Bob Todd

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For the baseball coach, see Bob Todd (baseball). For the English footballer, see Bob Todd (footballer).

Bob Todd
Todd on The Benny Hill Show (1971)
Born
Brian Geoffrey Todd

(1922-12-15)15 December 1922
Faversham, Kent, England
Died21 October 1992(1992-10-21) (aged 69)
Burwash, Sussex, England
OccupationActor
SpouseMonica Todd

Brian Todd (15 December 1922 – 21 October 1992), known professionally as Bob Todd, was an English comedy actor, mostly known for appearing as a

straight man in the sketch shows of Benny Hill and Spike Milligan. For many years, he lived in Tunbridge Wells
, Kent.

Life and career

Todd was born in Faversham, Kent. One of the great stooges of television comedy, Todd was best known for his lugubrious expression and talent for slapstick, and was known to fellow comedians by the nickname 'Silly Todd'.

Before working in television, Todd trained to be a dentist. The outbreak of the

The Bed-Sitting Room, which opened at the Mermaid Theatre on 31 January 1963.[1][2][3]

He consequently

stooged in The Dick Emery Show and The Mike and Bernie Winters Show amongst others, before joining The Benny Hill Show in 1968. He stayed with the programme, on and off, until Thames Television ended the show twenty-one years later. Todd was a regular on the 1971 The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine, appearing in 13 of the 14 episodes. In 1973, he appeared as Bill Thompson, the referee at a regimental boxing tournament in Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall
.

Todd gained a reputation for

drunkenness while working on The Benny Hill Show. He once failed to turn up for a London Palladium show after a drinking episode, and found himself in a Dublin hospital five days later. After this was reported in the media, Hill had Todd dropped from the show. Producer Dennis Kirkland
persuaded Hill to rescind the decision, saying Todd brought much to the show and his drinking rarely affected his work.

Todd's only starring role was as Dan the lavatory attendant in his own 1972 series In for a Penny, although he did appear in the

Q9. He was seen in cinema films, including Carry On Again Doctor, The Return of the Musketeers, and Mutiny on the Buses. He appeared in the 1980s series of The Sooty Show playing the part of The Black Hand, in the adventure film The Case of the Black Hand. He appeared in Gabrielle and the Doodleman as Merlin as well as an Ugly Sister with Windsor Davies in 1984.[4]

Personal life

Todd and his wife, Monica, had one daughter and two sons. He died at home (six months after Benny Hill did) at the age of 70 in the village of

myocardial hypertrophy
.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1961 Raising the Wind Street Musician - Accordian Uncredited
1962 Postman's Knock District Superintendent
1965 The Intelligence Men Policeman Uncredited
1968 Hot Millions British Commissionaire
1969 Carry On Again Doctor Patient on Breathing Apparatus
1970 Scars of Dracula Burgonmaster
1971 She'll Follow You Anywhere Car Salesman
1972 Burke & Hare Guard Campbell
Mutiny on the Buses New Inspector
Go for a Take Security Man
Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall Bill Thompson, Referee
1973 Digby, the Biggest Dog in the World The Great Manzini
1974 Just One More Time Postman
The Best of Benny Hill Various
The Four Musketeers Firing Squad Officer
1975 Confessions of a Pop Performer Mr. Barnwell
The Ups and Downs of a Handyman Squire Bullsworthy
1977 Come Play with Me Vicar
1978 Rosie Dixon – Night Nurse Mr. Buchanan
1979 Le Pétomane Joseph's Father Short
1983 Superman III Dignified Gent
1984 Gabrielle and the Doodleman Merlin/Ugly Sister
1989 The Return of the Musketeers High Bailiff

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1960-1962 Citizen James Policeman 10 episodes
1961-1962 It's a Square World Various
1962-1970 Comedy Playhouse 3 episodes
1968-1980 The Benny Hill Show Various 2 episodes
1968-1970 Please Sir! Boating Lake Attendant/Bus Conductor 2 episodes
1970 Here Come the Double Deckers! Workman/War Film Director 2 episodes
1971-1972 The Dick Emery Show Various 4 episodes
1972-1973 The Fenn Street Gang Percival Pollard/Waiter 2 episodes
1973 On the Buses Mr. Simpson Episode: "Friends in High Places"
1974 Doctor at Sea Cyril, Entertainments Officer 4 episodes
1980
The Sooty Show The Black Hand Episode: "The Case of the Black Hand"
Funny Man Billy Strothers 6 episodes
1984 The Steam Video Company Various

References

  1. ^ Milligan, Spike, & Antrobus, John (1973) The Bedsitting Room. Tandem: London. First published in Great Britain by Margaret & Jack Hobbs, 1970. Published by Universal-Tandem, 1972.
  2. ISBN 0-246-12275-7
    . pp.203-204
  3. ^
    ISBN 0-340-89809-7
    . (a)p.158, (b)pp.215-216
  4. ^ "Gabrielle and the Doodleman (1984)". IMDb. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
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