Roy Castle

Roy Castle OBE
Born	(1932-08-31)31 August 1932 Scholes,West Riding of Yorkshire,England
Died	2 September 1994(1994-09-02)(aged 62) Gerrards Cross,Buckinghamshire,England
Occupations	Dancer singer comedian actor television presenter musician
Years active	1953–1994
Known for	Record Breakers
Spouse	Fiona Dickson ​ (m.1963)​
Children	4, includingBen

Roy CastleOBE(31 August 1932– 2 September 1994)was an English dancer, singer, comedian, actor, television presenter and musician. In addition to being an accomplishedjazztrumpet player, he could play many other instruments. Following a versatile career as a performer on stage, television and film, he became best known to British television viewers as the long-running presenter of the children's seriesRecord Breakers.

Early career

Castle was born inScholes,nearHolmfirth,West Riding of Yorkshire.The son of a railwayman, he was atap dancerfrom an early age and trained at Nora Bray's school of dance with Audrey Spencer who later ran a big dance school,and after leaving Holme Valley Grammar School (nowHonley High School) he started his career as an entertainer in an amateur concert party. As a young performer in the 1950s, he lived inCleveleysnearBlackpooland appeared there at the local Queen's Theatre, turning professional in 1953 as a stooge forJimmy ClitheroeandJimmy James.By 1958, he was appearing at theRoyal Variety Show.As a singer, he released one charting single in 1960, the Christmas song "Little White Berry".

Television and film career

Castle guest-starred in an episode of theMorecambe and WiseseriesTwo of a Kind,which aired on 3 August 1963. He received billing twice for his guest appearances in both halves of the show. In 1965, Castle starred withPeter Cushingin the filmDr. Who and the Daleks,the first of two cinematic spin-offs from theBBCtelevision series. He played the role ofDr. Who's first male assistant,Ian Chesterton,and was cast to perform the role more comedically than it had been played byWilliam Russellin the equivalent serial. He appeared inDr. Terror's House of Horrorsas a jazz musician.

Castle also appeared inCarry On Up the Khyberin 1968 and in the TV musicalPickwickfor the BBC in 1969. In the 1990s, he appeared again inPickwick,touring the country, starring alongsideSir Harry Secombeand the show was recorded again. Secombe had starred in the originalWest Endproduction in 1963. In 1973, Castle teamed up with the comedy actorRonnie Barkerin an original one-off called "Another Fine Mess" (an episode from Barker's seriesSeven of One). Barker was one of Castle's best friends, and paid tribute to their work together shortly after Castle's death.

In 1967 and 1968, Castle co-starred withJimmy Edwardsin the London West End run of the comedy farce showBig Bad MousewhenEric Sykeshad to withdraw because of illness. The show was resident at theShaftesbury Theatreand, being loosely scripted, it offered both Edwards and Castle the chance to freelyad-liband generally break thefourth wallwith the audience, Castle breaking into trumpet performances while Edwards walked into a front stall seat to read a newspaper, tap dancing and firingping-pongballs into the stalls.He also once stood in forBruce ForsythhostingThe Generation Gamein 1975 while Forsyth was ill. He made many appearances on BBC television's long running variety showThe Good Old Days,making use of his multi instrumental and performing skills. In 1988, Castle presented and performed in theAnglia TelevisionseriesMarching as to War,which traced and re-enacted the early history ofThe Salvation Army.

Record Breakers

In 1972, he first presentedRecord Breakers,a children's show, and he remained host for over 20 years. He recorded thetheme song"Dedication" for the show himself, and usually performed it live over the closing credits. While presenting the show he broke nine world records himself, including

• Fastesttap-dance1,440 taps per minute – 24 taps per second, set on 14 January 1973.
• Longestwing walk– 3 hours, 23 minutes.
• Playing the same tune on 43 different instruments in four minutes.
• On 2 November 1985, theDaily Mirrorreported that "Twinkle-toed Roy Castle has the world at his feet...the millionth time in 24 hours. This was the moment when he tap-danced his way to a new record and raised £1 million for charity. The comedian, host of TV'sRecord Breakers,averaged nearly twelve steps a second during the sponsored feat in London. Roy, 53, had already qualified as the world's fastest tap-dancer. "

He was a host of the show up until a few months before his death in 1994, alongsideNorrisand (until his murderin 1975)Ross McWhirter,Fiona KennedyandCheryl Baker.From then on, hosting was taken over by Baker and former athleteKriss Akabusi.It continued for 29 years until 2001, making it one of Britain's longest-running shows.

