Ken Platt (born Kenneth Platt, 17 February 1921,
Leigh
Leigh may refer to:
Places In England
Pronounced :
* Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan
** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency)
* Leigh-on-Sea, Essex
Pronounced :
* Leigh, Dorset
* Leigh, Gloucestershire
* Leigh, Kent
* Leigh, Staf ...
,
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 ...
– 2 October 1998,
Blackpool, Lancashire) was a British northern comedian.
Early life
Platt decided to become a comedian at the age of 15. He bought a
ukulele
The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings.
The tone and volume of the instrumen ...
and performed at local concert parties where he was billed as "
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 ...
the second", in homage to his idol.
He joined the
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 ...
in 1942 and was posted to
North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
where he appeared in a concert party, "The Forest Mummers". His flair for comedy performances eventually won him a transfer to CSE, the
Combined Services Entertainment
BFBS Live Events (formerly Combined Services Entertainment (CSE) until 2 March 2020) is the live entertainment arm of the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) (and prior to March 2020 the Services Sound and Vision Corporation (SSVC), a regis ...
unit. The rest of his war service was spent touring North Africa,
Corsica,
Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
and
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
. After the war he could be found entertaining the armed forces in
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
and
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. Subsequently he tried his hand at show business with little success. Disillusioned, he bought a grocery store in Leigh.
Radio and TV
Working in a grocer's shop in Leigh, his home town, he was spotted by
Ronnie Taylor (scriptwriter)
Ronnie Taylor (28 June 1921 – 9 September 1979) was an English television and radio comedy scriptwriter, producer and director.
Early life
Born in Leigh, Lancashire, Taylor left school at 14 to join his family's firm of insurance brokers. He t ...
, a BBC scriptwriter and producer who asked him to audition in July 1950. As a result, from early the next year, Platt became the resident comedian on the BBC's popular radio show ''Variety Fanfare'',
which made him a household name.
["Comedian Ken Platt dies aged 77"](_blank)
BBC News, 2 October 1998 It was on radio that Platt was in his true element with his immaculate timing and brilliant ad-libbing. With a flat cap and droll line, he was best remembered by the catchphrase with which he began every performance: "Allo, I won't take me coat off - I'm not stoppin'!"
Platt was one of the last links with music hall and variety in Great Britain. Some of his other catchphrases were, 'Ee, I'm as daft as a brush' and introductions to gags with, 'If you can laugh at this, you can plait sawdust', and, 'If you can laugh at this, you can knit fog'.
He was a guest comedian on numerous radio variety shows and later topped the bill in pantomimes and summer seasons throughout
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...
. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s he was a regular guest star on television programmes such as ''Big Night Out'', ''Spot the Tune'' and ''
The Liver Birds
''The Liver Birds'' is a British sitcom, set in Liverpool, North West England, which aired on BBC1 from April 1969 to January 1979, and again in 1996. The show was created by Carla Lane and Myra Taylor. The two Liverpudlian housewives had met ...
''. He evoked considerable nostalgia by a memorable appearance on
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. ...
...
's ''The Good Old Days'' using much of his material from his days on "steam radio".
A stroke in 1990 affected his speech and forced his retirement.
Brian Robinson, his partner and (by then, former) manager, survived him.