Everyone knows the old saying that bad things come in threes and that when one celebrity ies there will almost certainly be a second and third famous obituary following close behind. This is, of course, superstitious nonsense but even I was waiting for the third shoe to drop after the recent deaths of British pop culture legends Spike Milligan and John Thaw. Who would have guessed that the last few days would see it's own trio of British celebs off to that, hopefully, far better place beyond.
First it was a biggie, The Queen Mother, not a telly personality in the traditional sense but a pop culture icon just the same. Just think about how many times the dear old thing is mentioned in passing in your favorite telly program. Like the monarchy she was matriarch over, love her or, as more than one acquaintance of mine fervently did, hate her she was a powerful presence. Gone after 101 years, another sign that the monarchy as it has been known and loved is on it's way out.
The next to leave us was dear old Dudley Moore who passed away at age 66 after a long and painful battle with the degenerative brain condition Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. Moore, best known for his film appearances in such comedic hits as Bedazzled, 10 and the Arthur films also made his mark on television comedy. It was with longtime partner Peter Cooke that Moore, along with Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller found fame with the Beyond the Fringe revue that eventually spawned the hilarious and influential Not Only But Also telly series. Soon a film career beckoned and it would be years before Moore returned to series television with a pair of musical appreciation mini-series (Orchestra and Concerto) and the failed American sitcoms Dudley, with Joanna Gleason and Daddy's Girls with future Felicity star Keri Russell.
Moore was one of a long line of laughing on the outside, crying (or raging) on the inside comedians. Bitter memories of a difficult childhood, bad marriages and nagging health problems plagued the immensely talented and utterly likable Moore throughout his remarkable life.
The third to go was the massively influential Barry Took, like Moore this consummate clown was dogged by emotional troubles, ill health and domestic strife. Also like Moore his legacy of classic comedy shows an extraordinary ability to channel his demons towards joyful and inspiring laughter. Took, originally a stand up comedian, came to prominence for his role in putting together some of British comedy's finest radio and TV programs including the indisputable champion of the wireless Round the Horne. Other successes included The Army Game, Educating Archie, Take it From Here and, on telly, Monty Python's Flying Circus (which was, at one point titled - Baron von Took's Flying Circus).
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