Francis Alick "Frankie" Howerd OBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(6 March 1917,
YorkYork is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
– 19 April 1992) was an English
comedianA comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
and comic actor whose career, described by fellow comedian
Barry CryerBarry Charles Cryer OBE is a British writer and comedian. Cryer has written for many noted performers, including Dave Allen, Stanley Baxter, Jack Benny, Rory Bremner, George Burns, Jasper Carrott, Tommy Cooper, Les Dawson, Dick Emery, Kenny Everett, Bruce Forsyth, David Frost, Bob Hope, Frankie...
as "a series of comebacks", spanned six decades.
Early career
Howerd was born the son of a soldier, Francis Alfred William (1887-1935) and Edith Florence Howard (née Morrison, 1888-1962) at the City Hospital in York, England, in 1917 (not 1922 as he later claimed). He was educated at Shooters Hill
Grammar SchoolA grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...
in Woolwich, London. His first stage appearance was at age 13 but his early hopes of becoming a serious actor were dashed when he failed an audition for
RADARada is the term for "council" or "assembly"borrowed by Polish from the Low Franconian "Rad" and later passed into the Czech, Ukrainian, and Belarusian languages....
. He began to entertain during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
service in the Army. Despite suffering from
stage frightStage fright or performance anxiety is the anxiety, fear, or persistent phobia which may be aroused in an individual by the requirement to perform in front of an audience, whether actually or potentially . In the context of public speaking, this fear is termed glossophobia, one of the most common...
, he continued to work after the war, beginning his professional career in the summer of 1946 in a touring show called
For the Fun of It.
His act was soon heard on radio, making his debut in early December 1946 on the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's
Variety BandboxVariety Bandbox was a British radio variety show transmitted by BBC Radio on the Light Programme. Featuring a mixture of comic performances and music, the show helped to launch the careers of a number of leading British performers....
programme with a number of other ex-servicemen. His profile rose in the immediate postwar period (aided by material written by
Eric SykesEric Sykes, CBE is an English radio, television and film writer, actor and director whose performing career has spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and/or performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan, Peter...
,
Galton and SimpsonRay Galton OBE , and Alan Simpson OBE , are British scriptwriters who met in 1948 at a tuberculosis sanatorium, the Surrey county sanatorium near Godalming, on which the sitcom Get Well Soon was based...
and
Johnny SpeightJohnny Speight , was a British television scriptwriter of many classic British sitcoms.He emerged in the mid 1950s. He wrote for the radio comics; Frankie Howerd, Vic Oliver, Arthur Askey, and Cyril Fletcher. For television he wrote for the Arthur Haynes Show, Morecambe & Wise, and Peter Sellers...
). In 1954, he made his screen début opposite
Petula ClarkPetula Clark, CBE is an English singer, actress, and composer whose career has spanned seven decades.Clark's professional career began as an entertainer on BBC Radio during World War II...
in
The Runaway BusThe Runaway Bus is a 1954 British comedy film produced, written, and directed by Val Guest. It stars Frankie Howerd and Petula Clark.-Plot summary:...
, which had been written for his specific comic talents, but he never became a major film presence. The film was so low-budget that they could not afford scenery; instead they used a fog generator so that little was visible behind the action. The film was an immediate hit.
Career revival
Howerd was a regular feature in the 1950s version of the comic
Film FunFilm Fun was a British comic book that ran from 17 January 1920 to 15 September 1962, when it merged with Buster, a total of 2225 issues. There were also annuals in the forties and fifties. It had been renamed Film Fun and Thrills in 1959...
but when he began experimenting with different formats and contexts, including stage farces, Shakespearean comedy roles, and
televisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
sitcoms, he began to fall out of fashion. After suffering a nervous breakdown at the start of the 1960s, he began to recover his old popularity, initially with a season at
Peter CookPeter Edward Cook was an English satirist, writer and comedian. An extremely influential figure in modern British comedy, he is regarded as the leading light of the British satire boom of the 1960s. He has been described by Stephen Fry as "the funniest man who ever drew breath," although Cook's...
's satirical Establishment Club in
SohoSoho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable...
in London. He was boosted further by success on
That Was The Week That WasThat Was The Week That Was, also known as TW3, is a satirical television comedy programme that was shown on BBC Television in 1962 and 1963. It was devised, produced and directed by Ned Sherrin and presented by David Frost...
(TW3) in 1963 and on stage with
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ForumA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart....
