Eric Sykes in the "Sykes" TV series (DVD)

"The Plank" (DVD cover)

Eric Sykes, CBE (born May 4, 1923 in Oldham, Lancashire) is a British comedic writer and actor. He is widely regarded as an unsung hero behind much British comedy over the past fifty years. Image File history File links Sykes. ... Image File history File links Sykes. ... Image File history File links The-Plank-dvd. ... Image File history File links The-Plank-dvd. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these... May 4 is the 124th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (125th in leap years). ... 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Location within the British Isles Mumps Bridge, Oldham Backwoods of Delph, Oldham Oldham is a large town in North West England, lying in the foothills of the Pennines on the north-eastern edge of the Greater Manchester conurbation: the town proper has a population of 103,544, including a large... Lancashire is a county and duchy palatine in the North of England, bounded to the west by the Irish Sea. ...

He is perhaps best known for his BBC television sitcom with Hattie Jacques and Deryck Guyler, called Sykes. However, he was well-known on radio during the 1950s, both behind the scenes and in front of the microphone. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the largest publicly-funded radio and television broadcasting corporation of the United Kingdom (see British television). ... A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... Josephine Edwina Jacques (February 7, 1922 - October 6, 1980), better known by the stage name Hattie Jacques, was a British comedy actress born in Sandgate, Kent. ... Deryck Guyler (April 29, 1914 - October 7, 1999) was a versatile British actor, equally at home with comedy and classical/character roles, but best known for his portrayal of officious short-tempered middle-aged men in sitcoms such as Please, Sir and Sykes. ... Sykes was a long-running BBC television sitcom of the 1960s and 1970s, starring Eric Sykes and Hattie Jacques. ...

He also helped Spike Milligan with The Goon Show after Milligan's depression. He had first collaborated with Milligan on a radio special called Archie in Goonland, which was a crossover between The Goon Show and the "radio ventriloquism" show Educating Archie starring Peter Brough and his dummy Archie Andrews, which Sykes had been writing. Archie in Goonland was not a success, and all existing recordings and scripts have been destroyed, but Milligan and Sykes collaborated on numerous Goon Show scripts and shared an office for years afterward. Terence Alan Milligan, KBE (16 April 1918–27 February 2002), known as Spike Milligan, was a comedian, novelist, playwright, poet, jazz musician, crooner-style singer, trumpeter and guitarist. ... DVD of The Last Goon Show of All, aired by the BBC in 1972. ... Clinical depression is a state of sadness or melancholia that has advanced to the point of being disruptive to an individuals social functioning and/or activities of daily living. ... Peter Brough (February 26, 1916 - June 3, 1999) was an English radio ventriloquist who became a well-known name to audiences in the 1950s. ...

Sykes's career in entertainment began during his time in the Royal Air Force during World War II, during which time he worked with Flight Lieutenant Bill Fraser. The Royal Air Force (often abbreviated to RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Combatants Allies: Poland, British Commonwealth, France/Free France, Soviet Union, United States, China, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, and others Casualties Military dead:17 million Civilian dead:33 million Total dead:50 million Military dead:8 million Civilian dead:4 million Total dead:12 million World War II... Bill Fraser in Doctor Who in 1980. ...

One of Sykes' best known creations is his classic wordless slapstick routine, The Plank, which began as a sketch in his TV series. It was later expanded into an enduringly popular 45-minute film in 1967, co-starring Sykes, Tommy Cooper, Jimmy Edwards, Roy Castle, Graham Stark, Stratford Johns, Jim Dale, Jimmy Tarbuck and Hattie Jacques. A third version was made in 1979 as a half-hour special, with an all-star cast including Arthur Lowe (taking Cooper's role), Charlie Drake, Charles Hawtrey and Wilfred Hyde-White. Edwards and Sykes also toured in their theatrical farce Big Bad Mouse, which while keeping more or less to a script, gave them free rein to ad lib, address the audience and so forth. More recently, Sykes appeared as Mollocks, the servant of Dr Prunesquallor, in the BBC's mini-series adaptation of Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast. He continues to act on stage and on television, despite his advancing years. The Plank is a popular 45-minute, 1967 British slapstick comedy. ... Tommy Cooper (March 19, 1921 – April 15, 1984) was a British comedian and magician born in Caerphilly, Wales. ... Jimmy Edwards (23 March 1920 – 7 July 1988 was a British radio and television comedy actor, best known as Pa Glum in Take It From Here and as the headmaster Professor James Edwards in Whack-O. Born James Keith ONeill in Barnes, London, Edwards served in the Royal Air... Roy Castle OBE (born August 31, 1932 in Scholes, near Holmfirth; died September 2, 1994) was a British dancer, singer, comedian, actor and musician. ... Graham Stark Graham Stark (born 20 January 1922) is an English comedian, actor, writer and director. ... Stratford Johns (born Alan Stratford Johns, Pietermaritzberg, South Africa, February 22, 1925 - 29 January 2002) was a popular British stage, film and television actor who is best remembered for his starring role as Detective Inspector Charlie Barlow in the innovative and long-running BBC police series Z-Cars, created by... Jim Dale MBE (born James Smith on August 15, 1935) is a British singer, songwriter, and actor. ... Jimmy Tarbuck OBE (born 6 February 1940, Liverpool, Merseyside,England, UK) is a gap-toothed British comedian, emcee and compere in demand from the 1960s. ... Josephine Edwina Jacques (February 7, 1922 - October 6, 1980), better known by the stage name Hattie Jacques, was a British comedy actress born in Sandgate, Kent. ... Arthur Lowe (September 22, 1915—April 15, 1982) was a British actor. ... Charlie Drake (born Charles Edward Springall, on 19 June 1925, in South London) is an English comedian, actor, writer and singer. ... There have been two notable actors named Charles Hawtrey: Sir Charles Hawtrey (1858-1923), stage and silent film actor; Charles Hawtrey (1914-1988), who named himself after the earlier actor, and is best known for the Carry On films. ... Big Bad Mouse was a British theatrical farce. ... Mervyn Laurence Peake (July 9, 1911 – November 17, 1968) was a British modernist writer, artist, poet and illustrator. ... Gormenghast Castle in the BBC miniseries Gormenghast is a fictional castle of titanic proportions that features prominently in a series of fantasy works penned by Mervyn Peake. ...

On 25 December 1979 Sykes was the subject of Thames Television's This Is Your Life. Guests included Sean Connery, Spike Milligan, Douglas Bader, and Hattie Jacques. December 25 is the 359th day of the year (360th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 6 days remaining. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... The classic Thames Television logo (1969—1989), featuring a montage of London landmarks. ... This Is Your Life was a television show hosted by Ralph Edwards, first broadcast in the United States from 1952 to 1961 on NBC. It originated as a radio show airing from 1948 to 1952. ... Sean Connery as he appears in the James Bond films. ... Terence Alan Milligan, KBE (16 April 1918–27 February 2002), known as Spike Milligan, was a comedian, novelist, playwright, poet, jazz musician, crooner-style singer, trumpeter and guitarist. ... Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader (DSO) (DFC) (February 21, 1910 (St Johns Wood, London) - September 5, 1982), was a successful fighter pilot in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. ... Josephine Edwina Jacques (February 7, 1922 - October 6, 1980), better known by the stage name Hattie Jacques, was a British comedy actress born in Sandgate, Kent. ...

Eric Sykes appeared on stage in Australia when he appeared in the play Run For Your Wife , during (1987-1988), and the production toured the country. Other members of the cast in the production were Jack Smethurst, David McCallum and Katy Manning. Jack Smethurst is a British actor. ... David Keith McCallum (born September 19, 1933 in Glasgow) is a Scottish actor and the son of concertmaster violinist David McCallum Sr. ... Katy Manning (publicity portrait) Katy Manning (born October 14, 1949 in Guildford, Surrey) is a British-born actress best known for her part as the companion Jo Grant in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who. ...

