Dennis Geoffrey William Wilson, known as Dennis Main Wilson (1 May 1924 – 20 January 1997) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

producer of radio and television programmes, mainly for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

. Main Wilson has been described by '' Screenonline'' as "arguably the most important and influential of all comedy producers/directors in British radio and television".

Life and career

Dennis Geoffrey William Wilson was born at

Dulwich Dulwich (; ) is an area in south London, England. The settlement is mostly in the London Borough of Southwark, with parts in the London Borough of Lambeth, and consists of Dulwich Village, East Dulwich, West Dulwich, and the Southwark half of H ...

, London, the son of mechanical engineer George Arthur Main Wilson and Violet Rose (née Bayley). He was educated at Colfe's School in

Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...

. After wartime work for the German service of the BBC, he worked in comedy. He was producer of '' The Goon Show''s first two series.

Spike Milligan Terence Alan "Spike" Milligan (16 April 1918 – 27 February 2002) was an Irish comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright and actor. The son of an English mother and Irish father, he was born in British Raj, British India, where he spent his ...

, aware of Main Wilson's predilection for consuming alcohol, affectionately nicknamed him "Dennis Main Drain". Subsequently he produced the first four series of ''

Hancock's Half Hour ''Hancock's Half Hour'' was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy series, broadcast from 1954 to 1961 and written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The radio series starred Tony Hancock, with Sidney James, Bill Kerr and,at various ...

'' on radio, before leaving to train in television. '' Till Death Us Do Part'', also for the BBC, is his best remembered television work. Other shows he produced include '' Sykes and a...'' with Eric Sykes and Hattie Jacques, ''Here's Harry'' with Harry Worth, '' It's Marty'' starring Marty Feldman and ''

The Rag Trade ''The Rag Trade'' is a British television sitcom broadcast by the BBC between 1961 and 1963 and by ITV (TV network), ITV between 1977 and 1978. Although a comedy, it shed light on gender, politics and the "class war" on the factory floor. Th ...

'' (which he also directed). He had less success with '' Private Eye TV'', an attempt to turn the magazine '' Private Eye'' into a television programme. In 1976, a scene-shifter at the BBC handed him a script he had written. Main Wilson turned it into '' Citizen Smith''. The scene-shifter was John Sullivan, who later wrote '' Just Good Friends'', '' Dear John'' and ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses'' (titled onscreen as ''Only Fools and Horses....'') is a British television sitcom that was created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Ki ...

''. Main Wilson gave TV breaks to

Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...

, Hugh Laurie, Griff Rhys Jones and

Emma Thompson Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress and screenwriter. Emma Thompson on screen and stage, Her work spans over four decades of screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Emma Thompson, her accola ...

. Main Wilson died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

at the age of 72.

Personal life

In 1955, Main Wilson married Sylvia Harkin; the couple had a son and a daughter.

References

External links

Screenonline on Dennis Main WilsonBBC Comedy Guide on Dennis Main Wilson
*1991 Bectu intervie

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Main Wilson, Dennis 1924 births 1997 deaths British television producers British radio producers Deaths from lung cancer in England People educated at Colfe's School 20th-century British businesspeople People from Dulwich