Eric Sykes

HOME

TheInfoList

Click Here for Items Related To - Eric Sykes

OR:

Eric Sykes on: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Amazon]

Eric Sykes (4 May 1923 – 4 July 2012) was an English radio, stage, television and film writer, comedian, actor, and director whose performing career spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including

Tony Hancock Anthony John Hancock (12 May 1924 – 25 June 1968) was an English comedian and actor. High-profile during the 1950s and early 1960s, he had a major success with his BBC series ''Hancock's Half Hour'', first broadcast on radio from 1954, ...

Spike Milligan Terence Alan "Spike" Milligan (16 April 1918 – 27 February 2002) was an Irish actor, comedian, writer, musician, poet, and playwright. The son of an English mother and Irish father, he was born in British Raj, British Colonial India, where h ...

, Tommy Cooper,

Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...

John Antrobus John Arthur Antrobus (born 2 July 1933) is an English playwright and screenwriter. He has written extensively for stage, screen, TV and radio, including the epic World War II play, ''Crete and Sergeant Pepper'' at the Royal Court. He authored t ...

, and

Johnny Speight Johnny Speight (2 June 1920 – 5 July 1998) was an English television scriptwriter of many classic British sitcoms. He emerged in the mid-1950s. He wrote for radio comics Frankie Howerd, Vic Oliver, Arthur Askey, and Cyril Fletcher. For tele ...

. Sykes first came to prominence through his many radio credits as a writer and actor in the 1950s, most notably through his collaboration on ''

The Goon Show ''The Goon Show'' is a British radio comedy programme, originally produced and broadcast by the BBC Home Service from 1951 to 1960, with occasional repeats on the BBC Light Programme. The first series, broadcast from 28 May to 20 September 19 ...

'' scripts. He became a TV star in his own right in the early 1960s when he appeared with

Hattie Jacques Hattie Jacques (; born Josephine Edwina Jaques; 7 February 1922 – 6 October 1980) was an English comedy actress of stage, radio and screen. She is best known as a regular of the ''Carry On'' films, where she typically played strict, no-non ...

in several popular

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 television series.

Early life

Sykes was born on 4 May 1923 in

Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, wh ...

, Lancashire; his mother died three weeks later, leaving him and his two-year-old brother Vernon motherless. Their father was a labourer in a

cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning (textiles), spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Althou ...

and a former

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

. When Sykes was two, his father remarried and he gained a

half-brother A sibling is a relative that shares at least one parent with the subject. A male sibling is a brother and a female sibling is a sister. A person with no siblings is an only child. While some circumstances can cause siblings to be raised separa ...

named John. Sykes was educated at Ward Street Central School in Oldham. He joined the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

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 ...

, qualifying as a wireless operator with the rank of leading aircraftman.

Career

Sykes's entertainment career began during the Second World War while serving in a Special Liaison Unit, when he met and worked with then

flight lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth countries. It has a NATO rank code of OF-2. Flight lieutenant is abbreviated as Flt Lt in the India ...

Bill Fraser William Simpson Fraser (5 June 1908 – 9 September 1987) was a Scottish actor who appeared on stage, screen and television for many years. In 1986 he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performance for his stage role in the play '' ...

. Sykes also collaborated with fellow RAF servicemen

Denis Norden Denis Mostyn Norden (6 February 1922 – 19 September 2018) was an English comedy writer and television presenter. After an early career working in cinemas, he began scriptwriting during the Second World War. From 1948 to 1959, he co-wrote the ...

and Ron Rich in the production of troop entertainment shows. Whilst preparing for one of these shows in 1945, Sykes, accompanied by Norden and Rich, went to a nearby prison camp in search of stage lighting; the camp turned out to be the

Bergen-Belsen concentration camp Bergen-Belsen , or Belsen, was a Nazi concentration camp in what is today Lower Saxony in northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle. Originally established as a prisoner of war camp, in 1943, parts of it became a concent ...

, which had recently been liberated by the Allies. Sykes, Norden, and Rich organised a food collection amongst their comrades to feed the starving camp inmates. When the war ended, Sykes decided to try his luck in London, arriving in the middle of the coldest winter in living memory (1946–47). He rented lodgings, expecting to find work quickly, but by the end of the first week he was cold, hungry, and penniless. The turning point in his life and career came on the Friday night of his first week in London: he had a chance meeting in the street with Bill Fraser, who was by now featuring in a comedy at the

Playhouse Theatre The Playhouse Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster, located in Northumberland Avenue, near Trafalgar Square, central London. The Theatre was built by F. H. Fowler and Hill with a seating capacity of 1,200. It was rebuilt i ...

. Fraser took the impoverished Sykes to the theatre, offered him food and drink, then asked if Sykes would like to write for him. Sykes began providing scripts for both Fraser and

Frankie Howerd Francis Alick Howard (6 March 1917 – 19 April 1992), better known by his stage-name Frankie Howerd, was an English actor and comedian. Early life Howerd was born the son of soldier Francis Alfred William (1887–1934)England & Wales, Deat ...

and soon found himself in demand as a comedy writer. Forming a partnership with Sid Colin, he worked on the

...
radio ventriloquism show ''

Educating Archie ''Educating Archie'' was a BBC Light Programme comedy show which was broadcast for nearly ten years between June 1950 and February 1960, mostly at lunchtime on Sundays. The programme featured ventriloquist Peter Brough and his doll Archie Andr ...

'', which began in 1950, and also ''

Variety Bandbox ''Variety Bandbox'' is a BBC Radio variety show transmitted initially in the BBC General Forces Programme, General Forces Programme and then the BBC Light Programme, Light Programme. Featuring a mixture of comic performances and music, the show h ...

''. Working on ''Educating Archie'' led to him meeting

for the first time.

1950s

Sykes had begun to write for television as early as 1948, but from the early 1950s Sykes began to make an ultimately successful transition from radio to TV, writing a number of series episodes and one-off shows for the BBC. His credits in this period include ''The Howerd Crowd'' (1952), ''Frankie Howerd's Korean Party'', ''Nuts in May'', and ''The Frankie Howerd Show'', as well as ''The Big Man'' (1954) starring

Fred Emney Frederick Arthur Round Emney (12 February 1902 – 25 December 1980) was an English character actor and comedian. Emney was born in Prescot, Lancashire,GRO Register of Births Mar 1902 Frederick Arthur R Emney 8b 725 PRESCOT1901 Census: ...

and

Edwin Styles Edwin Styles (13 January 1899 – 20 December 1960) was a British stage comedian, pantomime actor, radio and TV performer and film actor. Partial filmography * ''Hell Below'' (1933) - Herbert Standish - Flight Comdr. * '' On the Air'' (1934) - Ed ...

