Rodney Bewes
Encyclopedia
Rodney Bewes is an English
television actor
and writer
who is best known for playing Bob Ferris in the BBC
television sitcom
The Likely Lads
(1964–66) and its colour sequel Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?
(1973–74), and in the various radio series based on them (1967–68 and 1975), and in the big screen film The Likely Lads
(1976).
near Bradford
in the West Riding of Yorkshire
. His early life was a typical northern working class childhood, until his family moved to Luton
in Bedfordshire
, where he attended Stopsley Boys' School
. However, because of his early ill-health (he suffered from asthma
) his mother tended to keep him off school. From the age of 12 he was appearing in television plays for the BBC
, and at 14 he moved to London to attend RADA
's preparatory school.
After two years of national service
in the RAF
, Bewes went to RADA
. At nights he was working in hotels, doing the washing up, to finance his studies at RADA during the day, and hence was frequently to be found asleep in class. He was expelled during his final year. In the early 1960s he was appearing in productions at the Borough Polytechnic Institute (now London South Bank University
) alongside Richard Briers
and Brian Murphy
. He then began appearing in repertory theatre and obtained parts in the television shows Dixon of Dock Green
(1962) and Z-Cars
(1963). He also appeared in the classic film version of Billy Liar
(1963) alongside his close friend Tom Courtenay
. The following year his northern working class
background, and natural northern accent, stood him in good stead, landing him the role of northern working class hero Bob Ferris in The Likely Lads.
In between his two spells as a 'Likely Lad' in the 1960s and 1970s, Bewes also appeared in Man in a Suitcase
(1967), Father Dear Father
(1968), and as "Mr Rodney" on The Basil Brush Show
(1968–69). Bewes starred in his own ITV sitcom Dear Mother...Love Albert
(1969–72), which he also created and co-wrote. He also appeared in the film Spring and Port Wine
(1970) which starred James Mason
, and played the Knave of Hearts in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
(1972).
Some of Bewes's later film and television roles include
Jabberwocky
(1977), The Spaceman and King Arthur
(1979), The Wildcats of St. Trinian's (1980), and the 1984 Doctor Who
serial Resurrection of the Daleks
. His television career largely ended in the mid-1980s.
Although he is better known for his comedy and light entertainment roles, viewers were given an opportunity to see Bewes's serious acting ability in a made-for-TV film adaptation of John Ford
's seventeenth-century play, 'Tis Pity She's a Whore
(1980).
During 1982, he served as spokesman for the now defunct trade organisation the British Onion Marketing Board, appearing in a number of print advertisements during the year.
On stage Bewes has enjoyed considerable success in the 1990s and since with one-man versions of Three Men in a Boat
and Diary of a Nobody
, both of which shows he has toured extensively in the UK
. At the Edinburgh Festival
Fringe in 1997 he won the Stella Artois Prize for his one-man production of Three Men in a Boat.
The autobiography
of Rodney Bewes, A Likely Story, was published in September 2005. Bewes revealed in it, and also on Michael Parkinson
's BBC Radio 2
show in 2005, that his Likely Lads co-star James Bolam
has not spoken to him for the last 30 years, after they fell out over a misunderstanding regarding a press interview Bewes had given. In 2010 Bewes also complained about his former co-star's refusal to allow repeats of The Likely Lads, preventing his earning anything from them; "he must be very wealthy; me, I've just got an overdraft and a mortgage."
Although born in the North of England
, he now regards himself as a London
er, albeit one with a slight northern accent in his speech. He is a member of the London Rowing Club, the Chelsea Arts Club
, and the Garrick Club
. He is also a Freeman of the Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the River Thames
. Having lived in Cornwall
for some years, he and his wife Daphne now live in Henley-on-Thames
. They have four children.
Bewes has failing eyesight as a result of glaucoma
and he also suffers from deafness.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
television actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
who is best known for playing Bob Ferris in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television sitcom
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
The Likely Lads
The Likely Lads
The Likely Lads was a black-and-white British sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and produced by Dick Clement. Twenty episodes were broadcast by the BBC, in three series, between 16 December 1964 and 23 July 1966...
(1964–66) and its colour sequel Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?
Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?
Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? is a 1970s British sitcom broadcast between 9 January 1973 and 9 April 1974 on BBC1. It is the colour sequel to the mid-1960s hit The Likely Lads. It was created and written, as was its predecessor, by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais...
(1973–74), and in the various radio series based on them (1967–68 and 1975), and in the big screen film The Likely Lads
The Likely Lads (film)
The Likely Lads is a 1976 British comedy film directed by Michael Tuchner, starring James Bolam and Rodney Bewes. It's a spin-off from the popular 1960s British television series The Likely Lads, from which it takes its title, though in fact it's closer in tone to the more recent sequel series...