Sykes became partially deaf due to illness as an adult. His distinctive spectacles contain no lenses, but they are rather a bone-conducting hearing aid. Disciform macular degeneration, a condition brought about by age (and possibly smoking) has left Sykes partially-sighted, and he is registered as blind. The word deaf can have very different meanings depending on the background of the person speaking or the context in which the word is used. ... Behind the ear aid A hearing aid is a device used to help the hard-of-hearing hear sounds better. ... Listen to this article · (info) This audio file was created from an article revision dated 2005-07-19, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. ...

In the New Year's Honours List published 31 December 2004 he was created a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to Drama, following a petition by MPs after he was left out of the Birthday Honours List. December 31 is the 365th day of the year (366th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... It has been designated the: International Year of Rice (by the United Nations) International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO) 2004 World Health Day topic was Road Safety (by World Health Organization) Year of the Monkey (by the Chinese calendar) See the world in... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these... There are many articles named Drama: Drama, the art form. ...

In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian, he was voted amongst the top 50 comedy acts ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders. 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Comedians Comedian was a three-hour programme broadcast on UKs Channel 4 on 1st January 2005. ...

Awards

• 1961 Guild of TV Producers and Directors' Lifetime Achievement Award
• 1964 BBC TV Personality of the Year
• 1980 Pye Colour TV Award
• 1980 The Golden Rose of Montreaux (for The Plank)
• 1985 The 25th Golden Rose Of Montreaux
• 1986 OBE
• 1988 Freedom Of The City of London
• 1992 Lifetime Achievement Award from Writers' Guild of Great Britain
• 1998 Honorary Fellowship Of University of Lancaster
• 1998 Eric Morecambe Award from Comic Heritage
• 2001 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grand Order of Water Rats
• 2001 Bernard Delfont Award for outstanding contribution to show business from the Variety Club of Great Britain
• 2002 Oldie Of The Year
• 2004 CBE

1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1961 calendar). ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Pye Ltd. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... This article is about the year. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Coat of arms The City of London is a small area in Greater London. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... The Writers Guild of Great Britain, established in 1958, is a trade union for professional writers, affiliated with the Trades Union Congress (TUC). ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Lancaster University (originally created as the University of Lancaster) is a collegiate campus university in Lancaster, UK. The University has a good academic reputation, doing well in national league tables. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Eric Morecambe OBE was the stage name of Eric John Bartholomew (May 14, 1926 – May 28, 1984), part of the double act of Morecambe and Wise with Ernie Wise. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... The Grand Order of Water Rats is a United Kingdom entertainment industry charity. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... For the Cusco album, see 2002 (album). ... The Oldie is a unique monthly magazine – a haven for fun, good sense and quality writing in a media obsessed with celebrity and yoof. The magazine was launched in 1992 by Richard Ingrams, who for 23 years was the editor of Private Eye, and is now published monthly. ... It has been designated the: International Year of Rice (by the United Nations) International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO) 2004 World Health Day topic was Road Safety (by World Health Organization) Year of the Monkey (by the Chinese calendar) See the world in... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these...

Selected filmography

Created and starring Eric Sykes

• Sykes (1972) (TV series)
• Sykes and a Big Big Show (1971) (TV series)

• The Big Freeze (1993)
• It's Your Move (1982)
• If You Go Down in the Woods Today (1981)
• The Likes of Sykes (1980)
• Rhubarb Rhubarb (1980)
• The Plank (1979)
• Eric Sykes Shows a Few of our Favourite Things (1977)
• Sykes: With the Lid Off (1971)
• Mr. H is Late (1969)
• Rhubarb (1969)
• The Plank (1967)
• Gala Opening (1959)
• Closing Night (1957)
• Dress Rehearsal (1956)
• Opening Night (1956)
• Pantomania, or Dick Whittington (1956)