. Sykes also made his first screen appearance at this time in the army film comedy '' Orders Are Orders'' (1954), which also featured

Sid James Sidney James (born Solomon Joel Cohen; 8 May 1913 – 26 April 1976) was a British actor and comedian whose career encompassed radio, television, stage and screen. He was best known for numerous roles in the Carry On film series. Born to a mid ...

, Tony Hancock, Peter Sellers, Bill Fraser, and

Donald Pleasence Donald Henry Pleasence (; 5 October 1919 – 2 February 1995) was an English actor. He began his career on stage in the West End before transitioning into a screen career, where he played numerous supporting and character roles including RAF ...

. Sykes's small office above a grocer's shop at 130

Uxbridge Road Uxbridge Road is the name of the A4020 road in West London. The route starts at Shepherd's Bush Green and goes west towards Uxbridge. It passes through Acton, Ealing, Hanwell, Southall, Hayes, and Hillingdon. Uxbridge Road is a major r ...

, Shepherd's Bush, was shared from around 1953 by Spike Milligan. (Sykes and Milligan later jointly formed

Associated London Scripts Associated London Scripts (ALS) was a writers' agency organised as a co-operative which involved many leading comedy and television writers of the 1950s and 1960s. In the early 1950s, as ''The Goon Show'' was gaining popularity, its main writer ...

(ALS) with Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, a writers' agency which lasted for well over a decade until being effectively dissolved in 1967). Late in 1954, Sykes began collaborating with Spike Milligan on scripts for ''The Goon Show'', easing Milligan's workload. Their first collaborative script was for a ''Goon Show'' special called ''Archie in Goonland'', a crossover between ''The Goon Show'' and ''Educating Archie''. The special was broadcast in June 1954 and featured the regular Goon Show cast (

Harry Secombe Sir Harold Donald Secombe (8 September 1921 – 11 April 2001) was a Welsh comedian, actor, singer and television presenter. Secombe was a member of the British radio comedy programme ''The Goon Show'' (1951–1960), playing many characters, m ...

was then appearing in both) plus

Peter Brough Peter Brough (26 February 1916 – 3 June 1999) was an English radio ventriloquist who became a well-known name to audiences in the 1950s. He is associated with his puppet Archie Andrews. Early career Peter Brough’s father, Arthur Broug ...

, his dummy

Archie Andrews Archibald "Archie" Andrews, created in 1941 by publisher John L. Goldwater and artist Bob Montana in collaboration with writer Vic Bloom,

and Hattie Jacques. It was not a success, however, and neither recording nor the script has survived. Sykes and Milligan are credited as the co-writers of all but the first six of the 26 episodes in Series 5 (1954–55) and three episodes of Series 6 (1955–56); Sykes also wrote a 15-minute Goon Show Christmas special, ''The Missing Christmas Parcel'', broadcast during the Children's Hour on 8 December 1955. In 1955, Sykes wrote and performed in a BBC Christmas spectacular, a spoof pantomime called ''Pantomania'', which featured many well-known BBC personalities of the era; it was directed by Ernest Maxin, who went on to produce some of the most famous comedy routines for

Morecambe & Wise Eric Morecambe (John Eric Bartholomew, 14 May 1926 – 28 May 1984) and Ernie Wise (Ernest Wiseman, 27 November 1925 – 21 March 1999), known as Morecambe and Wise (and sometimes as Eric and Ernie), were an English comic double act, working ...

. That same year Sykes signed a contract as scriptwriter and variety show presenter for the newly formed independent television company ATV, while continuing to write and perform for the BBC. In 1956, Sykes performed, wrote scripts, and acted as script editor for the pioneering

Rediffusion Rediffusion was a business that distributed radio and TV signals through wired relay networks. The business gave rise to a number of other companies, including Associated-Rediffusion, later known as Rediffusion London, the first ITV ( commer ...

TV comedy '' The Idiot Weekly, Price 2d'', the first attempt to translate the humour of the Goons to television. It starred Peter Sellers, with Sykes,

Kenneth Connor Kenneth Connor, (6 June 1918 – 28 November 1993) was a British stage, film and broadcasting actor, who rose to national prominence with his appearances in the ''Carry On'' films. Early life Connor was born in Highbury, Islington, London ...

, and

Valentine Dyall Valentine Dyall (7 May 1908 – 24 June 1985) was an English character actor. He worked regularly as a voice actor, and was known for many years as "The Man in Black", the narrator of the BBC Radio horror series '' Appointment with Fear'' ...

. During this year he also made his second film appearance, playing a minor role in the

Max Bygraves Walter William Bygraves (16 October 1922 – 31 August 2012), best known by the stage name Max Bygraves (adopted in honour of Max Miller), was an English comedian, singer, actor and variety performer. He appeared on his own television shows, s ...

film '' Charley Moon'', which also featured Bill Fraser, Peter Jones,

Dennis Price Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose Price (23 June 1915 – 6 October 1973) was an English actor, best remembered for his role as Louis Mazzini in the film '' Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1949) and for his portrayal of the omnicompetent valet Jeeve ...

, and (as a child)

Jane Asher Jane Asher (born 5 April 1946)The International Who's Who of Women, 3rd edition, ed. Elizabeth Sleeman, Europa Publications, 2002, p. 29 is an English actress and author. She achieved early fame as a child actress and has worked extensively in f ...

. During 1956–57, Sykes also wrote for and performed in ''

The Tony Hancock Show ''The Tony Hancock Show'' is a black-and-white British sketch show starring Tony Hancock and was broadcast on ITV by the franchise contractor Associated-Rediffusion for two series in 1956 and 1957, either side of the first television series of ' ...

'', where he again worked with Hattie Jacques. His next venture for the BBC was a one-hour special, ''Sykes Directs a Dress Rehearsal'', playing a harassed director in a fictional TV studio rehearsal room, just before going live to air. Later that year he wrote and appeared in another all-star spectacular called ''Opening Night'' which celebrated the opening of the 1956 National Radio Show at

Earl's Court Earl's Court is a district of Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in West London, bordering the rail tracks of the West London line and District line that separate it from the ancient borough of Fulham to the west, the ...

. In 1957, he created ''Closing Night'', which closed the 1957 show. By this time Sykes had developed hearing problems; he subsequently lost most of his hearing, but learned to lip-read and watch other performers say their lines to get his cues. In 1957, he wrote and appeared in an edition of ''Val Parnell's Saturday Spectacular'', the first of two shows in this series that he wrote for Peter Sellers. The first went out under the title of ''Eric Sykes Presents Peter Sellers'', and the second, in 1958, was called ''The Peter Sellers Show''. In 1959, Sykes wrote and directed the one-off BBC special ''Gala Opening'', with a cast that included 'Professor' Stanley Unwin and Hattie Jacques, and played a small supporting role in the

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 ...

film ''

Tommy the Toreador ''Tommy the Toreador'' is a 1959 British musical comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Tommy Steele, Janet Munro, Sid James, Bernard Cribbins, Noel Purcell and Kenneth Williams. Premise A British ship docks in Spain and ...

