The Brilliant Bernard Bresslaw

Bernard Bresslaw, a bit like Kenneth Connor and Peter Butterworth, is one of the regular Carry On actors who can sometimes be taken for granted. They were often part of the Greek chorus in the these films, providing support to the likes of Kenneth Williams and Sid James.

What wonderful support that was though! Perhaps the reason actors like Bernard Bresslaw have never been appreciated as much as they should have been is because they are frustratingly normal. Bresslaw, just like Connor and Butterworth, were all regular family men. Each of these actors could just as well have been bank managers, instead of being part of such a famous, madcap team of comic performers. Connor liked his boat, Butterworth his naval history and Bernard was incredibly well-read, never being far from a bookshop. 

When the Carry Ons became popular again in the 1990s, television companies ran a series of muck-raking documentaries in an attempt to probe the private lives of a generation of comedy heroes. Many painted the Carry On team as a bunch of actors at war with each other, deeply unlikeable and full of woes. Perhaps the reason Bresslaw, Butterworth and Connor didn't feature prominently here is because there was quite simply no muck to rake.

It was a joy to see Bernard's son James, Kenneth's son Jeremy and Peter's son Tyler all reminisce about their famous, talented fathers in the recent Carry On Forever series on ITV3. It was heart-warming to see how proud these men are of their dads and something that was well over due.

Bernard spent his Carry On career providing valuable support in fourteen films over a ten year period. He nearly always played either the scary villain (Follow That Camel; Up The Khyber) or the daft, gormless mate (Camping; At Your Convenience). It's a shame he was limited to these parts as Bernie was obviously a highly intelligent man with a wonderful talent for acting. My own favourite of Bernard's Carry On roles is his role in Carry On Doctor. As Ken Biddle, he gets to play out a touching romance with fellow hospital patient Dilys Laye. They share several tender little scenes which give Bernard a chance to show a different aspect to his usual bumbling characters.

Bernard devoted much of his later life to working on the stage. He loved appearing in the works of Shakespeare, however sadly he died far too young at the age of 59 in 1993. I am quite sure he would have risen up the ranks and be seen as a highly respected Shakespearian stage actor if he was still around today. He was often to be found reading off set at Pinewood or completely the crossword with Kenneth Williams. Everyone describes him as a gentle giant and true gentleman. 

I think that's a pretty nice legacy. 

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Carry On Forever: My Verdict

The Carry On Weekender is at an end. It was fun, it was surprising in places and at times a bit exhausting but from all the contact and interactions I had on Twitter, everyone loved it!

So what did I think of the jewel in the ITV3 Carry On crown, Carry On Forever?

Overall I absolutely loved it. It was comforting, familiar and great fun. A chance to wallow in some bright, colourful nostalgia, reliving memories of many cinematic friends. It was often hilarious but also incredibly touching in places. I think the team behind Carry On Forever got the balance just right and on the whole did a terrific job.

I liked the chronological order the programme followed. It made sense and felt thorough, although given the approach they took it seemed strange that films like Don't Lose Your Head, Again Doctor and Behind were only touched on very briefly or completely glossed over. A minor rankle. I also thought Martin Clunes was a very good narrator, clearly exhibiting a warm affection for the films and even making brief reference to his own appearance in the dreadful Columbus in 1992!

It was wonderful to see so many former cast members take part. Yes there was a noticeable Barbara Windsor shaped gap in proceedings but we don't know the reasons for that and I think overall there was plenty of other great stuff to focus on. It was a shame though. What struck me was how good so many of the actors taking part still looked - I think they need to bottle whatever it is they are on! 

One of the main highlights for me was the decision to take some of the actors back to the locations used for filming. In particular I found Fenella Fielding's trip back to the Carry On Screaming mansion very emotional. It had obviously played and continue to play an important part in her life. Liz Fraser wandering around the Pinewood Studio used to film Carry On Cruising and the lovely Angela Douglas returning to the location in Wales for Up The Khyber were also incredibly 
touching moments. 

I also loved the opportunity to hear from the children of some of the dearly departed Carry On stars. I had seen Robin Le Mesurier interviewed about his mother, Hattie Jacques, several times before however I had never seen James Bresslaw, Jeremy Connor or Tyler Butterworth speak about their famous dads until now and it was just lovely. I have recently read Jeremy's book on his father, Kenneth, and loved it so it was great to see him reunited with Peter's son Tyler to share memories and open up the photo archive of their dads' work. Wonderful moments.

We saw many familiar Carry On faces in the likes of Jim Dale, Sally Geeson, Valerie Leon and Jacki Piper however there were some brilliant unexpected surprises in the form of Julian Holloway, Juliet Mills, Rosalind Knight, Margaret Nolan and Alexandra Dane. 

Excellent to have their involvement in the documentary - it brought a whole host of memories flooding back for many of us. For the regular Carry On fan there was very little new in the stories shared by our favourite cast members but that didn't matter. It was still glorious.

The programme certainly ticked many of my boxes however if I had to pick on one aspect to criticise it would be the end of the final episode broadcast on Sunday night. Don't get me wrong, I adored the series, I just felt that for some reason the ending felt a bit rushed. There was so much material to cover in the three hours it would inevitably be hard to pull everything together at the end. 

There were touching tributes to the likes of Sid James, Kenneth Williams and Charles Hawtrey, but while they touched on certain demons in their lives it did feel slightly uncomfortable about how deep to dig. 

I also felt it was a shame that certain other important Carry On contributors didn't get a mention of even a name-check. People like Patsy Rowlands, Joan Hickson, Jack Douglas, Carol Hawkins and Peter Gilmore all had substantial roles in the series and weren't mentioned. It might also have been good to hear more about those behind the camera other than Rogers, Thomas, Hudis and Rothwell. What about Dave Freeman who scripted Behind? Or Director of Photography Alan Hume? There was a regular team of people at Pinewood who really did make the films what they were - skilled technicians it would have been nice to hear more about. I also still think this should have been broadcast on the main ITV channel.

Anyway, I'm nitpicking now. I thoroughly enjoyed Carry On Forever. It was a wonderfully colourful nostalgic wallow in what many people agree is the most successful, most talented, most loved comedy film franchise we've ever seen. The sadness remains that so many of them are gone, but their rich legacy and beautifully bawdy comedy performances keep their memories and their massive popularity alive and intact. Long may that continue.

On a personal note, I absolutely loved all the tweets and comments from everyone over the Carry On Weekend. It was great to share the experience with so many loyal Carry On fans. So thank you for making it extra special. 

Carry On Tweeting and Carry On, Carrying On!

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