For the film Ealing Comedy, see Ealing Comedy (film).

The Ealing Comedies were a series of film comedies produced by Ealing Studios during the period 1947 to 1957. Hue and Cry in 1947 is generally considered to be the first of the Ealing Comedies, and Barnacle Bill the last in 1957,^[1] although some list Davy as the last.^[2]

Origins[link]

Relatively few comedy films were made at the Studios during the 1940s.^[3] One of the few films that can be seen as a direct precursor to the later "Ealing Comedies" is Saloon Bar, a 1940 comedy in which the regulars of a public bar join forces to clear the name of the barmaid's boyfriend who has been accused of murder.^[4] Other wartime comedies featuring actors such as Tommy Trinder, Will Hay and George Formby were generally in a broader music hall tradition and had little common with the later Ealing tradition. Ealing made no comedy films at all in 1945 and 1946.^[5]

Comedies[link]

T.E.B. Clarke wrote the screenplay for the first of the Ealing Comedies, Hue and Cry (1947), about a group of schoolboys who confront a criminal gang, which proved to be a critical and commercial success.^[6] It was followed by three films with Celtic themes: Another Shore (1948), about the fantasies of a bored Dublin customs official, A Run for Your Money (1949), depicting the adventures of two innocent Welshman in London for an important rugby international, and Whiskey Galore! (1949) set on a Scottish island during the Second World War when a large consignment of whiskey is washed ashore.

Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) is a dark comedy in which the son of an impoverished branch of the aristocratic D'Ascoyne family murders eight other members, all of whom are played by Alec Guiness, in order to inherit the family Dukedom and gain revenge on his snobbish relations. In Passport to Pimlico (1949) the inhabitants of the London neighborhood of Pimlico attempt to create their own independent nation state and end rationing, leading to a variety of unexpected problems and diplomatic incidents with the British government.

The Magnet (1950), set in Liverpool, is about a boy whose acquisition of magnet leads to a series of adventures in the city. In The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) a timid bank clerk gets together an unlikely gang of accomplices to snatch a truck of gold bullion. The armed robbery proves surprisingly successful, but things start to go wrong when they attempt to melt down their haul into model Eiffel Towers. The Man in the White Suit (1951) features the efforts of a zealous young scientist to create a new kind of clothing material that will never get dirty and never wear out - an invention that threatens the livelihoods of both big business and the trade unions who join forces to try and prevent the publication of this new discovery.

The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953) echoes the theme of Passport to Pimlico, switched to a rural setting, with a small community standing up for their local interests when their branch line is threatened with closure by British Railways in a forerunner of the Beeching Axe. The villagers join forces to keep their railway running, but face competition and sabotage from a rival bus company. Meet Mr. Lucifer (1953) follows a television set as it is passed on from one owner to another, causing disattisfaction wherever it goes. The film serves as a warning about the effects of consumerism and rapidly expanding television use.

The Love Lottery (1954) sees a matinee idol Hollywood Star, played by David Niven, agree to take part in a "love lottery". The Maggie (1954) features a clash of culture and wills between a wily Scottish boat captain and a vigorous American business tycoon who has mistakenly contracted the boat to carry a cargo for him. In The Ladykillers (1955) a gang of criminals let a room from the elderly Mrs Wilberforce pretending to be a String quintet looking for a space to practice. They plan to use the house to stage a robbery at nearby King's Cross railway station. On the brink of escape, they are thwarted by the Mrs Wilberforce who discovers their true purpose. The gang agree that she has to be murdered before she can go to the police, but prove incapable of doing this, and begin turning on each other instead.

Later comedies[link]

Who Done It? (1956) was the final comedy made at Ealing Studios, before they were sold to the BBC. It parodies detective fiction with a young man setting himself up in business as a private detective after receiving a windfall of £100. His confused efforts to solve a crime lead to him becoming entangled in cold war espionage. The film was closer in style to traditional 1930s comedy, rather than the type of films Ealing had become known for over the previous decade.^[7]

Two final comedies were released under the Ealing banner, but made at Elstree Studios. Barnacle Bill (1957) follows Captain Ambrose who, after leaving the navy, buys a run-down pier on the English seaside. Ambrose tries to revive the pier crossing swords with the local council who have a scheme to redevelop the entire seafront, personally enriching themselves while ruining him. Ambrose battles them by severing his connection with the shore, registering his pier as a ship under a foreign flag, and marketing it as a tourist destination for those too seasick to go on cruises. In Davy (1958) a promising entertainer tries to decide whether to strike out on his own, or stay with his family's struggling music hall act. No further comedies were made by Ealing, and after the thriller Siege of Pinchgut (1959), the brand was absorbed into the wider Rank Organisation. The previous year Rank had released Rockets Galore!, a sequel to Whiskey Galore, but its production was unconnected with Ealing.

Personnel[link]

Many of the films were built around a repertory group of actors, screenwriter, directors and technicians. Directors were Alexander Mackendrick, Charles Crichton, Robert Hamer, Charles Frend, Anthony Pelissier and Henry Cornelius. Notable actors who became prolific in these films included Stanley Holloway, Alec Guinness, Raymond Huntley and Alastair Sim. A number of actors also appeared recurringly in smaller roles such as Philip Stainton and Edie Martin.

Legacy[link]

Despite their synonymous association with Ealing Studios the films made up only a tenth of the films produced by the studios.^[8] A similar situation occurred with the Gainsborough melodramas at a studio which also produced many comedies.

List[link]

• Hue and Cry (1947)
• Another Shore (1948)
• Passport to Pimlico (1949)
• Whisky Galore! (1949)
• Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)
• A Run for Your Money (1949)
• The Magnet (1950)
• The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
• The Man in the White Suit (1951)
• The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953)
• Meet Mr. Lucifer (1953)
• The Love Lottery (1954)
• The Maggie (1954)
• The Ladykillers (1955)
• Who Done It? (1956)
• Barnacle Bill (1957)
• Davy (1957)

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Burton, Alan & O'Sullivan, Tim. The Cinema of Basil Dearden and Michael Relph. Edinburgh University Press, 2009.
• Murphy, Robert. Realism and Tinsel: Cinema and Society in Britain 1939-48. Routledge, 1992.
• Sweet, Matthew. Shepperton Babylon: The Lost Worlds of British Cinema. Faber and Faber, 2005.

