Ronnie Barker
In January 1988, following the 1987 Christmas Special of The Two Ronnies and the broadcast of Clarence, Barker made an appearance on the chat show Wogan, where he announced his intention to retire from showbusiness, stating that he had "no further ambition" and that he should "quit while he was ahead". Following this, he announced that he would open and run an antiques shop at his home in Oxfordshire. He resisted all calls to come out of retirement virtually from that point onwards. Barker sold his antique shop in the late 1990s, and returned to performing. In 1999, he reunited with Ronnie Corbett for a Two Ronnies night on BBC1, where they introduced a selection of their best and most-loved sketches. In 2002, he appeared as Winston Churchill's butler—a "straight" role, but with opportunities for comic asides—in the BBC drama The Gathering Storm. This was followed up by a role in the film My House in Umbria in 2003. In the same year, he briefly reprised perhaps his most famous role of Fletcher in the spoof documentary Life Beyond the Box. In 2004 he was given a special BAFTA award and announced his return to television; he reunited with Ronnie Corbett to record The Two Ronnies Sketchbook, a clip show of their sketches along with newly recorded introductions. These were shown in early 2005.
On Wednesday 6 August 2005, another, final special - The Two Ronnies Christmas Sketchbook, was recorded with new introductions featuring clips from their previous Christmas special shows. This was to be his last television appearance, and sadly, he knew this, as he mentioned to Corbett. This led to an early recording of the special. Barker died in October 2005 at the age of 76, and the show was aired in December that year.
Corbett appeared before the start of the show paying tribute to "Ron", and that Barker informed him of his illness, leading to an early recording of the show. The studio audience weren't informed about Barker's decision, and were therefore confused into why a Christmas episode was being recorded in August.
He was voted amongst the top 20 greatest comedy acts ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders in a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian.
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Personal life
Ronnie Barker married Joy Tubb in 1957 and they had three children: two sons, the actors Larry (b. 1960) and Adam (b. 1967) and one daughter, the actress Charlotte Barker (b. 1963). He retired to Dean, a hamlet near Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire to run an antiques shop in late 1987. He died in a local hospice from heart failure on Monday 3 October 2005, aged 76, with his wife by his side. His catchphrase ending from The Two Ronnies provided the perfect epitaph: "Goodnight From Him".
News of his death on October 3, 2005 made headlines in the United Kingdom and other countries. Ronnie Corbett said that throughout their many years working together there was never a cross word between them. He also commented that Barker was "pure gold in triplicate - as a comedian, writer and friend". His family kindly gave permission for his stage play, Mum, written for his daughter Charlotte, to be adapted for radio. Broadcast in 2006 on BBC Radio 4 as an Afternoon Play, adapted and directed by Neil Cargill, it starred Maxine Peake in the main role alongside Barker's old Porridge collaborator, Sam Kelly, and received very favourable reviews as a "poignant" and "moving" work - a real eye-opener to those who knew only his pure comedy.
He had a private humanist funeral in Banbury, followed by a public memorial service on 3rd March 2006 at Westminster Abbey, at which Richard Briers, David Jason and Ronnie Corbett read, a recording of Barker's rhyming slang sermon was played, and the choir processed in behind four candles, a reference to the Two Ronnies' most famous sketch.[1]
His life and work was honoured at the British Academy Television Awards in 2006.
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Television Roles
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 to 1970 | Hark at Barker | Lord Rustless |
| 1971 to 1987 | The Two Ronnies | |
| 1972 | His Lordship Entertains | Lord Rustless |
| 1973 | Seven of One | |
| 1974 to 1977 | Porridge | Norman Stanley Fletcher |
| 1976/1981 to 1985 | Open All Hours | Albert Arkwright |
| 1978 | Going Straight | Norman Stanley Fletcher |
| 1984 | The Magnificent Evans | Plantagenet Evans |
| 1988 | Clarence | Clarence Sale |
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References
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Further reading
- Barker, R. (2001). All I Ever Wrote: The Complete Works of Ronnie Barker. Sidgwick & Jackson. ISBN 0-283-07334-9.
- Barker, R. (1994). Dancing in the Moonlight: My Early Years. Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 0-340-59104-8.
- McCabe, B. (1998). Ronnie Barker: The Authorised Biography. Andre Deutsch. ISBN 0-233-99382-7.
- Corbett, R. w/ Nobbs, D. (2006). And It's Goodnight From Him . . .. Michael Joseph, Penguin. ISBN 0-718-14964-5.
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External links
- Ronnie Barker at the Internet Movie Database
- Profile from the BBC
- Ronnie Barker at the British Film Institute's Screenonline
- BBC Obituary
- Remembering Ronnie Barker
- Laughterlog.com Complete list of radio shows, television shows, films, books and records featuring Ronnie Barker.
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