Helen Lederer
Helen Margaret Lederer (born 24 September 1954) is an English comedian, writer and actress who emerged as part of the alternative comedy boom at the beginning of the 1980s. Among her television credits are the BBC2 sketch series '' Naked Video'' and BBC One's '' Absolutely Fabulous'', in which she played the role of Catriona. In 2015 her comedy novel ''Losing It'' was published by Pan Macmillan. It was nominated for the P. G. Wodehouse Comedy Literary Award and the Edinburgh Book Festival First Book Award. Early life Helen Lederer was born on 24 September 1954 in Carmarthen, Wales to an English mother and Czech-Jewish father.''Sunday Telegraph'' 13 May 2012 Her father was born in 1926 in [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Carmarthen
Carmarthen (, RP: ; cy, Caerfyrddin , "Merlin's fort" or "Sea-town fort") is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community in Wales, lying on the River Towy. north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. The population was 14,185 in 2011, down from 15,854 in 2001, but gauged at 16,285 in 2019. It has a claim to be the oldest town in Wales – ''Old Carmarthen'' and ''New Carmarthen'' became one borough in 1546. It was the most populous borough in Wales in the 16th–18th centuries, described by William Camden as "chief citie of the country". Growth stagnated by the mid-19th century as new settlements developed in the South Wales Coalfield. History Early history When Britannia was a Roman province, Carmarthen was the civitas capital of the Demetae tribe, known as Moridunum ("Sea Fort"). It is possibly the oldest town in Wales, recorded by Ptolemy and in the Antonine Itinerary. The Roman fort is believed to date from about AD 75. A Roman coin hoard was found nearby in 2 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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University Of Hertfordshire
The University of Hertfordshire (UH) is a public university in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom. The university is based largely in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Its antecedent institution, Hatfield Technical College, was founded in 1948 and was identified as one of 25 Colleges of Technology in the United Kingdom in 1959. In 1992, Hatfield Polytechnic was granted university status by the British government and subsequently renamed University of Hertfordshire. It is one of the post-1992 universities. Hertfordshire is mainly based at two campuses - College Lane and de Havilland. As of 2021, it has over 25,130 students, including more than 5,200 international students that together represent 100 countries. The university is one of Hertfordshire's largest employers with over 2,700 staff, 812 of whom are academic members of staff. It has a turnover of more than £235 million. The university has 9 schools: Hertfordshire Business School, Computer Science, Creative Arts ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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BBC2
BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio channels, it is funded by the television licence, and is therefore free of commercial advertising. It is a comparatively well-funded public-service network, regularly attaining a much higher audience share than most public-service networks worldwide. Originally styled BBC2, it was the third British television station to be launched (starting on 21 April 1964), and from 1 July 1967, Europe's first television channel to broadcast regularly in colour. It was envisaged as a home for less mainstream and more ambitious programming, and while this tendency has continued to date, most special-interest programmes of a kind previously broadcast on BBC Two, for example the BBC Pro ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Happy Families (1985 TV Series)
''Happy Families'' is a rural comedy drama written by Ben Elton which was a BBC series first broadcast in 1985. It recounts the tale of the dysfunctional Fuddle family. It stars Jennifer Saunders as Granny Fuddle, Dawn French as the Cook and Adrian Edmondson as her imbecilic grandson Guy. Premise The series centred on Guy's attempts to find his four sisters – also played by Saunders – for a family reunion. Cast Main *Jennifer Saunders as Granny, Cassie, Madeleine, Joyce and Roxanne Fuddle *Adrian Edmondson as Guy Fuddle, Grandpa Harold Fuddle *Dawn French as Cook *Stephen Fry as Dr. De Quincy *Helen Lederer as Flossie Supporting *Jim Broadbent as Dalcroix *Hugh Laurie as Jim *Una Stubbs as Mother Superior *Christine Edmunds as Maxine * Ceri Jackson as Sister Ophelia *Claudette Williams as Jill *Rik Mayall as Nazi pastor *Chris Barrie as Sammy Production and visual style Each sister's story was shot in a different "style" of film; Cassie's story was shot to make it appear ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rik Mayall
Richard Michael Mayall (7 March 1958 – 9 June 2014) was an English actor, stand-up comedian and writer. He formed a close partnership with Ade Edmondson while they were students at Manchester University and was a pioneer of alternative comedy in the 1980s. Mayall starred in numerous successful comedy series throughout his career, including '' The Young Ones'', '' The Comic Strip Presents...'', ''Blackadder'', '' Filthy Rich & Catflap'', '' The New Statesman'', '' Bottom'' and '' Believe Nothing''. Mayall also starred in the comedy films '' Drop Dead Fred'' and '' Guest House Paradiso''; he won a Primetime Emmy Award for his voice-over work in '' The Willows in Winter''. His comedic style was described as energetic "post-punk". Mayall died suddenly at his home in London on 9 June 2014 at the age of 56. BBC Television director Danny Cohen praised him as a "truly brilliant" comedian with a unique stage presence, whose "fireball creativity" and approach to sitcom had ins ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ben Elton
