Career
Challis is probably best known for his role as Terrance Aubrey "Boycie" Boyce in the long running BBC television comedy series Only Fools and Horses, and its 2005 spin-off The Green Green Grass.
An only child, he was born in Bristol, though brought up in South East London. His father was a Civil Servant. Challis attended the state boarding Ottershaw School near Woking, Surrey. Upon leaving school in 1960 at the age of 18 he worked as a trainee estate agent before becoming a professional actor. An early television role, in 1969, was in the controversial gangster drama Big Breadwinner Hog and between 1971 and 1975 he made regular appearances in Z Cars as Sergeant Culshaw.
His other television appearances include Dixon of Dock Green, The Sweeney, Doctor Who (The Seeds of Doom), Beau Geste, Juliet Bravo, Coronation Street, Bloomers, Citizen Smith, Ever Decreasing Circles, Doctor Snuggles, Chance in a Million, The Bill, One Foot in the Grave, Open All Hours, The New Statesman, Don't Wait Up, Soldier Soldier, Brass Eye, My Family and Heartbeat.
The outdoor scenes of the Green Green Grass were filmed at his home, surrounding fields and local villages. Four series were broadcast by BBC 1 from 2005–2009. In the 2008 series of Last of the Summer Wine he guest-starred as a fake jewel thief, trying to impress the ladies.
He appeared on spoof television news programme Brass Eye, where he was tricked into believing Clive Anderson had been shot by Noel Edmonds. On BBC radio, John played an interrogator in the play Rules of Asylum by James Follett, broadcast by BBC Radio 4 in 1973. He also played Dibden Purlew in Getting Nowhere Fast from 2001–04.
Challis has had a number of stage roles. He starred in pantomime at the Plaza Theatre in Stockport where he played the part of Captain Hook in Peter Pan.
Chalis appeared in Channel 4 documentary King Of Christmas Lights featuring Paul Toole and Chris Elliott which aired on 19 December 2011 switching the Christmas lights on at Manning Close, Wells, Somerset on 30 November. John also flicked the switch in Weston Super Mare on 1 December 2011. He was at the Waterstones store in Weston's Sovereign Centre on 2 December signing his new book "Being Boycie" and was in panto at Weston playhouse from 13 December 2011 to 8 January 2012 playing Ebenezer in Aladdin.
From April 2012, Chalis will be embarking on a book tour to promote "Being Boycie", starting with Waterstones in Uxbridge.
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Famous quotes containing the word career:
“In time your relatives will come to accept the idea that a career is as important to you as your family. Of course, in time the polar ice cap will melt.”
—Barbara Dale (b. 1940)
“I doubt that I would have taken so many leaps in my own writing or been as clear about my feminist and political commitments if I had not been anointed as early as I was. Some major form of recognition seems to have to mark a woman’s career for her to be able to go out on a limb without having her credentials questioned.”
—Ruth Behar (b. 1956)