253 stories by "Richard Anthony Baker"
Playing a crucial role in the success of two pioneering rock groups, Dr Feelgood and later the Yardbirds, Gypie Mayo was regarded as a virtuoso lead guitarist. He became passionate about mus…
The last radio programme to attract a bigger audience than television was the sci-fi series Journey Into Space (1953-58), one of the stars of which was Bruce Beeby. He played Stephen "Mitch"…
Veteran entertainer, Stan Stennett, best known for his comedy spots on BBC Television's The Black and White Minstrel Show, has died at the age of 88. He was due to have appeared this Christm…
One of the most prominent black actors in Britain, Alton Kumalo became disillusioned with the minor roles he was offered by the Royal Shakespeare Company and so started his own company, Temb…
The music of John Tavener, one of the leading composers of his generation, underwent a transformation. In his youth, when he had something of the playboy image about him, he was championed b…
As Spain moved to encourage tourism more enthusiastically in the last years of the dictator General Franco, one song more than any other, Y Viva Espana, the definitive singer of which was Ma…
The distinctive tone of BBC Radio 3 is largely set by its coterie of announcers, one of whom was John Holmstrom, a man of many talents. As an undergraduate at King's College, Cambridge, he s…
An inquest into the death of the actor Paul Bhattacharjee has found that he killed himself after being declared bankrupt. His body was discovered at cliffs in Seaford in east Sussex in Ju…
Composer John Tavener has died at the age of 69. A statement said he had passed away peacefully at home in Dorset. He had suffered ill health for much of his life. Six years ago,...
The master of a plethora of comic accents, the actor Graham Stark pursued a career that ran in tandem with one of his closest friends, Peter Sellers. From the madcap radio series The Goon Sh…
Perfecting illusions that became familiar around the world, the magician John Calvert produced eggs from nowhere, tried to control handkerchiefs that appeared to have a life of their own and…
Mostly dealing with difficult social issues, the television and film director Antonia Bird first began to be noticed with Safe (1993), a BBC2 drama about homeless teenagers. It won the Edinb…
In turn a couturier, a tap dancer, an award-winning television documentary maker and the author of several theatrical biographies, Charles Castle was one of those fortunate men who made a su…
A character actor of great power and magnetism, Nigel Davenport was a founder member of the English Stage Company at the Royal Court in 1956. During its first season, he appeared in every pr…
Fuelled by a love of travelling, the actor Christopher Burgess liked nothing better than joining an overseas tour, funded by the British Council, and then making his way back to Britain visi…
With a background in law, Felix Dexter emerged as one of the most versatile comedy actors of his generation. He came to prominence in the BBC television sketch show The Real McCoy (1991-96),…
As finance director of HM Tennent, the once all-powerful West End theatrical production company, James Noble played a part in the careers of some of the leading playwrights and actors of the…
In a lengthy career, the distinguished actor Paul Rogers excelled in plays by writers as diverse as Shakespeare and Pinter. Before he reached the age of 40, he played Lear and Falstaff, and …
Tributes have been paid to the comedy actor, Felix Dexter, who died last Friday from a form of bone marrow cancer, aged 52. David Baddiel described his death as "a real loss to comedy;" Bill…
A producer with his father's film company, Hammer, Anthony Hinds turned horror movies into big business, making international stars of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. Although many cinema…
One of the first country singers to appeal to the pop market, Marvin Rainwater topped the British charts for three weeks in 1958 with Whole Lotta Woman, which he wrote himself. Considered ri…
Tony award-winning actor Paul Rogers has died at the age of 96. His family issued a statement saying that his career, which began in 1938, continued until he retired in 1997. "He was never w…
For more than 70 years, Fred Cox was a pillar of the world of old-time variety with his identical twin brother, Frank. As leading members of the Royal Air Force gang shows, under the auspice…
In spite of being the right man in the right place at the right time, Jackie Lomax never became the pop star that many people expected. The Beatles, in particular, were fans and signed him...
The innovative and award-winning broadcaster Tom Vernon became best known for his Fat Man on a Bicycle programmes, in which he cycled from Scandinavia to south America, chatting to people he…
