Lionel Blair (born Lionel Ogus on 12 December 1931 in Montreal, Canada) is a British actor, choreographer, tap dancer and television presenter. is the 346th day of the year (347th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nickname: Motto: Concordia Salus (well-being through harmony) Coordinates: , Country Province Region Montréal Founded 1642 Established 1832 Government  - Mayor Gérald Tremblay Area [1][2][3]  - Total 365. ... For other uses, see Actor (disambiguation). ... Choreography (also known as dance composition) is the art of making structures in which movement occurs, the term composition may also refer to the navigation or connection of these movement structures. ... Tap dance was born in the United States during the 19th century, and today is popular all around the world. ... A television presenter is a British term for a person who introduces or hosts television programmes. ...

Career

Blair is best known in the United Kingdom for being a team captain on the gameshow Give Us a Clue from 1982 until the early 1990s and also for being the (second) presenter of the British version of popular game show Name That Tune in the 1980s. His skills on Give Us A clue are frequently mocked in the introduction to the game Sound Charades on BBC Radio 4's similarly-named comedy show I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, normally by the use of a strong homosexual double entendre. For example, in one episode the host, Humphrey Lyttelton, introduced the game thus: "The expert's expert was of course Lionel Blair. Who could ever forget opposing team captain, Una Stubbs, sitting open-mouthed as he tried to pull off Twelve Angry Men in under two minutes?" Give Us A Clue is a televised version of charades hosted at different times by Michael Aspel and Michael Parkinson, with two teams: one captained by Lionel Blair and the other by Una Stubbs. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Quiz show redirects here. ... Name That Tune was a television game show that put two contestants against each other to test their knowledge of songs. ... Sound Charades is a variant of charades played on BBC Radio 4s antidote to panel games Im Sorry I Havent A Clue. ... Im Sorry I Havent a Clue, sometimes abbreviated to ISIHAC or simply Clue, is a BBC radio comedy which has run since 1972-04-11. ... A double entendre is a figure of speech similar to the pun, in which a spoken phrase can be understood in either of two ways. ... Humphrey Lyttelton at the Landmark Arts Centre, 22 April 2006. ... Una Stubbs (born 1 May 1937 in Leicester) is an English actress and former dancer. ... 12 Angry Men is a 1957 film which tells the story of one lone juror who holds out against the other eleven members of the jury because he is not convinced that the defendant is guilty. ...

Blair's rather camp image first came to the fore in the 1960s, when, with his own dance troupe, he appeared on many television variety programmes. He also appeared in films such as A Hard Day's Night and Absolute Beginners, cameoed in an episode of The Persuaders! and in television comedy, including the classic short film, The Plank. In addition, he choreographed films such as Jazz Boat (1960) and The Magic Christian (1969). The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969. ... The film A Hard Days Night (1964) is a mockumentary written by Alun Owen and starring The Beatles during the height of Beatlemania. ... Absolute Beginners is a 1986 slick mod-stylish rock musical movie adapted from Colin MacInnes book about life in late 1950s London. ... Not to be confused with The Persuaders (film) or The Persuaders (band). ... The Plank is a popular 30-minute, 1979 British slapstick comedy, which was a remake of an earlier 1967 version of the film, which was written and directed by Eric Sykes. ... The Magic Christian is a 1969 film directed by Joseph McGrath and starring Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr. ...

In 2005, he was one of the celebrities taking part in the channel 5 reality TV series, The Farm. He is currently touring the UK in a dance production entitled Strictly Ballroom Dancing. Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Farm is Fives version of the international TV format The Farm, produced by Strix. ...

Most recently, Blair appeared as a celebrity guest on ITV1's The Mint. ITV1 is the name, in England, Wales and the Scottish borders, for a terrestrial, free-to-air television channel, broadcast in the United Kingdom by the ITV network. ... This article is becoming very long. ...

Lionel and wife Susan, celebrated their Ruby wedding anniversary in March 2007. They have three children and one grandchild. He is the brother of the late British actress Joyce Blair, with whom he sometimes appeared. Joyce Blair (4 November 1932 - 19 August 2006) was an English actress and dancer. ...

He hit the headlines in early 2006 when his pet dog Florence was apparently kidnapped while walking in Surrey. The cross-breed collie disappeared when Mr Blair's wife took her out for a walk in the park near the couple's home in Surrey.

On September 21, 2006, Blair and comedian Alan Carr helped save a man who was about to fall from a pier in Blackpool. The man was holding on by his fingertips, but the two men managed to pull him to safety.^[1] is the 264th day of the year (265th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the film producer and manager with a similar name, see Allan Carr or Allen Carr for the self-help writer. ... This article is about the town in England. ...

Lionel will be appearing in the 2007 Christmas special of the Ricky Gervais show Extras, as revealed in the video podcast teaser. Ricky Dene Gervais (IPA: ; born June 25, 1961) is an Emmy-, Golden Globe- and BAFTA award-winning English comic writer and performer from Reading, Berkshire. ... Not to be confused with Extra (TV series). ... A podcast is a digital media file, or a series of such files, that is distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds for playback on portable media players and personal computers. ...

Trivia

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• He is a member of the Grand Order of Water Rats.
• His signature dance move is the 'Big Lionel' which comprises hiatus in tapping before an elaborate theatrical twirl. This is typically followed by a grin and one clap of the hands before the tap dance is resumed. When performing the Big Lionel, he also says "Big Lionel".
• He avoids eating fish whenever possible.
• His name is used as Cockney Rhyming Slang for Flares, the popular trousers from the 70s. As is typical for ryhming slang, his first name is often used in usage i.e. "look at those Lionels" etc.
• He has been namechecked in three songs - We're As Common as Muck by Ian Dury, God Gave Us Life by Half Man Half Biscuit and Lennie and Terence by Carter USM.

Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... The Grand Order of Water Rats is a United Kingdom entertainment industry charity. ... Cockney rhyming slang is a form of English slang which originated in the East End of London. ... Bell bottoms are trousers that become more wide from the knees downwards. ... Centuries: 1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century Decades: 20s - 30s - 40s - 50s - 60s - 70s - 80s - 90s - 100s - 110s - 120s 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 Note: Sometimes the 70s is used as shorthand for the 1970s, the 1870s, or other such decades in other centuries... Ian Dury, in a look combining Gene Vincent with a Cockney pearly king. ... Nigel Blackwell, singer, guitarist and songwriter Half Man Half Biscuit, often abbreviated to HMHB, are a UK rock band from Birkenhead, active sporadically since the mid-1980s, known for their satirical, sardonic and sometimes surreal songs. ... Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine (frequently shortened to Carter USM) was a British indie band formed in 1987 by singer Jim Jim Bob Morrison and guitarist Les Fruitbat Carter. ...

References

1. ^ "Entertainers in pier rescue drama", BBC News, 2006-09-21. Retrieved on 2007-04-29. 

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 119th day of the year (120th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Humphrey Lyttelton's Sound Charade introductions, which often feature Lionel Blair.
• Lionel Blair in the East End