v t e Cinema of the United Kingdom Culture of the United Kingdom World cinema Films by year (Films A–Z) Pre 1920 1920s 1930s 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Production companies and studios Active Aardman Animations BBC Films British Lion Films Ealing Studios Elstree Studios Eon Productions Film4 Productions Goldcrest Films Hammer Film Productions HandMade Films London Films Palace Pictures The Pinewood Studios Group (Pinewood Studios Shepperton Studios) S4C Films Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden Warp Films Wimbledon Studios Working Title Films Former Amicus Productions Associated British Picture Corporation Bryanston Films Denham Film Studios Gainsborough Pictures Hemdale Film Corporation Ideal Rank Organisation Tigon British Film Productions Warwick Films Organisations BAFTA British Board of Film Classification British Film Institute BFI National Archive BFI Southbank British Society of Cinematographers Children's Film Foundation Cinema Exhibitors' Association National Film and Television School National Media Museum Northern Ireland Screen Scottish Screen UK Film Council People Actors and actresses Cinematographers Directors Editors Producers Production designers Score composers Screenwriters Other British Academy Film Awards British Independent Film Awards British New Wave Carry On Cinematograph Films Act 1927 Documentary Film Movement Eady Levy Ealing Comedies Free Cinema Gainsborough melodramas Harry Potter History of British film certificates Home Video Charts James Bond London Film Festival London in film Telecinema Category Commons

Coordinates: 51°30′40″N 0°18′21″W / 51.5111°N 0.3058°W / 51.5111; -0.3058

Ealing
Ealing Town Hall on Ealing Broadway
Ealing  Ealing shown within Greater London
OS grid reference	TQ175805
- Charing Cross	7.9 mi (12.7 km)  E
London borough	Ealing
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LONDON
Postcode district	W5, W13
Dialling code	020
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
EU Parliament	London
UK Parliament	Ealing North
	Ealing, Southall
	Ealing Central and Acton
London Assembly	Ealing and Hillingdon
List of places: UK • England • London

Ealing is a suburban area of west London, England and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Ealing. It is located 7.9 miles (12.7 km) west of Charing Cross and around 12 miles (19.3 km) from the City of London. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan.^[1] It was historically a rural village in the county of Middlesex and formed an ancient parish.^[2] Improvement in communications with London, culminating with the opening of the railway station in 1838, shifted the local economy to market garden supply and eventually to suburban development. As part of the growth of London in the 20th century, Ealing significantly expanded and increased in population, becoming a municipal borough in 1901 and has formed part of Greater London since 1965. It now forms a significant commercial and retail centre with a developed night time economy.

History[link]

Toponymy[link]

The Saxon name for Ealing was recorded c.700 as 'Gillingas', meaning 'place of the people associated with Gilla', from the personal name Gilla and the Old English suffix '-ingas', meaning 'people of'.^[3] Over the centuries, the name has changed, and has been known as 'Illing', 1130; 'Gilling', 1243; and 'Ylling', 1254, until 'Ealing' became the standard spelling in the 19th century.^[4]

Early history[link]

Archaeological evidence shows that parts of Ealing have been occupied for more than 7,000 years^{[citation needed]} Iron Age pots have been discovered in the vicinity on Horsenden Hill. A settlement is recorded here in the 12th century^{[citation needed]} amid a great forest that carpeted the area to the west of London. The earliest surviving English census is that for Ealing in 1599. This list was a tally of all 85 households in Ealing village giving the names of the inhabitants, together with their ages, relationships and occupations. It survives in manuscript form at The National Archives (piece E 163/24/35), and was transcribed and printed by K J Allison for the Ealing Historical Society in 1961.

Settlements were scattered throughout the parish. Many of them were along what is now called St. Mary's Road, near to the church in the centre of the parish. There were also houses at Little Ealing, Ealing Dean, Haven Green, Drayton Green and Castlebar Hill.

The Church of St. Mary's, the parish church, dates back to the early 12th century. The parish of Ealing was divided into manors, such as those of Gunnersbury and Pitshanger. These were farmed; the crops being mostly wheat, but also barley and rye. There were also animals such as cows, sheep and chickens.

Great Ealing School was founded in 1698 by the Church of St Mary's. This subsequently became the "finest private school in England" and had many famous pupils in the 19th century such as William S. Gilbert and Cardinal Newman. As the area became built-up, it declined and closed in 1908.^[5] The first known maps of Ealing were made in the 18th century.

Ealing as a suburb of London[link]

With the exception of driving animals into London on foot, the transport of heavy goods tended be restricted to those times when the non-metalled roads were passable due to dry weather. However, with the passing of the Toll Road Act, this highway was gravelled and so the old Oxford Road became an increasingly busy and important thoroughfare running from east to west through the centre of the parish. This road was later to be known as the Uxbridge Road. The well-to-do of London began to see Ealing as a place to escape from the smoke and smells. In 1800 the architect John Soane bought Payton Place and renamed it Pitzhanger Manor, not to live but just for somewhere green and pleasant, where he could entertain his friends and guests. Soon after (1801) the Duke of Kent bought a house at Castlebar. Soon, more affluent Londoners followed but with the intention of taking up a permanent residence which was conveniently close to London. A one time prime minister, Spencer Perceval made his home at Elm House. Up until that point, Ealing was mostly made up of open countryside and fields where, as in previous centuries, the main occupation was farming.

Old inns and public houses[link]

As London grew in size, more food and materials went in and more finished goods came out. Since dray horses can only haul loads a few miles per day, frequent overnight stops were needed. To satisfy this demand a large number of inns were situated along the Uxbridge Road, where horses could be changed and travellers refresh themselves, prompting its favour by highwaymen. Stops in Ealing included The Feathers, The Bell, The Green Man and The Old Hats. At one point in history there were two pubs called the Half Way House either side of one of the many toll gates on the Uxbridge Road in West Ealing. Following the removal of the toll gate the more easternmost pub was renamed the Olde Hat.

Perceval House

The expansion of Ealing[link]

As London developed, the area became predominantly market gardens which required a greater proportion of workers as it was more labour-intensive. In the 1850s, with improved travel (the Great Western Railway and two branches of the Grand Union Canal), villages began to grow into towns and merged into unbroken residential areas. At this time Ealing began to be called the "Queen of the Suburbs".

Mount Castle Tower, an Elizabethan structure which stood at the top of Hanger Hill, was used as a tea-stop in the 19th century. It was demolished to make way for Fox's Reservoir in 1881. This reservoir, with a capacity of 3 million imperial gallons (14,000 m³), was erected north of Hill Crest Road, Hanger Hill, in 1888 and a neighbouring reservoir for 50 million imperial gallons (230,000 m³) was constructed c. 1889. This supply of good water helped to make Ealing more attractive than ever.

