SATURDAY MAGAZINE 69WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
THIS WEEK...
Pictures: Alamy; http://www.splashnews.com; BBC
Rita Tushingham,
was directed by
Richard Lester,
who also made The
Beatles’ first film A
Hard Day’s Night.
It was a big hit and
won the Palme d’Or prize at Cannes. My wife
Sadie and I travelled there for the ceremony,
staying at the InterContinental Carlton Hotel.
Every big star of the day you can think of was
there and anything we wanted we just signed
for it. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
‘In the intervening years, I did a few different
TV projects. Cathy Come Home was a BBC
television play. I was lorry driver Reg
who, together with wife Cathy and
their two children, descended into
poverty and homelessness. It
was hard-hitting, got a huge
audience and people still
remember it.
‘I also did the voice of Mr
Benn for the animated TV
series, and despite only making
13 episodes about the man in the
black suit and bowler hat, it’s had
endless repeats around the world for years.
‘I enjoyed playing the ups and downs of
small time gambler Robbie Box in the 80sdrama series Big Deal because
it was a great cast, with Sharon
Duce as my girlfriend and Pamela
Cundell as my mother. I had no
idea it would last for 30 episodes.
I continued stage and TV work
including Growing Pains, about a couple
who become foster parents with Sharon Duce
as my wife.
‘My daughter Emma, who was a social
worker, died of cancer aged 37 in 2003 and
EastEnders was among her favourite shows,
so it felt right to join the show in 2005.
‘Since then, I’ve written my autobiography,
Learning My Lines, two novels, and my
new novella, The Running Boy. Everything
I write is based on people I’ve met or words
they’ve said.
‘I met Sadie in a coffee bar and we’ve been
married for 60 years and have two sons and five
grandchildren. Will is a copywriter in New
Zealand and Tom works for the council.
‘When people stop me, it’s usually to talk
to me about EastEnders or they recognise
my voice from Mr Benn. In The Running
Boy, the boy is told, “Don’t look back, look
forward.” That’s exactly the same with me.’Must see
Inna De Yard is Jamaica’s
answer to Buena Vista Social
Club, uniting a group of reggae
legends to record an album.
The musicians, including Ken
Boothe and Cedric Myton,
reminisce about reggae’s
golden age. It’s in cinemas now.With Carol White in Cathy Come
Home, 1966. Below: with Wendy
Richard in EastEnders, 2006Must read
Teagan has put her
past behind her,
but her cosy life is
capsized when a
raging man moves
in next door. Will he
tear apart the life she
worked so hard to achieve? Butterfly
In Frost (£4.99, Montlake Romance)
by Sylvia Day is out now.Words by: Tony Padman & Kirsten Jones
‘My mother was a bus conductress, but
I never knew my father. She enjoyed watching
entertainers and we’d go together to see shows
at all the variety theatres across Brighton’s
seafront. I was eight when my mother arranged
elocution lessons for me because she felt it
would offer me a better start in life.
‘Years later, I won a prize for reciting poetry,
which eventually led me into acting and a place
at RADA. I toured the country in Rep and made
my debut as a midshipman in Treasure Island
at Sheffield Rep. Then my screen work began
in 1959 with a docu-drama for the War
Department about life for British POWs fighting
in the Korean War in the early 50s. I got regular
work on TV – from Gideon’s Way to The
Avengers and Z Cars – then films
like Damn The Defiant! with
Alec Guinness.
‘I also made TV series such
as Taxi!, which was a comedy
with Sid James training me to
become a taxi driver.
‘I was a regular on
Coronation Street as Norman
Phillips, who managed the local
hall where they held wrestling
matches. It was a nice job because I knew many
of the cast members well. The Knack... And
How To Get It, with Michael Crawford and‘People stop
me to talk about
EastEnders or
they recognise
my voice
from Mr
Benn’A
ctor Ray Brooks got his screen break in
1965 in The Knack... And How To Get It
with Michael Crawford. He also starred
in the TV drama Cathy Come Home, as
gambler Robbie Box in the series Big Deal and as Pauline Fowler’s
second husband, Joe Macer, in EastEnders. Brighton-born
Ray, 80, and his wife Sadie live in West London. They have
two sons, Will and Tom. Their daughter Emma died in 2003.Ray Brooks
Must do
Adapted from the hit
movie, Big The Musical
features a young boy
whose dreams come
true when he wakes up a
man. The heart-warming
tale plays at London’s
Dominion Theatre from
Friday until November 2. For tickets
from £31, visit bigthemusical.co.uk.For more about Ray and his books, visit
raybrooksbooks.com.