Benjamin Charles Elton (born 3 May 1959) is an English comedian, actor, author, playwright, lyricist and director. He was a part of London's alternative comedy movement of the 1980s and became a writer on the sitcoms '' The Young Ones'' and ''Blackadder'', as well as continuing as a stand-up comedian on stage and television. His style in the 1980s was left-wing political satire. Since then he has published 17 novels and written the musicals '' The Beautiful Game'' (2000), '' We Will Rock You'' (2002), ''Tonight's the Night'' (2003), and '' Love Never Dies'' (2010), the sequel to '' The Phantom of the Opera''. His novels cover the dystopian, comedy, and crime genres. Early life and education Elton was born on 3 May 1959 at University College Hospital in Fitzrovia, London, the son of Mary (née Foster), an English teacher from Cheshire, and physicist and educational researcher Professor Lewis Elton. He is a nephew of the historian Sir Geoffrey Elton and a third cousin of singer ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Young Ones (TV Series)
''The Young Ones'' is a British sitcom written by Rik Mayall, Ben Elton, and Lise Mayer, starring Adrian Edmondson, Mayall, Nigel Planer, Christopher Ryan, and Alexei Sayle, and broadcast on BBC Two for two series, first shown in 1982 and 1984. The show focused on the lives of four dissimilar students and their landlord's family on different plots that often included anarchic, offbeat, surreal humour. The show often included slapstick gags, visual humour and surreal jokes sometimes acted out by puppets, with each episode also featuring a notable selection of guest stars and musical numbers from various performers. ''The Young Ones'' helped bring alternative comedy to British television in the 1980s and made household names of its writers and performers. The show became a notable icon of 1980s British popular culture, and it received its own game and a home-media release while becoming the first non-music-related programme to appear on MTV in the United States in 1985. The sho ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Comedy Store, London
The Comedy Store is a comedy club located in Soho, London, England, opened in 1979 by Don Ward and Peter Rosengard.Peter Rosengard's website Retrieved 2019-03-08. History Since 16 January 1925 's private members' club had leased the three top floors of 69 , , London (at the cor ...[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Radio Academy Awards
The Radio Academy Awards, started in 1983, were the most prestigious awards in the British radio industry. For most of their existence, they were run by ZAFER Associates, but in latter years were brought under the control of The Radio Academy. The awards were generally referred to by the name of their first sponsor, Sony, as The Sony Awards, The Sony Radio Awards or variations. In August 2013, Sony announced the end of its sponsorship agreement with The Radio Academy after 32 years. Consequently, the awards were named simply ''The Radio Academy Awards''. In November 2014, it was announced that The Radio Academy would not be holding the awards in 2015, and would be looking for other ways to recognise achievement in the future. The awards were relaunched in 2016 as the Audio & Radio Industry Awards (ARIAS). Awards format The awards were organised into various categories, with nominees being announced a few weeks before the main awards ceremony. The categories varied slight ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nick Wilton
Nicholas Wilton is an English actor and scriptwriter. He has appeared as Mr Lister in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' as a recurring character; he has also appeared in '' Carrott's Lib'' and ''Jackanory''. Early life Wilton studied English and Drama at the University of Kent. His first professional engagement was in 1979 as a bluecoat entertainer at a Pontins holiday camp. He then spent two years as a stage manager in theatres, before moving into acting. Career Acting Wilton made his acting debut in 1980 in the Whitehall farce ''Simple Spymen'', directed by Brian Rix, and went on to play opposite Rix in the West End revival of ''Dry Rot'' at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue in 1988. He has appeared in many television shows, such as the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', '' Doctors'' (twice), '' Casualty'', '' Heartbeat'', ''The Bill'' (three times), '' Carrott's Lib'' (two series and Election Specials), ''The Omid Djalili Show'' and the children's show ''Scoop''. He app ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Clive Mantle
Clive Andrew Mantle (born 3 June 1957) is an English actor. He played general surgeon Mike Barratt in the BBC hospital drama series '' Casualty'' and ''Holby City'' in the 1990s, and Little John in the 1980s fantasy series '' Robin of Sherwood''. He returned to ''Casualty'' in 2016 as Mike Barratt for the show's 30th anniversary. Mantle was educated at Kimbolton School, Cambridgeshire between 1970 and 1975 and at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) between 1978 and 1980. He appeared in 11 productions of the National Youth Theatre in five seasons between 1974 and 1978, and began carving a successful career as a stage actor in the 1980s, alongside various television roles. In 1984 he was nominated for an Olivier Award and was joint Best Newcomer in the Plays and Players Awards for his performance as Lennie in '' Of Mice and Men''. That year he was cast as Little John in ''Robin of Sherwood'', a role which he considers the most enjoyable of his career and which has remai ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jamie Rix
Jamie Rix (born 27 April 1958) is an English children's author, television comedy writer, and media producer. He is best known for the book series '' Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' and ''The War Diaries of Alistair Fury''; both were adapted into award-winning children's television programmes. Career Rix studied Drama and English at the University of Kent, and worked as an assistant stage manager at Royal Court Theatre to learn how to direct plays. On holiday in France, he created a white lie story, ''The Spaghetti Man'', in order to make his four-year-old son eat his dinner. It was about a little boy who refused to behave at the kitchen table and is kidnapped by an invisible force, that takes him to a factory to turn him into lasagne. Rix took note of how the lie had made his four-year-old eat all of his meals without hesitations, which would inspire a series that could scare children into behaving themselves. An unspecified time later, Rix was hired by the BBC to write and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |