Charlie Drake (born Charles Edward Springall, on 19 June 1925, in South London) is an English comedian, actor, writer and singer. He took his mother's maiden name "Drake" for the stage and, later, television and film. June 19 is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 195 days remaining. ... 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... South London is the area of Greater London south of the River Thames. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location within the British Isles Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid-2004) – Total (2001 Census) – Density Ranked 1st UK... A comedian, or comic, is an entertainer who amuses an audience by making them laugh. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The term writer can apply to anyone who creates a written work, but the word more usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, or those who have written in many different forms. ... LeAnn Rimes singing in concert A singer is a type of musician who uses his or her voice as an instrument to produce music. ...

With his small stature, curly red hair and liking for slapstick he was a popular comedian with children in his early years. Slapstick is a type of comedy involving exaggerated physical violence. ...

He made his TV debut in "The Centre Show" in 1953. He then joined his wartime comrade Jack Edwardes to form a double act. Following an appearance in a talent show they called themselves "Mick and Montmorency". 1953 (MCMLIII) is a common year starting on Thursday. ... The double act, also known as a comedy duo, is a comic device in which humor is derived from the uneven relation between two partners, usually of the same gender, age, ethnic origin, and profession, but drastically different personalities. ...

Moving his appeal to a wider audience, he appeared in the television shows "Laughter in Store" (1957), "Drake's Progress" (1957), "Charlie Drake In..." (1958 to 1960) and "The Charlie Drake Show" (1960 to 1961). He is remembered for his opening catchphrase "Hello My Darlings!" 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... A catch phrase is a phrase or expression that is popularized, usually through repeated use, by a real person or fictional character. ...

TV fame led to four films, none of them successful - "Sands of the Desert" (1960), "Petticoat Pirates" (1961), "The Cracksman" (1963) and "Mr Ten Percent" (1967). He returned to TV in 1963 with "The Charlie Drake Show" again, a compilation of which won an award at the Montreux Festival in 1968. Other shows included "Who is Sylvia" (1967) and "Slapstick and Old Lace" (1971), but it was "The Worker" (1965 to 1970) that gained most acclaim. 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Rose dOr (or Golden Rose) is a highly prestigious television award, given annually since 1961 at the Festival Rose dOr in spring each year. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link goes to calendar). ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ...

In "The Worker" he played a perpetually unemployed labourer who, in every episode, was dispatched to a new job by the ever-frustrated Mr. Pugh (Henry McGee) at the local labour exchange. All the jobs he embarked upon ended in hilarious disaster, sometimes with a burst of classic slapstick, sometimes with a bewildered Charlie himself at the centre of incomprehensible actions by the people employing him. Bookending these sequences, Charlie and Pugh had many memorable encounters, often funnier than the core of the episode. Charlie constantly made hay with the name "Pugh", ranging from a childish "Mi'er Poo" to "Peeyooo". Henry McGee (born 14 May 1929, London) is an actor who is best known for acting as a straight man to Benny Hill for many years. ... JobCentre Plus (Canolfan Byd Gwaith in Welsh) is the government-funded employment agency facility and the social security office in the United Kingdom, often operated from a high street shop. ...

Charlie sang the theme song himself, using an old music hall number which naturally became famous in its own right.

 I gets up every mornin' when the clock strikes eight I'm always punctual, never never late With a nice cup of tea, a little round of toast The Sporting Life and the Winning Post. I gets all nice and cozy, then I toddles off to work I do the best I can Cos I'm only a-doin' what a bloke should do Cos I'm only a workin' man! 

He made a few more appearances on TV, but concentrated on straight stage acting, including Shakespeare and Harold Pinter, and a TV performance as "Smallweed" in "Bleak House" (1985) and even as a criminal in a thriller series. William Shakespeare—born April 1564; baptised April 26, 1564; died April 23, 1616 (O.S.), May 3, 1616 (N.S.)—has a reputation as the greatest of all writers in English. ... Harold Pinter Harold Pinter, CH, CBE (born October 10, 1930) is a British playwright and theatre director. ... Bleak House is the ninth novel by Charles Dickens, published in 20 monthly parts between March 1852 and September 1853. ... This article is about the year. ...

He recorded a remarkable number of records (see Discography), the first of which, a rock and roll number, got into the Top 10, but the rest were mostly novelty songs.

He suffered a stroke in 1995 and has now retired. He is currently a resident of Brinsworth house, a retirement home for actors and performers, run by the Entertainment Artistes Benevolent Fund. A stroke or cerebrovascular accident (CVA) occurs when the blood supply to a part of the brain is suddenly interrupted. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Entertainment Artistes Benevolent Fund is a British charity dedicated to supporting distressed members and former members of the entertainment industry and their dependents. ...

Discography

• Splish Splash / Hello My Darlings (1958) #7
• Volare / Itchy Twitchy Feeling (1958) #28
• Tom Thumb's Tune / Goggle Eye Ghee {1958)
• Sea Cruise / Starkle Starkle Little Twink (1959)
• Naughty / Old Mr Shadow (1960)
• Mr Custer / Glow Worm (1960) #12
• My Boomerang Won't Come Back / She's My Girl (1961) #14
• Tanglefoot / Drake's Progress (1962)
• I Bent My Assigai / Sweet Freddy Green (1962)
• I've Lost The End Of My Yodel / I Can, Can't I (1963)
• I'm Too Heavy For The Light Brigade / The Reluctant Tight-Rope Walker (1964)
• Charles Drake 007 / Bumpanology (1964)
• Only A Working Man / I'm A Boy (1965)
• Don't Trim My Wick / Birds (1966)
• Who Is Sylvia / I Wanna Be A Group (1967)
• Puckwudgie / Toffe And Tears (1972) #47
• "Gimme That Punk Junk" (punk rock spoof record, 1976, recorded under the name The Water Pistols)

1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link goes to calendar). ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link goes to calendar) // Events January January 1 - In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa ousts president David Dacko and takes over the Central African Republic. ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year that started on a Tuesday. ... Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ... In contemporary usage, parody is a form of satire that imitates another work of art in order to ridicule it. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... This article is about the spoof punk band. ...

External links

• Charlie Drake at the Internet Movie Database