Ealing as a modern Victorian suburb[link]

The most important changes to Ealing occurred in the 19th century. The building of the Great Western Railway in the 1830s, part of which passed through the centre of Ealing, led to the opening of a railway station on the Broadway in 1879, originally called Haven Green. In the next few decades, much of Ealing was rebuilt, predominantly semi-detached housing designed for the rising middle-class. Gas mains were laid and an electricity generating station was built. Better transport links, including horse buses as well as trains, enabled people to more easily travel to work in London. All this, whilst living in what was still considered to be the countryside. Although much of the countryside was rapidly disappearing during this period of rapid expansion, parts of it were preserved as public parks, such as Lammas Park and Ealing Common. Pitzhanger Manor and the extensive 28 acres (110,000 m²) grounds on which it stands, was sold to the council in 1901 by Sir Spencer Walpole, which had been bought by his father the Rt. Hon. Spencer Horatio Walpole and thus became Walpole Park.^[6]

It was during the Victorian period that Ealing became a town. This meant that good, well-metalled roads had to be built, and schools and public buildings erected. To protect public health, the newly created Board of Health for Ealing commissioned London's first modern drainage and sewage systems here. Just as importantly, drinking fountains providing wholesome and safe water were erected by public prescription. Ealing Broadway became a major shopping centre. The man responsible for much of all this was Charles Jones, Borough Surveyor from 1863–1913. He directed the planting of the horse chestnut trees on Ealing Common and designed the Town Hall, both the present one and the older structure which is now a bank (on the Mall). He even oversaw the purchase of the Walpole estate grounds and its conversion into a leisure garden for the general public to enjoy and promenade around on Sundays.

Queen of the Suburbs[link]

1905 lamp standard. Mount Park Road

It was in 1901 that Ealing Urban District was incorporated as a municipal borough, Walpole Park was opened and the first electric trams ran along the Uxbridge Road. As part of its permit to operate, the electric tram company was required to incorporate the latest in modern street lighting into its overhead catenary supply, along the Ealing section of the Uxbridge Road. A municipally-built generating station near Clayponds Avenue supplied power to more street lighting that ran northwards, up and along Mount Park Road and the surrounding streets.

It was of this area centred around Mount Park Road that Nikolaus Pevsner remarks as ”epitomising Ealing’s reputation as 'Queen of the Suburbs'..”^[7] In a very short time, Ealing had become a modern and fashionable country town, free of the grime, soot and smells of industrialised London, and yet only minutes away from it by modern transport.^[8]

Who first coined the term Queen of the Suburbs is not known, but the name sticks to the present day. The Mount Park Road area still retains much of its original character and is still dominated by grand family homes. For the most part, it has resisted the conversion into dormitory bed-sitters, an effect which has over taken so many of the other London suburbs.^[9]

With the amalgamation of the surrounding municipal boroughs in 1965, Ealing Town Hall became the administrative centre for the new London Borough of Ealing. Today, this also includes its offices at Perceval House just next to it.

Geography[link]

Nearest places:

• Hanwell
• Hanger Hill
• Perivale
• Alperton
• Acton
• Brentford

Economy[link]

Ealing Studios[link]

Ealing is best known for its film studios, which are the oldest in the world and are known especially for the Ealing comedies, including Kind Hearts and Coronets, Passport to Pimlico, The Ladykillers and The Lavender Hill Mob. The studios were taken over by the BBC in 1955, with one consequence being that Ealing locations appeared in television programmes including Doctor Who (notably within an iconic 1970 sequence in which deadly shop mannequins menaced local residents) to Monty Python's Flying Circus. Most recently, these studios have again been used for making films, including Notting Hill and The Importance of Being Earnest. Most recently, St Trinian's, a remake of the classic film, was produced by Ealing Studios; some locations in Ealing can be seen in this film.

Quite remarkably, Ealing now lacks any cinema houses in which to show these films; the Ealing Empire cinema has now been closed since 2008. However local group Pitshanger Pictures shows classic movies in St Barnabas Millennium Hall on Pitshanger Lane.^[10]

Ealing does have a theatre on Mattock Lane, Questors Theatre.

Transport[link]

Ealing is served by Ealing Broadway station on the Great Western Main Line and the London Underground in London fare zone 3. It is also served by three other tube stations at North Ealing, South Ealing and Ealing Common. The Piccadilly line operates at North Ealing, Ealing Common and South Ealing; the Central line at Ealing Broadway; and the District line at Ealing Broadway and Ealing Common. The station at Ealing Broadway is served by National Rail operators First Great Western and Heathrow Connect. Early in the 21st century Transport for London (TFL) planned to reintroduce an electric tram line along the Uxbridge Road (the West London Tram scheme), but this was abandoned in August 2007 in the face of fierce local opposition and a switch in priorities and funding to Crossrail.

Culture[link]

Religion[link]

The ancient parish church of Ealing is St Mary's, in St Mary's Road. Standing near Charlbury Grove, Ealing Abbey was founded by a community of Roman Catholic Benedictine monks in 1897. Twinned with the convent of St. Augustine's Priory, the giant abbey is an example of a traditional, working monastery. There are over fifteen churches in the suburb of Ealing, including Our Lady Mother of the Church, a Polish Roman Catholic church in The Mall, near Ealing Broadway.^[11] There are two well-established synagogues, The Ealing United Synagogue (Orthodox),^[12] which celebrated its 90th anniversary in November 2009, and the Ealing Liberal Synagogue,^[13] now in its 67th year. In surrounding suburbs there are two mosques in Acton, one in West Ealing, and two in Southall. Southall also has a large Sikh and Muslim community and is famous for being a focal point of London's diverse society.

Music[link]

Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones famously first met Brian Jones in 1962 at the Ealing Jazz Club, opposite Ealing Broadway station. Other artists who performed at the club include Rod Stewart and Manfred Mann. The Jazz Club is now a nightclub called The Red Room.

Sport[link]

Ealing is home to Ealing Trailfinders Rugby Club. Due to the nearby football teams, Brentford Football Club and Queens Park Rangers, Ealing has previously not had its own football team, despite its size. However in late 2008 a team by the name of 'Ealing Town Football Club' had been registered with the Football Association and will therefore start playing competitive matches in the 2008/2009 football season. Gaelic Games have a prominent role in the Irish community in Ealing with successful clubs such as St. Josephs GAA and Tir Chonaill GAA in neighbouring Perivale and Greenford. Despite not having its own football team, many youth football clubs such Old Actonians FC, Pitshanger FC (www.pitchero.com/clubs/pitshangerfc) and Hanwell Town FC play in local leagues and are popular among the children of the borough. Most of these teams compete in the Harrow League or the Hayes and District Sunday Youth League, although some teams compete in other leagues based further away from Ealing itself.

