Sir Harry Donald Secombe
Birth name	Harry Donald Secombe
Born	September 8, 1921 Swansea, Wales, UK
Died	April 11, 2001, age 79 Guildford, Surrey, England, UK

Sir Harry Donald Secombe, CBE (8 September 1921–11 April 2001) was a Welsh entertainer with a noted fine tenor singing voice and a talent for comedy. September 8 is the 251st day of the year (252nd in leap years). ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for full calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Wales_(bordered). ... For other places with the same name, see Swansea (disambiguation). ... This article is about the country. ... April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_England_(bordered). ... Not to be confused with Guilford. ... Not to be confused with Surry. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem God Save the King (Queen) England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification  -  by Athelstan 967  Area... The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire 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 are Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross (GBE) Knight Commander... September 8 is the 251st day of the year (252nd in leap years). ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for full calendar). ... April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the country. ... In music, a tenor is a male singer with a high voice. ... Comedy has a classical meaning (comical theatre) and a popular one (the use of humour with an intent to provoke[[ laughter in general). ...

Born at St. Thomas, Swansea, he served in the Royal Artillery British Army (he referred to his unit as 'The Five-Mile Snipers") during World War II in North Africa. This was where he first met Spike Milligan in Tunisia. Milligan's artillery battery had a larger caliber cannon that was too big for the gun pits Secombe's unit's cannon had used. The rest of Secombe's battery had alread moved and he was with the last element in some tents at the foot of a cliff below their former position. The officers in Milligan's battery didn't bother to enlarge the pits. When Spike's cannon fired its first shell, the recoil drove the gun up out of the pit and over the cliff. Secombe recalled that when the weapon fell outside the tent, he and his mates thought, "My God! They're throwing cannons at us!" A moment later, the flap of the tent opened and Spike poked his head in and said in his Eccles' voice, "Has anyone seen a gun?" St. ... Tactical Recognition Flash of the Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, generally known as the Royal Artillery (RA), is, despite its name, a corps of the British Army. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...  Northern Africa (UN subregion)  geographic, including above North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, generally divided politically from Sub-Saharan Africa. ... Terence Alan Milligan, KBE, (16 April 1918–27 February 2002), known as Spike Milligan, was an Irish writer, artist, musician, humanitarian, comedian, and poet. ... Eccles is the name of several places: Eccles, Greater Manchester, England Eccles, Kent, England Eccles, Scottish Borders, Scotland Eccles, a commune in Nord department, France Eccles, Lincoln County, Nevada Eccles — a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom Eccles can also mean...

His first comedy act was a routine about how people shaved. Secombe always claimed that his ability to sing could always be counted to save him when he bombed. Both Milligan and Sellers credited him with keeping them on the bill when club owners wanted to sack him.

In the early 1950s, he joined with Milligan, Michael Bentine and Peter Sellers in the BBC radio comedy The Goon Show. Secombe was notable playing Neddie Seagoon, the focus of many of the show's absurd plots. He also shared his birthday, 8 September, with Peter Sellers. Michael Bentine (January 26, 1922 - November 26, 1996) was a comedian, comic actor, and member of the Goons. ... Richard Henry Peter Sellers, CBE (8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English comedian, actor, and performer, who came to prominence on the BBC radio series The Goon Show and later became a film star. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation, usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion (US$7. ... The Goon Show was a popular and influential British radio comedy programme, originally produced and broadcast by the BBC from 1951 to 1960 on the BBC Home Service. ... Neddie Pugh Seagoon was a character in the British radio comedy, The Goon Show. ... Richard Henry Peter Sellers, CBE (8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English comedian, actor, and performer, who came to prominence on the BBC radio series The Goon Show and later became a film star. ...

Secombe appeared in many stage musicals, including Pickwick (1963, based on Dickens's The Pickwick Papers) and The Four Musketeers (1967), and had several chart successes, the song most associated with him being "If I Ruled the World" (from Pickwick). He also appeared as Mr. Bumble in Carol Reed's film of Lionel Bart's Oliver! (1968), and in the Envy segment of The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins. Musical theater (or theatre) is a form of theatre combining music, songs, dance, and spoken dialogue. ... Pickwick was a musical based on Charles Dickenss The Pickwick Papers, which opened on July 4, 1963. ... Dickens redirects here. ... The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, better known as The Pickwick Papers, is the first novel by Charles Dickens. ... If I Ruled the World is a song, originally from the West End musical, Pickwick, based on Charles Dickens The Pickwick Papers. ... Sir Carol Reed (30 December 1906 – 25 April 1976) was an English film director, winner of an Academy Award for his film version of the musical, Oliver! (1968). ... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ... Lionel Bart (1930-1999) was a British composer of songs musicals, best known for Oliver! Bart was born Lionel Begleiter in London to Galician Jews, and grew up in Stepney. ... Oliver! is a 1968 musical film directed by Carol Reed and based on the stage musical Oliver!. Both the film and play are based on the famous Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. ... The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins is a 1971 motion picture comedy. ...

