Bob Monkhouse

Bob Monkhouse was Britain's king of the quiz show, but this was just a part of a 50-year career in show business. While still at school, he wrote for the Beano and Dandy. His family owned a custard factory, but after leaving school he decided to go into writing comedy material in a double-act with Denis Godwin for major Hollywood stars such as Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. He worked in cabaret, performed in West End farces, acted on film and presented countless programmes.

His big break came while performing in South Africa, when he received a contract to work one week at the London Palladium - in fact, he stayed for six months. His TV debut was in the 1950s comedy show Fast And Loose, and the Monkhouse / Goodwin double act put in a guest appearance on the 1953 show Why? (though even this couldn't save it from being a major flop). Though widely respected as a swift-witted comedian, audiences found something slightly unsettling about his enigmatic personality.

His film roles included an appearance in the very first Carry On film, and he made cameo appearances in modern drama series such as Jonathan Creek. He was an avid collector of silent film comedies, and is credited with preserving the only known copy of many films.

Bob Monkhouse was appointed OBE in 1993. He died in December 2003 from prostate cancer. In 2007, a combination of archive footage and computer trickery were used to bring him back to life for a highly acclaimed "Give a Few Bob" advert highlighting the disease - see giveafewbob.org for details.

Trivia

He used a 'peg' memory system to help remember his jokes. When two folders of his jokes were stolen in 1995, he offered a £10,000 reward for their safe return.

In the 1970s, a daily newspaper conducted a poll in Bob Monkhouse was voted the third most popular performer on television. A week later, the same paper held another poll to discover which TV performers readers most hated. Bob Monkhouse headed the list.