Ealing also boasts a successful local running club in Ealing, Southall & Middlesex AC. The club counts double Olympic champion Kelly Holmes among its^[14] members and she has^[15] several club records to her name. Ealing is also home to Ealing Cricket Club.

Festivals[link]

Ealing is the host to several annual festivals. The first festival to be regularly staged was the Jazz Festival which is held in Walpole Park. An annual Beer Festival was then started and organized by the Campaign for Real Ale and originally held in the Ealing Town Hall. Due to its popularity, it had outgrown the space available at the Town Hall after a few years, so it too then transferred to the park, where they now have room to offer over 200 real ales. Each stillage is supplied with individual cooling jackets to maintain each barrel at the exactly right temperature. This event is largely run by keen volunteers. The success of these events encouraged the local council to licence a broader range of festivals.

The 19th Ealing Beer Festival in Walpole park

• Beer Festival (6 to 9 July)^[16]
• Blues Festival,^[17]
• Comedy Festival,^[17]
• Global Festival,^[17]
• Jazz Festival.^[17]
• Opera in the Park,^[17]

Ealing in fiction[link]

• Ealing was the setting for children's comedy show Rentaghost.
• In James Hilton's novel Goodbye, Mr Chips (1934), Katherine, the lovely young wife of the shy schoolmaster protagonist Mr Chipping, is said to have been living with an aunt in Ealing following the death of her parents.
• Ealing and the surrounding area is mentioned in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (1932). Lenina observes a Delta gymnastic display in the Ealing stadium as she flies overhead in a helicopter with Henry Foster.
• The John Sanders department store (now a branch of Marks & Spencer) was the location for the scenes of the Autons breaking through the shop window and beginning their killing rampage in the 1970 Doctor Who story Spearhead from Space. The Doctor Who spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures takes place in Ealing where Sarah Jane and the other regular characters happen to live.
• The main character Kendra Tamale of the book Marshmallows for Breakfast by Dorothy Koomson, was said to have grown up or lived in Ealing or nearby.
• The police station featured in the opening titles of Dixon of Dock Green was the previous Ealing police station, located at number 5 High Street, just north of Ealing Green.^[18][19]
• HG Wells' The War of the Worlds Ch. 16: The exodus from London. The author describing the alien deployment of poisonous, ground hugging, black vapour: “Another bank drove over Ealing, and surrounded a little island of survivors on Castle Hill, alive, but unable to escape.” 'Castle Hill' was the name given in the authors time to the Victorian housing estate that sits upon Castlebar Hill and the original name of West Ealing railway station.^[20]
• Thomas Merton, in his autobiography Seven Story Mountain, tells of living in Ealing for a time with his Aunt and Uncle.
• Hugh Grant's character in the film Bridget Jones's Diary recites a limerick about Ealing.
• Keith Stewart, the main character in Nevil Shute's Trustee from the Toolroom, lives in West Ealing.

See also[link]

• West Ealing
• List of people from Ealing
• 3 August 2001 Ealing bombing
• The Questors Theatre, Ealing
• Ealing Jazz Club

References[link]

Notes

Bibliography

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ealing Town

• Ealing Council
• Ealing Studios

v t e London Borough of Ealing Districts Acton Acton Green Bedford Park Dormers Wells Ealing (including Brentham Garden Suburb and Pitshanger) East Acton Greenford Hanwell North Acton Northolt Norwood Green Park Royal Perivale South Acton Southall West Acton West Ealing Yeading Attractions Hoover Building London Motorcycle Museum Museum of Asian Music Pitzhanger Manor Gallery and House Wharncliffe Viaduct Parks and open spaces Acton Park Ealing Common Northala Fields Southall Park Walpole Park Constituencies Ealing Central and Acton Ealing North Ealing Southall Tube and railway stations Acton Central railway station Acton Main Line railway station Acton Town Boston Manor Castle Bar Park railway station Chiswick Park Drayton Green railway station Ealing Broadway station Ealing Common Greenford Hanger Lane Hanwell railway station North Acton North Ealing Northfields Northolt Northolt Park railway station Park Royal Perivale South Acton railway station Southall railway station South Ealing South Greenford railway station Sudbury Town West Acton West Ealing railway station Other topics People Public art Schools Parks and open spaces in Ealing

Alistair McGowan (born 24 November 1964) is a British impressionist, stand-up comic, actor, singer and writer best known to British audiences for The Big Impression (formerly Alistair McGowan's Big Impression), which was, for four years, one of BBC1's top-rating comedy programmes - winning numerous awards, including a BAFTA in 2003.^[1] He has also worked extensively in theatre and appeared in the West End in Art, Cabaret, The Mikado and Little Shop of Horrors (for which he received an Laurence Olivier Award nomination).^[2] As a television actor, he played the lead role in BBC1's Mayo. He wrote the play Timing (nominated as Best New Comedy at the whatsonstage.com awards^[3]) and the book A Matter of Life and Death or How to Wean Your Man off Football with former comedy partner Ronni Ancona. He also provided voices for Spitting Image.

He made his début broadcast as a tennis commentator for BBC Sport at the 2011 Wimbledon Championships.

Personal life and education[link]

McGowan was born in Evesham to Marion and George McGowan. Although aware his father was born in Calcutta, India, Alistair and his sister Kay were unaware of the fact that their father had a Anglo-Indian & distant Irish background until McGowan explored his ancestry on BBC One's Who Do You Think You Are? in the 26 October 2007 episode^[4] four years after his father's death.

Alistair attended the Simon de Montfort Middle School in Evesham and took lead roles in school productions. He went on to attend Evesham High School.^[5] He graduated from the University of Leeds with a BA English degree in 1986.^[6] He then went to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, graduating in 1989.^{[citation needed]}

McGowan is a supporter of Leeds United, even claiming that he decided to study at Leeds partly because of its proximity to Elland Road,^[7] and his obsession with football forms the basis of his 2009 book A Matter of Life and Death.^[8]

Career[link]

McGowan found work as a stand-up comedian, and did some of the voices for the ITV television series Spitting Image. His sporting impressions were showcased on the BBC 2 football magazine programme Sick as a Parrot. He also appeared as the recycling man in the BBC show Think about Science.

Later he took over from Stephen Tompkinson playing Spock in the Tim Firth comedy drama, Preston Front. In his early career, McGowan had minor roles in shows such as Children's Ward, and in the pilot episode of Jonathan Creek. He also starred in the first series of Dead Ringers.

