Jack Tripp (4 February 1922 – 10 July 2005) was an English

comic actor The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with black comedy, dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is o ...

, singer and dancer who appeared in seaside

variety shows Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a compè ...

and

revues A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during ...

and became best known for his many performances as a

pantomime dame A pantomime dame is a traditional role in British pantomime. It is part of the theatrical tradition of '' travesti'' portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. Dame characters are often played either in an extremely camp style, or el ...

. Born in

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

, Devon, Tripp was the only son of a baker, William Tripp, and his wife Lillian. At a very young age he attended dancing classes and entered

tap dancing Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance that uses the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music. Tap dancing can also be performed with no musical accompaniment; the sound of the taps is its ow ...

competitions; leading to appearances in local clubs where his was billed as Plymouth's

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...

. When

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

broke out, Tripp joined up to serve in the

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is the maintenance arm of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's professional engineers". History Prior t ...

. Whilst in the army, he joined

Stars in Battledress Stars in Battledress (SiB) was an organisation of entertainers who were members of the British Armed Forces during World War II. History In Britain, during the Second World War, entertainment was considered an essential to keep morale high. I ...

where he performed in Europe and the Middle East. After the war, Tripp took up acting professionally and appeared as a singer and dancer in variety shows and revues. He made his debut in the West End understudying

Sid Field Sidney Arthur Field (1 April 1904 – 3 February 1950) was an English comedy entertainer who was popular in the 1940s. Early years Field was born in Ladywood, Birmingham, Warwickshire, the son of Albert (a candlemaker) and Bertha (a dressmak ...

in ''Piccadilly Hayride'' at the

Prince of Wales Theatre The Prince of Wales Theatre is a West End theatre in Coventry Street, near Leicester Square in London. It was established in 1884 and rebuilt in 1937, and extensively refurbished in 2004 by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, its current owner. The theatre ...

in 1946. Tripp was with the ''Fol-de-Rols'' concert party for fourteen years, and this led to his own seaside show ''Take a Tripp''. Tripp is best known for his appearances as a pantomime dame in which he excelled. He appeared in at least 35 pantomimes wearing the most elaborate costumes.

The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. Founded in 1880, ''The Stage'' contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at thos ...

once described him as "the

John Gielgud Sir Arthur John Gielgud ( ; 14 April 1904 – 21 May 2000) was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the Britis ...

of pantomime dames". In 1982 he appeared in a television documentary ''The Pantomime Dame''. During the 1990s he often teamed up with

Roy Hudd Roy Hudd (16 May 1936 – 15 March 2020) was an English comedian, actor, presenter, radio host, author and authority on the history of music hall entertainment. Early life Hudd was born in Croydon on 16 May 1936 to Evalina "Evie" (née Barham ...

. In 1996 he was made a MBE for his "services to pantomime". His last performance was in ''

Mother Goose Mother Goose is a character that originated in children's fiction, as the imaginary author of a collection of French fairy tales and later of English nursery rhymes. She also appeared in a song, the first stanza of which often functions now as ...

'' in Plymouth in 1996. His last stage appearance was in the revival of

Sandy Wilson Alexander Galbraith "Sandy" Wilson (19 May 1924 – 27 August 2014) was an English composer and lyricist, best known for his musical '' The Boy Friend'' (1953). Biography Wilson was born in Sale, Cheshire, England, and was educated at Harrow ...

s pastiche 1930s musical ''

Divorce Me, Darling! ''Divorce Me, Darling'' is a musical written by Sandy Wilson. Set 10 years after the events depicted in Wilson's much better-known '' The Boy Friend'', it is a pastiche of 1930s musicals (in particular those of Cole Porter) rather than the "Roar ...

'' at the

Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester Festival Theatre is a theatre and Grade II* listed building situated in Oaklands Park in the city of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, it was opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Mart ...

in July 1997. Off stage. Tripp was modest and quiet. He became disenchanted with modern pantomime and retired in 2000 in his home in

Hove Hove ( ) is a seaside resort in East Sussex, England. Alongside Brighton, it is one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove. Originally a fishing village surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th century in respon ...

. On 10 July 2005 he was taken ill in his home and died a few hours later in the Brighton General Hospital. His lifelong partner on and off stage was Australian-born Allen Christie.

References

* * ''Stars in Battledress'' by Bill Pertwee, published by Hodder & Stoughton Ltd: First edition (1992)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tripp, Jack 1922 births 2005 deaths English male stage actors Male actors from Plymouth, Devon Members of the Order of the British Empire Pantomime dames British Army personnel of World War II Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers soldiers