Career
Born in London, he made his first film appearance in 1944 but did not achieve lasting fame until the 1970s, when he took the starring role of Compo Simmonite in the long-running British sitcom Last of the Summer Wine. Owen's character is a scruffy working class pensioner, often made use of by the characters played by Michael Bates, Brian Wilde, Michael Aldridge and Frank Thornton for dirty jobs, stunts and escapades, while his indomitably docile friend Peter Sallis follows and watches with a smirk. He wore a woollen hat and spent much of his time lusting after dowdy housewife Nora Batty. As Compo, Owen saw off several co-stars. The series, starting in 1973 and finishing in 2010, is today the world's longest-running comedy series. Owen became an icon, a darling of its audience and central to its success and episodes for 26 years, right until his death. The threesome of Compo, Clegg and Foggy (this third character was initially Blamire, played by Michael Bates and when Brian Wilde's Foggy took a hiatus, by Michael Aldridge's Seymour Utterthwaite) remains the most popular group of three the show ever produced.
In 1958, Owen presented a music panel/programme titled Dad You're A Square for ATV - it ran for one series - and only one episode exists in the archive of ITV. On the series Floyd On TV - the one-series follower to Clive James On Television - Floyd showed viewers a clip from the show (leaving the audience to work out who the "to be" scruffy presenter was).
During the 1960s, Owen had a successful second career as a songwriter, with compositions including the hit, Marianne, recorded by Cliff Richard. He at this time also collaborated with songwriter Tony Russell on musical The Matchgirls about the London matchgirls strike of 1888. He starred as Spike Milligan's straight man in the West End hit "Son of Oblomov" in 1964.
Owen was an active supporter of the Labour Party and indeed Peter Sallis has claimed that Owen's left-wing views contrasted so much with the right-wing opinions of Michael Bates that Last of the Summer Wine was almost not made because of their arguments. Owen was a founding member of the Keep Sunday Special campaign group. He was awarded the MBE in 1976.
Bill Owen was a regular in the early Carry On films. He also had a cameo appearance in Brideshead Revisited as Lunt, Charles Ryder's scout during his days at the University of Oxford. He also featured in several Lindsay Anderson films including O Lucky Man! (1973) and In Celebration (1974).
Bill was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1980 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews in Trafalgar Square.
He continued working right up to his death from pancreatic cancer in Westminster, London, on 12 July 1999. Bill is buried in the churchyard of St John's Parish Church, Upperthong, in his beloved town of Holmfirth in Yorkshire, the home of Last of the Summer Wine.
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