McGowan also appeared in the Scottish football sketch show Only an Excuse? from 1996 to 1998. He also hosted and starred in a sporting impressions show on Radio 5 live called The Game's up in the late 1990s. Since 2 June 2012, McGowan has hosted ITV comedy show You Cannot Be Serious

The Big Impression[link]

He is best known for his work with Jan Ravens and Ronni Ancona on The Big Impression, formerly Alistair McGowan's Big Impression. McGowan has a repertoire of well over one hundred impersonations many of which have been covered on Alistair McGowan's Big Impression.

The most popular and regular include David Beckham, Sven-Göran Eriksson, Gary Lineker, Nicky Campbell, Richard Madeley, Tony Blair, Prince Charles, Robert Kilroy-Silk, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Angus Deayton, Terry Wogan and the fictional characters Ross Geller (from Friends) and Dot Cotton (from EastEnders).

McGowan and Ronni Ancona are probably best known for their portrayal of Posh and Becks with McGowan exaggerating David Beckham's perceived lack of intelligence^{[citation needed]} and Ancona exaggerating the role of "Posh Spice" (Victoria Beckham) with pouting lips. As the Beckhams' style of dress regularly changed - in particular David's changing haircuts - McGowan adapted his costumes and style accordingly. In later years he developed his portrayal of Beckham into a brainiac infuriated by Posh's lack of intelligence.

Return to acting and radio work (2005)[link]

He made a return to dramatic acting in 2005, appearing in the BBC's adaptation of Charles Dickens's novel Bleak House. In 2006 he starred in the detective series Mayo. He also presented an episode of Have I Got News For You on 20 October 2006. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company for the Christmas 2006 season playing Mr Page in Merry Wives: the Musical (a version of The Merry Wives of Windsor) opposite Judi Dench, Simon Callow and Haydn Gwynne.

Despite his acting commitments, he has still continued a successful career of celebrity impersonator on the BBC Radio and also did re-voicing of video footages of 'The Sports Review of the Year' and Match of the Day which has turned him into a sideline sporting celebrity.^[9] Two releases of 'Alistair McGowan's Football Backchat' were best sellers in both comedy and sports video charts.

In 2007, McGowan starred as the dentist (and other, smaller characters) in the West End transfer of the Menier Chocolate Factory's revival of Little Shop of Horrors, and filmed My Life in Ruins, an American comedy film set in the ruins of ancient Greece.

In 2008, McGowan made his directing debut at Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Noël Coward's classic comedy Semi-Monde.^[10]

In January and February 2008, McGowan starred as the eponymous protagonist of The Mikado by Gilbert and Sullivan, in a revival by Carl Rosa Opera Company. On 21 April 2008 he took over the role of Emcee in Cabaret (musical) at the Lyric Theatre, London. In July of that year he appeared in a revival of They're Playing Our Song at the Menier Chocolate Factory.

In March 2009, McGowan starred as The Duke in the stage version of Shakespeare's Measure for Measure.^[11]

Alistair appeared as a host on one episode of the fifth series of Live At The Apollo, which aired on 1 January 2010.

McGowan appeared in Skins in February 2011. He played Nick's coach in the fifth episode of the new series.

On 12 March 2011 he played the part of the Pirate King in Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance, at the Barbican Hall, London.^[12] and, later in the year, took over from Rupert Everett the part of Henry Higgins in Pygmalion at the Garrick Theatre, opposite Kara Tointon as Eliza Doolittle.

In April 2011 he takes to the stage at the Djanogly Theatre, Lakeside Arts Centre at the University of Nottingham in David Mamet's controversial drama Oleanna.

In 2011 he co-starred in the CBBC series Leonardo as Piero di Cosimo de' Medici.

On 9 June 2011 he was unveiled as the newest addition to the BBC Wimbledon commentary team.

Environmental work[link]

McGowan serves as an ambassador to WWF-UK, part of the global World Wide Fund for Nature, and campaigns on a number of environmental issues. In 2004 he launched 'the BIG recycle' national campaign urging public to reduce rubbish by recycling it.

On 2 August 2006, he appeared on BBC Radio 2 on Steve Wright's show to appeal to listeners to be more energy aware. More recently, he appeared on the James Whale Show on Talksport on 20 June 2007 on this issue.

McGowan is a patron of the urban tree-planting charity Trees for Cities.

On 13 January 2009, it was announced that McGowan in partnership with three other Greenpeace activists, including actress Emma Thompson, had bought land near Sipson, a village under threat from the proposed third runway for Heathrow Airport.^[13] It is hoped that the area of ground, half the size of a football pitch, will prevent the government from carrying through its plan to expand Heathrow. The field, bought for an undisclosed sum from a local land owner, will be split into small squares and sold across the globe. When interviewed Mr McGowan said: "BAA were so confident of getting the Government's go ahead, but we have cunningly bought the land they need to build their runway."^[14]

In 2009, he attended the Bromley Environmental Awards and was the celebrity guest at Bromley Civic Centre where the awards were presented to various schools in the borough.

In June 2011, it was announced that McGowan had become a Patron of the Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery, where over 30 members of his extended family are interred.^[15]

Other work[link]

• ElvenQuest, radio 2009, as Lord Darkness

References[link]

External links[link]

• Alistair McGowan News, Biography and CV - Official Web site
• Alistair McGowan at the Internet Movie Database
• Alistair McGowan credits - BBC Comedy Guide
• Alistair McGowan's Big Impression - BBC Comedy Guide

Soft Machine were an English rock band from Canterbury, named after the book The Soft Machine by William S. Burroughs. They were one of the central bands in the Canterbury scene, and helped pioneer the progressive rock genre. Though they achieved little commercial success, they are considered by Allmusic to be "one of the more influential bands of their era, and certainly one of the most influential underground ones."

History[link]

Beginnings, Psychedelic, Jazz fusion[link]

Soft Machine (billed as The Soft Machine up to 1969) were formed in mid-1966 by Robert Wyatt (drums, vocals), Kevin Ayers (bass, guitar, vocals), Daevid Allen (guitar) and Mike Ratledge (organ) plus, for the first few gigs only, American guitarist Larry Nowlin.^[1] Allen, Wyatt and future bassist Hugh Hopper had first played together in the Daevid Allen Trio in 1963, occasionally accompanied by Ratledge. Wyatt, Ayers and Hopper had been founding members of the Wilde Flowers, later incarnations of which would include future members of another Canterbury band, Caravan.

