Jess Conrad (born Gerald Arthur James; 24 February 1936) is an English stage and screen actor and singer. As a boy he was nicknamed "Jesse" after American outlaw

Jesse James Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, Bank robbery, bank and Train robbery, train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the "Little Dixie (Missouri), Little Dixie" area of M ...

; as there was already an actor named "Gerald James" in

Actors' Equity The Actors' Equity Association (AEA), commonly called Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing those who work in live theatrical performance. Performers appearing in live stage productions without a book or thro ...

, a drama teacher who was a fan of writer

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the Eng ...

suggested the stage name of "Jess Conrad".

Biography

Conrad was born in

Brixton Brixton is an area of South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th century ...

South London South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...

and started his career as a repertory actor and film extra, before being cast in a television play, ''Bye, Bye Barney'', as a pop singer. He was noticed by Jack Good, who included him in his TV series '' Oh Boy!''. Conrad then was signed to

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

and had a number of chart hits, including "

Cherry Pie Cherry pie is a pie baked with a cherry filling. Traditionally, it is made with sour cherries rather than sweet cherries. Sour Cherry, Morello cherries are one of the most common kinds of cherry used, but other varieties such as the black cherr ...

", "This Pullover", "Mystery Girl" and "Pretty Jenny"; also recording for Columbia, Pye President and

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

. Between the late 1950s and mid-1960s, Conrad appeared in a number of films such as '' Serious Charge'' (uncredited), '' The Boys'', ''

Rag Doll A rag doll is a doll made from scraps of fabric. They are one of the oldest children's toys in existence. Today, many rag dolls are commercially produced to mimic aspects of the original home-made dolls, such as simple features, soft cloth bodies, ...

'', (filmed in 1960, and released in 1961); ''K.I.L. 1'' and ''

Konga Konga () is a locality situated in Tingsryd Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway t ...

'' as well as

Michael Powell Michael Latham Powell (30 September 1905 – 19 February 1990) was an English filmmaker, celebrated for his partnership with Emeric Pressburger. Through their production company Powell and Pressburger, The Archers, they together wrote, produced ...

's '' The Queen's Guards''. Conrad played Danny Pace in an episode of '' The Human Jungle'' called "The Flip Side Man" in 1963. During the 1970s, he spent some time in the stage shows ''

Godspell ''Godspell'' is a musical in two acts with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by John-Michael Tebelak. The show is structured as a series of parables, primarily based on the Gospel of Matthew, interspersed with music mostly set t ...

'' and ''

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' is a sung-through musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice ...

'', and also featured in a cameo role in the

Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became culturally influential in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Ki ...

film ''

The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle ''The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle'', also known as ''The Great Rock and Roll Swindle'', is a 1980 British mockumentary film directed by Julien Temple and produced by Don Boyd and Jeremy Thomas. It centres on the British punk rock band Sex P ...

''. In 1977 no fewer than seven of Conrad's singles were included in the 'World's Worst Record' list, chosen by listeners to Capital FM DJ

Kenny Everett Kenny Everett (born Maurice James Christopher Cole; 25 December 1944 – 4 April 1995) was an English radio Disc Jockey, DJ and television entertainer, known for his zany comedic style. After spells on pirate radio and Radio Luxembourg in the m ...

's show, and "This Pullover", voted sixth worst song ever, later featured on ''The World's Worst Record Show'', a 1978 LP dedicated to the songs voted for, together with two other Conrad recordings "

" and "Why Am I Living?" He also made an appearance in ''

Are You Being Served ''Are You Being Served?'' is a British television sitcom that was broadcast from 1972 to 1985. It was created and written by David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd. Croft also served as executive producer and director. Michael Knowles and John Chapma ...

'' as Mr Walpole, head of sporting equipment, in the episode "Memories Are Made of This". Conrad also appeared in the 1984 TV series of ''

Miss Marple Miss Jane Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Miss Marple lives in the village of St Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterised as an elderly spinster, she is one ...

'', in the episode entitled ''

The Body in the Library ''The Body in the Library'' is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company in February 1942 and in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in May of the same year. The US edition retailed at ...

'' as Raymond Starr. He also starred in the 1993 film ''The Punk and the Princess''. In the 1990s, Conrad made regular cameo appearances on

Jim Davidson James Cameron Davidson (born 13 December 1953) is an English stand-up comedian, actor, singer and TV presenter. He hosted the television shows '' Big Break'' and '' The Generation Game''. In 2014 he was the winner of the 13th series of ''Cel ...

