Ron Bain (12 March 1945 – 5 August 2024) was a Scottish television actor, director, producer, comedian, and stage actor who in the latter part of his career focused primarily on directing. He is known for his work with comedian

Rikki Fulton Robert Kerr "Rikki" Fulton (15 April 1924 – 27 January 2004) was a Scottish comedian and actor best remembered for writing and performing in the long-running BBC Scotland sketch show, ''Scotch and Wry''. He was also known for his appearances ...

, with whom he first worked while performing

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, ; ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the great writers in the French language and world liter ...

's ''

The Miser ''The Miser'' (; ) is a five-act comedy in prose by the French playwright Molière. It was first performed on September 9, 1668, in the Théâtre du Palais-Royal (rue Saint-Honoré), theatre of the Palais-Royal in Paris. This is a character com ...

'' at the

Royal Lyceum Theatre The Royal Lyceum Theatre is a 658-seat theatre in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, named after the Theatre Royal Lyceum and English Opera House, the residence at the time of legendary Shakespearean actor Henry Irving. It was built in 1883 by a ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

, in 1971 and for his productions spotlighting Fulton's character 'the Reverend I. M. Jolly'.

Life and career

Ron Bain was born in

Grangemouth Grangemouth (; , ) is a town in the Falkirk (council area), Falkirk council area in the central belt of Scotland. Historically part of the Counties of Scotland, county of Stirlingshire, the town lies in the Forth Valley, on the banks of the Firt ...

, Scotland on 12 March 1945 and later attended the

Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama () is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and film in Glasgow, Scotland. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools. Founde ...

. In 1977 Bain appeared as the weasely villain 'Danny the Busker' in ''

The XYY Man ''The XYY Man'' is a series which began in 1970 as a series of novels by Kenneth Royce, featuring the character of William "Spider" Scott, a one-time cat-burglar who leaves prison aiming to go straight. Adapted for television, ''The XYY Man'' ...

'', but he is best known for his work in comedy, rounding up sketches in ''

Naked Video ''Naked Video'' is a BBC Scotland sketch show that was aired on BBC2 from 12 May 1986 to 18 November 1991. The show was created by Colin Gilbert who had previously created ''A Kick Up the Eighties'' and ''Naked Radio'' (the latter being a radi ...

'' with stars such as

Gregor Fisher Gregor Fisher (born 22 December 1953) is a Scottish comedian and actor. He is best known for his portrayal of the title character in the comedy series '' Rab C. Nesbitt'', a role he has played since the show's first episode in 1988. He has also ...

Elaine C Smith Elaine Constance Smith (born 2 August 1958) is a Scottish actress and comedian. She is known for her roles in the BBC Scotland sitcoms ''City Lights (1984 TV series), City Lights'' (1984–1991), ''Rab C. Nesbitt'' (1988–2014), and ''Two Doo ...

, Jonathan Watson,

Helen Lederer Helen Margaret Lederer (born 24 September 1954) is a British 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'' ...

John Sparkes John Sparkes (born 6 January 1954) is a Welsh comedian and actor. He portrayed Barry Welsh, presenter of the HTV Wales series '' Barry Welsh Is Coming''. He has also had major roles in '' Naked Video'', '' Absolutely'', ''Fireman Sam'', '' Sha ...

, Andy Gray, Tony Roper, Louise Beattie, and Kate Donnelly. Bain also appeared in ''

A Kick Up the Eighties A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient ...

'', '' Laugh??? I Nearly Paid My Licence Fee,'' several episodes of ''

Rab C Nesbitt ''Rab C. Nesbitt'' is a Scottish television comedy, comedy television series that originally aired between 1988 and 1999. The show returned for a one–off special in 2008, before being re-commissioned in 2010. Its second run was broadcast from ...

,'' and live performances such as a 1988 benefit for the

Scottish Ballet Scottish Ballet is the national ballet company of Scotland and one of the five leading ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside the Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and Northern Ballet. Founded in 1 ...

. Bain died on 5 August 2024, aged 79.

Filmography

; As actor (Television) * '' The View from Daniel Pike'' (1 episode, 1971) * ''

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptised 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the field of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as the "father of economics"——— or ...

'' (4 episodes, 1972) * ''

Weir of Hermiston ''Weir of Hermiston'' is an 1896 unfinished novel by Robert Louis Stevenson. It is markedly different from his previous works in style and has often been praised as a potential masterpiece. It was cut short by Stevenson's sudden death in 1894 ...

'' (1 episode, 1973) * ''

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 ...

Play of the Month ''Play of the Month'' is a BBC television anthology series, which ran from 1965 to 1983 featuring productions of classic and contemporary stage plays (or adaptations) which were usually broadcast on BBC1. Each production featured a different wor ...

'' (1 episode, 1975) * ''

ITV Playhouse ''Playhouse'', also known as ''ITV Playhouse'', is a British television anthology series that ran from 1967 to 1983, which featured contributions from playwrights such as Dennis Potter, Rhys Adrian and Alan Sharp. The series began in black a ...

'' (1 episode, 1977) * ''

The Standard The Standard may refer to: Entertainment * The Standard (band), an indie rock band from Portland, Oregon * ''The Standard'' (novel), a 1934 novel by the Austrian writer Alexander Lernet-Holenia * ''The Standard'' (Tommy Flanagan album), 1980 * ...