This first Soft Machine line-up became involved in the early UK underground, featuring prominently at the UFO Club, and subsequently other London clubs like the Speakeasy and Middle Earth, and recorded the group's first single 'Love Makes Sweet Music', as well as some demo sessions that were released several years later. They also played in the Netherlands, Germany and on the French Riviera. During July and August 1967, the promoter and manager Giorgio Gomelsky booked shows all along the Côte d'Azur with the band's most notorious early gig taking place in the village square of Saint-Tropez. This led to an invitation to perform at producer Eddie Barclay's trendy "Nuit Psychédélique^(fr)", performing a forty minute rendition of "We Did It Again", singing the refrain over and over, achieving a Zen-like quality. This made them instant darlings of the Parisian "in" crowd, resulting in invitations to appear on leading television shows and at the Paris Biennale in October 1967. Upon their return from their sojourn in France, Allen (an Australian) was denied re-entry to the United Kingdom, so the group continued as a trio, while he returned to Paris to form Gong.

Sharing the same management team as Jimi Hendrix, the band were rewarded with a support slot on the Jimi Hendrix Experience's North America tour throughout 1968.^[1] Soft Machine's first album - a psychedelic rock/proto-prog classic - was recorded in New York in April at the end of the first leg. Back in London, eventually guitarist Andy Summers, later of The Police, joined the group, fresh from his stint with Dantalian's Chariot (previously Zoot Money's Big Roll Band). After a few weeks of rehearsals, the new quartet began a tour of the USA with some solo shows before reuniting with Hendrix for a final string of dates in August–September 1968. Summers, however, had in the meantime been fired at the insistence of Ayers.^[2] Ayers departed amicably after the final date at the Hollywood Bowl, and for the remainder of 1968 Soft Machine were no more. Wyatt stayed in the US to record solo demos, while Ratledge returned to London and began composing in earnest.

In January 1969, in order to fulfil contractual obligations, Soft Machine reformed with former road manager and composer Hugh Hopper on bass added to Wyatt and Ratledge, and set about recording their second album, Volume Two, which launched a transition towards a purely instrumental sound resembling what would be later called jazz fusion. In May 1969, this lineup acted as the uncredited backup band on two tracks of Syd Barrett's solo debut album, The Madcap Laughs. The base trio was late in 1969 expanded to a septet with the addition of four horn players, though only saxophonist Elton Dean remained beyond a few months, the resulting Soft Machine quartet (Wyatt, Hopper, Ratledge and Dean) running through Third (1970) and Fourth (1971), with various guests, mostly jazz players (Lyn Dobson, Nick Evans, Mark Charig, Jimmy Hastings, Roy Babbington, Rab Spall). Fourth was the first of their fully instrumental albums, and the last one featuring Wyatt.

Their propensity for building extended suites from regular sized compositions, both live and in the studio (already in the Ayers suite in their first album), reaches its maximum in the 1970 album Third, unusual for its time in each of the four sides featuring one suite. Third was also unusual for remaining in print for more than ten years in the United States, and is the best-selling Soft Machine recording.^[3]

This period saw them gaining unprecedented acclaim across Europe, and they made history by becoming the first 'rock band' invited to play at London's Proms in August 1970, a show which was broadcast live and later appeared as a live album.

Post-Wyatt era[link]

After differences over the group's musical direction, Wyatt left (or was fired from^[4]) the band in 1971 and formed Matching Mole (a pun on machine molle French for soft machine). He was briefly replaced by Australian drummer Phil Howard, but further musical disagreements led to Howard's dismissal after the 1971 recording of the first LP side of Fifth (1972) and, some months later, to Dean's departure. They were replaced respectively by John Marshall (drums) and, for the recording of Six (1973), Karl Jenkins (reeds, keyboards), both former members of Ian Carr's Nucleus, and The Softs' sound developed even more towards jazz fusion.

In 1973, after Six, Hopper left and was replaced by Roy Babbington, another former Nucleus member, who had already contributed with double bass on Fourth and Fifth and took up (6-string) electric bass successfully. This new quartet of Babbington, Jenkins, Marshall and Ratledge recorded the next (and last) three official Soft Machine studio releases. After they released Seven (1973) without additional musicians, the band switched record labels from Columbia to Harvest. On their 1975 album Bundles, a significant musical change occurred with fusion guitarist Allan Holdsworth adding guitar as a very prominent melody instrument to the band's sound, sometimes reminiscent of John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra, setting the album apart from previous Soft Machine releases, which had rarely featured guitars. On the last official studio album Softs (1976), he was replaced by John Etheridge. Ratledge, the last remaining original member of the band, had left during the early stages of recording. Other musicians in the band during the later period were bassists Percy Jones (of Brand X) and Steve Cook,^[5] saxophonists Alan Wakeman and Ray Warleigh, and violinist Ric Sanders. Their 1977 performances and record (titled Alive and Well, ironically) were among the last for Soft Machine as a working band. The Soft Machine name was used for the 1981 record Land of Cockayne (with Jack Bruce and, again, Allan Holdsworth, plus Ray Warleigh and Dick Morrissey on saxes and John Taylor on electric piano), and for a final series of dates at London's Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in the summer of 1984, featuring Jenkins and Marshall leading an ad hoc lineup of Etheridge, Warleigh, pianist Dave MacRae and bassist Paul Carmichael.

Legacy[link]

In Soft Machine's Allmusic biography, authors Dave Lynch and Richie Unterberger wrote:

"Soft Machine were never a commercial enterprise and indeed still remain unknown even to many listeners who came of age during the late '60s and early ‘70s, when the group was at its peak. In their own way, however, they were one of the more influential bands of their era, and certainly one of the most influential underground ones. One of the original British psychedelic groups, they were also instrumental in the birth of both progressive rock and jazz-rock. They were also the central foundation of the family tree of the "Canterbury Scene" of British progressive rock acts, a movement that also included Caravan, Gong, Matching Mole, Hatfield and the North, and National Health, not to mention the distinguished pop music careers of founding members Robert Wyatt and Kevin Ayers and the jazz and jazz-rock explorations of saxophonist Elton Dean and bassist Hugh Hopper."

Since 1988, a wealth of live recordings of Soft Machine have been issued on CD, with recording quality ranging from poor to excellent.

In 2002, four former Soft Machine members - Hugh Hopper, Elton Dean, John Marshall and Allan Holdsworth - toured and recorded under the name Soft Works^[6] (initially called Soft Ware, debuting at the 2002 Progman Cometh Festival).