''.

1960s

At the turn of the decade Eric Sykes and his old friend and colleague

co-starred in a new 30-minute BBC TV sitcom, '' Sykes and a...'', which Sykes created in collaboration with writer

, who had worked with him earlier in the 1950s on the two Tony Hancock series for ITV. The original concept for the new series had Eric living in suburbia with his wife, with simple plots centring on everyday problems, but Sykes soon realised that by changing the house-mate from wife to sister it offered more scope for storylines and allowed either or both to become romantically entangled with other people. In the revised concept, Sykes played a version of his established stage persona, a bumbling, work-shy, accident-prone bachelor called Eric Sykes, who lives at 24 Sebastopol Terrace,

East Acton East Acton is an area in Acton in London, England, west of Charing Cross. It is partly in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham and partly in the London Borough of Ealing. It is served by East Acton Underground station, on the Central ...

, with his unmarried twin sister Harriet, played by Jacques. The other regular cast members were

Deryck Guyler Deryck Bower Guyler (29 April 1914 – 7 October 1999) was an English actor, best remembered for his portrayal of officious, short-tempered middle-aged men in sitcoms such as ''Please Sir!'' and ''Sykes''. Early life Guyler was born in Wallas ...

as local constable Wilfred "Corky" Turnbull and

Richard Wattis Richard Wattis (25 February 1912 – 1 February 1975) was an English actor, co-starring in many popular British comedies of the 1950s and 1960s. Early life Richard Cameron Wattis was born on 25 February 1912 in Wednesbury, Staffordshire, the ...

as their snobbish, busybody neighbour Charles Brown. Wattis left the show after series 3 and his departure was explained by having Mr Brown migrating to Australia. Other guests included

Hugh Lloyd Hugh Lewis Lloyd (22 April 1923 – 14 July 2008) was an English actor who made his name in film and television comedy from the 1960s to the 1980s. He was best known for appearances in ''Hancock's Half Hour'', ''Hugh and I'' and other sit ...

John Bluthal John Bluthal (born Isaac Bluthal; 12 August 1929 – 15 November 2018) was a Polish-born Australian actor and comedian, noted for his six-decade career internationally in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. He started his career ...

Leo McKern Reginald "Leo" McKern, AO (16 March 1920 – 23 July 2002) was an Australian actor who appeared in numerous British, Australian and American television programmes and films, and in more than 200 stage roles. His notable roles include Cla ...

, and

Arthur Mullard Arthur Ernest Mullard (né Mullord; 19 September 1910His obituary in ''The Times'' gives his date of birth as 10 November 1910 but conflicts with the birthdate given in his death registration. His year of birth appears as 1908, 1910, 1912 and 1 ...

. The first series (five episodes, all written by Johnny Speight) premiered on 29 January 1960 and were an immediate hit, establishing 'Eric and Hat' as one of Britain's most popular and enduring comedy partnerships. The second series of six episodes (written from storylines suggested by Speight) were mostly written by Sykes, although he co-wrote one episode each with

and Spike Milligan. All subsequent episodes were written solely by Sykes. Nine short seasons of ''Sykes and a...'' were produced between 1960 and 1965, ranging between six and nine episodes each, plus a short 1962 special in the BBC's annual '' Christmas Night with the Stars'' programme, are

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

. Twenty-five of the original fifty-nine episodes have survived in the BBC archives. It was during this series that Sykes introduced one of his best known creations, the wordless slapstick routine ''The Plank'', which originally appeared in Episode 2, Series 7 of ''Sykes and a...'', first broadcast on 3 March 1964 under that title. In December 1961, Sykes co-starred with

Warren Mitchell Warren Mitchell (born Warren Misell; 14 January 1926 – 14 November 2015) was a British actor. He was a BAFTA TV Award winner and twice a Laurence Olivier Award winner. In the 1950s, Mitchell appeared on the radio programmes ''Educatin ...

in ''Clicquot et Fils'', a one-off, 30-minute comedy written by Associated London Scripts colleagues Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. This was the premiere episode of a new BBC series ''

Comedy Playhouse ''Comedy Playhouse'' is a long-running British anthology series of one-off unrelated sitcoms that aired for 120 episodes from 1961 to 1975. Many episodes later graduated to their own series, including ''Steptoe and Son'', '' Meet the Wife'', ' ...

'', which became an important proving ground for many successful TV comedy series. In 1962, Sykes played his first starring film role, being a travelling salesman in the comedy ''

Village of Daughters ''Village of Daughters'' is a 1962 British comedy film directed by George Pollock and starring Eric Sykes, Scilla Gabel, John Le Mesurier, Grégoire Aslan, Graham Stark, and Warren Mitchell Warren Mitchell (born Warren Misell; 14 January 1 ...

'', set in an Italian village, but featuring a mostly British cast including

John Le Mesurier John Le Mesurier (, born John Elton Le Mesurier Halliley; 5 April 191215 November 1983) was an English actor. He is perhaps best remembered for his comedic role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the BBC television situation c ...

(who was at that time married to Hattie Jacques), and

Roger Delgado Roger Caesar Marius Bernard de Delgado Torres Castillo Roberto (1 March 1918 – 18 June 1973) was a British actor. He played many roles on television, radio and in films, and had "a long history of playing minor villains" before becoming ...

. This was followed by a supporting role in the

MGM British MGM-British was a subsidiary of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer initially established (as MGM London Films Denham) at Denham Film Studios in 1936. It was in limbo during the Second World War; however, following the end of hostilities, a facility was acquired ...

comedy, '' Kill or Cure'', starring

Terry-Thomas Terry-Thomas (born Thomas Terry Hoar Stevens; 10 July 19118 January 1990) was an English character actor and comedian who became internationally known through his films during the 1950s and 1960s. He often portrayed disreputable members of th ...

with a cast of British comedy stalwarts including one of the first film appearances by

Ronnie Barker Ronald William George Barker (25 September 1929 – 3 October 2005) was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as '' Porridge'', ''The Two Ronnies'', and ''Open All Hours''. ...

. Both films were made by the same writer-director team behind the popular

Margaret Rutherford Dame Margaret Taylor Rutherford, (11 May 1892 – 22 May 1972) was an English actress of stage, television and film. She came to national attention following World War II in the film adaptations of Noël Coward's '' Blithe Spirit'', and Osca ...

Miss Marple Miss Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Jane Marple lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterized as an elderly spinster, she is one of Ch ...

'' film, '' Murder She Said''. During 1965, Sykes made what proved to be the final series of ''Sykes and a...'' and appearing in three major films. He had a small role in ''

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines ''Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines; Or, How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours and 11 Minutes'' is a 1965 British period comedy film that satirizes the early years of aviation. Directed and co-written by Ken Annakin, the film ...