Later in life, Secombe (whose brother Fred Secombe was a vicar) attracted new audiences as a presenter of religious programmes, such as the BBC's Songs of Praise and ITV's Highway. He was also a special programming consultant to Harlech Television.^[1] In the broadest sense, a vicar (from the Latin vicarius) is anyone acting as a substitute or agent for a superior (compare vicarious). In this sense, the title is comparable to lieutenant. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation, usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion (US$7. ... Songs of Praise is a BBC television programme based around traditional Christian hymns. ... It has been suggested that Channel 3 (UK) be merged into this article or section. ... HTV Group plc is a television company, the ITV contractor of Wales and the West of England, owned by ITV plc. ...

He was knighted in 1981, and jokingly referred to himself as Sir Cumference (in recognition of his rotund figure). Comedian Vic Reeves mentioned Secombe in his 1991 song "Meals On Wheels" ("Harry Secombe wants his pie and peas"). James Jim Roderick Moir, more commonly known by the pseudonym Vic Reeves, (born January 24, 1959) is an English comedian, best known through his double act with Bob Mortimer (see Vic and Bob). ...

Secombe suffered a stroke in 1997, from which he made a slow recovery, only to be diagnosed with prostate cancer the following September. After suffering a second stroke in 1999, he was forced to abandon his television career, but made a documentary about his condition in the hope of giving encouragement to other sufferers.^[2] Stroke is the clinical designation for a rapidly developing loss of brain function due to an interruption in the blood supply to all or part of the brain. ... Prostate cancer is a disease in which cancer develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. ...

Secombe and his wife, Myra Atherton, had four children:

• Jennifer Secombe, married to actor Alex Giannini. She was also her father's agent.^[1]
• Andy Secombe, a voice and film actor, as well as an author
• David Secombe, a writer and photographer
• Katy Secombe, an actress

His niece, Joan Secombe, is a head of house at Bishop Luffa school, in Chichester. Andrew Secombe (born April 26, 1953 in Mumbles Head, South Wales), better known as Andy Secombe, is a British actor, voice actor, and author. ... A voice actor (also a voice artist) is a person who provides voices for animated characters (including those in feature films, television series, animated shorts), voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides. ... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... Cosette Dwyer is an amazing author. ... The former Bishop Luffa School Logo Bishop Luffa School is a Church of England secondary school in Chichester, West Sussex, UK. The school was founded in 1965 and named after a former Bishop of Chichester, Ralph de Luffa. ... Statistics Population: 25,000 Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: SU865045 Administration District: Chichester Shire county: West Sussex Region: South East England Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: West Sussex Historic county: Sussex Services Police force: Sussex Police Fire and rescue: West Sussex Ambulance: South East Coast...

He died at the age of 79, from prostate cancer, at his home in Shamley Green, Surrey, England. Shamley Green, is a small village in the county of Surrey, England. ... Not to be confused with Surry. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem God Save the King (Queen) England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification  -  by Athelstan 967  Area...

Singles

• "On with the Motley" (1955) UK #16
• "If I Ruled the World" (1963) UK #18
• "This Is My Song" (1967) UK #2^[3]

If I Ruled the World is a song, originally from the West End musical, Pickwick, based on Charles Dickens The Pickwick Papers. ... This Is My Song was an international hit song for British singer Petula Clark (and in the UK for Harry Secombe). ...

Albums

• Sacred Songs (1962) UK #16
• Secombe's Personal Choice (1967) UK #6
• If I Ruled the World (1971) UK #17
• 20 Songs of Joy (1978) UK #8^[4]
• Captin Beaky and His Band

Book

• An Entertaining Life. Foreword by HRH Charles, Prince of Wales. London: Robson Books (2004). Paperback: ISBN 1-861-05811-X, ISBN 978-1-86105-811-9.

Royal Highness (abbreviation HRH) is a style (His Royal Highness or Her Royal Highness). ... The Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948), is the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. ... Anova Books is a UK-based publishing company founded in 2005 with the acquisition of the Chrysalis Books Group from the Chrysalis Group. ...

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Sir Harry Secombe dies", The Guardian, 2001-04-11. Retrieved on 2006-06-04. 
2. ^ Television Heaven: Harry Secombe. Retrieved on 2006-02-12.
3. ^ Guinness Book of British Hit Singles, 7th ed., 1989
4. ^ Guinness Book of British Hit Albums 1st ed., 1983 ISBN 0-85112-246-9

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (156th in leap years), with 210 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... February 12 is the 43rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The cover of the 1989 7th edition of the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles Guinness World Records - British Hit Singles & Albums is a music reference book, published in the United Kingdom, by Hit Entertainment, the company that owns such childrens entertainment brands as Bob the Builder and Thomas...

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Harry Secombe

• Harry Secombe at the Internet Movie Database