From late 2004 onwards, with John Etheridge replacing Holdsworth, they toured and recorded as Soft Machine Legacy.^[7] They released three albums: Live in Zaandam^[8] (2005), the studio album Soft Machine Legacy^[9] (2006) and Live at the New Morning^[10] (2006). Although Elton Dean died in February 2006, the band has continued with British saxophonist and flautist Theo Travis (formerly of Gong and The Tangent).

In December 2006, the new line-up recorded the album Steam^[11][12][13] in Jon Hiseman's studio, released by Moonjune Records in August 2007 before a European tour in autumn.

In 2008 Hopper was sidelined by leukemia and the band continued live performances with Fred Baker. Following Hopper's death in 2009, the band announced that it would continue with Babbington once again stepping into the role formerly held by Hopper.^[14]

Influence[link]

The hip hop duo Reflection Eternal was inspired by Seven and they took samples from "Carol Ann" for the song "Memories Live" on their album Train of Thought^[15].

Awards[link]

The album on which Jenkins first played with Soft Machine, Six, won first place in the Melody Maker British Jazz Album of the Year award in 1973. Soft Machine was voted best small group in the Melody Maker jazz poll of 1974.

Biography[link]

Graham Bennett's Soft Machine biography, Soft Machine: Out-Bloody-Rageous,^[16] was published in September 2005. In 2006 the book won an Award for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections.

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• The Soft Machine (ABC/Probe, 1968)
• Volume Two (ABC/Probe, 1969)
• Third (CBS, 1970)
• Fourth (CBS, 1971)
• Fifth (CBS, 1972)
• Six (CBS, 1973)
• Seven (CBS, 1973)
• Bundles (Harvest, 1975)
• Softs (Harvest, 1976)
• Rubber Riff (library music originally recorded for DeWolfe music in 1976 under Karl Jenkins' name - re-issued on CD as a Soft Machine title by Blueprint, 1994)^[17]
• Alive & Well: Recorded in Paris (Harvest, 1978)
• Land of Cockayne (EMI, 1981)

Live albums and compilations[link]

• Rock Generation Vol. 7 (one side only, 1967 demo recordings) (BYG, 1972)
• Rock Generation Vol. 8 (one side only, 1967 demo recordings) (BYG, 1972) - This and the preceding entry were combined on subsequent releases, under such titles as Jet Propelled Photographs or Faces & Places Vol.7 (BYG Records). A 1976 release on Charly records was entitled At the Beginning.
• Triple Echo (3 record compilation, 1967–1976) (Harvest, 1977) - Notable for containing both the rare big-band arrangement of Esther's Nose Job and the completely reworked "here at the BBC" version of the Moon in June lyrics.
• Live at the Proms 1970 (Reckless, 1988)
• Turns On Paradiso (Amazing Discs, 1988) (recordings of 1969 - bootleg?)
• The Untouchable (compilation from Bundles, Softs, and Alive and Well) (Castle Communications, 1990)
• The Peel Sessions (recorded 1969-1971) (Strange Fruit, 1990)
• BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert 1971 (Windsong, 1993; also issued as Soft Machine & Heavy Friends by Hux, 2005)
• BBC Radio 1 Live In Concert 1972 (Windsong, 1994; also issued as Softstage by Hux, 2005)
• Live at the Paradiso 1969 (Voiceprint, 1995)
• Live in France (recorded 1972; also issued as Live in Paris by Cuneiform, 2004) (One Way, 1995)
• Spaced (recorded 1969) (Cuneiform, 1996)
• Virtually (recorded by Radio Bremen 1971) (Cuneiform, 1998)^[18]
• Noisette (recorded 1970) (Cuneiform, 2000)
• Backwards (recorded 1968-1970) (Cuneiform, 2002)
• Facelift (recorded 1970) (Voiceprint, 2002)
• BBC Radio 1967-1971 (Hux, 2003)
• BBC Radio 1971-1974 (Hux, 2003)
• Somewhere In Soho (recorded 1970) (Voiceprint, 2004)
• Breda Reactor (recorded 1970) (Voiceprint, 2005)
• Out-Bloody-Rageous (compilation, 1967–1973) (Sony, 2005)
• Orange Skin Food (2 cd compilation of released live recordings) (Membran/EagleRock, 2005)
• British Tour'75 (Major League, 2005)
• Floating World Live (recorded 1975) (MoonJune Records, 2006)
• Grides (CD/DVD Recorded 1970) (Cuneiform Records, 2006)
• Middle Earth Masters (CD Recorded 1967) (Cuneiform Records, 2006)
• Drop (with Phil Howard, recorded 1971) (MoonJune Records, 2008)^[19]
• Live at Henie Onstad Art Centre (recorded 1971) (Reel Recordings, 2009)^[20]
• NDR Jazz Workshop (Hamburg, Germany, May 17, 1973) (Cuneiform Records,^[21] 2010)
• At The Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club (vinyl re-release of Somewhere In Soho - 2lp)(2011) (Lilith Records)

Singles[link]

• "Love Makes Sweet Music" / "Feelin' Reelin' Squeelin'" (Polydor UK, 1967)
• "Joy of a Toy" / "Why Are We Sleeping?" (ABC Probe USA, 1968)
• "Soft Space (part 1)" / "Soft Space (part 2)" (Harvest UK, 1977)

Line-ups timeline[link]

<timeline>

1. header

ImageSize = width:800 height:500 PlotArea = left:90 right:15 bottom:85 top:10 AlignBars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/07/1966 till:31/12/1978 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy

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 id:gvoc        value:rgb(0.9,1,0.3)
 id:git         value:rgb(1,1,0.3)
 id:bass        value:rgb(0.6,0.6,1)
 id:sax         value:rgb(1,0.5,0.5)
 id:flsx        value:rgb(1,0.5,0.5)
 id:cornet      value:rgb(1,0.5,0.5)
 id:tb          value:rgb(1,0.5,0.5)
 id:ds          value:rgb(0.75,0.75,1)
 id:obsxkbd     value:rgb(1,0.6,0.3)
 id:vln         value:rgb(0.8,0.8,0.5)
 id:white       value:rgb(1,1,1)
 id:black       value:rgb(0,0,0)
 id:lgray       value:rgb(0.9,0.9,0.9)
 id:mgray       value:rgb(0.8,0.8,0.8)
 id:alben       value:rgb(0,0.4,0.1)

ScaleMajor = gridcolor:mgray unit:year increment:1 start:01/01/1967 ScaleMinor = unit:month increment:3 start:01/07/1966 BackgroundColors = bars:lgray

