This post was originally an episode of The Old Time Review Daily Podcast. In each edition, Jamie Dyer spoke off the cuff about a famous person, film or song for up to three minutes. The following is a transcription, which has been cleaned up to remove any hesitation and some repetition. Where possible, the subject has been expanded on from the original broadcast.
This is the Old Time Review Daily Podcast for the 14th of May 2021, and this is Jamie Dyer speaking to you from the UK. On this day in 1926, Eric Morecambe (John Eric Bartholomew) was born. Now, there are so many things that I can say about Eric Morecambe. Unfortunately, I won’t have enough time to say all of it in this podcast, but he was one-half of Morecambe and Wise. If you don’t know of them, they were one of the biggest British Double acts of all time. They still are actually.
The Morecambe and Wise Show was a regular watch for people around this country, including their Christmas specials; I read that the 1977 Christmas episode gained UK viewing figures of over 28 million people, which is an astounding number for a TV show. However, it wasn’t an overnight success for them. They started in the early 20th century in childhood as entertainers. They eventually went into television, quite unsuccessfully at first, and then found success on ITV before moving to the BBC in 1968. They continued their partnership for years afterwards until Eric’s sad passing in 1984. But, Eric’s memory lives on through his TV show, through everybody’s nostalgia for the very musical stylings of Morecambe and Wise.
If you’re listening in America and you’re unsure who they are. They also appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. Ed was quite a fan of them, and I do recommend checking out those performances if you can. Hopefully one day Britbox will get the full series of The Morecambe and Wise Show.
So, this is the… old time review daily podcast, and that was Eric Morecambe, born on this day in 1926. What are your memories of Eric Morecambe?