'', joining an all-star cast of British and American TV and film luminaries. The spy spoof '' The Liquidator'' was directed by

Jack Cardiff Jack Cardiff, (18 September 1914 – 22 April 2009) was a British cinematographer, film and television director, and photographer. His career spanned the development of cinema, from silent film, through early experiments in Technicolor, to fi ...

and starred

Rod Taylor Rodney Sturt Taylor (11 January 1930 – 7 January 2015) was an Australian actor. He appeared in more than 50 feature films, including ''The Time Machine'' (1960), ''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (1961), '' The Birds'' (1963), and ''In ...

with Sykes in a secondary role. His third film of that year was the

Boulting brothers John Edward Boulting (21 December 1913 – 17 June 1985) and Roy Alfred Clarence Boulting (21 December 1913 – 5 November 2001), known collectively as the Boulting brothers, were English filmmakers and identical twins who became known for thei ...

' '' Rotten to the Core'' starring

Anton Rodgers Anthony "Anton" Rodgers (10 January 1933 – 1 December 2007) was an English actor and occasional director. He performed on stage, in film, in television dramas and sitcoms. He starred in several sitcoms, including ''Fresh Fields'' (ITV, ...

(who replaced Peter Sellers) with Sykes. Sykes had a minor film role in another spy comedy ''

The Spy with a Cold Nose ''The Spy with a Cold Nose'' is a 1966 British comedy film directed by Daniel Petrie and starring Laurence Harvey, Daliah Lavi, Lionel Jeffries, Denholm Elliott, and Colin Blakely. The film was nominated for Golden Globe Awards in the Best Engli ...

'' (1966), written by Galton and Simpson. In 1967, Sykes expanded one of his routines into a 45-minute wordless colour short, '' The Plank'' which features, among others, Sykes, Tommy Cooper,

Jimmy Edwards James Keith O'Neill Edwards, DFC (23 March 19207 July 1988) was an English comedy writer and actor on radio and television, best known as Pa Glum in ''Take It from Here'' and as headmaster "Professor" James Edwards in ''Whack-O!''. Early lif ...

Graham Stark Graham William Stark (20 January 1922 – 29 October 2013) was an English comedian, actor, writer and director. Early life The son of a purser on transatlantic liners,

, Hattie Jacques, and future '' Goodies'' star

Bill Oddie William Edgar Oddie (born 7 July 1941) is an English writer, comedian, songwriter, musician, artist, birder, conservationist, television presenter and actor. He was a member of comedy trio The Goodies. A birder since his childhood in Quinto ...

. (The film was later remade for

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

in 1978.) Also in 1967, Sykes and his old friend Jimmy Edwards started touring with the theatrical farce ''

Big Bad Mouse ''Big Bad Mouse'' is a British stage play and theatrical comedic farce by Phillip King and Falkland L. Carey. Although not specifically written for Jimmy Edwards and Eric Sykes, it became a vehicle for the British comedy actors and has been re ...

'' which, while keeping more or less to a script, gave them rein to

ad lib In music and other performing arts, the phrase (; from Latin for 'at one's pleasure' or 'as you desire'), often shortened to "ad lib" (as an adjective or adverb) or "ad-lib" (as a verb or noun), refers to various forms of improvisation. The ...

and address the audience. They would return to the production on and off until 1975, touring the UK twice and also taking the show abroad, including to Australia. Returning to television, Sykes and Jacques appeared in the 1967 special ''Sykes Versus ITV'' with Tommy Cooper and

Ronnie Brody Ronnie Brody (6 November 1918 – 8 May 1991) was a British actor who appeared in many comedy television series and films. His film appearances included: '' A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'', ''Carry On Loving'', '' Don't Lose You ...

. In 1968, he had a supporting role in an Anglo-American film co-production, the

Edward Dmytryk Edward Dmytryk (September 4, 1908 – July 1, 1999) was an American film director. He was known for his 1940s noir films and received an Oscar nomination for Best Director for '' Crossfire'' (1947). In 1947, he was named as one of the Hollywoo ...

western ''

Shalako Shalako is a series of dances and ceremonies conducted by the Native American Zuni people for the Zuni people at the winter solstice, typically following the harvest. The Shalako ceremony and feast has been closed to non-native peoples since 1 ...

'', starring

Sean Connery Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...

and

Brigitte Bardot Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot ( ; ; born 28 September 1934), often referred to by her initials B.B., is a former French actress, singer and model. Famous for portraying sexually emancipated characters with hedonistic lifestyles, she was one of the ...

. In 1969, Sykes co-starred with Spike Milligan in the ill-fated television sitcom ''

Curry and Chips ''Curry and Chips'' is a British television sitcom broadcast in 1969 which was produced by London Weekend Television for the ITV network. Set on a factory floor of 'Lillicrap Ltd', it starred a browned up Spike Milligan as an Irishman of Pak ...

'', a satire on racial prejudice created and written by Johnny Speight and made for

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 unt ...

. Milligan, who had grown up in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, played Kevin O'Grady, a half-Pakistani half-Irish man who comes to work in a British factory and ends up boarding with his ineffectual foreman Arthur Blenkinsop (Sykes), who has to regularly defend Kevin against his racist workmates. The supporting cast included pop singer turned actor

Kenny Lynch Kenneth Lynch, OBE (18 March 1938 – 18 December 2019) was an English singer, songwriter, entertainer, and actor. He appeared in many variety shows in the 1960s. At the time, he was among the few black singers in British pop music. He was app ...

, Geoffrey Hughes,

Norman Rossington Norman Rossington (24 December 1928 – 21 May 1999) was an English actor best remembered for his roles in ''The Army Game'', the ''Carry On'' films and the Beatles' film '' A Hard Day's Night''. Early life Born in Liverpool, Lancashire, ...

Sam Kydd Samuel John Kydd (15 February 1915 – 26 March 1982) was a British-Irish actor. His best-known roles were in two major British television series of the 1960s, as the smuggler Orlando O'Connor in '' Crane'' and its sequel ''Orlando''. He als ...

, Jerrold Wells, and Fanny Carby as Arthur and Kevin's landlady. The series provoked a storm of complaints about its liberal use of racist epithets and bad language (although Sykes refused to swear, as he did throughout his career). It was cancelled on the instruction of the

Independent Broadcasting Authority The Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) was the regulatory body in the United Kingdom for commercial television (ITV and Channel 4 and limited satellite television regulation – cable television was the responsibility of the Cable Authorit ...

after a series of six episodes. Sykes also made another minor film appearance in 1969 in the comedy ''

Monte Carlo or Bust! ''Monte Carlo or Bust!'' is a 1969 comedy film, also known by its American title, ''Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies''. A co-production of the United Kingdom, France and Italy, the story is based on the Monte Carlo Rally – firs ...

