Bruce Forsyth
Bruce Joseph Forsyth, CBE (born 22 February, 1928) is a British entertainer and showman who achieved celebrity on the show Sunday Night at the London Palladium, and has since presented game shows such as Play Your Cards Right, The Generation Game, and Strictly Come Dancing.
Life history
He was born Bruce Joseph Forsythe-Johnson in Edmonton, north London, into a Salvation Army family who owned a local garage. He attended The Latymer School in his home town and started in showbusiness aged 14, with a song, dance, and ukulele act called "Boy Bruce, the Mighty Atom".
Bruce made his television debut in 1939 when a child, singing and dancing on a talent show introduced by Jasmine Bligh. This was probably an episode of Come and Be Televised (BBC, 1939), broadcast from Radiolympia.
He spent many years performing on stage, with little success, and travelled the UK working seven days a week, doing summer seasons and winter pantomimes.
Forsyth became an overnight celebrity when he was spotted on TV with the comedian Dickie Henderson and offered the job of compere for Val Parnell's Sunday Night at the London Palladium in September 1958. He would have hosted the show for longer had he not had to give it up due to his hectic schedule of stage performances, which continued throughout the 1960s.
His next really big success was Bruce Forsyth and the Generation Game (BBC, 1971–77) which proved extremely popular and attracted large audiences. It was on this show that Forsyth first introduced his legendary strong man pose; appearing in silhouette each week before coming forward to start the show. He also sang the theme tune for the show "Life is the name of the game".
Since 1979, Forsyth has been married to the 1975 Miss World, Wilnelia Merced. Before that, 1973-1979 he was briefly married to Anthea Redfern, who had been the hostess on The Generation Game and before that 1953-1973 he was married to Penny Calvert with whom he had three children. In 1986, he went to the United States for a short time to host a game show on ABC, known as Bruce Forsyth's Hot Streak, which ran 65 episodes from January to April of that year.
In 1986 and 1987 he starred in the Thames Television sitcom Slinger's Day, and he has appeared in many variety, comedy and light entertainment shows, especially during the 1960s.
He was also the original host of You Bet! (1988–1990) and fronted the third version of The Price Is Right (1995–2001). Lesser-known and comparatively unsuccessful shows include Takeover Bid (1990–1991), Hollywood Or Bust (1984), Bruce's Guest Night (1992–1993) and Bruce Forsyth's Big Night, a 1978 London Weekend Television extravaganza which is probably the only major flop of his TV career. During the 1980s and 1990s Bruce Forsyth had also appeared in advertising for the now defunct furniture retailer Courts where he was dressed as a judge.
In 1998, to celebrate his 70th birthday, Forsyth appeared in a week long run of his one-man show at the world famous London Palladium theatre, culminating in a special 90-minute edition of Sunday Night at the London Palladium being televised live on ITV. In 2000, he hosted a series called Tonight at the London Palladium, which revived the original format.
In 2003 he served as guest host for one episode of Have I Got News for You, in which he took the opportunity to parody many of the clichés that seem to follow him around on whichever show he presents. Forsyth has since attributed his renewed success to his guest-presenting the show.
He also took part in the Pro-Celebrity Golf television series (opposite Tim Brooke-Taylor).
In January 2004, Forsyth marked his return to the BBC by hosting a game show called Didn't They Do Well, named after one of his catchphrases and featuring clips from earlier game shows. In 2004 and 2005, Forsyth hosted the BBC's popular Strictly Come Dancing, along with co-hosts Tess Daly or Natasha Kaplinsky (Kaplinsky replaced Daly for most of the second series while Daly was on maternity leave).
In 2006, Bruce Forsyth entered the Northern Rock All*Star Cup golf tournament, where European celebrities compete with American celebrities in a Ryder Cup style tournament. Bruce competed for the European team partnering Chris Evans on day 1 and James Nesbitt on day 2 for team captain Colin Montgomerie. He had the honor of holing the winning putt in a dominant European victory. As he was such an entertaining celebrity to watch, Bruce Forsyth won the player of the tournament, which was voted by the public.
Tributes and honours
On 27 February 2005, the BBC screened A BAFTA Tribute to Bruce Forsyth, to mark the veteran entertainer's 60 years in showbusiness. Forsyth had a bronze bust of himself unveiled at the London Palladium in May 2005. The sculpture was created by his son-in-law, and is on display in the theatre's Cinderella Bar.
He was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2006 New Year's Honours list.
His many showbiz awards include Variety Club Show Business Personality of the Year, 1975; TV Times Male TV Personality of the Year, 1975, 1976, 1977 and 1978; and BBC TV Personality of the Year, 1991.
Forsyth has twice (in 2002 and 2006) been voted Greatest UK Game Show Host of All Time by readers of the UKGameshows.com website and its associated mailing list [1]. In September 2006, he was voted by the general public as number 5 in a poll of TV's Greatest Stars.
He is especially well-known for his catchphrases, many of which he begins himself and leaves the audience to complete.
Trivia
- He remains a devoted supporter of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.
- For several years Bruce Forsyth appeared in TV commercials for Courts Plc.
- He was the subject of a pretty savage satirical attack by Peter Cook on the 1978 Derek and Clive album Ad Nauseam, entitled 'Brucie'. He was simlarly targeted by the wave of alternative comedians that swept through British comedy in the '80s and early '90s, but rode the storm and has outlasted most of them.
- He appeared as a celeb golf player in the All Star Cup in 2006 in the European side who went on to win the competition
- He is a famous customer of the large discount chain 'Cosco', and has been spotted many times at the Reading Branch.
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