BILL OWENFew actors have become so clearly identified with a single role as Bill Owen who died on July 12, 1999, aged 85.
As the scruffy and mischievous Compo in the BBC’s long running and hugely popular sitcom, Last of the Summer Wine, Mr Owen became one of the most familiar faces on British television screens.
This success eclipsed an earlier career of high achievement as a serious actor, playwright and song-writer.
He joined Last of the Summer Wine at its inception in 1973 and remained in the show, seeing off many co-stars, until his own death.
William John Owen Rowbotham was born in Acton Green, London, on March 14, 1914, into a working class family. His father was a tram driver and his mother a laundress.
Mr Owen knew that he wanted to be an entertainer from an early age and worked in a series of odd jobs such as a printer’s apprentice and band vocalist to make ends meet and to pay for acting classes.
After a stint as a drummer in London nightclubs and as an entertainer at a Butlins holiday camp, Mr Owen joined the radical Unity Theatre where he earned respect as a performer, director and producer.
His career was interrupted by the Second World War in which he served as a lieutenant in the Royal Army Ordinance Corps but was injured during an explosion in battle training and forced to return to civilian life.
He immediately returned to acting and a string of critically acclaimed stage appearances led to a contract with Rank studios whereupon he was persuaded to change his name to Bill Owen.
Mr Owen’s first film under his new name was When the Bough Breaksin 1947. In total he appeared in 46 films including Georgy Girl(1966) and many of the Carry-On films.
He also toured America in a stage production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It,turning in a critically acclaimed performance as Touchstone. Katharine Hepburn also starred in the play.
But it was when he was cast as Compo in Last of The Summer Winein 1973 that Mr Owen became a household name. The show detailed the exploits of three pensioners in a Yorkshire village and became the longest running sitcom in history. Mr Owen was married twice and had two children, one of whom, actor Tom Owen, joined the Last of the Summer Wine cast in 2000.
He was a lifelong supporter of the Labour Party and was a founding member of the “Keep Sunday Special” organisation. Mr Owen was awarded an MBE in 1976 for his work for the National Association of Boys Clubs.
As a songwriter, Mr Owen wrote over 75 songs for artists such as Pat Boone and Englebert Humperdinck. Cliff Richard had a minor hit with Mr Owen’s song, Marianne,in 1968.
But it is in the woolly hat and scruffy jacket of Compo that Bill Owen will be always remembered. He was buried in the Yorkshire village of Holmfirth where Last of the Summer Wine was filmed.
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