| Ronnie Corbett CBE | |
|---|---|
Ronnie Corbett arriving at the premiere of Burke and Hare, Chelsea, London, United Kingdom |
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| Born | Ronald Balfour Corbett 4 December 1930 Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Occupation | Actor, comedian, broadcaster, writer |
| Years active | 1952–present |
| Spouse | Anne Hart (1965–present) |
Ronald Balfour "Ronnie" Corbett, CBE (born 4 December 1930) is a Scottish actor and comedian who had a long association with Ronnie Barker in the television comedy series The Two Ronnies. He achieved prominence in Sir David Frost's 1960s satirical comedy programme, The Frost Report and later starred in the sitcoms Sorry! and No - That's Me Over Here!
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Corbett was born in Edinburgh in 1930, the son of London-born Annie Elizabeth (Main) and William Balfour Corbett, master baker.[1] He has a brother about six years younger, and a sister about ten years younger than himself.[2] Corbett was educated at the Royal High School in the city, but did not attend university. After leaving school, he decided he wanted to be an actor while performing in amateur theatricals at a church youth club. However, his first job was with the Ministry of Agriculture. He then did national service with the RAF,[3] during which he was the shortest commissioned officer in the British Forces.[4] After National Service he moved to London to act, and started his career by playing schoolboy roles in films. At 5 ft 1 in (1.55 m) tall, Corbett was suited to playing younger than his years. References to his height frequently crop up in his self-deprecating humour.
He has worked in film, television, and on stage since the 1950s. In his first stage co-starring appearance he was billed as Ronald Corbett at Cromer, Norfolk, in "Take it easy" in 1956, co-starring with Graham Stark. He appeared in Crackerjack as a regular in its early days, one episode with Winifred Atwell. He had a walk-on in an early episode of the 1960s series The Saint (credited as 'Ronald Corbett') and appeared in films including Rockets Galore! (1957), Casino Royale (1967), Some Will, Some Won't (1970) and the film version of the farce No Sex Please, We're British (1973).
Corbett starred in the first London production of the musical The Boys from Syracuse (as Dromio of Syracuse) in 1963 at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, alongside Bob Monkhouse.[5] In 1965 he was in cabaret at Winston's, Danny La Rue's Mayfair nightclub. David Frost saw him and asked him to appear in The Frost Report. Corbett was in the West End, playing Will Scarlett in Lionel Bart's Robin Hood musical Twang!. It failed, leaving Corbett free to accept.[6]
It was in The Frost Report (1966–67) that Corbett first worked with Ronnie Barker. The writers and cast were mostly Oxbridge graduates from the Footlights tradition. Corbett said he and Barker were drawn together as two grammar school boys who had not gone to university. The show was a mixture of satirical monologues, sketches and music. Corbett and Barker were beginning to be thought of as a pair. They appeared with John Cleese in one of the most repeated comedy sketches in British television, the Class sketch, in which Corbett got the pay-off line: "I get a pain in the back of my neck."
Continuing under Frost, Corbett starred in No - That's Me Over Here!, a sitcom written by Frost Report writers Barry Cryer, Graham Chapman and Eric Idle (ITV 1967-70). Cryer and Chapman wrote two follow-ups: Now Look Here (BBC 1971-73) and The Prince of Denmark (BBC 1974). Corbett also appeared in Frost on Sunday (ITV 1968) and hosted The Corbett Follies (ITV 1969).
His BBC television comedy show with Ronnie Barker, The Two Ronnies, lasted from 1971 to 1987. Barker and Corbett performed sketches and musical numbers. Corbett presented a monologue. Sitting in a large easy chair (emphasising his small size), and usually wearing a Lyle & Scott golfing V-neck sweater, he would tell a simple joke over several minutes, often allowing himself to appear to lose his train of thought.
His best known role away from The Two Ronnies is as Timothy Lumsden in the sitcom Sorry!. Before this, he had a similar role in Now Look Here. In 1996, he appeared on the première of the short-lived BBC game show, Full Swing, hosted by Jimmy Tarbuck. In 1997, Corbett played Reggie Sea Lions in the film Fierce Creatures, which also starred his former comedy teammate John Cleese.
He also hosted the game show Small Talk and has played minor parts occasionally since its end – notably Griselda in a television production of Cinderella in 2000, and reviving his armchair monologue routines for a weekly appearance in a stand-up show hosted by Ben Elton.
