Bryan Johnson
Born(1926-07-18)18 July 1926
London, England
Died18 October 1995(1995-10-18) (aged 69)
Occupation(s)Singer, actor
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active1951–1968

Bryan Johnson (18 July 1926 – 18 October 1995)[1] was an English singer and actor.[2]

Biography

Having been eliminated in the semi-finals of the 1957 UK heats for Eurovision, he later emulated his brother and sister-in-law, Pearl Carr and Teddy Johnson, by coming second in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960, with "Looking High, High, High".[3] The single reached number 20 in the UK Singles Chart in April 1960.[1] Johnson also participated in A Song for Europe, the UK qualifying heat for Eurovision in 1961. His song, "A Place in the Country" came fifth.

He was also an actor who, in Donald Wolfit's company, played such roles as Feste in Twelfth Night and the Fool in King Lear. In Ronald Harwood's biography of Wolfit, the actor is quoted as saying (p. 251) that he was "the best Fool I ever had". Later he played roles in musicals such as Lock Up Your Daughters, and enjoyed a late success as Scrooge in a touring production of A Christmas Carol. He was an actor of the old school with a melodious speaking voice and a strong stage presence.

Johnson recounted his Eurovision experiences in an edition of Gloria Live, with Gloria Hunniford, broadcast on BBC One on 4 May 1990.

References

  1. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 286. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  2. ↑ "Bryan Johnson | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  3. ↑ Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1293. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.