Memories of Number 23 Railway Cuttings, East Cheam. in The odd entries from life …….

I saw on line last night that Bill Kerr had died, to be truthful I had assumed he had pass some years ago, he was an Australian actor who came to the UK in 1947, I knew him second hand so to say, he was one of Tony Hancock’s crew in ‘Hancock’s Half Hour’ along with Sid James. The show was first heard on BBC Radio’s Light Program in the 1950’s, and in the late 50’s or early 60’s they were filmed and shown on BBC, that was when the BBC were all the television we had; just the one channel!

Bill retuned to his home country in 1979, so while I had assumed wrongly he was having a new life back in Oz, working on television mini – series ‘Anzacs’ and a 2003 version of ‘Peter Pan’ Back here we will remember him in ‘Hancock’s Half Hour’ the film ‘The Dam Busters’ and in one of the early sorties of Doctor Who, with Patrick Troughton who was the second doctor, it was in ‘The Yeti’ a series thought lost, only last year nine missing episodes of 1960’s Doctor Who were found in Nigeria; among those were ‘The Yeti’

When Bill Kerr passed away on Thursday of last week, he was the last cast member of ‘Hancock’s Half Hour’ There is one actor still left with us who preformed in one ‘Hancock’s Half Hour’ Warren Mitchell was in Christmas episode, an actor who has been in television and film; but always remembered as ‘Till Death Us Do Part’s’ ‘Alf Garnett; he is still on the books and ready for a part at 88.

RIP Bill Kerr, and much of British post war comic talent.

Tony Hancock, Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Hattie Jacques, Hugh Lloyd, Dick Emery John Le Mesurier,
Richard Wattis and Pat Coombs.

Last updated August 31, 2014