'', which was also titled as ''Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies''.

1970s

In 1970, Sykes returned to BBC television with a guest appearance in an episode of ''

Till Death Us Do Part ''Till Death Us Do Part'' is a British television sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1965 to 1975. The show was first broadcast in 1965 as a ''Comedy Playhouse'' pilot, then as seven series between 1966 and 1975. In 1981, ITV continued the sitcom ...

''. This was followed in 1971 by a six-episode series, '' Sykes and a Big, Big Show'', for the BBC and a special, ''Sykes: With the Lid Off'', for

. In 1972, seven years after the cancellation of ''Sykes and a...'', the BBC revived the series under the title ''

Sykes Sykes may refer to: People * Sir Alan Sykes, 1st Baronet, businessman and British politician * Annette Sykes, New Zealand human rights lawyer and Māori activist * Bob Sykes (American football), American football player * Bob Sykes (baseball), ...

''. 68 colour episodes of ''Sykes'' were made between 1972 and 1979; forty-three of the shows were re-workings of scripts from the 1960s series, which had been recorded in

monochrome A monochrome or monochromatic image, object or palette is composed of one color (or values of one color). Images using only shades of grey are called grayscale (typically digital) or black-and-white (typically analog). In physics, monochrom ...

. These included a remake of the 1960s episode ''Sykes and a Stranger'', guest-starring Peter Sellers as the stranger, Tommy Grando, in what was to be Sellers's final TV part. During the 1970s, Sykes and

took part in a performance of ''

'' entertaining Rhodesian troops for

Ian Smith Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 1919 – 20 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to 1 ...

, the Prime Minister of

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

. In 1973, Sykes had a small role as a police sergeant in the

Douglas Hickox Douglas Arthur Hickox (10 January 1929 – 25 July 1988) was an English film and television director. Biography Hickox was born in London, where he was educated at Emanuel School. He started in the film industry at age 17, working at Pinewood ...

thriller ''

Theatre of Blood ''Theatre of Blood'' (known in the U.S. as ''Theater of Blood'') is a 1973 British horror comedy film directed by Douglas Hickox, and starring Vincent Price as vengeful actor Edward Lionheart and Diana Rigg as his daughter Edwina. The cast als ...

''. In 1977, Sykes wrote and starred in another television special, ''Eric Sykes Shows a Few of Our Favourite Things''. He also wrote the script for the 1977

Yorkshire Television ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...

adaptation of ''

Charley's Aunt ''Charley's Aunt'' is a farce in three acts written by Brandon Thomas. The story centres on Lord Fancourt Babberley, an undergraduate whose friends Jack and Charley persuade him to impersonate the latter's aunt. The complications of the plot in ...

'' and appeared in the role of Brassett. The third version of '' The Plank'' was made in 1979 for

Thames TV Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

as a half-hour TV special.

1980s

Sykes wrote and appeared in two

specials broadcast during 1980 – ''The Likes of Sykes'' and ''

Rhubarb Rhubarb ''Rhubarb Rhubarb'' is a 30-minute television comedy special made by Thames TV and transmitted in 1980. The special is a re-make of Eric Sykes' 1969 film, '' Rhubarb''. Plot A police inspector is so intent on winning a round of golf against a ...

''. The latter special, a remake of his 1969 short film ''Rhubarb'' which Sykes also directed, featured many of his old friends including Jimmy Edwards, Bob Todd, Charlie Drake, Bill Fraser,

Roy Kinnear Roy Mitchell Kinnear (8 January 1934 – 20 September 1988) was a British character actor. He was known for his roles in films such as The Beatles' ''Help!'' (1965), Clapper in '' How I Won the War'' (1967) and Planchet in ''The Three Musketeer ...

Beryl Reid Beryl Elizabeth Reid, (17 June 1919 – 13 October 1996), was a British actress of stage and screen. She won the 1967 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for ''The Killing of Sister George'', the 1980 Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performan ...

, and

. It was his last screen appearance with Hattie Jacques. The film employed an idea drawn from the British showbiz tradition in which extras used the word "rhubarb" to simulate low-level background dialogue, which had also been a running joke in ''The Goon Show''. In 1981, Sykes wrote, directed, and starred in the offbeat comedy ''

If You Go Down in the Woods Today ''If You Go Down in the Woods Today'' is a British TV film comedy released in 1981, written, directed and starring Eric Sykes, also featuring Fulton Mackay and Roy Kinnear amongst a cast of dozens. The film, produced by Thames TV, was described ...

'' for Thames, with a cast including Roy Kinnear,

Fulton Mackay William Fulton Beith Mackay (12 August 1922 – 6 June 1987) was a Scottish actor and playwright, best known for his role as prison officer Mr. Mackay in the 1970s television sitcom '' Porridge''. Early life Mackay was born in Paisley, Re ...

, and

George Sewell George Sewell (31 August 19242 April 2007) was an English actor, best known for his television roles, but also active on stage and in films. Early life and career The son of a Hoxton printer and a florist, Sewell left school at the age of 14 a ...

. During 1982, Sykes played the Chief Constable in the slapstick police comedy film ''

The Boys in Blue ''The Boys in Blue'' is a 1982 British comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Tommy Cannon, Bobby Ball, Suzanne Danielle and Roy Kinnear. It is loosely based on the 1939 Will Hay film ''Ask a Policeman'', which Guest co-wrote. Some polic ...

'', which starred the comedy duo Cannon and Ball, with

Jon Pertwee John Devon Roland "Jon" Pertwee (; 7 July 1919 – 20 May 1996) was an English actor, comedian, entertainer, cabaret performer and TV presenter. Born into a theatrical family, he served in the Royal Navy and the Naval Intelligence Division during ...

. For Thames TV that year, he also appeared in and wrote ''The Eric Sykes 1990 Show'' with Tommy Cooper and

Dandy Nichols Dandy Nichols (born Daisy Sander; 21 May 1907 – 6 February 1986) was an English actress best known for her role as Else Garnett, the long-suffering wife of the character Alf Garnett who was a parody of a working class Tory, in the BBC sit ...

and ''

It's Your Move ''It's Your Move'' is an American sitcom television series created by Ron Leavitt and Michael G. Moye, starring Jason Bateman, Tricia Cast, Caren Kaye, Ernie Sabella, David Garrison, and Garrett Morris. The show originally aired on NBC from S ...

'', a wordless slapstick comedy depicting the travails of a couple (

Richard Briers Richard David Briers (14 January 1934 – 17 February 2013) was an English actor whose five-decade career encompassed film, radio, stage and television. Briers first came to prominence as George Starling in ''Marriage Lines'' (1961–66), but ...

and Sylvia Syms) moving into a new home, who hire an accident-prone firm of house removers, headed by Sykes. It featured an all-star cast including Tommy Cooper,

Bernard Cribbins Bernard Joseph Cribbins (29 December 1928 – 27 July 2022) was an English actor and singer whose career spanned over seven decades. During the 1960s, Cribbins became known in the UK for his successful novelty records " The Hole in the Groun ...