BarData =

 bar:RobertWyatt     text:Robert Wyatt
 bar:MikeRatledge    text:Mike Ratledge
 bar:KevinAyers      text:Kevin Ayers
 bar:DaevidAllen     text:Daevid Allen
 bar:LarryNolan      text:Larry Nowlin
 bar:AndySummers     text:Andy Summers
 bar:HughHopper      text:Hugh Hopper
 bar:BrianHopper     text:Brian Hopper
 bar:LynDobson       text:Lyn Dobson
 bar:EltonDean       text:Elton Dean
 bar:MarcCharig      text:Marc Charig
 bar:NickEvans       text:Nick Evans
 bar:PhilHoward      text:Phil Howard     
 bar:JohnMarshall    text:John Marshall    
 bar:KarlJenkins     text:Karl Jenkins     
 bar:RoyBabbington   text:Roy Babbington   
 bar:AlanHoldsworth  text:Alan Holdsworth  
 bar:JohnEtheridge   text:John Etheridge   
 bar:AlanWakeman     text:Alan Wakeman     
 bar:CarolBarrat     text:Carol Barratt     
 bar:RicSanders      text:Ric Sanders      
 bar:PercyJones      text:Percy Jones
 bar:SteveCook       text:Steve Cook 

1. regular albums

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 text:Volume Two

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 bar:RobertWyatt
 from: 15/08/1966  till: 15/03/1970    text:drums,voc color:dsvc mark:(line,white)
 from: 15/03/1970  till: 15/09/1971    text:drums color:ds mark:(line,white)

 bar:MikeRatledge
 from: 15/08/1966  till: 15/01/1976    text:keybd color:kbd mark:(line,white)

 bar:KevinAyers
 from: 15/08/1966  till: 15/09/1968    text:bass,voc color:bvoc mark:(line,white)

 bar:DaevidAllen
 from: 15/08/1966  till: 15/08/1967    shift:(4,-4) text:guitar,voc color:gvoc mark:(line,white)

 bar:LarryNolan #genaue Zeit der Mitarbeit nicht dokumentiert "only a few early gigs"
 from: 15/08/1966  till: 15/12/1966    shift:(32,-4) text:guitar color:git mark:(line,white) 

 bar:AndySummers
 from: 15/07/1968  till: 15/09/1968    shift:(32,-4) text:guitar color:git mark:(line,white)

 bar:HughHopper
 from: 15/12/1968  till: 15/05/1973    text:bass color:bass mark:(line,white)

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 from: 15/10/1969  till: 15/05/1972    text:sax color:sax mark:(line,white)

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 from: 15/10/1969  till: 15/12/1969    shift:(33,-4) text:trombone color:tb mark:(line,white)
 
 bar:PhilHoward    # nur "Fifth"/Side1
 from: 15/09/1971  till: 15/01/1972    shift:(33,-4) text:drums color:ds mark:(line,white)

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 from: 15/02/1972  till: 15/12/1978    text:drums color:ds mark:(line,white)

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 from: 15/01/1976  till: 15/12/1978    text:keybd color:kbd mark:(line,white) 

 bar:RoyBabbington
 from: 15/05/1973  till: 15/07/1976    text:bass color:bass mark:(line,white)

 bar:AlanHoldsworth
 from: 15/11/1973  till: 15/03/1975    text:guitar color:git mark:(line,white)

 bar:JohnEtheridge
 from: 15/03/1975  till: 15/12/1978    text:guitar color:git mark:(line,white)

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 bar:CarolBarrat
 from: 15/02/1976  till: 15/07/1976    shift:(32,-4) text:keybd color:kbd mark:(line,white)

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 from: 15/09/1976  till: 15/12/1978    text:violin color:vln mark:(line,white)
 
 bar:PercyJones
 from: 15/09/1976  till: 15/02/1977    shift:(32,-4) text:bass color:bass mark:(line,white)

 bar:SteveCook
 from: 15/02/1977  till: 15/12/1978    text:bass color:bass mark:(line,white)

</timeline>

This timeline does not include the last Soft Machine studio album Land of Cockayne (1981) which had:

• Karl Jenkins – keyboards, synths
• John Marshall – drums, percussion

with

• Jack Bruce – bass
• Allan Holdsworth – lead guitar
• John Taylor – electric piano
• Ray Warleigh – alto saxophone, bass flute
• Dick Morrissey – tenor saxophone
• Alan Parker – rhythm guitar
• Stu Calver – backing vocals
• John Perry – backing vocals
• Tony Rivers – backing vocals

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Bennett, Graham: Soft Machine: Out-Bloody-Rageous. London: SAF Publishing, 2005. ISBN 0-946719-84-5 Biography

External links[link]

• Soft Machine section at Calyx website
• Soft Machine - First period with Robert Wyatt
• Soft Machine discography
• Collapso - Canterbury Music Family Tree
• The Soft Machine - A Chronology
• Facelift Magazine - exploring the Canterbury scene and beyond
• Strongcomet:
• Interview with drummer/singer Robert Wyatt
• Elton Dean - interview for Facelift Magazine
• Soft Machine: Out-Bloody-Rageous biography
• Hugh Hopper site (hosted by Burning Shed) including link to the Hopper Archives
• Soft Machine page at Cuneiform Records
• Noisette - The ultimate Soft Machine experience, music, pictures, movies, facts
• Soft Machine at progarchives.com
• Soft Machine at Allmusic
• Soft Machine at allaboutjazz.com

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Kulvinder Ghir, born in Nairobi, Kenya, is a British actor, comedian and writer of South Asian ancestry, best known for his roles in Rita, Sue & Bob Too, Blood & Peaches, Bend It Like Beckham and the sketch show Goodness Gracious Me. He was the father of Luna in the Ice Cream Dream.

In Goodness Gracious Me he specialised in the characters "Chunky Lafunga", a sexy Bollywood star, superhero Bhangra Man, and one half of the "Bhangramuffins" duo (the other half being Sanjeev Bhaskar). He has also provided voices for the BBC Three show Monkey Dust.

His play Dusky Warriors premiered at the Theatre Royal Stratford East in 1995.

In 2000, Ghir played the role of a newsagents owner, in the first series of the ITV1 drama series At Home with the Braithwaites.

He also contributed material to the BBC sketch show The Real McCoy.

From September 2009 to May 2011, Ghir was part of the cast of BBC Three comedy series Lunch Monkeys, playing Mohammed Khan, the father of Abdullah Afzal. ^[1] The show was axed after two series.

He also appeared in Postman Pat since 2003 and did the voice of Ajay Bains and Bill Thompson.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Kulvinder Ghir at the Internet Movie Database
• BBC interview

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