(1976).
Life
Bewes was born in BingleyBingley
Bingley is a market town in the metropolitan borough of the City of Bradford, in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal...
near Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
in the West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...
. His early life was a typical northern working class childhood, until his family moved to Luton
Luton
Luton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....
in Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
, where he attended Stopsley Boys' School
Stopsley
Stopsley is a ward in the north-east of Luton. Originally a hill-top village settlement, most of the urbanised part of the civil parish of Stopsley became part of Luton when the boundaries were extended in 1933, with the rural areas going to Hyde and Streatley.After the Second World War, there was...
. However, because of his early ill-health (he suffered from asthma
Asthma
Asthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...
) his mother tended to keep him off school. From the age of 12 he was appearing in television plays for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, and at 14 he moved to London to attend RADA
Rada
Rada is the term for "council" or "assembly"borrowed by Polish from the Low Franconian "Rad" and later passed into the Czech, Ukrainian, and Belarusian languages....
's preparatory school.
After two years of national service
National service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
in the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, Bewes went to RADA
Rada
Rada is the term for "council" or "assembly"borrowed by Polish from the Low Franconian "Rad" and later passed into the Czech, Ukrainian, and Belarusian languages....
. At nights he was working in hotels, doing the washing up, to finance his studies at RADA during the day, and hence was frequently to be found asleep in class. He was expelled during his final year. In the early 1960s he was appearing in productions at the Borough Polytechnic Institute (now London South Bank University
London South Bank University
London South Bank University is a university in south London. With over 25,000 students and 1,700 staff, it is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name...
) alongside Richard Briers
Richard Briers
Richard David Briers, CBE is an English actor whose career has encompassed theatre, television, film and radio.He first came to prominence as George Starling in Marriage Lines in the 1960s, but it was in the following decade when he played Tom Good in the BBC sitcom The Good Life that he became a...
and Brian Murphy
Brian Murphy (actor)
Brian Murphy is a British actor.Murphy was born in Ventnor, Isle of Wight. Although a prolific actor in many films and theatre productions for almost half a century, Murphy's most famous role was as the henpecked husband George Roper in the sitcom Man About the House and spin-off George and...
. He then began appearing in repertory theatre and obtained parts in the television shows Dixon of Dock Green
Dixon of Dock Green
Dixon of Dock Green was a popular BBC television series that ran from 1955 to 1976, and later a radio series. Despite being a drama series, it was initially produced by the BBC's light entertainment department.-Overview:...
(1962) and Z-Cars
Z-Cars
Z-Cars is a British television drama series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby in the outskirts of Liverpool in Merseyside. Produced by the BBC, it debuted in January 1962 and ran until September 1978.-Origins:The series was developed by...
(1963). He also appeared in the classic film version of Billy Liar
Billy Liar (film)
Billy Liar is a 1963 film based on the novel by Keith Waterhouse. It was directed by John Schlesinger and stars Tom Courtenay as Billy and Julie Christie as Liz, one of his three girlfriends. Mona Washbourne plays Mrs. Fisher, and Wilfred Pickles played Mr. Fisher...
(1963) alongside his close friend Tom Courtenay
Tom Courtenay
Sir Thomas Daniel "Tom" Courtenay is an English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner , Billy Liar , and Dr. Zhivago . Since the mid-1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre...
. The following year his northern working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
background, and natural northern accent, stood him in good stead, landing him the role of northern working class hero Bob Ferris in The Likely Lads.
In between his two spells as a 'Likely Lad' in the 1960s and 1970s, Bewes also appeared in Man in a Suitcase
Man in a Suitcase
Man in a Suitcase is a 1967 television series produced by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment.-Origins and overview:Man in a Suitcase was effectively a replacement for Danger Man, whose production had been curtailed when its star Patrick McGoohan had decided to create his own series, The Prisoner...
(1967), Father Dear Father
Father, Dear Father
Father, Dear Father is a British television sitcom produced by Thames Television for ITV from 1968 to 1973 starring Patrick Cargill. It was subsequently made into a spin-off film of the same title released in 1973....
(1968), and as "Mr Rodney" on The Basil Brush Show
Basil Brush
Basil Brush is a fictional anthropomorphic fox raconteur, best known for his appearances on daytime British children's television. He is primarily portrayed by a glove puppet, but has also been depicted in animated cartoon shorts and comic strips...
(1968–69). Bewes starred in his own ITV sitcom Dear Mother...Love Albert
Dear Mother...Love Albert
Dear Mother...Love Albert later retitled Albert! was a successful British sitcom broadcast between September 1969 and June 1972. It was created by and starred Rodney Bewes. Bewes co-wrote and produced the series with Derrick Goodwin...
