| Cissie and Ada | |
|---|---|
The characters as seen during the 1984 adverts for fresh cream cakes. |
|
| Created by | Les Dawson and Roy Barraclough |
| Portrayed by | Roy Barraclough and Les Dawson respectively |
| Information | |
| Aliases | Cissie Braithwaite and Ada Shufflebotham Cissie Braithewaite and Ada Sidebottom |
| Gender | Female |
| Nationality | British |
Cissie and Ada, fully Cissie Braithwaite and either Ada Shufflebotham or Sidebottom[1] are two Northern housewives created and played by the comedian Les Dawson and comic actor Roy Barraclough on television in the 1970s and 1980s. With a love of gossip, stoical pursing of lips and constantly heaved bosoms, the perfectly realised characters became an unforgettable comic hit with the British public and are regarded as Dawson's most notable creation.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
The pair created the characters in rehearsals, in homage to music hall star Norman Evans, before being persuaded by the producer to use them in the Sez Les show. Although Dawson needed persuading to don drag, and Barraclough was nervous that he would not be able to match Dawson's comedic talent for ad-libbing, the characters became permanent features of the show. Barraclough's portrayal of Cissie saw him draw on his talents as an actor to create reactions to Dawson's comedic lines.[8] The characters were revisited by the pair in a series of ads for fresh cream-cakes in 1984.[9] In 2006 Sir Ian McKellen, writing in The Independent named them the tenth best drag act ever created, commenting that they "were as real as the crones in the Rover's Return".[10] Barraclough noted that his own characterisation for Cissie "was drawn from an aunt of mine who always thought she was slightly above the rest of the family, Auntie Annie. You know, she would always have a sherry. And the rest of the family always took the piss out of her."[8] Key to Dawson's portrayal of Ada was a handbag "tightly clutched to the waist in a manner suggesting infinite disapproval".[11] In A National Joke, Andy Medhurst sees humour mined from the equating of cleanliness and morality, a theme later explored by both Alan Bennett and The Royle Family.[12] A planned Christmas special with a series to follow was cancelled due to the death of Dawson in 1993.[13] Barraclough has declared "it's rewarding to see Cissie and Ada have passed into comedy legend."[13]