In 2003 he appeared in advertisements for the Sky+ digital television service alongside Alice Cooper. The premise was a running gag about their being happy housemates. In December 2004, Corbett appeared on the BBC news quiz, Have I Got News For You.
In 2005 Corbett teamed up again with Ronnie Barker for The Two Ronnies Sketchbook, comedy sketches from their original series with original linking material. Also in 2005 Corbett appeared with comedian Peter Kay, in the spoof music video for the number 1 single Is This the Way to Amarillo?, mimed to the song by Tony Christie. Corbett is remembered for accidentally falling over in the video, however he found the fall funny when played back, and it was kept in the final version.
He performed in Children's Party at the Palace as Mr Tibbs, the Queen's butler.
In 2006, he played a hyper-realised version of himself in Extras, caught taking drugs at the BAFTA Awards. He also starred as himself in Little Britain Abroad, in which Bubbles DeVere tried successfully to seduce him. He opened the centre in Cromer, North Norfolk, to Henry Blogg, "the greatest lifeboatman of all time" . He opened Cromer's high school swimming pool in the 1970s.
Corbett was the "castaway" in the BBC Radio 4 show, Desert Island Discs on 21 October 2007. He featured as a Slitheen in a Sarah Jane Adventures episode for Red Nose Day 2009.
He had a television interview about his life on 7 November 2009 for Piers Morgan's Life Stories. On 14 November 2009 he hosted Strictly Come Dancing alongside Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. Regular host Bruce Forsyth had flu.
In February 2010 he was in the John Landis thriller comedy, Burke and Hare.[7] In August 2010 he was a panelist in the BBC 1 comedy show Would I Lie to You?.
In August 2010 he was the star of the Good Food HD programme, Ronnie Corbett's Supper Club, with Rob Brydon, and Rob's good friend Steve Speirs. The show's premise was, the main guest of the programme has to choose a meal as if it were their last, and Ronnie would cook it for him/her and his other guest, whilst they chatted about the guest's past and their current/future projects. In December of the same year he starred in a one off special: The One Ronnie.
In 2010 - 2011 he starred in two series of the BBC4 radio sitcom When The Dog Dies. The series reunited Corbett with Ian Davidson and Peter Vincent, the writers of Sorry!
Already Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2012 New Year Honours for services to entertainment and charity.[8][9]
Corbett married actress and dancer Anne Hart in 1965; they have two daughters, actresses Emma and Sophie Corbett. Their first child, Andrew, had a heart defect and died, six weeks old, at St Thomas' Hospital.[2]
He has lived in Shirley, Croydon, London, for many years. He also has a home in Gullane, East Lothian, in Scotland. He is a beekeeper and keeps hives at his home in Gullane.[10]
Corbett is a golfer and appears in celebrity and pro–am events; in 2009 he made a documentary with Colin Montgomerie in which they played at Gleneagles.[11] He is also a past president of the Lord's Taverners (1982 and 1987).[12]
He also supports his local football club, Crystal Palace as well as his hometown club Heart of Midlothian.
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1957 | Sheep's Clothing | Valet |
| 1966 to 1967 1968 to 1970 2008 |
The Frost Report Frost on Sunday |
Himself & Various characters |
| 1967 to 1970 | No - That's Me Over Here! | Ronnie |
| 1971 to 1973 1974 |
Now Look Here The Prince of Denmark |
Ronnie |
| 1971 to 1987 2005 |
The Two Ronnies The Two Ronnies Sketchbook |
Himself & Various characters |
| 1981 to 1982 1985 to 1988 |
Sorry! | Timothy Lumsden |
| 1998 | Timbuctoo | Narrator & All Characters Except Giant Squeak |
| 1998 | The Ben Elton Show | Himself Armchair Monologues. |
| 2000 | Cinderella ITV Panto | Griselda (One of the Ugly Sisters) |
| 2004 | The Keith Barret Show Series 1 |
Himself With His Wife |
| 2006 | Extras Little Britain Abroad |
Himself |
| 2009 | Harry Hill's TV Burp Sarah Jane Adventures (Comic Relief) The Graham Norton Show (S05E03) Piers Morgan's Life Stories Strictly Come Dancing |
Himself Ambassador "Rani" Ranius/Slitheen |
| 2010 | Ant and Dec's Push The Button Would I Lie to You? The One Ronnie Ronnie Corbett's Supper Club |
Voice over Himself Himself and Various characters Himself |
| 2011 | Ronnie Corbett's Comedy Britain | Himself |