Friday 11 March 2016

Morecambe's Brightest Star



Eric Morecambe is known across the world, by people who might not know that he had his origins in the little town in the north of England which bears his name.  He was born John Eric Bartholomew, to George and Sadie Bartholomew.

His mother was one of his earliest supporters, in his ambitions to be an entertainer, taking a job as a waitress to pay for his dance classes.  Sadie’s belief in her son paid off when he won several competitions, one of which led to him meeting Ernie Wise. The pair that would eventually become known as Morecambe and Wise, and become one of the best loved comedic duos in history, met in 1941.  They were booked separately for Jack Hylton’s revue in Nottingham, but quickly became close friends.

Sadie encouraged them to try to develop a double act, and Hylton eventually allowed them to perform it as part of the revue. It was successful enough that Hylton kept it as part of the regular set, and also let them perform separately.

War service put a end to their burgeoning success, as Eric joined the Merchant Navy when he came of age.  They reunited unexpectedly in 1946, as they were both performing at Swansea Empire, and joined forces. That was the true beginning, as the pair worked together until 1984.

The first foray into television, in Running Wild broadcast in 1954, wasn’t very successful, and made them determined to have a greater hand in what they were performing.  When they went on Winifred Atwell’s show in 1956, it had more impact, and they were eventually offered their own series by Lew Grade. It was called Two of a kind, and ran for seven years (1961- 1968)

Unfortunately Eric suffered his first heart attack on 8th November 1968, and was helped to hospital by a passerby. After leaving hospital he cut down on his professional engagements, taking six months off.  The writing staff that had been working with Eric and Ernie at the time, didn’t believe that Eric would work in comedy again, and therefore decided to cut professional ties during his recuperation. The duo returned to the stage, in Aug 1969 and received a four minute standing ovation from the audience in Bournemouth.

They were soon back on the television in Morecambe and Wise show (1968-1977) , as well as having the Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise show on Radio 2 between 1975- 1978. Their 1977 Christmas show had viewing figures of over 28 million. Their final foray into television was also called the Morecambe and Wise show, running between 1978 and Christmas 1983.

Together they produced some of the most well loved comedic sketches in history, such as the ‘Singing in the Rain’ parody, where Ernie is in the Kelly role, happily dancing, but it’s Eric as the policeman who gets soaked to the skin.

It’s a testament to the enduring popularity of Morecambe and Wise that their television programmes, and the specials are still re run despite the fact that unfortunately neither are here anymore.

Legacy 


He was voted the funniest person of the 20th century, in 1999, gaining more than 20% of the vote and beating Tommy Cooper among others.

Kenneth Branagh directed a West End play based on one of Ernie’s catchphrases ‘The Play what I wrote’, it featured Kylie Minogue, Roger Moore and Nigel Havers, as well as Prince Charles, who is a fan of the pair. It ran in 2001, and went to Broadway.

His eldest son published a book ‘Life’s not Hollywood, it’s Cricklewood’ revealing his father to be like his on screen persona, if a little watered down. The book included family photographs, and was published in 2003.

His daughter Gail regularly speaks about him to interested parties, and runs a website in her father’s memory.

A poll run in 2005 by comedians and comedy insiders voted Morecambe and Wise to be the fourth greatest comedy act ever.


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