, Jimmy Edwards,

Irene Handl Irene Handl (27 December 1901 – 29 November 1987) was a British author and character actress who appeared in more than 100 British films. Life Irene Handl was born in Maida Vale, London, the younger of two daughters of an Austria-born father ...

Bob Todd Brian Todd (15 December 1921 – 21 October 1992), known professionally as Bob Todd, was an English comedy actor, mostly known for appearing as a straight man in the sketch shows of Benny Hill and Spike Milligan. For many years, he lived in ...

, and

Andrew Sachs Andreas Siegfried Sachs (7 April 1930 – 23 November 2016), known professionally as Andrew Sachs, was a German-born British actor and writer. He made his name on British television and found his greatest fame for his portrayal of the comical Sp ...

. Sykes produced one further silent movie for Thames in 1988, ''Mr. H. Is Late'', set at a funeral. In 1984, Sykes played the Genie in the children's film '' Gabrielle and the Doodleman'', which also featured

Windsor Davies Windsor Davies (28 August 1930 – 17 January 2019) was a British actor. He is best remembered for playing Battery Sergeant Major Williams in the sitcom '' It Ain't Half Hot Mum'' (1974–1981) over its entire run. The show's popularity resulted ...

(who would also appear with Sykes in the BBC's ''Gormenghast'' in 2000), Bob Todd, Lynsey de Paul, and

Gareth Hunt Alan Leonard Hunt (7 February 1942 – 14 March 2007), known as Gareth Hunt, was a British actor best remembered for playing footman Frederick Norton in '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' and Mike Gambit in '' The New Avengers''. Early life Alan Leon ...

. In 1985, he played the

Mad Hatter The Hatter is a fictional character in Lewis Carroll's 1865 book '' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' and its 1871 sequel ''Through the Looking-Glass''. He is very often referred to as the Mad Hatter, though this term was never used by Ca ...

in the

Anglia Television ITV Anglia, previously known as Anglia Television, is the ITV franchise holder for the East of England. The station is based at Anglia House in Norwich, with regional news bureaux in Cambridge and Northampton. ITV Anglia is owned and operated b ...

serial adaptation of '' Alice in Wonderland'', joining an all-star cast that included

Michael Bentine Michael Bentine, (born Michael James Bentin; 26 January 1922General Register Office for England and Wales – Birth Register for the March Quarter of 1922, Watford Registration District, Reference 3a 1478, listed as "Michael J. Bentin", mother ...

Leslie Crowther Leslie Douglas Sargent Crowther, CBE (6 February 1933 – 29 September 1996) was an English comedian, actor, TV presenter, and game show host. Biography Crowther was born on Monday, 6 February, 1933 in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, son of ...

, and

Leonard Rossiter Leonard Rossiter (21 October 1926 – 5 October 1984) was an English actor. He had a long career in the theatre but achieved his highest profile for his television comedy roles starring as Rupert Rigsby in the ITV series ''Rising Damp'' from ...

, and he also had an uncredited role (as an arcade attendant) in the Julien Temple film musical '' Absolute Beginners'' (1986) which stars

Patsy Kensit Patricia Jude Kensit (born 4 March 1968) is an English actress and was the lead singer of the pop band Eighth Wonder in the 1980s. Beginning her career as a child actor, Kensit gained attention when she acted in a string of commercials for Bir ...

. In 1986, Sykes played Horace Harker in "The Six Napoleons", an episode of the

Granada TV ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was its ...

adaptation of the

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

stories starring Jeremy Brett. Sykes toured Australia with the play '' Run for Your Wife'' (1987–88) with a cast that included

Jack Smethurst John Smethurst (9 April 1932 – 16 February 2022) was an English television and film comic actor. He was best known for his role as Eddie Booth in the British television sitcom '' Love Thy Neighbour''. Early life Smethurst was born on 9 Apri ...

David McCallum David Keith McCallum Jr. (born 19 September 1933) is a Scottish actor and musician. He first gained recognition in the 1960s for playing secret agent Illya Kuryakin in the television series ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E''. In recent years, McCallum ...

, and

Katy Manning Catherine Ann "Katy" Manning (born 14 October 1946) is an English- Australian actress, television presenter, voice artist and former model. Although she has made many appearances on both screen and stage, Manning is best known for her part as t ...

. In 1989, in his first series since the ''Sykes'' series ended in 1979, Sykes starred as the golf club secretary in the ITV situation comedy ''The Nineteenth Hole'', written by

. It was not a success and ran for only one season, being dropped by ITV for being unfunny, racist, and sexist.

1990s

In 1994, Sykes appeared in both episodes of '' Paul Merton's Palladium Story'', a documentary series celebrating the history of the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 an ...

. From March 1997, Sykes, together with

Tim Whitnall Timothy Charles Whitnall (born 27 June 1961) is an English actor, playwright and screenwriter. He is known for playing Angelo in the long-running CITV series '' Mike and Angelo'' and narrating the BBC children's TV programme ''Teletubbies'' fr ...

Toyah Willcox Toyah Ann Willcox (born 18 May 1958) is an English musician, actress, and TV presenter. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Willcox has had eight top 40 singles, released over 20 albums, written two books, appeared in over 40 stage plays an ...

and Mark Heenehan, provided narration for the BBC pre-school TV series ''

Teletubbies ''Teletubbies'' is a British children's television series created by Anne Wood and Andrew Davenport for the BBC. The programme focuses on four differently coloured characters known as the Teletubbies, named after the television screens on t ...

''. It is his voice that announces "Teletubbies!" during the title sequence and on the show's theme song, "

Teletubbies say "Eh-oh!" "Teletubbies say 'Eh-oh!" is a hit single recorded by the Teletubbies. It is mostly a remix of the theme song from the hit BBC children's television series ''Teletubbies''. The song contains two nursery rhymes: the Teletubbies hum along to ...

", which became a number one single in December 1997. he also voiced The Scary Lion in The Lion and Bear Magical Event. In 1998, Sykes appeared in one episode of ''

Dinnerladies Lunch lady, in Canada and the US, is a term for a woman who cooks and serves food in a school cafeteria. The equivalent term in the United Kingdom is dinner lady. The role is also sometimes known as cafeteria lady. Sometimes, a lunch lady also ...

'' as the father of Stan ( Duncan Preston).

2000s

In 2000, Sykes appeared as Mollocks, the servant of Dr Prunesquallor, in the BBC's mini-series adaptation of

Mervyn Peake Mervyn Laurence Peake (9 July 1911 – 17 November 1968) was an English writer, artist, poet, and illustrator. He is best known for what are usually referred to as the '' Gormenghast'' books. The four works were part of what Peake conceived ...