's revived version of ''

The Generation Game ''The Generation Game'' is a British game show produced by the BBC in which four teams of two people from the same family, but different generations, compete to win prizes. The game There are eight competitors, hence the catchphrase "Let's me ...

'' on

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and Flagship (broadcasting), flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includ ...

. In 1992, Conrad appeared in the Christmas Special of '' Big Break'', also presented by Davidson and

John Virgo John Trevor Virgo (born 4 March 1946) is an English snooker commentator and former professional snooker player. After turning professional in 1976, Virgo won four professional titles, including the 1979 UK Championship, the 1980 Bombay Int ...

. He was the "booby" prize of the show presented to actress Ruth Madoc. Jess Conrad 2014

Since then, Conrad has appeared in a number of documentaries and television programmes, often offering stories of violent encounters with other famous people. In a BBC ''

Arena An arena is a large enclosed venue, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, Music, musical performances or Sport, sporting events. It comprises a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for specta ...

'' documentary about the record producer

Joe Meek Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer and songwriter considered one of the most influential sound engineers of all time, being one of the first to develop ideas such as the recording studio a ...

, Conrad boasted of biting off part of the nose of the singer

Heinz The Kraft Heinz Foods Company, formerly the H. J. Heinz Company and commonly known as Heinz (), is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company was founded by Henry J. Heinz in 1869. ...

during a confrontation backstage at a package show in the early 1960s. In 2005, Conrad had a guest role in the sitcom ''

Last of the Summer Wine ''Last of the Summer Wine'' is a British sitcom set in Yorkshire created and written by Roy Clarke and originally broadcast by the BBC from 1973 to 2010. It premiered as an episode of ''Comedy Playhouse'' on 4 January 1973, and the first seri ...

''. In the 2009 film '' Telstar: The Joe Meek Story'', Conrad is played by Nigel Harman. Conrad himself appears in one scene, depicting his backstage fight with Heinz and his biting of Heinz's nose. Conrad also plays the role of

Larry Parnes Laurence Maurice Parnes (3 September 1929 – 4 August 1989) was a British pop manager and impresario. He was the first major British rock manager, and his stable of singers included many of the most successful British rock and roll singers of t ...

in the film. In 2016 Jess appeared in Liam Galvin's Crime Thriller Film 'Mob Handed' playing a corrupt Judge. In October 2022, he appeared in the BBC soap opera ''

Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...

'' as Alan Yates. In 2023, Conrad filmed a leading role in the film ''Somebody's Daughter'' written by Zara Phillips and again directed by Liam Galvin.

Awards

Conrad is a member of the show business fraternity the

Grand Order of Water Rats The Grand Order of Water Rats is a British entertainment industry fraternity and charitable organisation based in London. Founded in 1889 by the music hall comedians Joe Elvin and Jack Lotto, the order is known for its high-profile membership an ...

, having served as "King Rat". He is also a

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

and a member of Chelsea Lodge No. 3098, the membership of which is made up of entertainers. He was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) in the 2011

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the King's Official Birthday, reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into Order (honour), national or Dynastic order of knighthood, dy ...

for charitable services. In 2018, he appeared in ITV's ''Last Laugh in Vegas''.

Personal life

Conrad is married to Renee and has two daughters, Sasha and Natalie. He described the actress

Diana Dors Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 19314 May 1984) was an English actress and singer. Dors came to public notice as a Bombshell (slang), blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Mamie Van ...

as "the best friend I ever had".

Selected discography

*"Cherry Pie" / "There's Gonna Be A Day" 1960 *"Out of Luck" / "Unless You Mean It" Decca UK 1960 *"Mystery Girl" A2: Just The Two of Us B1: (I Wanna) Love My Life Away B2: Maybe You'll Be There 1961 EP *"Mystery Girl" / "The Big White House" 1961 *"This Pullover" / "Why Am I Living" 1961 *"I See You" / "Oh! You Beautiful Doll" 1961 *"Every Breath I Take" / "Walk Away" 1961 *"Twist My Wrist" / "Hey Little Girl" 1961

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

Jess Conrad discography
*
Official Conrad website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Conrad, Jess 1936 births Living people English pop singers Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England Officers of the Order of the British Empire English male singers English male film actors Actors from the London Borough of Lambeth Singers from the London Borough of Lambeth Male actors from London 20th-century English singers 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English singers 21st-century English male actors 20th-century British male singers 21st-century British male singers People from Brixton