Ted Ray was an English comedian of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, on radio and television. His BBC radio show Ray's a Laugh ran for 12 years.
George Wild Galvin, better known by the stage name Dan Leno, was a leading English music hall comedian and musical theatre actor during the late Victorian era. He was best known, aside from his music hall act, for his dame roles in the annual pantomimes that were popular at London's Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, from 1888 to 1904.
Thomas Frederick Parnell OBE, known professionally as Fred Russell, was an English ventriloquist. He is known as "The Father of Modern Ventriloquism" because in the 1890s he used only one dummy on stage creating a fast moving comedy team rather than a multi-figure act which, at the time, was the accepted format for a ventriloquial presentation.
Wyn Calvin MBE OStJ, known affectionately as "The Clown Prince of Wales" and "The Welsh Prince of Laughter", was a Welsh comedian, pantomime dame, television and theatre actor, radio personality, television chat show host, after-dinner speaker, lecturer, philanthropist and newspaper columnist. He worked with numerous stars within the entertainment industry including Harry Secombe, Bob Hope, Christopher Biggins, Shirley Bassey, Frankie Vaughan, Vic Morrow, Bud Flanagan, Roy Hudd, Max Boyce, Morecambe and Wise and Ken Dodd.
Ronald Macdonald Hutchison, professionally known as Harry Tate, was an English comedian, who performed in the music halls, in variety shows, and in films.
Ben Holden Driver Warriss was an English comedian and the first cousin of fellow comedy actor Jimmy Jewel. Allegedly the two cousins were born in the same bed and brought up in the same household at 52 Andover Street, Sheffield. He was the son of Benjamin Holden Joseph Warriss, an insurance company inspector, and his wife, Mary Ann, née Driver, Jewel's mother's sister. He first performed on the stage in 1930. Jimmy Jewel and Ben Warriss came together as professionals in 1934 at the Palace Theatre, Newcastle. Their double act achieved seven Royal Variety Performances, 12 Blackpool summer seasons, a successful radio series and a film of the series. Around 1966, the two went their separate ways, with Warriss performing on stage and Jewel moving into television.
Davy Kaye MBE was a British comedy actor and entertainer.
Joe Elvin was an English comedian and music hall entertainer and a Founder of the Grand Order of Water Rats, a show business charity. With other leading performers he took part in the Music Hall War of 1907, which supported less well paid music hall artistes in their strike for better pay and conditions.
Harry Freeman was an English music hall performer of the Victorian era and early twentieth century, and the first King Rat of the show business charity the Grand Order of Water Rats. Among his popular songs were 'Leicester Square' and 'The Giddy little Girl said, "No!"'
Kaplan Eric Kaye is an English stage and screen actor, songwriter and musician, as well as a Past King Rat of the show-business charity the Grand Order of Water Rats.
Jack Lotto was a British music hall performer of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras whose speciality was a trick-cycling act. With entertainer Joe Elvin he co-founded the show business charity the Grand Order of Water Rats in 1889. Later he managed his children in the popular cycling act 'Lotto, Lilo and Otto'.
Joseph George O'Gorman was a British entertainer and cricketer. With his brother Dave (1894–1964) he formed a song, dance and comedy act called the O'Gorman Brothers. Starting by touring the variety halls of England, in the 1930s they also became popular in the United States and earned a fortune.
Talbot O'Farrell was an English music hall and variety show singer whose repertoire included both sentimental and comic songs. Early in his career he used the stage names WillMcIver.
The Variety Artistes' Federation (VAF) was a trade union representing variety performers in the United Kingdom.
Joseph O'Gorman was an Irish-born comedian. He formed a popular and innovative double act in British music halls with Joe Tennyson, Tennyson and O'Gorman, in the 1880s and 1890s, before becoming a solo performer. He was also an organiser of theatrical artistes, and was the father of Joe and Dave O'Gorman, "The O'Gorman Brothers".
Walter Augustus Pink was an English music hall performer, writer and theatre producer.
The Ganjou Brothers and Juanita were a popular variety act based in Britain between 1930 and the 1950s. They performed an adagio act, with the three men throwing and catching the woman in a graceful and acrobatic manner, and were regarded as the pre-eminent act of their type.
John Williams Cragg, known as Papa Cragg, was a British acrobat who founded a family troupe of acrobats often known as The Marvellous Craggs. They were popular in music hall and variety shows between about 1863 and 1917.
William Joseph Lee Colverd, who used the stage name Arthur Reece, was an English comedian and singer who performed in music halls.
