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Jeffrey Bernard
Jeffrey Joseph Bernard (; 27 May 1932 – 4 September 1997) was an English journalist, best known for his weekly column "Low Life" in ''The Spectator'' magazine, and also notorious for a feckless and chaotic career and life of alcohol abuse. He became associated with the louche and bohemian atmosphere that existed in London's Soho district and was later immortalised in the comical play ''Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell'' by Keith Waterhouse. He was played by his friend Peter O'Toole when the play first opened. The title refers to a notice ''The Spectator'' would put in the place of Bernard's column on occasions in which he was unable to write. Life Bernard was born in Hampstead, London, and was the youngest of the three sons of the English architect Oliver Percy Bernard (1881–1939) and his opera singer wife Edith Dora Hodges (1896–1950). His siblings were the poet Oliver Bernard, and the photographer Bruce Bernard. He was a paternal cousin to the actor Stanley Holloway. Ber ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Hampstead
Hampstead () is an area in London, England, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, located mainly in the London Borough of Camden, with a small part in the London Borough of Barnet. It borders Highgate and Golders Green to the north, Belsize Park to the south and is surrounded from the northeast by Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. Hampstead is known for its intellectual, artistic, liberal, and literary associations. It contains a number of listed buildings, such as Burgh House, Kenwood House, the Spaniard's Inn, and the Everyman cinema. With some of the most expensive housing in London, Hampstead has had many notable residents, both past and present, including King Constantine II of Greece and his wife Queen Anne Marie, Helena Bonham Carter, Agatha Christie, T. S. Eliot, Jon English, Sigmund Freud, Stephen Fry, Ricky Gervais, Jim Henson, George Orwell, Harry Styles and Elizabeth Taylor. As of 2004, Hampstead has been home to more Prime Mini ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
The Times
''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (founded in 1821), are published by Times Media, since 1981 a subsidiary of News UK, in turn wholly owned by News Corp. ''The Times'' and ''The Sunday Times'' were founded independently and have had common ownership only since 1966. It is considered a newspaper of record in the UK. ''The Times'' was the first newspaper to bear that name, inspiring numerous other papers around the world. In countries where these other titles are popular, the newspaper is often referred to as or , although the newspaper is of national scope and distribution. ''The Times'' had an average daily circulation of 365,880 in March 2020; in the same period, ''The Sunday Times'' had an average weekly circulation of 647,622. The two ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Daniel Farson
Daniel James Negley Farson (8 January 1927 – 27 November 1997) was a British writer and broadcaster, strongly identified with the early days of commercial television in the UK, when his sharp, investigative style contrasted with the BBC's more deferential culture. Farson was a prolific biographer and autobiographer, chronicling the bohemian life of Soho and his own experiences of running a music-hall pub on east London's Isle of Dogs. His memoirs were titled ''Never a Normal Man''. Early life Farson was born in Kensington, west London, the son of an American journalist, Negley Farson, and his British wife. His childhood was mostly divided between Britain and North America. He visited Germany with his father while Negley was reporting on the Nazi regime, and was patted on the head by Adolf Hitler, who described him as a "good Aryan boy". Farson briefly attended the British public school Wellington College, whose militaristic regime was not to his taste. He had already beco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
John Hurt
Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 28 January 2017) was an English actor. Regarded as one of the finest actors of his time and known for the "most distinctive voice in Cinema of the United Kingdom, Britain", he was described by David Lynch as "simply the greatest actor in the world". In a List of John Hurt performances, career spanning over five decades, he received numerous accolades including four British Academy Film Awards, BAFTAs and a Golden Globe Awards, Golden Globe in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards. He was Knight Bachelor, knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2015 for his services to drama. A graduate of RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art), he Breakthrough role, came to prominence playing Richard Rich, 1st Baron Rich, Richard Rich in the film ''A Man for All Seasons (1966 film), A Man for All Seasons'' (1966) and won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for ''The Naked Civil Servant (film), The Naked Civil Servant'' (1975). He played ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Tom Baker
Thomas Stewart Baker (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is best known for having played the Fourth Doctor, fourth and longest-serving incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' from Robot (Doctor Who), 1974 to Logopolis, 1981. Later in his career, Baker performed in the television series ''Medics (British TV series), Medics'' (1992–1995), ''Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) (2000 TV series), Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased)'' (2000–2001) and ''Monarch of the Glen (TV series), Monarch of the Glen'' (2004–2005). He also provided narration for the television comedy series ''Little Britain (TV series), Little Britain'' (2003–2006) and ''Little Britain USA'' (2008). His voice, which has been described as "sonorous", was voted the fourth-most recognisable in the UK in 2006. Early life Thomas Stewart Baker was born on Scotland Road in the Vauxhall, Liverpool, Vauxhall area of Liverpool on 20 Janu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Norman Balon
The Coach and Horses at 29 Greek Street on the corner with Romilly Street in Soho, London, is a grade II listed public house. In the 20th century the pub became notable for its association with the columnist Jeffrey Bernard, the staff of ''Private Eye'' magazine, other journalists and as a haunt for Soho personalities. Through their writings its former landlord, Norman Balon, became known as "London's rudest landlord".''You're Barred, You Bastards!', The Memoirs of a Soho Publican'', Norman Balon with Spencer Bright, Sidgwick & Jackson, London 1991 Early history There has been a pub on the site since the 18th century. The current building dates from the early 19th century and is Grade II listed with Historic England. 20th century In the 20th century, the landlord for over 60 years was Norman Balon, who developed a persona as "London's rudest landlord". He began to work at the pub in 1943, when he left an engineering course to serve at the bar, after his father became the landlo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Ian Board
Ian David Archibald Board (16 December 1929 – 26 June 1994) was an English nightclub owner who ran The Colony Room Club in Dean Street in London's Soho district, from 1981 to 1994, having taken it over from Muriel Belcher who founded the private drinking club in 1948. Early life Board grew up in a poor family in Exeter, and his mother died when he was four years old. He liked neither his father nor his stepmother, and as a teenager ran away to London. On arrival, he went to Speakers' Corner and picked up a man, and lived with him for some weeks. He later worked as a commis waiter in Soho's Greek Street. Career Board served behind the bar at the Colony Room Club for 46 years, initially as Belcher's barman, and after she died as its proprietor. He assiduously cultivated the custom of artists including Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Michael Andrews, and Barry Flanagan. One night, he ejected Bacon from the premises with the words, "Get out! Call yourself a painter. You can't fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Muriel Belcher
Muriel Belcher (1908–1979) was an English nightclub owner and artist's model who founded and managed the private drinking club The Colony Room. She was described by the journalist Jeffrey Bernard as "Originally from Birmingham, a Jewish lesbian" The club opened in 1948 at 41 Dean Street, Soho, London and became known as "Muriel's". Its long term popularity amongst London's Bohemianism, bohemians lasted for 60 years and is widely credited to the exclusivity resulting from Belcher's charisma, strong personality and daunting door policy as "a tough, sharp-tongued veteran of the Soho drinking club scene". Belcher was the model and muse for a number of paintings, including several single panels and triptychs by Francis Bacon (painter), Francis Bacon, who was one of the club's first members and used his fame to draw early clientele. His portrait of her, ''Seated Woman (Portrait of Muriel Belcher)'', sold at Sotheby's in Paris in December 2007 for €13.7 million. Over time, the club ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