's ''

Gormenghast Gormenghast may refer to: * ''Gormenghast'' (series), a trilogy of novels by Mervyn Peake ** ''Gormenghast'' (novel), second in the series * ''Gormenghast'' (opera), an opera based on the books * ''Gormenghast'' (TV serial), a BBC adaptatio ...

'', which was the last production to feature both Milligan and Sykes (although they did not appear together on screen). In 2001, he had one of his few serious screen roles, playing a servant in the blockbuster supernatural thriller film '' The Others'', starring

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...

. In 2005, he played

Frank Bryce The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...

in '' Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire''. In 2007, he appeared in ''

Last of the Summer Wine ''Last of the Summer Wine'' is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke and originally broadcast by the BBC from 1973 to 2010. It premiered as an episode of ''Comedy Playhouse'' on 4 January 1973, and the first series of episodes foll ...

'' and in ''

New Tricks ''New Tricks'' is a British television police procedural The police show, or police crime drama, is a subgenre of procedural drama and detective fiction that emphasizes the investigative procedure of a police officer or department as the ...

'', as well as taking a small role in an episode of the sitcom ''

My Family ''My Family'' is a British sitcom created and initially co-written by Fred Barron, which was produced by DLT Entertainment and Rude Boy Productions, and broadcast by BBC One for eleven series between 2000 and 2011, with Christmas specials broadc ...

''. That year he also had a small part in the film ''

Son of Rambow ''Son of Rambow'' is a 2007 comedy film written and directed by Garth Jennings and inspired by '' First Blood''. The film premiered on 22 January 2007 at the Sundance Film Festival. It was later shown at the Newport Beach Film Festival, Sea ...

''. In October 2010 Sykes appeared in ''

Hallowe'en Party ''Hallowe'en Party'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in November 1969Chris Peers, Ralph Spurrier and Jamie Sturgeon. ''Collins Crime Club – A checklist of ...

'', an episode in the twelfth series of ''

Agatha Christie's Poirot ''Poirot'' (also known as ''Agatha Christie's Poirot'') is a British mystery drama television programme that aired on ITV from 8 January 1989 to 13 November 2013. David Suchet starred as the eponymous detective, Agatha Christie's fictional Her ...

''. His autobiography, ''If I Don't Write It, Nobody Else Will'', was published in 2005, by

Harper Perennial Harper Perennial is a paperback imprint of the publishing house HarperCollins Publishers. Overview Harper Perennial has divisions located in New York, London, Toronto, and Sydney. The imprint is descended from the Perennial Library imprint foun ...

. He also wrote novels, including ''UFOs are Coming Wednesday'' (1995, Virgin Publishing), ''Smelling of Roses'' (1997, Virgin Publishing), ''The Great Crime of Grapplewick'' (1984, MacMillan London Ltd). These three have been published as ''The Eric Sykes Compendium'' by Virgin Publications in 1997: .

Personal life

Sykes became partially

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an Audiology, audiological condition. In this context it ...

as an adult. His hearing started to deteriorate in the Second World War, and he had an operation in 1952 followed by another two years later. Recovering from the second procedure he discovered he was

profoundly deaf Hearing loss is a partial or total inability to hear. Hearing loss may be present at birth or acquired at any time afterwards. Hearing loss may occur in one or both ears. In children, hearing problems can affect the ability to acquire spoken l ...

. His spectacles contained no lenses but were a bone-conducting

hearing aid A hearing aid is a device designed to improve hearing by making sound audible to a person with hearing loss. Hearing aids are classified as medical devices in most countries, and regulated by the respective regulations. Small audio amplifiers su ...

. Disciform

macular degeneration Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred or no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no symptoms. Over time, however, som ...

, brought about by age and possibly smoking, left Sykes partially sighted, and he was registered as blind. He was a patron of the Macular Disease Society. He stopped smoking cigarettes in November 1966, but continued to smoke cigars until 1998. He underwent quadruple

heart bypass Coronary artery bypass surgery, also known as coronary artery bypass graft (CABG, pronounced "cabbage") is a surgical procedure to treat coronary artery disease (CAD), the buildup of plaques in the arteries of the heart. It can relieve chest pai ...

surgery in 1997, and experienced a stroke in 2002. He married Edith Eleanore Milbrandt on 14 February 1952, and they had three daughters and a son. In the year Sykes died they marked their 60th wedding anniversary. In the 1970s, Sykes and his friend

took part in a show for

. Sykes was appointed Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(OBE) in 1986 and promoted to Commander (CBE) in the 2005 New Year Honours for services to drama, following a petition by

Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MPs). Sykes was an honorary president of the

Goon Show Preservation Society The Goon Show Preservation Society is a non-profit organisation, formed to help preserve and research the history of the ''Goon Show''. The society, founded in 1972, maintains an archive of ''Goon Show'' material, often used by professional rese ...

. Sykes was a follower of

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The history of Oldham Athletic ...

and was an honorary director of the club in the 1970s.

Death

Sykes died on the morning of 4 July 2012, aged 89, at his home in

Esher Esher ( ) is a town in Surrey, England, to the east of the River Mole. Esher is an outlying suburb of London near the London-Surrey Border, and with Esher Commons at its southern end, the town marks one limit of the Greater London Built-Up ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

, after a short illness. His family was with him when he died. He has a memorial plaque in St Paul's Church in

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

Honours and Awards

* 1961 Guild of TV Producers and Directors' Lifetime Achievement Award * 1964

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

Personality of the Year * 1980 Pye Colour TV Award * 1980 The

Golden Rose of Montreux The Rose d'Or ('Golden Rose') is an international awards festival in entertainment broadcasting and programming. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) first acquired the Rose d’Or in 1961, when it was created by Swiss Television in the lakes ...

(for ''The Plank'') * 1985 The 25th

* 1986 OBE * 1988 Freedom of the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

* 1992 Lifetime Achievement Award from

Writers' Guild of Great Britain The Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB), established in 1959, is a trade union for professional writers. It is affiliated with both the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds (IAWG). History The un ...

* 1992 Lifetime Achievement Award from the

British Comedy Awards The National Comedy Awards (known as the British Comedy Awards from 1990 to 2014) is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom, celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year. The British Comedy Awards (1 ...

* 1998 Honorary Fellowship of the

University of Lancaster , mottoeng = Truth lies open to all , established = , endowment = £13.9 million , budget = £317.9 million , type = Public , city = Bailrigg, City of Lancaster , country = England , coor = , campus = Bailrigg , faculty = ...

* 1998

Eric Morecambe John Eric Bartholomew, (14 May 1926 – 28 May 1984), known by his stage name Eric Morecambe, was an English comedian who together with Ernie Wise formed the double act Morecambe and Wise. The partnership lasted from 1941 until Morecambe's de ...