Singing career

Between 1958 and 1969, Castle recorded threeLPs.One of these,Songs for a Rainy Daywas recorded in 1966 for theColumbialabel and was reissued in the UK on CD byEMIGold, re-titledIsn't This a Lovely Dayin 2005. The record features twelve songs with rain as the theme. Britishjazzplayers of the dayGordon Beck(piano),Jeff Clyne(bass), Leon Calvert (flugelhorn), Ike Isaacs (guitar), Ray Swinfield (flute) andAl Newman(saxophone) played on the record and it features jazz arrangements by Victor Graham covering a variety of styles such asbig band,( "Pennies From Heaven","Stormy Weather"), ballads (" February Brings The Rain ","Here's That Rainy Day","Soon It's Gonna Rain ") andbossa novas( "Everytime It Rains","The Gentle Rain ").

Castle's recording career also included the spoken word. In 1978, for the Scripture Union Label, he recorded eight Bible parables, released on side 1 of the LPCastle on Luke Street,(SU0806), from the 'Luke Street' books, by David Lewis. Side 2 was spoken byKenneth Williams,Dora Bryan,Derek Nimmo,andThora Hird,who narrated one story each.

Personal life

Castle married dancerFiona Dicksonon 29 July 1963.They had been introduced to each other byEric Morecambe.Both Castle and his wife were committedChristiansand they regularly attended theBaptistchurch near their home. They had four children. Their youngest son,Ben Castle(born 1973), is a jazz saxophonist who has played with a wide range of artists, includingJamie Cullum,Carleen Anderson,Beth Rowley,MarillionandRadiohead,and performed on film soundtracks.

Castle was afootballfan and supportedLiverpool.Fewer than six months before his death, he attended theLiverpool–Evertonderby matchatAnfieldon 13 March 1994 and stood on the Spion Kop terrace. He had also been in the crowd at Liverpool'sFA Cupfinal victory overSunderlandin May 1992, shortly after he was first found to have cancer. At that timeRonnie Barkerpaid tribute to him, referring to their portrayal of characters that bore a strong resemblance toLaurel and HardyinAnother Fine Mess.

On 31 December 1992, Castle was awarded theOBEin the1993 New Year Honours.

Illness and death

Castle was diagnosed withlung cancerin early 1992, and was told that his chances of recovery were slim and that it was unlikely that he would live for more than six months. He underwentchemotherapyandradiotherapyand went intoremissionlater that year. A non-smoker, he blamed his illness onpassive smokingduring his years of playing the trumpet in smoky jazz clubs.On 26 November 1993, Castle announced that his illness had returned, and underwent a second round of treatment. Over the spring and summer of 1994, in spite of his deteriorating health, he carried out the high-profileTour of Hopeto raise funds for the erection of the building that would become theRoy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation,which is the only British charity dedicated solely to defeating lung cancer.

During and shortly after Castle's illness, many smoke-free restaurants and cafes were awarded theRoy Castle Clean Air Awardto denote their adherence to a (then voluntary) smoke-free regime.

His final contribution toRecord Breakerswas aired at the conclusion of the 1993 series, although the programme continued until 2001.

He died at his home inGerrards Cross,Buckinghamshireon the morning of 2 September 1994, two days after his 62nd birthday. A week before his death he was made a freeman of the City of Liverpool.

His funeral service took place on 8 September 1994 inAmersham.Present at the funeral service along with his family wereSir Harry Secombe,Bruce Forsyth,Cliff Richard,andSir John Mills.A memorial service atLiverpool Cathedralwas held on 20 October 1994.

Aftermath

His widow Fiona worked with the charity after her husband's death, and campaigned for the Britishsmoking ban,which came into effect inNorthern Irelandin 2004,Scotlandin 2006, andEnglandandWalesin 2007, banning smoking in virtually all enclosedpublic places.

Works

Year	Title	Publisher	ISBN
1986	Roy Castle on tap: his unique tap dancing course	Newton Abbot; North Pomfret, Vt.: David & Charles	9780715388693
1988	Jogging the memories: confessions of a fitness freak	London: W.H. Allen	9780491031677
1994	Roy Castle	London: BBC Enterprises	9780563390121
1995	Now and then: an autobiography	London: Pan	9780330341936

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1960	Sink the Bismarck!	Seaman onPrince of Wales	Uncredited
1960	Light up the Skies	Private Smith	Uncredited
1965	Dr. Terror's House of Horrors	Biff Bailey	(segment "Voodoo" )
1965	Dr. Who and the Daleks	Ian Chesterton
1966	Alice Through the Looking Glass	Lester the Jester
1967	The Plank	Delivery Man with boxes (Wilfred Bavistock)
1968	Carry On Up the Khyber	Capt. Keene
1969	Pickwick	Sam Weller
1975	Legend of the Werewolf	Photographer

External links

• h2g2 page
• Roy CastleatIMDb
• Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation