Cardew Robinson

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Cardew Robinson

Born Douglas John Cardew Robinson
August 14, 1917(1917-08-14)
Goodmayes, Essex
Died December 28, 1992 (aged 75)
Roehampton, London
Cause of death Bowel infection
Nationality British
Occupation Comedy actor

Douglas John Cardew Robinson (born 14 August 1917 in Goodmayes, Essex - 28 December 1992) was a British comic, whose craft was rooted in the music hall and Gang Shows.

Contents

[edit] Early life and career

Robinson was educated at Harrow County School for Boys. He began in variety after leaving school and achieved fame in the 1940s as “Cardew the Cad”, a schoolboy character he created. He played the character on radio and stage and later in a film, Fun at St Fanny’s. Cardew the Cad became a cartoon strip in Film Fun, a children’s comic of the period.

[edit] Television and films

He successfully made the transition from Variety and radio into TV and films. In the latter, he nearly always played small but memorable cameo parts, thus an early theatrical review mentioned “…Mr Cardew Robinson, who seems to specialise in grotesques…”. One of his last appearances on television, in an episode of Last of the Summer Wine, in which he played a hen-pecked husband, led astray by Compo and Clegg, showed him to be a fine exponent of physical comedy into his seventies. In the production of Camelot in London in 1964, Cardew Robinson played King Pellenore. The show apparently ran for 650 performances, although it was not well received by the critics. Cardew Robinson was best known in Britain for appearances on TV and in radio shows like You’ve Got to be Joking which he created, as well as Does The Team Think. He only acted in one Carry On film, Carry On Up the Khyber; he played a fakir drawing the memorable line from Bernard Bresslaw, whose character, Bungdit Din, tells him to “Fakir…off!”.

[edit] Other activities

  • He wrote material for other comedians.
  • He penned a book called How to be a Failure.
  • He composed songs with Roger Whittaker.
  • He was a golfer, cricketer and Vice President of the Arsenal F.C. Supporters Club.
  • He enjoyed listening to classical music, to the extent that an early fiancée left him because she was bored by it.

[edit] Obituary

Robinson died at the age of 75. His obituary in The Times, described him as “a quiet studious man, whose private face belied his public appearance”. A letter to the paper from a later headmaster of his old school, talked about his “generous spirit”.

[edit] Selected filmography

[edit] References

  • Obituary in The Times, 28 December 1992.

[edit] External links


Persondata
NAME Robinson, Cardew
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Robinson, Douglas John Cardew
SHORT DESCRIPTION Comedy actor
DATE OF BIRTH Goodhayes, Essex
PLACE OF BIRTH 1917-08-14
DATE OF DEATH 1992-12-28
PLACE OF DEATH Roehampton, London
England This article about an English actor or actress is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.