(1963–1965), which led into regular television work. In 1966 and 1967, he co-hosted a 90-minute Christmas show called
The Frankie and Bruce Christmas Show with
Bruce ForsythSir Bruce Joseph Forsyth-Johnson, CBE , commonly known as Bruce Forsyth, or Brucie, is an English TV personality...
, featuring many top acts of the day.
Through the 1960s and 1970s, he was involved in shows for the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and
Thames TelevisionThames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
(as well as
Frankie Howerd Reveals All for
Yorkshire TelevisionYorkshire Television, now officially known as ITV Yorkshire and sometimes unofficially abbreviated to YTV, is a British television broadcaster and the contractor for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV network...
in 1980). Ray Galton and Alan Simpson wrote for him from 1964 to 1966 when he worked for the BBC and also for a one-off show for Thames,
Frankie Howerd meets The Bee Gees, shown on 20 August 1968. He was famous for his seemingly off-the-cuff remarks to the audience, especially in the show
Up Pompeii!Up Pompeii! is a British television comedy series broadcast between 1969 and 1970, starring Frankie Howerd. The first series was written by Talbot Rothwell, a scriptwriter for the Carry On films, and the second series by Rothwell and Sid Colin. Two later specials were transmitted in 1975 and...
, which was a direct follow-up from
Forum. His television work was characterised by addressing himself directly to the
cameraA camera is a device that records and stores images. These images may be still photographs or moving images such as videos or movies. The term camera comes from the camera obscura , an early mechanism for projecting images...
and littering his
monologueIn theatre, a monologue is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes also to directly address another character or the audience. Monologues are common across the range of dramatic media...
s with verbal
ticA tic is a sudden, repetitive, nonrhythmic, stereotyped motor movement or vocalization involving discrete muscle groups. Tics can be invisible to the observer, such as abdominal tensing or toe crunching. Common motor and phonic tics are, respectively, eye blinking and throat clearing...
s: "Oooh, no missus", "Titter ye not", and so on, but a later sale of his scripts showed that the seemingly off-the-cuff remarks were all planned.
Barry CryerBarry Charles Cryer OBE is a British writer and comedian. Cryer has written for many noted performers, including Dave Allen, Stanley Baxter, Jack Benny, Rory Bremner, George Burns, Jasper Carrott, Tommy Cooper, Les Dawson, Dick Emery, Kenny Everett, Bruce Forsyth, David Frost, Bob Hope, Frankie...
said of his technique: "What he could do with a script was amazing, like all the great performers. He transformed something you'd just written - what you hoped was in a Frankie Howerd idiom - but when you heard him do it, my God, it was something else; - it was gossiping over the garden wall, the
apparent waffle - he was like a tightrope walker, you thought he's going to fall off in a minute, you thought , 'Come on, Frank' , we're waiting for a laugh, and then, suddenly,
Bang. He knew exactly what he was doing." Another feature of his
humourHumour or humor is the tendency of particular cognitive experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement...
was to feign innocence about his obvious and risqué
double entendreA double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....
s while mockingly censuring the audience for finding them funny.
He was awarded an
OBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in 1977.
Later career
In 1978, Howerd appeared in the big-budget Hollywood
musicalThe musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club BandSgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a 1978 American musical film. Its soundtrack, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, features new versions of songs originally written and performed by The Beatles. The film draws primarily from two of their albums, 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club...
playing Mean Mr Mustard, acting alongside musical and film talent such as
Peter FramptonPeter Kenneth Frampton is an English musician, singer, producer, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist. He was previously associated with the bands Humble Pie and The Herd. Frampton's international breakthrough album was his live release, Frampton Comes Alive!. The album sold over 6 million copies...
, The Bee Gees,
George BurnsGeorge Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
,
Alice CooperAlice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
,
AerosmithAerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
and
Steve MartinStephen Glenn "Steve" Martin is an American actor, comedian, writer, playwright, producer, musician and composer....
. He was cast by producer
Robert StigwoodRobert Stigwood is an impresario and entertainment entrepreneur who relocated to England in 1954...
as he was on Stigwood's
record labelIn the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
at the time. The film was a critical and commercial flop. Since Howerd was not well known to American audiences, this may have been his biggest exposure in the U.S.
After six years without a regular television show (though he had hosted a one-off UK version of
The Gong ShowThe Gong Show is an amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976 through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976–1980 and 1988–1989. The show was produced by Chuck Barris, who also served...
for
Channel 4Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
, which was critically panned and was not commissioned for a full series), Howerd returned to TV screens in 1987 in the Channel 4 show
Superfrank!Superfrank! was a one-hour television special starring English comedian Frankie Howerd OBE. The special show marked his return to television performance after an absence of five years.The show was made by Channel 4 and HTV...
