Les Dawson wasn’t like other comedians. More accurately, he was an artist.
A secret poet, voracious reader, distinguished writer, adroit musician, versatile actor and charming presenter, Dawson’s talents ran the entire creative gamut.
He just happened to be riotously funny as well.
2 February marks the birthday of one of the greatest performers that Britain has ever seen: A dexterous, sharp-witted national treasure who was taken from us too soon.
Born in Collyhurst in 1931, Dawson first caught the public eye during an appearance on Opportunity Knocks in the 1960s, quickly turning into one of the country’s most popular stage personas.
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Introducing regional northern humour to the wider masses, Dawson would make the kind of jokes most people could relate to – favouring a gruff, deadpan delivery and purposely playing the wrong notes on the piano during performances, grumbling about his mistakes to the chuckling crowd.
Impeccable comic timing aside, Dawson also had a knack for slapstick – boasting a bizarre ability to pull mangled faces that sent audiences into fits of giggles (an old injury meant he could fold his jaw right up over his lip).
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He created characters for his comic routines, too – teaming up with fellow comic Roy Barraclough to portray two gossipy millworkers Cissie Braithwaite and Ada Shufflebotham.
For the more risque subjects, the duo would mouth any rude words to one another – much in the same way that Lancashire women of old used to do amid the racket of the northern mills.
Les Dawson was born in Collyhurst on 2 February 1931 / Credit: BBC
By the sixties, Dawson had become one of the most prevalent faces in British comedy. But he took the scenic route to reach the stage.
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In his youth, he had dreams of becoming a novelist – and temporarily swapped his humble surroundings of Collyhurst to mingle with the art crowd in the illustrious French capital .
This early part of his life was portrayed in an episode of Sky Art series Urban Myths in 2020 – revealing how Dawson was ultimately waylaid during his time in Paris and found himself plonked at the seat of a piano in a local brothel.
It was here, seemingly, that Dawson found he could make punters laugh – deliberately striking incorrect keys and throwing some jokes in for good measure.
After finding his feet on the comedy circuit, Dawson would go on to enjoy long television career that included credits for Fast Friends, Blankety Blank, Sez Les and Dawson’s Weekly.
He married twice and had four children – including Charlotte who went on to become a reality TV star.
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Dawson developed his first set of serious health problems in the eighties, and after awaiting medical results at Whalley Range Hospital in 1993, the comedian suddenly collapsed and died of a heart attack.
He was 62.
In 2008, a statue of Dawson was placed in the gardens by St Anne’s-on-Sea pier in Lancashire – where he had lived for several years.
The statue of comedian Les Dawson / Image: Steve Daniels – Geograph
Wherever he went, whoever he played to, he’d often get the whole room laughing.
Featured Image – BBC
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You can get half-price fish and chips for just £3.49 at all Morrisons cafes today
Emily Sergeant
Morrisons is giving hungry customers the chance to tuck into a hearty helping of fish and chips at half the price for just one day only today.
And it’s all to suitably celebrate National Fish and Chip Day.
A popular annual event in the British foodie calendar, National Fish and Chip Day falls on Friday 2 June this year, and to mark the special occasion, Morrisons has slashed the price of its usual chippy offering at hundreds of its in-store cafes nationwide.
The major supermarket has more than 400 cafes inside stores right across the UK, and the half-price food offer is believed to be available at all of them.
You can get half-price fish and chips for just £3.49 at all Morrisons cafes today / Credit: Morrisons
Adults can enjoy Fish, Chips and Peas for just £3.49, while the children‘s Mini Fish, Chips and Peas meal has also been reduced to £2.74.
Not a bad bargain at all, right?
The only catch is though, you’ll need to be signed-up to the supermarket‘s loyalty scheme and scan your Morrisons More card at the cafe checkout if you want to claim the half price offer.
There’s more than 400 in-store cafes at Morrisons stores across the UK / Credit: Ian Stratton (via Morrisons)
Morrisons’ half-price fish and chips offer also comes after it relaunched its popular ‘Ask for Henry’ initiative towards the end of April after a successful run when it was first introduced amid the rising cost of living crisis in 2022.
‘Ask for Henry’ saw the retailer team up with Heinz for scheme that’s aimed at helping those struggling with their finances get themselves a free hot meal.
Morrisons’ kids meal deal is also running at all cafes this May half term too.
Featured Image – Morrisons
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Eurovision costumes, props and instruments are being auctioned off – and it’s a mad collection
Daisy Jackson
Items from this year’s Eurovision Song Contest are being sold at auction this week, from iconic costumes to enormous props.
It means that fans of the massive event – this year held in Liverpool – will be able to snap up a permanent piece of Eurovision history.
Have you ever looked around your living room and thought ‘You know what this place really needs? Those giant purple hands that Kalush Orchestra danced on this year’?
Or ‘I hate this jumper. I wish a had a green one with a face on like those Daði Freyr Eurovision dancers’?
Or even ‘A set of fluffy pink and yellow heart-shaped cushions would really brighten the place up’?
Well now there’s an auction you might be interested in, with bids opening from just £5.
The original props, costumes, and even instruments are on sale now, until 11 June.
Kalush Orchestra’s hands are in the Eurovision auctionThe Daði Freyr jumpersCredit: BBC
You could be turning the actual lectern thing that Graham Norton and Hannah Waddingham stood behind for the results show into a cool bar, or decorating your pad with the drums used in Sam Ryder’s powerful performance.
The top bids currently, just a few days after the auction started, stand at £500 – that’s for the presenter’s lectern and for the Daði Freyr jumpers.
Someone else has bid a whopping £250 for a set of fluffy cushions.
There are more than 60 items available to buy, including parts of the set, which were designed by Julio Himede and unveiled by the King and Queen.
The BBC has reported that 20% of the money raised will go to two different charities, split between ACC Liverpool Foundation and BBC Media Action, with the remaining 80% going back to BBC Studios to fund programmes and services.
Sally Mills, head of sustainability at BBC Studios said: “Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do, both on and off screen.
“We have a responsibility to operate with as minimal an impact on the environment as possible, and are always looking for innovative ways in which to further engage audiences with our content, and extend the life of our sets and costumes.
“What better way to do this than to give fans the opportunity to own a piece of Eurovision history?”