Leonard Henry
Born
Leonard Henry Ruming

(1890-03-15)15 March 1890
Lambeth, London, England
Died6 January 1973(1973-01-06) (aged 82)
London, England
NationalityBritish
Occupation(s)Comedian, broadcaster
Years active1912–1969

Leonard Henry Ruming (15 March 1890 – 6 January 1973), known as Leonard Henry, was an English comedian, actor, and radio broadcaster.

Biography

Born in Lambeth, London, he first performed as a comic entertainer in concert parties in 1912.[1] He made his first radio broadcast in 1926, and thereafter appeared regularly on the BBC. He also played in pantomimes, variety shows, and Shakespeare plays.[2]

He was known for monologues containing comic non sequiturs, funny voices and noises, and increasingly outlandish lists, for instance of those attending a function.[3] He was the first person to blow a raspberry on British radio,[4] and was also reputed to be able to make an impromptu joke on any subject suggested by his audience.[5] He wrote and starred in his own revues, including Humouresque and April Foolishness, and was a regular performer in Charlot's Hour, the first regular weekly light entertainment programme on British radio, starting in 1928. He hosted the radio version of the 1932 Royal Command Performance.[4] He was one of the most popular British radio comedians of the early 1930s,[5] and was twice voted top in a newspaper poll of favourite radio personalities.[4]

He appeared in short films,[6] and in the longer films The Musical Beauty Shop (1930) and The Public Life of Henry the Ninth (1935).[7] The latter film, now lost, in which Henry took the leading role, was the first one to be made by Hammer Film Productions.[8]

He also composed songs, and continued to appear regularly on BBC radio as a comedian and later as a compere of programmes, including Housewives' Choice. His autobiography, My Laugh Story, was published in 1937.[4] In 1969, he was still well enough known to be the featured guest on Desert Island Discs.[2]

Leonard Henry died in London in 1973, aged 82.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Radio Times, 12 June 1937
  2. 1 2 Leonard Henry, Search, BBC Radio Times. Retrieved 18 February 2021
  3. ↑ John Fisher, Funny Way To Be A Hero, Preface Books, 2013, ISBN 978-1-84-809313-3, p.437
  4. 1 2 3 4 Denis Gifford, The Golden Age of Radio, B.T. Batsford Ltd, London, 1985, ISBN 0-7134-4235-2, pp.113-114
  5. 1 2 "Leonard Henry", Windyridge CDs. Retrieved 18 February 2021
  6. ↑ "Leonard Henry, 1929", British Pathe. Retrieved 18 February 2021
  7. ↑ "The Public Life of Henry the Ninth", BFI. Retrieved 18 February 2021
  8. ↑ "The Public Life of Henry the Ninth / BFI Most Wanted". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 17 November 2010.
  9. ↑ Ted Kavanagh, "The Birth of ITMA", in Tommy Handley, 1949, excerpted at Transdiffusion.org. Retrieved 18 February 2021
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