, scripted by
Miles TredinnickMiles Tredinnick, also known as Riff Regan, is a rock musician, songwriter and a stage and screen writer. In the 1970s, he was the lead singer with the British rock band London. Afterwards he went on to write comedy plays for the stage...
and
Vince PowellVince Powell was a British television writer.Powell was born as Vincent Smith to Roman Catholic parents in Miles Platting, Manchester. When he was five, his mother died; two years later, his father remarried...
. In the last years of his career, Howerd developed a following with student audiences and performed a one-man show at
universitiesA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
and in small theatrical venues. He was also a regular and popular guest on the late night
BBC Radio 1BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
programme
Into the NightInto The Night is a 1985 American comedy-thriller film directed by John Landis, starring Jeff Goldblum and Michelle Pfeiffer. The film is notable for a large number of cameo appearances made by various filmmakers and directors, including Landis himself. The soundtrack features the songs In the...
, hosted by
Nicky CampbellNicholas Andrew Argyll "Nicky" Campbell is a Scottish radio and television presenter and journalist. He is known for his time presenting on programmes such as the consumer affairs programme Watchdog...
.
Howerd often worked with
Sunny RogersSunny Rogers was an English entertainer best known for her work with comedian Frankie Howerd.Rogers was born Jessie Mary Rogerson in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire. Her nickname "Sunny" comes from her constant smiling...
who was his accompanying
pianistA pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
from 1960 onwards. She appeared in his TV and live
theatreTheatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
shows including his last major
West EndWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
appearance—his one-man show—at the
Garrick TheatreThe Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster. It opened on 24 April 1889 with The Profligate, a play by Arthur Wing Pinero. In its early years, it appears to have specialised in the performance of melodrama, and today the theatre is a...
in 1990.
In 1982, Howerd appeared in the televised versions of
Trial by JuryTrial by Jury is a comic opera in one act, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It was first produced on 25 March 1875, at London's Royalty Theatre, where it initially ran for 131 performances and was considered a hit, receiving critical praise and outrunning its...
(as the Learned Judge) and
H.M.S. PinaforeH.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, England, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which was the second-longest run of any musical...
(as Sir Joseph Porter, KCB).
Personal life
Throughout his career, Howerd hid his potentially career-destroying
homosexualityHomosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
(acts between consenting males being illegal in
England and WalesEngland and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
until 1967 and illegal in Scotland until 1981) from both his audience and his mother, Edith. In 1955, he met
waiterWaiting staff, wait staff, or waitstaff are those who work at a restaurant or a bar attending customers — supplying them with food and drink as requested. Traditionally, a male waiting tables is called a "waiter" and a female a "waitress" with the gender-neutral version being a "server"...
Dennis Heymer, who later became his
managerA talent manager, also known as an artist manager or band manager, is an individual or company who guides the professional career of artists in the entertainment industry...
. Heymer was with Howerd for more than thirty years, as lighting operator, manager and partner, until Howerd died.
Backstage, Howerd was notoriously bold in his advances, and was known for his
promiscuityIn humans, promiscuity refers to less discriminating casual sex with many sexual partners. The term carries a moral or religious judgement and is viewed in the context of the mainstream social ideal for sexual activity to take place within exclusive committed relationships...
. One of Howerd's former partners was
comicComedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
actor Lee Young who created the TV sitcom
Whoops BaghdadWhoops Baghdad is a BBC television comedy programme first broadcast from 25 January to 1 March 1973.It stars Frankie Howerd, and was similar to his earlier programme Up Pompeii!, with the setting moved from Ancient Rome to mediaeval Baghdad...
(1973) for him. Howerd's uncomfortable relationship with his sexuality he once said to
Cilla BlackCilla Black OBE is an English singer, actress, entertainer and media personality, who has been consistently popular as a light entertainment figure since 1963. She is most famous for her singles Anyone Who Had A Heart, You're My World, and Alfie...
, "I wish to God I wasn't
gayGay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
" as well as his
depressiveDepression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person's thoughts, behaviour, feelings and physical well-being. Depressed people may feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, or restless...
mental state, led him to seek resolution through a series of different methods. Heymer would often drop Howerd off on Friday at his
psychiatristA psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
, who would ply him with LSD over the weekend.
Howerd lived for the last twenty or so years of his life in Wavering Down, a house in the village of Cross, Somerset by the
Mendip HillsThe Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
.
