Val Parnell

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Valentine Charles 'Val' Parnell was a British television producer and theatrical impresario. He was born in London on 14 February 1892 and died in France on 22 September 1972.

He began his theatrical career at age 13 by working as an office boy for a music-hall circuit. By 1945 he had become Managing Director of the Moss Empire music hall circuit, in charge of some of London's most prestigious theatres.

He auditioned and signed a twelve-year-old Julie Andrews for her first professional performance and introduced her to her manager, Charles Tucker, aka Uncle Charlie Tucker.^[1]

In 1956 he was appointed Managing Director of Associated TeleVision. He took a personal interest in the station's output and presented the weekly musical variety show, Val Parnell's Sunday Night at the London Palladium, until 1965.

He resigned his position at ATV in 1962 to make way for Lew Grade and retired in 1966.