Charlie Drake
Born: 1925-06-19 in South East London - England - UK
Died: 2006-12-23
Known For: Acting
Biography
Charlie Drake, was an English comedian, actor, writer and singer best known for his catchphrase "Hello. My darlings!". With his small stature (5 ft 1 in or 155 cm tall), curly red hair and liking for slapstick, he was a popular comedian with children in his early years, performing with Jack Edwardes in the double act Mick and Montmorency on children's TV. He subsequently made the break into primetime TV and critical and commercial acclaim with his solo show Drake's Progress (1955-1957). He was best known for his series The Worker (1965–70) in which he played a perpetually unemployed labourer who, in every episode, was dispatched to a new job by the ever-frustrated clerk at the local labour exchange. In the sixties, Drake made the transition to cinema, making several comedy films. By the 1980s, Drake reinvented himself as a straight actor, including a memorable performance as Smallweed in the 1985 BBC adaptation of Bleak House and playing Nagg in Samuel Beckett's Endgame in 1989. He suffered a series of strokes in 1995 and retired, passing away in 2006 at the age of 81.
Filmography
2004
- Sinderella Comes Again - Backstage as Baron Von Hard-on
2001
- Charlie Drake: Drake's Progress as Self
1995
- Sinderella Live as Baron Hardon
1991
- Filipina Dreamgirls as Lionel
1989
- Endgame as Nagg
1988
- The Modern World: Ten Great Writers as Marmeladov
- Mr. H Is Late
1985
- Bleak House as Smallweed
1984
- Royal Variety Performance 1984
- Professor Popper's Problems as Professor Popper
1980
1979
- The Plank as Delivery man with cake
1977
1974
1967
- Mister Ten Per Cent as Percy Pointer
1965
1963
- The Cracksman as Ernest Wright
1961
- Petticoat Pirates as Charlie
1960
- Sands of the Desert as Charlie Sands