Dick Emery

Emery was born on 19th February 1917 in St.Pancras, London and was destined for a life in show business. His parents were a double-act known as Callan and Emery and they performed in music hall venues throughout much of Dick's childhood.

During the Second World War he joined Ralph Reader's Gang Show entertaining the troops. However, like many others with an ambition to go into show business at the end of the war, he found it difficult to find work. In 1948 he managed to secure an engagement at London's famous Windmill Theatre, and appeared there around the same time as another new and generally unknown comedian, Tony Hancock.

It wasn't until the 1950's that he began to get regular work on BBC radio and by 1955 was a regular on Jon Pertwee's show, Pertwee's Progress. It was around this time that Emery began to develop a range of characters that were to become a regular feature on televisions.

He would draw on characters such as the First World War veteran, Kitchener Lampwick, sex starved Hettie, the frustrated spinster, the toothy Vicar, the 'bovver boy' Gaylord, and his dad (played by Roy Kinnear), the effeminate swinger Camp Clarence who referred to everyone as 'Honky Tonk', the upper-class tramp, College, and most famously Randy Mandy, the brassy blonde. He divided his time between TV (He moved to ITV in 1979) and radio and throughout his 30 year career as an entertainer until his untimely death (Is there ever a time?)in 1983. The programmes maintained a high standard throughout, thanks in no small part to Emery's surprisingly effective acting talent.

Dick Emery
SHOWS
AS A PERFORMER
Round The Bend UK 1955
The Tony Hancock Show UK 1956
Two's Company UK 1956
Man And Music UK 1957
The Army Game UK 1957
After Hours UK 1958
Educating Archie UK 1958
It's A Square World UK 1960
The Reunion UK 1962
The Dick Emery Show UK 1963
Room At The Bottom UK 1964
The Making Of Peregrine UK 1969
Dick Emery's Grand Prix UK 1970
The Gang Show Gala UK 1970
The Dick Emery Comedy Hour UK 1979
The Dick Emery Special UK 1979
The Dick Emery Hour UK 1980
Emery Presents UK 1982

AS A WRITER
The Dick Emery Show UK 1963
Dick Emery's Grand Prix UK 1970