Death
Having contracted a virus during a Christmas trip up the River Amazon in 1991, Howerd suffered respiratory problems at the beginning of April 1992 and was rushed to London's
Harley StreetHarley Street is a street in the City of Westminster in London, England which has been noted since the 19th century for its large number of private specialists in medicine and surgery.- Overview :...
clinic, but was released at Easter to enjoy his last few days at home. He collapsed and died of heart failure two weeks afterwards, on the morning of 19 April 1992. He was 75 years old. Two hours before he died, he was speaking on the telephone to his TV producer about new ideas for his next show.
Howerd died one day before fellow comedian
Benny HillBenny Hill was an English comedian and actor, notable for his long-running television programme The Benny Hill Show.-Early life:...
. News of the two deaths broke almost simultaneously and some newspapers ran an obituary of Howerd in which Hill was quoted as regretting Howerd's passing, saying "We were great, great friends". The quote was released by Hill's agent, who was not aware that his client had died.
Legacy
A BBC TV biography about Frankie Howerd—
Rather You Than Me—was broadcast by
BBC FourBBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
on 9 April 2008. The script was written by Peter Harness, after extensive interviews with Howerd's partner, Dennis Heymer. Comedian
David WalliamsDavid Edward Walliams is an English comedian, writer and actor, known for his partnership with Matt Lucas on the TV sketch show Little Britain and its predecessor Rock Profile...
was cast as Howerd.
On 15 May 2009, his former partner Dennis Heymer died in the home that he and Howerd had shared near Axbridge, Somerset. He was aged 80.
Howerd's home, Wavering Down, is a
tourist attractionA tourist attraction is a place of interest where tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, or amusement opportunities....
and, in the summer, hosts concerts and opens regularly as a museum of Howerd's collection of memorabilia to raise funds for charities. Howerd's grave is at St. Gregory's Church in
Weare, SomersetWeare and Lower Weare are small villages in Somerset, England, on the River Axe, south of the Mendip Hills. The parish comprises the villages of Upper and Lower Weare, and the hamlets of Alston Sutton, Brinscombe and Stone Allerton....
.
Howerd also lived at 27 Edwardes Square,
KensingtonKensington is a district of west and central London, England within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. An affluent and densely-populated area, its commercial heart is Kensington High Street, and it contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington.To the north, Kensington is...
, London W8 6HH. The house bears a blue plaque erected by the Dead Comics' Society.
The Church Hall of St. Barnabus Church, Eltham is called
The Frankie Howerd Centre.
Television
- That Was The Week That Was
That Was The Week That Was, also known as TW3, is a satirical television comedy programme that was shown on BBC Television in 1962 and 1963. It was devised, produced and directed by Ned Sherrin and presented by David Frost...
(1962)
- East of Howerd (1966)
- Howerd's Hour (1968)
- Carry on Christmas
The Carry On Christmas Specials were four one-off sitcoms produced for Thames Television made in 1969, 1970, 1972 and 1973. They brought the cast and formula of the Carry On films to a television production.-Description:...
(1969)
- The Frankie Howerd Show (1969)
- Up Pompeii!
Up Pompeii! is a British television comedy series broadcast between 1969 and 1970, starring Frankie Howerd. The first series was written by Talbot Rothwell, a scriptwriter for the Carry On films, and the second series by Rothwell and Sid Colin. Two later specials were transmitted in 1975 and...
(1969–75)
- Whoops Baghdad
Whoops Baghdad is a BBC television comedy programme first broadcast from 25 January to 1 March 1973.It stars Frankie Howerd, and was similar to his earlier programme Up Pompeii!, with the setting moved from Ancient Rome to mediaeval Baghdad...
- The Frankie Howerd Show (1976)
- Howerd Confessions (1976)
- Up the Convicts (1976)
- Frankie Howerd Strikes Again (1981)
- Then Churchill Said to Me
Then Churchill Said To Me is a television comedy series starring Frankie Howerd and Nicholas Courtney. Made in 1982, the series was not screened until 1993.-Outline:The comedy is set is Winston Churchill's secret underground wartime bunker...
(1982)
- Superfrank!
Superfrank! was a one-hour television special starring English comedian Frankie Howerd OBE. The special show marked his return to television performance after an absence of five years.The show was made by Channel 4 and HTV...
(1987)
- All Change
All Change was an English children's television show on ITV in 1989 and 1990...
