Hughie Green

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hughie Green (February 2, 1920 - May 3, 1997), was the host of numerous British television shows.

He was born in London to a Scottish father and Irish mother, but was brought up in Canada. At 14 he had his own BBC radio show and toured with a concert party called 'Hughie Green and his Gang'. He appeared in his first film Midshipman Easy in 1935, then went to Hollywood where he appeared in the film Tom Brown's Schooldays and at the Cocoanut Grove with his cabaret act. During WW2 he served as a pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force, ferrying aircraft across the Atlantic with RAF Ferry Command. After being declared bankrupt following a failed legal action against the BBC he ferried transport aircraft, worked as a stunt pilot and was involved in business activities that included selling aircraft.

Green became a household name in 1955, with the ITV quiz show, Double Your Money (which had actually originated some years earlier on Radio Luxembourg), and went on to host the long-running talent show, Opportunity Knocks, which began the careers of Les Dawson, Lena Zavaroni and Mary Hopkin, among others. Green was often mocked for his permanent door-to-door salesman's smile, faux-American accent, and his "I mean that most sincerely" catch phrase. He was also known for his Right-wing politics, which extended into recording the 1976 single "Stand Up And Be Counted".

Green was divorced from his wife Claire with whom he had a son and a daughter. After his death, it was medically proven that he had been the natural father of Paula Yates, a rumour she had denied when the tabloids first printed the story.