(1969–72), which he also created and co-wrote. He also appeared in the film Spring and Port Wine
Spring and Port Wine
Spring and Port Wine is a stage play by Bill Naughton which was turned into a film .It began life under the title My Flesh, My Blood as a BBC Radio play, broadcast on 17 August 1957 in the Saturday Night Theatre strand...
(1970) which starred James Mason
James Mason
James Neville Mason was an English actor who attained stardom in both British and American films. Mason remained a powerful figure in the industry throughout his career and was nominated for three Academy Awards as well as three Golden Globes .- Early life :Mason was born in Huddersfield, in the...
, and played the Knave of Hearts in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1972 film)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a 1972 British musical film based on the Lewis Carroll novel of the same name. It had an all star cast, and John Barry composed the score....
(1972).
Some of Bewes's later film and television roles include
Jabberwocky
Jabberwocky (film)
Jabberwocky is a 1977 British fantasy black comedy film directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Michael Palin as a young cooper who is forced through clumsy, often slapstick misfortunes to hunt a terrible dragon after the death of his father...
(1977), The Spaceman and King Arthur
Unidentified Flying Oddball
Unidentified Flying Oddball, also known as The Spaceman and King Arthur, is Disney’s film adaptation of Mark Twain’s A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. It was directed by Russ Mayberry...
(1979), The Wildcats of St. Trinian's (1980), and the 1984 Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
serial Resurrection of the Daleks
Resurrection of the Daleks
Resurrection of the Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts between 8 February and 15 February 1984...
. His television career largely ended in the mid-1980s.
Although he is better known for his comedy and light entertainment roles, viewers were given an opportunity to see Bewes's serious acting ability in a made-for-TV film adaptation of John Ford
John Ford (dramatist)
John Ford was an English Jacobean and Caroline playwright and poet born in Ilsington in Devon in 1586.-Life and work:...
's seventeenth-century play, 'Tis Pity She's a Whore
'Tis Pity She's a Whore
'Tis Pity She's a Whore is a tragedy written by John Ford. It was likely first performed between 1629 and 1633, by Queen Henrietta's Men at the Cockpit Theatre. The play was first published in 1633, in a quarto printed by Nicholas Okes for the bookseller Richard Collins...
(1980).
During 1982, he served as spokesman for the now defunct trade organisation the British Onion Marketing Board, appearing in a number of print advertisements during the year.
On stage Bewes has enjoyed considerable success in the 1990s and since with one-man versions of Three Men in a Boat
Three Men in a Boat
Three Men in a Boat ,The Penguin edition punctuates the title differently: Three Men in a Boat: To Say Nothing of the Dog! published in 1889, is a humorous account by Jerome K...
and Diary of a Nobody
Diary of a Nobody
The Diary of a Nobody, an English comic novel written by George Grossmith and his brother Weedon Grossmith with illustrations by Weedon, first appeared in the magazine Punch in 1888 – 89, and was first printed in book form in 1892...
, both of which shows he has toured extensively in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. At the Edinburgh Festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
Fringe in 1997 he won the Stella Artois Prize for his one-man production of Three Men in a Boat.
The autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
of Rodney Bewes, A Likely Story, was published in September 2005. Bewes revealed in it, and also on Michael Parkinson
Michael Parkinson
Sir Michael Parkinson, CBE is an English broadcaster, journalist and author. He presented his interview programme, Parkinson, from 1971 to 1982 and from 1998 to 2007.- Early life :...
's BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
show in 2005, that his Likely Lads co-star James Bolam
James Bolam
James Christopher Bolam, MBE is a British actor, best known for his roles as Jack Ford in When the Boat Comes In, Trevor Chaplin in The Beiderbecke Trilogy, Terry Collier in The Likely Lads and its sequel Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, Roy Figgis in Only When I Laugh, Dr Arthur Gilder in...
has not spoken to him for the last 30 years, after they fell out over a misunderstanding regarding a press interview Bewes had given. In 2010 Bewes also complained about his former co-star's refusal to allow repeats of The Likely Lads, preventing his earning anything from them; "he must be very wealthy; me, I've just got an overdraft and a mortgage."
Although born in the North of England
Northern England
Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North or the North Country, is a cultural region of England. It is not an official government region, but rather an informal amalgamation of counties. The southern extent of the region is roughly the River Trent, while the North is bordered...
, he now regards himself as a London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
er, albeit one with a slight northern accent in his speech. He is a member of the London Rowing Club, the Chelsea Arts Club
Chelsea Arts Club
The Chelsea Arts Club is a private members club located in London with a membership of over 2,400, including artists, poets, architects, writers, dancers, actors, musicians, photographers, and filmmakers...
, and the Garrick Club
Garrick Club
The Garrick Club is a gentlemen's club in London.-History:The Garrick Club was founded at a meeting in the Committee Room at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on Wednesday 17 August 1831...
