Morecambe and Wise

Morecambe and Wise, comedy double act, Britain's most popular television comedy team. Eric Morecambe (1926-1984) was born John Eric Bartholomew in the Lancashire resort town from which he took his stage name, and was performing in working men's clubs from the age of 11. Ernie Wise (1925-1999), born Ernest Wiseman in Leeds, started tap-dancing on the club circuit aged seven. They teamed up together in 1943, making their West End debut the same year.

The duo played in music-halls and end-of-pier summer shows and on radio, but it was television that brought them national fame. The Morecambe and Wise Show first appeared on ATV (Associated Television) between 1961 and 1964, and then from 1966 to 1968. In 1968 they transferred to the BBC, where their show ran for eight years, mainly written by scriptwriter Eddie Braben; this is generally reckoned to be their finest period.

Morecambe and Wise's act was fuelled by mutual insult and quick-fire repartee, delivered with impeccable comic timing. They adopted the classic double-act pattern of Laurel and Hardy or Abbott and Costello: Ernie was the pompous one, his precarious dignity constantly undermined by the anarchic, bespectacled Eric. Wise's literary pretensions furnished a running gag; many shows featured the staging of “a play what Ernie wrote”, which Eric would disrupt.

The pair's popularity attracted guest stars of some eminence. Such distinguished figures as Laurence Olivier, Glenda Jackson, John Mills, Vanessa Redgrave, and Harold Wilson appeared on the show, despite the prospect of being mocked and mistreated by Eric, who would often “fail” to recognize the visiting celebrity. Crooner Des O'Connor was a favourite victim.

Morecambe and Wise starred in three films, but their talents never really suited the larger screen. They made their last series (1980-1983) for Thames TV, shortly before Morecambe's fatal heart attack.