Eric Sykes as Frank Bryce in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Sykes was a long-running BBC television sitcom of the 1960s and 1970s, starring Eric Sykes and Hattie Jacques. ... See also: 1971 in television, other events of 1972, 1973 in television and the list of years in television. For the American network television schedule, please see 1972-73 American network television schedule. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... See also: 1970 in television, other events of 1971, 1972 in television and the list of years in television. For the American network television schedule, please see 1971-72 American network television schedule. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... This is a list of film-related events in 1993. ... // Events January 11 - Production begins on the Star Wars film Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. ... // Events January 19 - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquires beleaguered concurrent United Artists. ... // Events April 30 - The Roger Daltrey film, McVicar, opens in London. ... // Events April 30 - The Roger Daltrey film, McVicar, opens in London. ... The Plank is a popular 45-minute, 1967 British slapstick comedy. ... // Events March 5 - Production begins on Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. ... // Events In the Academy Awards, Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway and Beatrice Straight win Best Actor and Actress and Supporting Actress awards for Network. ... See also: 1970 in film 1971 1972 in film 1970s in film years in film film // Events February 8 - Bob Dylans hour long documentary film, Eat the Document, premieres at New Yorks Academy of Music. ... // Events Cannes Film Festival opens, but closes in support of a French general strike without awarding any prizes. ... // Events Cannes Film Festival opens, but closes in support of a French general strike without awarding any prizes. ... The Plank is a popular 45-minute, 1967 British slapstick comedy. ... // Events December 26 - The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour airs on British television. ... See also: 1958 in film 1959 1960 in film 1950s in film 1960s in film years in film film Events The Three Stooges make their 180th and last short film, Sappy Bullfighters. ... // Events October 21 - The movie Jailhouse Rock, starring Elvis Presley, opens. ... See also: 1955 in film 1956 1957 in film 1950s in film years in film film // Events November 15 - The film Love Me Tender starring Elvis Presley (his first film) opens. ... Opening Night is the first performance of a stage show to the public. ... See also: 1955 in film 1956 1957 in film 1950s in film years in film film // Events November 15 - The film Love Me Tender starring Elvis Presley (his first film) opens. ... See also: 1955 in film 1956 1957 in film 1950s in film years in film film // Events November 15 - The film Love Me Tender starring Elvis Presley (his first film) opens. ... Image File history File links Frank_Bryce. ... Image File history File links Frank_Bryce. ... Frank Bryce (1917-1994) is a fictional character in the Harry Potter universe. ... Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the fourth film in the popular Harry Potter series based on the books by J.K. Rowling. ...

Other selected filmography

• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
• The Others (2001)
• Gormenghast (2000) (miniseries)
• Monte Carlo or Bust (1969)
• Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965)
• One Way Pendulum (1964)
• Kill or Cure (1962)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the fourth film in the popular Harry Potter series based on the books by J.K. Rowling. ... This is a list of film-related events in 2005. ... The Others is a 2001 psychological thriller film by the Spanish director Alejandro Amenábar, starring Nicole Kidman. ... This is a list of film-related events in 2001. ... Gormenghast Castle in the BBC miniseries Gormenghast is a fictional castle of titanic proportions that features prominently in a series of fantasy works penned by Mervyn Peake. ... This is a list of television-related events in 2000. ... A miniseries (sometimes mini-series), in a serial storytelling medium, is a production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. ... Monte Carlo or Bust is a 1969 comedy film based around the Monte Carlo Rally. ... // Events Cannes Film Festival opens, but closes in support of a French general strike without awarding any prizes. ... The 1965 comedy film Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes is set in 1910, at the dawn of aviation when Lord Rawnsley, an English Press magnate, puts up the prize money for an air race from... // Events Top grossing films North America Mary Poppins The Sound of Music, starring Julie Andrews Goldfinger My Fair Lady Whats New Pussycat? Shenandoah The Sandpiper Father Goose Academy Awards Best Picture: The Sound of Music - Argyle, Twentieth Century-Fox Best Actor: Lee Marvin - Cat Ballou Best Actress: Julie Christie... // Events January 29 - The film Dr. Strangelove is released. ... Kill or Cure is a 1962 British comedy film, in which an inept police officer is called to investigate the strange goings-on at a health club. ... // Events Dr. No launches the James Bond film series, the longest-running motion picture franchise of all time, running more than 40 years. ...

External links

• Eric Sykes at The Internet Movie Database