WHAT A CARRY ON!
What places inspired and attracted the stars of Britain’s most famous comedy franchise?
Deal seafront: Shantavira at en.wikipedia
Recently I bought from eBay a collection of photographs of scenes from Carry On movies (shown on this page). They turned out to be a mix PR pics and shots taken from the TV. They’re an odd-looking bunch of photos, which would seem even odder if you weren’t familiar with the British comedy franchise that brought music-hall humour to subjects ranging from the NHS and the British Empire to cowboy movies and camping trips. Running from 1958 to 1992, Carry On films were a huge part of British popular culture and had a regular ensemble of remarkably idiosyncratic actors who came from diverse backgrounds - rarely privileged ones. I started wondering about the places that nurtured and influenced their characters as well as the places they were drawn to once the money started rolling in.
Kenneth Williams (1926-1988): Bicester, Oxfordshire
Born in Kings Cross, North London, as the son of hairdressers, Kenneth, 14, was evacuated to Bicester, Oxfordshire, during WWII. Here, he lived with an elderly retired veterinarian, Mr Chisholm, in an antique-filled house in central Sheep Street. An eccentric character, the vet recited poetry such as Tennyson’s The Charge of the Light Brigade and sang centuries-old English ballads to his new audience of one. Kenneth loved the whole experience, and when his mother fetched him home he was changed boy. He returned to London speaking with clear diction and a markedly nasal tone, drawling his vowels dramatically and determined to make the stage his career. The rest is history!
Kenneth Connor (xxx): Bicester, Oxfordshire
He was a performer from the age of two; his father was a naval officer stationed at Portsmouth who put on shows. And he attended the Central School of Speech and Drama from 11. And the classics and sang tenor. But his first taste of comedy came in the war towards comedy on was a tour of the Middle East with Stars in Battledress, entertainment tours designed to raise the moral of the armed forces. toured the Middle East with Stars in Battledress
Joan Sims (1930-2001): Laindon, Essex
Carry on Nurse (1958) was Joan Sims’ first film in the franchise - and she stuck with it til 1978. Her love of entertaining came from her childhood in the town of Laindon, where her father was the station master. Joan and her mother lived at nearby Station Approach - there’s a blue plaque on their house - and Joan would put on performances for passengers waiting for their trains. As a teenager she took part in amateur dramatics with the Langdon Players and made repeated attempts to get into RADA before comedy came calling.
Right: Joan Sims with Kenneth Williams
Charles Hawtrey (1914-1988): Deal, Kent
What a disreputable old soak Charles Hawtrey, right, was in his final years, running amok in the seaside resort of Deal. The Kent town had initially attracted his interest due to the presence of naval students attending the Royal Marines College of Music. He lived in a terraced house at 117 Middle Street, just behind the seafront. On good form he’d stroll the prom waving genially to fisherman. On difficult days he’s swear at autograph hunters and find himself sharply ejected from local pubs for drunken, abusive behaviour. Alcoholism damaged his career, too. He’d been in the very first of the franchise Carry on Sergeant in 1958 and was dropped after Carry On Abroad in 1972. He was raucous to the end - after collapsing at the Royal Hotel in 1988, he died in hospital having thrown a vase at an autograph-hunting nurse.
