Thanks for being here Charlie.

jambutty · 03-09-2006, 13:18

You made me and thousands of others laugh.

The sad news is that Charlie Williams has died aged 78 after an illness.

Some people may feel that using the grinning icon for the post is out of order but the two sad icons (mad and frown) are not appropriate and Charlie Williams really did make people laugh.

Rather than put it in my own words I found the following on the Internet.

Quote:

A more unusual story is that of Charlie Williams. His father was a Barbadian who served with the Royal Engineers in the First World War and settled in Yorkshire, where Charlie was born in Royston, near Barnsley, in 1929. He left school at 14 to go down the mines, and became a semi-pro footballer at 19, going on to spend 12 years playing for Doncaster Rovers, before eventually becoming a comedian. He was one of those who broke through on Granada TV's show The Comedians and dug out a reasonably successful career, including a stint hosting The Golden Shot.

I always felt that Williams deserves more respect than he's received. There weren't many black teenagers down the pits in the 1940s, nor black professional footballers in the '50s nor black comedians in the '60s. The man was a pioneer, and his account of his life is worth anyone's attention. Mind you, he seems uncertain whether it's going to be enough and he sprinkles a fairly substantial chunk of his joke book through the narrative.

The jokes too have their interest - if you're a student of British club comics in the 1970s, it's an invaluable record - but it's the social story that's more interesting. I could have read more of it. (And that's not true of every book on this site.)

I don’t know the author’s name.

However Lenny Henry had this to say about Charlie Williams:

Quote:

"You have to understand that Charlie Williams was perfect for the time that he appeared. It was a brilliant thing, this black Yorkshireman who played football with Doncaster Rovers, who'd had the wartime experience of white Yorkshire people, who talked like them, who thought like them, but who just happened to be black. And when he can along it was astounding to hear this bloke talking like "Eh up, flower, eh. Hey, have you ever been to supermarket where they have the broken biscuits?". I think it was a huge culture shock for people. And Charlie exploited this to the full.

He had the Roller and the big house and he was the king of comedy for a while and God bless him, good luck to him. Because at the time, nobody was doing what he was doing. He was playing the fat belly, bigoted Northern comedian at their own game, and, I think there were some jokes that he did that keep being quoted.

"The joke which we've all done - "If you don't shut up I'll come and move in next door to you" - and that joke said:" Look, I'm aware that this is what some white people think, so I'm going to say it first before you guys say it." I think quite a lot of black comedians at the time did jokes like that because they wanted the audience to know that they knew. "I know what you're thinking. He's a big ******.' All those jokes. "Ooh, is he going to come and move in next door and going to run off with my daughter or wife?"

It was all those fears of black male domination and being invaded, being overrun by the immigrant. And I think those comedians exploited those fears, but also told some good jokes along the way. And I went through a period of thinking it was all bad, man, and my stuff's a reaction against that. But actually, in the stuff that I did in the early days, I made just as many mistakes as those guys did. I just think it was the times and you did what you had to do to get by. I don't think there was any harm meant by it. I think you did what you had to to survive in a predominantly white world.

West Ender · 03-09-2006, 14:40

You and I are old enough to remember him well, Jambutty. He was a good comedian and always gave the impression of being a very nice guy. I remember when he hosted The Golden Shot. It wasn't really his forté but he did a good job none the less and never lost his "cool", though it was a naff game-show.

I'm sad to hear he's gone.

garinda · 03-09-2006, 15:59

When I saw hiM on television as a child he always seemed a nice funny man, despite being an adopted Yorkshire man.

I suppose it's quite fitting that Lenny Henry wrote about him. Both started out their careers with the black man being the figure of fun in their jokes. Happily Henry's career moved on, and we could see he was a funny man without having to mention his blackness in every joke. Looking back at old editions of the Comedians series the same sadly cannot be said about Charlie William's act. Happpily times have changed.

R.I.P.

jambutty · 04-09-2006, 10:11

Being born in Royston near Barnsley (the same Barnsley where Michael Parkinson hails from and he is a Yorkshire man) makes Charlie Williams a Yorkshire man garinda, not an adopted one.

He was funny without having to resort to smut and foul language to get a laugh, which is more than can be said of many of today’s alleged comedians.

So he poked fun at himself and his race, so what? He wasn’t cruel with it and it did more to break down the race barriers than any Whitehall dictats.

Hopefully ITV will now produce a compilation of his slots on The Comedians on DVD.

ANNE · 04-09-2006, 22:17

Charlie Williams was the best comedian ever. Just hearing his name mentioned makes me smile.
There aren't many so called comedians that I find funny but that man was hilarious.
He turned the blackest of days into a ray of Sunshine.

garinda · 04-09-2006, 22:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by jambutty

So he poked fun at himself and his race, so what? He wasn’t cruel with it and it did more to break down the race barriers than any Whitehall dictats.

He said later in life, when his career and petered out, that at the height of his fame he was never comfortable telling coon jokes. Remember this is the time when white actors 'browned up' to play thick Indian pull wallahs, and popular television gave us racial harmony as examplified by Love Thy Neighbour.

Happy innocent times, for some.

grannyclaret · 04-09-2006, 22:51

He always made me laugh.I was realy suprised that he was so old,,,,,he diddent look his age..R.I.P.Charlie

WillowTheWhisp · 05-09-2006, 08:13

That smiley icon actually looks like the big grin he nearly always had.

I loved the gentle way he had of telling a joke and that broad Yorkshire accent even though I am a Lancashire lass. He was a northerner like us.

Slightly off topic but "Love Thy Neighbour" was a dig at the bigots not a laugh at the brown skinned neighbours. I think programs like that helped to show people how stupid racial prejudice was. I do think that an INdian actor should have been used to play an Indian role in "It Ain't Half Hot Mum" but the character didn't come across to me as thick - more as fooling the Welshman into thinking he was thick which is a different thing entirely.

KIPAX · 05-09-2006, 08:52

sigh posts when i am writing..........ignore

KIPAX · 05-09-2006, 08:52

Take my hat off to the pioneering bit.. that can't have been easy.. pits, footballer and comedian in a tikme when people really did think you where less of a person if you where coloured.. But for me he wasn't funny.. terrible style... I preffered Frank Carson, Douggie Brown and Bernard Manning (still do), Lots of good commedians on that show and enjoyed the re-runs on sky last year.. made me leaugh as much as the originals...Don't recall seeing charlie on much.. perhaps they cut him from the reruns as his content would be very offensive nowerday ... much like ya dont see reruns of love thy neighbour or anything with alf garnett in..

Deffo left his mark though and not in a bad way.. so I agree with the subject line and .. RIP Charlie.

Wynonie Harris · 05-09-2006, 09:07

Apparently, he was quite a handy footballer, too. My old fella saw him play a few times for Doncaster at Peel Park.

ANNE · 05-09-2006, 21:04

I cant stand Frank Carson or Bernard Manning. They are just so not funny. But I loved Stan Boardman now he was hilarious.

WillowTheWhisp · 05-09-2006, 21:35

I don't mind Frank Carson but I can't stand Bernard Manning.

grannyclaret · 05-09-2006, 22:13

[quote=ANNE]I cant stand Frank Carson or Bernard Manning. They are just so not funny. quote]
exactly... they are just blue,,not funny at all ,and you can add chubby brown and jim davidson to them...,

ANNE · 05-09-2006, 22:34

I do some times like Jim Davidson Granny though he's not as good as he used to be but I can't stand Chubby Brown either.