Norman Evans

Norman Evans (June 11, 1901 – November 25, 1962), was a variety and radio artiste, born in Rochdale, Lancashire, England.

Evans was discovered by fellow Rochdale entertainer Gracie Fields. The act for which he is best remembered was "Over the Garden Wall", in which he played a toothless hatchet-faced Lancastrian housewife gossiping over a garden wall, which provided the inspiration for Les Dawson's later Cissie and Ada characters with Roy Barraclough. The one-sided conversations would embrace all sorts of local gossip, including scandal about the neighbours and personal medical complaints, including silently mouthing words deemed too rude to be spoken out loud, and accompanied with a range of facial contortions and glances round for supposed eavesdroppers.

His first appearance on the London stage was alongside a young Betty Driver and he was the only pantomime dame to receive top billing at the London Palladium.

His final summer season was at Butlin's Holiday Camp, Pwllheli, in 1962. He wrote to Clarkson Rose (another top pantomime dame) "Working in a Butlin theatre is a terrific experience, and although I've not been too well, I've never been happier in my life".

Norman Evans is buried in Carleton Cemetery, Blackpool. The headstone of his grave is a low wall built from natural gritstone blocks. His epitaph (preceding birth and death dates) reads "Norman's last garden wall!"