Career
Douglas was born in Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland into a theatrical family; his father was a theatre producer and his brother, Bill Roberton, became a theatre director. His mother was so keen that he be a Geordie that, according to Douglas, although they had settled in London,
"she jumped on a train and came to Newcastle. I was born in my grandfather’s house near the Swing Bridge. She did the same with my brother."He grew up on a farm in Meriden.
He worked with Des O'Connor for several years and in the theatre, developing a nervous character "Alf Ippititimus", notable for his "phwaay!" catchphrase and his apparent muscular tics. "Alf" was created one night at Butlin's, Clacton, when Douglas's co-star, Joe Baker failed to appear having been locked out of the theatre, and Douglas began to improvise based on a band leader he knew.
He then appeared in the last seven Carry On films of the original series, Carry On Matron, Carry On Abroad, Carry On Girls, Carry On Dick, Carry On Behind, Carry On England, and Carry On Emmannuelle. His Carry On roles progressed from a cameo with one line of dialogue in Matron to a slightly larger but still inconspicuous cameo appearance in Abroad, after which he appeared in increasingly larger supporting roles, and ultimately a leading role in Emmanuelle. During this period he also appeared in the Carry on Christmas specials in 1972, and 1973, and the Carry On Laughing television series. He appeared in the revival film Carry On Columbus (1992).
He also guest starred in The Goodies episode "Goodies in the Nick" and appeared in The Shillingbury Blowers and its associated series Shillingbury Tales in the early 1980s.
On 26 April 2007, Douglas celebrated his 78th birthday. There was a special celebration arranged at Pinewood Studios, to coincide with his anniversary, which was attended by his family and friends. These included actors that Douglas had worked with, amongst them were Fenella Fielding, Jacki Piper, Lance Percival and Valerie Leon.
Jack Douglas died of pneumonia on 18 December 2008.
Read more about this topic: Jack Douglas (actor)
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“From a hasty glance through the various tests I figure it out that I would be classified in Group B, indicating “Low Average Ability,” reserved usually for those just learning to speak the English Language and preparing for a career of holding a spike while another man hits it.”
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