Award from Comic Heritage * 2001 Lifetime Achievement Award from the

Grand Order of Water Rats The Grand Order of Water Rats is a British entertainment industry fraternity and charitable organisation based in London. Founded in 1889 by the music hall comedians Joe Elvin and Jack Lotto, the order is known for its high-profile membership an ...

* 2001 Bernard Delfont Award for outstanding contribution to show business from the

Variety Club of Great Britain Variety, the Children's Charity is a charitable organization founded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1927. History On October 10, 1927, a group of eleven men involved in show business set up a social club which they named the "Variety Club". On ...

* 2002

Oldie Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as we ...

of the Year * 2004

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

* 2009

Aardman Aardman Animations Limited (also known as Aardman Studios, simply Aardman or Aardman Animation and stylised as AARDMAN as of 2022) is a British animation studio based in Bristol, England. It is known for films made using stop-motion and clay ani ...

Slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such a ...

Visual Comedy Award for the outstanding contribution to the field of visual comedy he had made over his career

Film and television

Films he created and appeared in

* ''Pantomania, or Dick Whittington'' (1956 TV film) * ''Dress Rehearsal'' (1956 TV film) as Director * ''Opening Night'' (1956 TV film) as Himself * ''Closing Night'' (1957) as Himself * ''Gala Opening'' (1959) as Himself * '' The Plank'' (1967) as Smaller Workman * ''

'' (1968 film) * ''It's Your Move'' (1969) * '' Rhubarb'' (1969 short) as Insp. Rhubarb * ''Mr. H is Late'' (1969) * ''Sykes: With the Lid Off'' (1971 TV film) * ''Eric Sykes Shows a Few of our Favourite Things'' (1977) as Eric / Jack * '' The Plank'' (1979 TV short), a remake of '' The Plank'' (1967) * ''The Likes of Sykes'' (1980 TV film) * ''

'' (1980), a remake of '' Rhubarb'' (1969), as Police Inspector / Groom * ''

'' (1981) as Mr. Pangbourne * ''The Eric Sykes 1990 Show'' (1982 TV film) as Producer * ''

'' (1982 TV short), a remake of ''It's Your Move'' (1969), as Head Removal Man * ''Mr. H Is Late'' (1988 TV short) as Senior undertaker * '' The Big Freeze'' (1993 TV film) as Mr. Blick

Television series he created and appeared in

* '' Sykes and a...'' (1960–1965) as Himself * '' Sykes and a Big Big Show'' (1971) * ''

'' (1972–1979) as Himself

Other acting roles

The following entries are films unless otherwise stated. * '' Orders Are Orders'' (1954) as Pte. Waterhouse * '' Charley Moon'' (1956) as Brother-in-Law * ''

'' (1959) as Martin * ''

Watch Your Stern ''Watch Your Stern'' is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Gerald Thomas and starring Kenneth Connor, Eric Barker and Leslie Phillips. The film was based on the play ''Something About a Sailor'' by Earle Couttie. The Royal Navy provided coop ...

'' (1960) as Civilian Electrician No. 2 * ''

Very Important Person A very important person or personage (VIP or V.I.P.) is a person who is accorded special privileges due to their high social status, influence or importance. The term was not common until sometime after World War 2 by RAF pilots. Examples incl ...

'' (1961) as Willoughby, Sports Officer * ''

Invasion Quartet ''Invasion Quartet'' is a 1961 British World War II comedy-drama film that was publicised as a parody of '' The Guns of Navarone''.Weiler, A. H. ''New York Times'' film review 11 December 1961 It was directed by Jay Lewis and starred Bill Traver ...

'' (1961) as Band Conductor * ''

'' (1962) as Herbert Harris * '' Kill or Cure'' (1962) as Rumbelow * ''

Heavens Above! ''Heavens Above!'' is a 1963 British satirical comedy film starring Peter Sellers, directed by John and Roy Boulting, who also co-wrote along with Frank Harvey, from an idea by Malcolm Muggeridge. It is in a similar vein to the earlier collab ...

'' (1963) as Harry Smith * ''

The Bargee ''The Bargee'' is a 1964 British comedy film shot in Techniscope directed by Duncan Wood, and starring Harry H. Corbett, Hugh Griffith, Eric Sykes and Ronnie Barker. The screenplay was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. Plot Hemel Pike ...

'' (1964) as The Mariner * '' One Way Pendulum'' (1964) as Mr. Groomkirby * ''

'' (1965) as Courtney * '' Rotten to the Core'' (1965) as William Hunt * '' The Liquidator'' (1965) as Griffen * ''Big Bad Mouse'' (1966, TV movie) as Mr. Bloome * ''

'' (1966) as Wrigley * ''Sykes Versus ITV'' (1967, TV movie) * ''

'' (1968) as Mako * '' Monte Carlo or Bust'' (1969) as Perkins * ''Big Bad Mouse'' (1972, TV movie) as Mr. Bloome * ''

'' (1973) as Sergeant Dogge * ''Charlie's Aunt'' (1977, TV movie) as Brassett * ''

'' (1982) as Chief Constable Cranshaw * '' Gabrielle and the Doodleman'' (1984) as Genie * '' The Six Napoleons'' (1986) as the journalist Horace Harker * ''

Splitting Heirs ''Splitting Heirs'' is a 1993 British black comedy film directed by Robert Young and starring Eric Idle, Rick Moranis, Barbara Hershey, Catherine Zeta-Jones, John Cleese and Sadie Frost. It features music by Michael Kamen. It was entered in ...

'' (1993) as Jobson the Doorman * ''

'' (1998, TV series) as Jim * ''Mavis and the Mermaid'' (2000, short) as Skip * ''

'' (2000, miniseries) as Mollocks * '' The Others'' (2001) as Mr. Edmund Tuttle * '' Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' (2005) as Frank Bryce * ''

'' (2007) as Henry * ''

'' (2007) as Frank * ''

'': ''

'' (2010 TV episode) as Mr. Fullerton (final appearance)

Records

* "Dr Kildare"/"Bedtime Story" (Y7092, 7-inch single, Decca Records 1962) with Hattie Jacques * ''Eric and Hattie and Things'' (LK 4507, LP, Decca Records 1962) with Hattie Jacques

References

External links

* * *
Obituary: Eric Sykes from BBC News
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sykes, Eric 1923 births 2012 deaths Commanders of the Order of the British Empire British male comedy actors Comedians from Lancashire English male comedians English comedy writers English male film actors English radio writers English male soap opera actors English male stage actors English television writers English autobiographers Male deaf actors Male actors from Oldham Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Male actors from Lancashire 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors Deaf writers Deaf television personalities 20th-century English comedians 21st-century English comedians Deaf people from England The Goon Show Royal Air Force airmen British male television writers