Web Page No 2640
3^rd December 2019

1st Picture. Roy Castle, Jimmy James and Eli Woods with the box sketch

 2nd Picture. Roy Castle

3rd Picture. Wedding Photograph with Harry Secombe

4th Picture. Roy and Fiona

Roy Castle

Roy Castle OBE  was born on 31st August 1932 and died on 2nd September 1994. We all knew him as the presenter and participant in Record Breakers but was also a dancer, singer, comedian, actor, television presenter and musician. In addition to being an accomplished jazz trumpet player, he could play many other instruments.

He was born in Scholes, near Holmfirth, (Last of the Summer Wine Country) and was the son of a railwayman. He became a tap dancer at an early age and after leaving Holme Valley Grammar School he started his career as an entertainer in an amateur concert party. As a young performer in the 1950s, he lived in Cleveleys near  Blackpool and appeared at the local Queen's Theatre, turning professional in 1953 as a stooge for Jimmy Clitheroe and Jimmy James. Little knowing that five years later he would be appearing at the Royal Variety Show.]

In 1965, he starred with Peter Cushing in the film Dr. Who and the Daleks, the first of two cinema spin-offs from the BBC television series. He played the role of  Dr. Who's first male assistant, Ian Chesterton, and was cast to perform the role more comedically than it had been played by William Russell in the original series. He also appeared in Dr. Terror's House of Horrors as a jazz musician suffering a curse after copying voodoo tunes. He appeared in Carry On Up the Khyberin 1968 and in the TV musical Pickwick  in 1969. In the 90s he appeared again in Pickwick, touring the country, starring alongside Sir Harry Secombe. In 1973, Roy Castle teamed up with comedian Ronnie Barker in an original one-off called "Another Fine Mess" Ronnie Barker was one of Roy Castle's best friends, and paid tribute to their work together shortly after Roy’s death.

Between 1967 and 1968 he co-starred with Jimmy Edwards in the London West End run of the comedy farce show Big Bad Mouse when Eric Sykes had to withdraw because of illness. He also once stood in for Bruce Forsyth hosting The Generation Game in 1975 while Bruce was ill. He made many appearances on BBC TV's The Good Old Days, making use of his multi instrumental skills.

It was in 1972, that he first presented  and he remained host for over 20 years. He recorded the theme song for the show himself. While presenting the show he broke nine world records himself, including

·         Fastest tap-dance 1,440 taps per minute – 24 taps per second, set on 14 January 1973, a record that has never been bettered.

·         Longest wing walk – 3 hours, 23 minutes.

·         Playing the same tune on 43 different instruments in four minutes.

·         In November 1985 he tap-danced his way to a new record and raised £1 million for charity. He averaged nearly twelve steps a second during the sponsored feat in London.

·         He was a host of the show up until a few months before his death in 1994.

Between 1958 and 1969, he recorded three LPs and in 1963 he married dancer Fiona Dickson, they had been introduced by Eric Morecambe. Roy and his wife were committed Christians and regularly attended the Baptist church near their home. They had four children. Their youngest son, Ben Castle (born 1973), is a jazz saxophonist who has played with a wide range of artistss.

Less than six months before his death, Roy attended the Liverpool-Everton derby match at Anfield  and stood on the Kop terrace. On 31st December 1992, he was awarded the OBE. But in March that year he was diagnosed with lung cancer and was told that his chances of recovery were slim and that it was unlikely that he would live for more than six months. He underwent chemotherapy and radiotherapy and went into remission later that year. A non-smoker, he blamed his illness on passive smoking during his years of playing the trumpet in smoky jazz clubs. Several months after the return of the cancer he carried out the high-profile Tour of Hope to raise funds for the erection of the building that would become the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation, which is the only British charity dedicated solely to defeating lung cancer. By this stage his condition was deteriorating.

During and shortly after his illness, many smoke-free restaurants and cafes were awarded the Roy Castle Clean Air Award to denote their adherence to a (then voluntary) smoke-free regime.

His final contribution to Record Breakers was aired at the end of the series ending in December 1993, although the programme continued until 2001.

He died in Buckinghamshire on 2nd September 1994, two days after his 62nd birthday.

His widow Fiona worked with the charity after her husband's death, and campaigned for the British smoking ban which came into effect in Northern Ireland in 2004, Scotland in 2006 and  England and Wales in 2007, banning smoking in virtually all enclosed public places.

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On this day 3^rd December 1960-1965

On 03/12/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Armchair Theatre (ABC) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 03/12/1961 the number one single was Little Sister/His Latest Flame - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was "Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £ 13.25 Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Sunday Night at the London Palladium (ATV)".

On 03/12/1962 the number one single was Lovesick Blues - Frank Ifield and the number one album was On Stage with the Black & White Minstrels - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Heavy smog kills 55 in London.

On 03/12/1963 the number one single was She Loves You - The Beatles and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 03/12/1964 the number one single was Little Red Rooster - Rolling Stones and the number one album was A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 03/12/1965 the number one single was The Carnival is Over - Seekers and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.