DatabaseAll Neat in Black Stockings./ref> Based on a nove ...
'' (1968) - Businessman
* ''Foreign Exchange
The foreign exchange market (Forex, FX, or currency market) is a global decentralized or over-the-counter (OTC) market for the trading of currencies. This market determines foreign exchange rates for every currency. It includes all as ...
'' (1970, TV film) - Boreman
* '' Perfect Friday'' (1970) - House of Lords Messenger
* '' Ooh… You Are Awful'' (1972) - Passport Booth Customer (uncredited)
* ''No Sex Please, We're British
''No Sex Please, We're British'' is a British farce written by Alistair Foot and Anthony Marriott, which premiered in London's West End on 3 June 1971 at the Strand Theatre. It was panned by critics, but ran until 5 September 1987, transferri ...
'' (1973) - Man with Lighter
* ''The Bawdy Adventures of Tom Jones
''The Bawdy Adventures of Tom Jones'' is a 1976 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Nicky Henson, Trevor Howard and Terry-Thomas. It is an adaptation of the 1749 novel ''Tom Jones'' by Henry Fielding, which follows the main ...
'' (1976) - Man at Ball (uncredited)
*''Die Katze von Kensington'' (1996, TV film)
Television roles
*''No Hiding Place
''No Hiding Place'' is a British television series that was produced at Wembley Studios by Associated-Rediffusion for the ITV network between 16 September 1959 and 22 June 1967.
It was the sequel to the series ''Murder Bag'' (1957–1958) ...
'' (1963) - 1st Businessman
*''ITV Television Playhouse
''ITV Television Playhouse'', often simplified to ''Television Playhouse'', was a British anthology television series produced by and airing on the ITV television network from 1955 through 1963. The series premiered with the teleplay ''Midlevel ...
'' (1963) - Mr Pickwick
*''Martin Chuzzlewit
''The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit'' (commonly known as ''Martin Chuzzlewit'') is a novel by Charles Dickens, considered the last of his picaresque novels. It was originally serialised between 1842 and 1844. While he was writing it ...
'' (1964) - Second Card Player
*''United!
''United!'' is a British television series which was produced by the BBC between 1965 and 1967, and was broadcast twice-weekly on BBC1.
The series followed the fortunes of a fictional second division football team, Brentwich United. The footba ...
'' (1966) - Gerald Compton - recurring character
* ''Boy Meets Girl'' (1967–69) - Policeman
*''ITV Play of the Week
''Play of the Week'' is a 90-minute British television anthology series produced by a variety of companies including Granada Television, Associated-Rediffusion, ATV and Anglia Television.
Synopsis
From 1955 to 1967 approximately 500 episodes ...
'' (1967) - Shop assistant
* ''The First Lady'' (1968) - Earnshaw
*'' Coronation Street'' (1967–76) - Nat Lumley - recurring character
*''Dad's Army
''Dad's Army'' is a British television sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and originally broadcast on BBC1 from 31 July 1968 to 13 November 1977. It ran fo ...
'' (1972–77) - Town Clerk - recurring character
References
External links
*
Obituary
in ''The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
''
Obituary
in ''The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...
''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Longworth, Eric
1918 births
2008 deaths
English male television actors
People from Shaw and Crompton
Actor-managers
20th-century theatre managers
British military personnel of World War II