. He is also a Freeman of the Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
. Having lived in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
for some years, he and his wife Daphne now live in Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, England, about 10 miles downstream and north-east from Reading, 10 miles upstream and west from Maidenhead...
. They have four children.
Bewes has failing eyesight as a result of glaucoma
Glaucoma
Glaucoma is an eye disorder in which the optic nerve suffers damage, permanently damaging vision in the affected eye and progressing to complete blindness if untreated. It is often, but not always, associated with increased pressure of the fluid in the eye...
and he also suffers from deafness.
Television Roles
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 to 1966 1973 to 1974 |
The Likely Lads The Likely Lads The Likely Lads was a black-and-white British sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and produced by Dick Clement. Twenty episodes were broadcast by the BBC, in three series, between 16 December 1964 and 23 July 1966... Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? is a 1970s British sitcom broadcast between 9 January 1973 and 9 April 1974 on BBC1. It is the colour sequel to the mid-1960s hit The Likely Lads. It was created and written, as was its predecessor, by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais... |
Bob Ferris |
| 1967 | Hicks and Stokes | Billy Hicks |
| 1969 to 1972 | Dear Mother...Love Albert Dear Mother...Love Albert Dear Mother...Love Albert later retitled Albert! was a successful British sitcom broadcast between September 1969 and June 1972. It was created by and starred Rodney Bewes. Bewes co-wrote and produced the series with Derrick Goodwin... |
Albert Courtnay |
| 1980 | Reg Last |
Filmography
- A Prize of ArmsA Prize of ArmsA Prize of Arms is a 1962 British crime film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Stanley Baker, Helmut Schmid, Patrick Magee and Tom Bell with early appearances by several actors including Fulton Mackay, Tom Adams and Rodney Bewes...
(1962) - Heavens Above!Heavens Above!Heavens Above! is a 1963 British satirical comedy film starring Peter Sellers, directed by John and Roy Boulting, who also co-wrote along with Frank Harvey, from an idea by Malcolm Muggeridge...
(1963) - Billy LiarBilly Liar (film)Billy Liar is a 1963 film based on the novel by Keith Waterhouse. It was directed by John Schlesinger and stars Tom Courtenay as Billy and Julie Christie as Liz, one of his three girlfriends. Mona Washbourne plays Mrs. Fisher, and Wilfred Pickles played Mr. Fisher...
(1963) - San Ferry AnnSan Ferry AnnSan Ferry Ann is a 1966 British sound effect comedy. Wordlessly, with soundtrack and sound effects, it tells the story of a holiday crossing from Dover to Calais.-Synopsis:...
(1965) - Decline and Fall... of a Birdwatcher (1968)
- Spring and Port WineSpring and Port WineSpring and Port Wine is a stage play by Bill Naughton which was turned into a film .It began life under the title My Flesh, My Blood as a BBC Radio play, broadcast on 17 August 1957 in the Saturday Night Theatre strand...
(1970) - Alice's Adventures in WonderlandAlice's Adventures in Wonderland (1972 film)Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a 1972 British musical film based on the Lewis Carroll novel of the same name. It had an all star cast, and John Barry composed the score....
(1972) - The Three MusketeersThe Three Musketeers (1973 film)The Three Musketeers is a 1973 film based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas, père. It was directed by Richard Lester and written by George MacDonald Fraser . It was originally proposed in the 1960s as a vehicle for The Beatles, whom Lester had directed in two other films...
(1973) - The Likely LadsThe Likely Lads (film)The Likely Lads is a 1976 British comedy film directed by Michael Tuchner, starring James Bolam and Rodney Bewes. It's a spin-off from the popular 1960s British television series The Likely Lads, from which it takes its title, though in fact it's closer in tone to the more recent sequel series...
(1976) - JabberwockyJabberwocky (film)Jabberwocky is a 1977 British fantasy black comedy film directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Michael Palin as a young cooper who is forced through clumsy, often slapstick misfortunes to hunt a terrible dragon after the death of his father...
(1976) - Saint JackSaint JackSaint Jack is a 1973 novel by Paul Theroux and a 1979 film of the same name. It tells the life of Jack Flowers, a pimp in Singapore. Feeling hopeless and undervalued, Jack tries to make money by setting up his own bordello, and clashes with Chinese triad members in the process.Ben Gazzara stars as...
(1979) - The Spaceman and King Arthur (1979)
- The Wildcats of St Trinian'sThe Wildcats of St Trinian'sThe Wildcats of St. Trinian's is the fifth British comedy film set in the fictional St Trinian's School, released in 1980.It poked fun at the British trade union movement which had been responsible for the recent wave of strikes that culminated in the Winter of Discontent.The film was not a...
(1980)