'' (1 episode, 1978) * ''

Tycoon A business magnate, also known as an industrialist or tycoon, is a person who is a powerful entrepreneur and investor who controls, through personal enterprise ownership or a dominant shareholding position, a firm or industry whose goods or ser ...

'' (1 episode, 1978) * ''

Kids Kid, Kids, KIDS, and K.I.D.S. may refer to: Common meanings * Colloquial term for a child or other young person ** Also for a parent's offspring regardless of age * Engage in joking * Young goat * The goat meat of young goats * Kidskin, leath ...

'' (1 episode, 1979) * ''

Play for Today ''Play for Today'' is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage ...

'' (1 episode, 1980) * ''

Juliet Bravo ''Juliet Bravo'' is a television in the United Kingdom, British television police procedural drama series, first broadcast on 30 August 1980, that ran for six series and a total of 88 episodes on BBC One, BBC1. The theme of the series concerned ...

'' (1 episode, 1980) * ''

Strangers A stranger is a person who is unknown or unfamiliar to another person or group. Because of this unknown status or unfamiliarity, a stranger may be perceived as a threat until their identity (social science), identity and Character structure, chara ...

'' (1 episode, 1980) * '' Boswell for the Defence'' (1981) * ''

'' (1981) * '' Laugh??? I Nearly Paid My Licence Fee'' (1984) * ''

Taggart ''Taggart'' is a Scottish detective fiction television programme created by Glenn Chandler, who wrote many of the episodes, and made by STV Studios for the ITV network. It originally ran as the miniseries ''Killer'' from 6 until 20 Septe ...

'' (1 episode, 1985) * ''

'' (1986–1987) * ''

The Tales of Para Handy ''The Tales of Para Handy'' is a Scottish television series set in the western isles of Scotland in the 1930s, based on the Para Handy books by Neil Munro (Hugh Foulis), Neil Munro. It starred Gregor Fisher as Captain Peter "Para Handy" MacFarla ...

'' (1 episode, 1994) * ''

Rab C. Nesbitt ''Rab C. Nesbitt'' is a Scottish comedy television series that originally aired between 1988 and 1999. The show returned for a one–off special in 2008, before being re-commissioned in 2010. Its second run was broadcast from 2010 to 2014. The ...

'' (3 episodes, 1991–1998) ; As actor (film) * ''Experience Preferred... But Not Essential'' (1982) ; As director (TV) * ''

City Lights ''City Lights'' is a 1931 American synchronized sound film, sound romance film, romantic comedy drama, comedy-drama film written, produced, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a ...

'' (1986) * ''

I, Lovett ''I, Lovett'' is a BBC television sitcom written by Norman Lovett and Ian Pattison. Seven episodes were broadcast, a pilot in 1989 and a six-episode series in 1993. Plot The series stars Norman Lovett playing a version of himself who is an inve ...

'' (1989) * ''

'' (1990) * '' Tis' the Season to be Jolly'' (1993) * '' Jolly a Man for All Seasons'' (1994) * '' Jolly: A Life'' (1995) * '' Pulp Video'' (1995) * ''

'' (3 episodes, 1994–1995) * '' Bad Boys'' (1 episode, 1996) * '' It's a Jolly Life'' (1999) * '' Rikki Fulton: The Time of his Life'' (1999) * '' Brotherly Love'' (6 episodes, 2000) * ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'' (4 episodes, 2001–2002) * '' Snoddy'' (2002) * ''

Only an Excuse? ''Only an Excuse?'' is an annual Scottish comedy sketch show that was broadcast on BBC One Scotland on Hogmanay from 1993 to 2020. It starred the actor and comedian Jonathan Watson and featured impressions of some of Scottish football's great ...

'' (2003) * ''

The Karen Dunbar Show ''The Karen Dunbar Show'' was a Scottish comedy sketch show that aired on BBC One Scotland, starring comedian and actress Karen Dunbar. It was produced by BBC Scotland. It also starred actor and musician Tom Urie Tom Urie (born 1 March 196 ...

'' (2003) * ''

River City ''River City'' is a Scottish television soap opera created by Stephen Greenhorn which has been broadcast on BBC One Scotland since September 2002. Since 2019, the show has aired episodes a day earlier on the new BBC Scotland channel. Set in ...

'' (1 episode, 2008) ; As director (Video) * '' Scotch & Wry 4: Rikki Fulton Prince of Pochlers'' (1992) * '' Francie & Josie: The Farewell Performance'' (1996) * '' The Best of Rikki Fulton: Rikki Fulton's Scotch & Wry Hogmanay'' 1996 (1997) * '' Rikki Fulton's Rev. IM Jolly & Friends'' (2004)

Recognition

In his review of ''Experience Preferred... But Not Essential'', Tom Sabulis of the ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', called the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It is published by the Times Publishing Company, which is owned by The Poynter Institute f ...

'' wrote that Bain was a "warm, welcome presence". David Belcher of the ''

Glasgow Herald ''The Herald'' is a Scottish broadsheet newspaper founded in 1783. ''The Herald'' is the longest running national newspaper in the world and is the eighth oldest daily paper in the world. The title was simplified from ''The Glasgow Herald'' in ...

'' offered that ''Rab C. Nesbitt'' was deftly directed by Bain.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bain, Ron 1945 births 2024 deaths Scottish male stage actors Scottish male television actors