comedy · stand-up · blues rock

Lenny Henry

comedystand-upblues rock

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1 786

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About

Lenworth George Henry CBE (born 29 August 1958), better known as Lenny Henry, is an English entertainer. Early life Henry was born in Dudley, Worcestershire, the son of parents who migrated to England from Jamaica in the 1950s. He studied at Sledmere Primary School, Bluecoat Secondary Modern School, WR Tewson School, and Preston college. He graduated with a degree in English literature from the Open University on April 28, 2007. His earliest television appearance was on the New Faces talent show in 1975 where he repeatedly won. The following year he appeared in LWT's sitcom The Fosters alongside Norman Beaton, Britain's first comedy series with predominantly black performers. His formative years were in working men's clubs where his unique act — a young black man impersonating white characters such as the Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em character Frank Spencer (whom he impersonated on New Faces) — gave him an edge in what were racially divisive times. He co-hosted the children's programme Tiswas from 1978 until 1981, and subsequently performed and wrote for the show Three of a Kind, with comedians Tracey Ullman and David Copperfield. Around this time, he met his future wife, Dawn French, who encouraged him to move over to the fledgling alternative comedy scene, where he established a career as a stand-up comedy performer and character comedian. He introduced characters who both mocked and celebrated black British culture, such as Theophilus P. Wildebeeste (a Barry White-a-like), Brixton pirate radio disc jockey DJ Delbert Wilkins and Trevor MacDoughnut (a parody of Trevor McDonald). His stand-up material, which sold well on LP, owed much to the writing abilities of Kim Fuller.

Source: Last.fm

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