Cardew Robinson

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name = Cardew Robinson

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birth_name = Douglas John Cardew Robinson
birth_date = birth date|1917|08|14
birth_place = Goodmayes, Essex
death_date = death date and age|1992|12|28|1917|08|14
death_place = Roehampton, London
death_cause = Bowel infection
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nationality = British
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occupation = Comedy actor
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Douglas John Cardew Robinson (born 14 August 1917 in Goodmayes, Essex - 28 December 1992) was a British comic, whose craft was rooted in the music hall and Gang Shows.

Early life and career

Robinson was educated at Harrow County School for Boys. He began in variety after leaving school and achieved fame in the 1940s as “Cardew the Cad”, a schoolboy character he created. He played the character on radio and stage and later in a film, "Fun at St Fanny’s". Cardew the Cad became a cartoon strip in Film Fun, a children’s comic of the period.

Television and films

He successfully made the transition from Variety and radio into TV and films. In the latter, he nearly always played small but memorable cameo parts, thus an early theatrical review mentioned “…Mr Cardew Robinson, who seems to specialise in grotesques…”. One of his last appearances on television, in an episode of Last of the Summer Wine, in which he played a hen-pecked husband, led astray by Compo and Clegg, showed him to be a fine exponent of physical comedy into his seventies. In the production of "Camelot" in London in 1964, Cardew Robinson played King Pellenore. The show apparently ran for 650 performances, although it was not well received by the critics. Cardew Robinson was best known in Britain for appearances on TV and in radio shows like "You’ve Got to be Joking" which he created, as well as "Does The Team Think". He only acted in one "Carry On" film, "Carry On Up the Khyber"; he played a fakir drawing the memorable line from Bernard Bresslaw, whose character, Bungdit Din, tells him to “Fakir…off!”.

Other activities

* He wrote material for other comedians.
* He penned a book called "How to be a Failure".
* He composed songs with Roger Whittaker.
* He was a golfer, cricketer and Vice President of the Arsenal F.C. Supporters Club.
* He enjoyed listening to classical music, to the extent that an early fiancée left him because she was bored by it.

Obituary

Robinson died at the age of 75. His obituary in The Times, described him as “a quiet studious man, whose private face belied his public appearance”. A letter to the paper from a later headmaster of his old school, talked about his “generous spirit”.

elected filmography

*1959 "I'm All Right Jack"
*1968 "Carry On Up the Khyber"
*1977 "Come Play With Me"
*1989 "Shirley Valentine"

References

* Obituary in "The Times", 28 December 1992.

External links

*imdb name|id=0732442|name=Cardew Robinson
*

Persondata
NAME=Robinson, Cardew
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Robinson, Douglas John Cardew
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Comedy actor
DATE OF BIRTH=Goodhayes, Essex
PLACE OF BIRTH=1917-08-14
DATE OF DEATH=1992-12-28
PLACE OF DEATH=Roehampton, London