CYRIL FLETCHERPerhaps most famous for his ‘odd odes’ on 1970s TV show ‘That’s Life!’, Cyril Fletcher was a veteran British comic whose distinctive nasal twang and gentle talent to amuse will ensure he remains remembered long after his death on 2 January, 2005.Besides ‘That’s Life!’ he was also a regular on the ‘What’s My Line?’ panel and claimed recognition as a pioneer of radio comedy.He also appeared in a number of films including ‘Nicholas Nickleby’, ‘A Piece of Cake’ and ‘The Yellow Canary’.‘That’s Life!’ co-host Esther Rantzen, described the much-loved comic as “courteous and understated,” while broadcaster Michael Pointon said he was “a pleasure to work with.”Cyril Trevellian Fletcher was born on 25 June, 1913, in Watford. His parents were members of the local amateur dramatic society and inspired him at the age of 10 to make the stage his career.As a teenager, he was educated at Friern Barnet Grammar School where, despite managing to fail Matriculation French three times, he found some success organising concerts. He left at the age of 17 and, in 1930, started work in the City’s ‘Scottish Union and National Insurance Company’.Meanwhile, evenings were spent studying drama at the ‘Guildhall School of Music and Drama’. It was here where the young Fletcher first began writing his comic material which he would perform at club socials and dinners.After joining the Concert Artiste’s Association, he found his first job in entertainment in 1936 at the White Rock Pavillion in Hastings. That same year, he also became one of the first comics to appear on BBC television from studios at Alexandra Palace.Further work came in the shape of BBC radio where he was one of the comic brains on hit show ‘Does the Team Think?’. However, his real break came with TV’s ‘That’s Life!’ which saw him become a household name overnight, reciting his infamous odd odes next to a pot plant.The outbreak of World War Two in 1939 saw Mr Fletcher unable to serve in the Forces for medical reasons after undergoing a serious mastoid operation and he instead found work in pantomime alongside wife Betty Astell, topping variety bills all over Britain.After a series of films, he found an outlet for his love of gardens as the presenter of ATV’s ‘Gardening Time’ for 14 years and, in 1990, ‘Cyril Fletcher’s Lifestyle Garden’. He also toured with his one man show ‘After Dinner with Cyril’, while writing his autobiography ‘Nice One Cyril’.Mr Fletcher and his wife took over the after-dinner speaker’s agency ‘Maurice Frost’, renaming it ‘Associated Speakers’ and turning it into the biggest in Britain.In 1978, the Royal Horticultural Society presented him with its ‘Flora Silver Medal’ for a garden he had designed for the Royal Chelsea Show. Five years later, the Chelsea Flower Show named a rose after him.While at the Guildhall, much of his later material was composed as he ate lunchtime sandwiches at his insurance company’s office.He was an active Christian who did not approve of sex on television, preferring instead “only good, honest vulgarity.”He died peacefully in the Channel Islands on 2 January, 2005, aged 91.
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