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Actor and singer Lance Percival passes away

Actor and singer Lance Percival passes away

TRIBUTES have been paid to the actor and singer Lance Percival who has passed away at the age of 81.

Mr. Percival had an unlikely start in show business as a member of a calypso group which performed in London clubs. His ability to improvise songs in the style of calypso would some to the fore in the early 1960s when he was a member of the team performing in the ground-breaking satire show That Was The Week That Was, which was fronted by David Frost.

As well as appearing in political sketches on the TV show — he would often play the role of then Tory leader Sir Alec Douglas-Home — Mr. Percival would also perform calypso songs based on subjects suggested by the audience.

He went on to release several recordings of his calypso songs, including his cover of Shame and Scandal in the Family (see below), which charted in 1965.

During the sixties he also had his own shows on TV. The first, Lance At Large in 1964, struggled to establish an audience but The Lance Percival Show, which first ran in 1965, proved a greater success and enjoyed two series on the BBC. Around this time he also provided the voices of Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr in the animated TV series The Beatles.

His film work also began to increase. Early big screen credits included Carry On Cruising (1962) and The Yellow Rolls-Royce (1964). During his career he appeared in more than 30 movies.

Despite being seriously injured in a car accident in 1970, Mr. Percival battled back to resume his career the following year when he appeared in Up Pompeii! which starred Frankie Howerd. He also appeared with Howerd in the follow-up films, Up The Chastity Belt and Up The Front.

Regular appearances on television continued throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Among his later credits was the BBC children’s drama Bluebirds in 1989 in which he starred with Barbara Windsor.

Mr. Percival also worked regularly on radio, including Just A Minute on BBC Radio 4 in the 1980s.

He published two books of verse, Well-Versed Dogs in 1985 and Well-Versed Cats in 1986. His writing skills had also included producing many scripts for the popular TV game show Whodunnit in the 1970s.

The actor and singer passed away following a long illness. He is survived by his son Jamie.

Listen to Lance Percival’s recording of Shame and Scandal in the Family.

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