(1989)
- Frankie Howerd on Campus (1990)
- Frankie's On... (1992)
Selected filmography
- The Runaway Bus
The Runaway Bus is a 1954 British comedy film produced, written, and directed by Val Guest. It stars Frankie Howerd and Petula Clark.-Plot summary:...
(1954)
- The Ladykillers
The Ladykillers is a 1955 British black comedy film made by Ealing Studios. Directed by Alexander Mackendrick, it stars Alec Guinness, Cecil Parker, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, Danny Green, Jack Warner and Katie Johnson...
(1955)
- An Alligator Named Daisy
An Alligator Named Daisy is a 1955 British comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Donald Sinden, Jeannie Carson, James Robertson Justice, Diana Dors, Roland Culver and Stanley Holloway.-Plot:...
(1955)
- Jumping for Joy
Jumping for Joy is a 1956 British comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Frankie Howerd, Stanley Holloway, Joan Hickson and Lionel Jeffries...
(1956)
- A Touch of the Sun
A Touch of the Sun is a 1956 British comedy film directed by Gordon Parry and starring Frankie Howerd, Ruby Murray and Dennis Price. A hall porter is left a large inheritance by one of the residents...
(1956)
- Further Up the Creek
Further Up the Creek is a 1958 British comedy film written and directed by Val Guest and starring David Tomlinson, Frankie Howerd, Shirley Eaton, Thora Hird, Desmond Llewelyn and Lionel Jeffries...
(1958)
- The Cool Mikado
The Cool Mikado is a British musical film made in 1962, directed by Michael Winner, and produced by Harold Baim, with music arranged by Martin Slavin and John Barry. It starred Frankie Howerd as Ko-Ko, Lionel Blair and Stubby Kaye...
(1962)
- The Fast Lady
The Fast Lady is a 1962 British comedy film, directed by Ken Annakin. The screenplay was written by Henry Blyth and Jack Davies, based on a story by Keble Howard.It marked the film debut of Julie Christie.-Plot:...
(1962)
- The Mouse on the Moon
The Mouse on the Moon is a 1963 British comedy film, an adaptation of the novel The Mouse on the Moon by Irish author Leonard Wibberley. It was directed by Richard Lester and served as the sequel to The Mouse That Roared. In it, the people of the Duchy of Grand Fenwick, a microstate, attempt space...
(1963)
- The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery
The Great St. Trinian's Train Robbery is a British comedy film set in the fictional St Trinian's School, released in 1966, three years after the Great Train Robbery had taken place...
(1966)
- Carry On Doctor
Carry On Doctor is the fifteenth film in the Carry On series. It is the second in the series to have a medical theme. Frankie Howerd makes the first of his two appearances in the film series. He stars alongside regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims and Bernard Bresslaw...
(1967)
- Carry On Up the Jungle
Carry On Up the Jungle is the nineteenth Carry On film, released in 1970. The film marked Frankie Howerd's second and final appearance in the series. He stars alongside regular players Sid James, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Terry Scott and Bernard Bresslaw. Kenneth Williams is unusually absent...
(1969)
- Up Pompeii
Up Pompeii is a 1971 British comedy film directed by Bob Kellett and starring Frankie Howerd and Michael Hordern. The film was shot at Elstree Film Studios, Borehamwood, England...
(1971)
- Up the Chastity Belt
Up the Chastity Belt is a 1971 British film, a spin-off from the TV series Up Pompeii! that starred Frankie Howerd and was directed by Bob Kellett.-Synopsis:...
(1971)
- Up the Front
Up the Front is a 1972 British comedy film. It is the third film spin-off from the TV series Up Pompeii! , directed by Bob Kellett, it stars Frankie Howerd as Lurk , a coward who is hypnotised into...
(1972)
- The House in Nightmare Park
-Plot:Struggling actor Foster Twelvetrees is invited to a large country home by Stewart Hendison to perform a dramatic reading for his family. Outwardly, ... is complimentary and enthusiastic, but his more sinister intentions were made clear when earlier he secretly sliced a poster of Twelvetrees...
(1972)
- Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a 1978 American musical film. Its soundtrack, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, features new versions of songs originally written and performed by The Beatles. The film draws primarily from two of their albums, 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club...
(1978)
Selected bibliography
- On the Way I Lost It by Frankie Howerd (1976). ISBN 0-491-01807-X.
- The Complete Frankie Howerd by Robert Ross (2001). ISBN 1-903111-08-0.
- Frankie Howerd: Stand-Up Comic by Graham McCann (2004). ISBN 1-84115-310-9.
External links