Duncan A. Norvelle (2 April 1958 – 12 December 2024) was an English comedian in the

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

tradition, who appeared on British television from the early 1980s. He was often referred to as Duncan "Chase me" Norvelle, stemming from his

catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...

"Chase me!" His act was based on appearing to be a stereotypical

camp Camp may refer to: Areas of confinement, imprisonment, or for execution * Concentration camp, an internment camp for political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or minority ethnic groups * Extermination ...

homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" exc ...

despite being heterosexual and married three times.

Early life and career

Norvelle was born in Hoton, near

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood (borough), Charnwood Borough of Leicestershire, England; it is the administrative centre of Charnwood Borough Council. At the United Kingdom 2021 census, the town's built-up area had a popula ...

, in

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

. In the mid 1980s, he hosted an unscreened pilot dating show called ''It's a Hoot'' for

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT; now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV (TV network), ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00&nbs ...

. The series was eventually re-titled ''

Blind Date A blind date is a romantic meeting between two people who have never met before. Both parties arrange a date with little to no information about each other, hoping for the possibility of making a lasting impression. Typically, a family member or ...

'' and hosted by

Liverpudlian Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

singer and entertainer

Cilla Black Priscilla Maria Veronica White (27 May 1943 – 1 August 2015), better known as Cilla Black, was an English singer and television presenter. Championed by her friends the Beatles, Black began her career as a singer in 1963. Her singles "A ...

. In 1991, Duncan appeared on the ITV comedy panel game show ''

Through the Keyhole ''Through the Keyhole'' is a British comedy panel game show created by the TV producer Kevin Sim and originally presented by David Frost, Sir David Frost in the studio and Loyd Grossman on location. The location presenter explores celebrities' h ...

''. He also appeared on ''

Wogan ''Wogan'' is a British television talk show which was broadcast on BBC1 from 1982 to 1992 and presented by Terry Wogan. It was usually broadcast live from the BBC Television Theatre in Shepherd's Bush, London, until 1991. It was then broadcast ...

'', '' Surprise Surprise'', '' The Bob Monkhouse Show'', '' Bullseye'', ''

Blankety Blank ''Blankety Blank'' is a British comedy game show which first aired in 1979. The show is based on the American game show ''Match Game'', with contestants trying to match answers given by celebrity panellists to fill-in-the-blank questions. The ...

'' and '' The Keith Harris Show''. 2008 saw him go out on tour as part of the ''

Ricky Tomlinson Eric "Ricky" Tomlinson (born 26 September 1939) is an English actor. He is best known for his television roles as Bobby Grant in the soap opera '' Brookside'' (1982–1988), DCI Charlie Wise in '' Cracker'' (1993–2006) and Jim Royle in '' T ...

Laughter Show''.Ricky Tomlinson meets Scargill at opening - GALLERY
'' The Star'', 6 March 2008. Archived fro
the original
on 4 May 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2021 Norvelle spent the 2009

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment, generally combining gender-crossing actors and topical humour with a story more or less based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or ...

season playing

Buttons A button is a fastener that joins two pieces of fabric together by slipping through a loop or by sliding through a buttonhole. In modern clothing and fashion design, buttons are commonly made of plastic but also may be made of metal, wood, o ...

in ''

Cinderella "Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a Folklore, folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988. The protagonist is a you ...

'' in

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

, South Yorkshire. In 2011, he appeared on '' Celebrity Come Dine with Me'' with Sean Hughes,

Gina Yashere Regina Obedapo Iyashere (born 6 April 1974) is a British comedian, actress and writer who has made numerous appearances on British and American television. She co-created the American sitcom '' Bob Hearts Abishola'', on which she plays a support ...

and Paul Tonkinson. In 2019, he appeared on an 80s special edition of '' Pointless Celebrities''. His ''In the Club'' DVD was released on 16 January 2006 by Boulevard Entertainment, and he appeared on the ''Ricky Tomlinson Laughter Show Live DVD'' - the latter includes a brief interview. He also released an album, ''Music from My Life'', in 2017.

Illness and death

Norvelle was hospitalised in 2012 after suffering a stroke, leaving him paralysed down the left side of his body. After nine weeks in hospital, he cancelled his summer season with comedy duo Cannon and Ball, and was replaced by Stu Francis. In 2015, Norvelle chose the Embassy Theatre,

Skegness Skegness ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, England. On the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, the town is east of Lincoln and north-east of Boston. With a population of 21,128 as of 2021 ...

, as his first performance after over three years off-stage, promising that funds from his show would be allocated to the Stroke Association. In the last few years of his life, he would also be filmed in Skegness at Neville Henshaw and Loraine Parker's 1960s themed Beeston Lodge Hotel for the Channel 5 series '' Bargain-Loving Brits by the Sea''. Norvelle died from a chest infection and

sepsis Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage of sepsis is followed by suppression of the immune system. Common signs and s ...

at Pilgrim Hospital in

Boston, Lincolnshire Boston is a market town and inland port in the borough of the same name in the county of Lincolnshire, England. It lies to the south-east of Lincoln, east of Nottingham and north-east of Peterborough. The town had a population of 45,339 at ...

, on 12 December 2024, at the age of 66. His death was announced by his partner, Linda Trevallion. Among those to pay tribute to him was fellow comedian

Jimmy Cricket James Mulgrew (born 17 October 1945), known professionally as Jimmy Cricket, is a Northern Irish comedian. He first came to prominence as a comedian in the 1970s and has had his own shows on television and radio. Early life and career Cricket ...

, who described Norvelle as a "charismatic performer who thrilled audiences up and down the country with his style of humour and hilarious impressions."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norvelle, Duncan 1958 births 2024 deaths English male comedians People from the Borough of Charnwood Comedians from Leicestershire