Tony Melody
| Tony Melody | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Anthony John Melody 18 December 1922 London, England |
| Died | 26 June 2008 (aged 85) Bispham, Blackpool, Lancashire, England |
| Occupation | actor |
| Years active | 1955–2005 |
| Spouse(s) | Margaret Little (1972–2008; second wife) |
Anthony John "Tony" Melody (18 December 1922 – 26 June 2008) was an English television actor who appeared in a number of long running comedies and soap operas. He was a prolific character actor with more than 100 television roles.
Melody was born in London, where his father was in the Royal Horse Guards, but was brought up in Yorkshire, where his parents ran the Station public house in Goole, West Riding of Yorkshire. He was brought up as a devout Roman Catholic and attended Sacred Heart Church in Blackpool. During the Second World War he served in the Royal Air Force.
Initially a dancer, Melody spent three years touring the Mediterranean with Ralph Reader's Gang Show, performing for British troops in various countries along with Tony Hancock and Norrie Paramor. In 1952 he spent a season performing at the Windmill Theatre in London where he appeared as a comedy singer, before returning to Yorkshire, where he performed semi-professionally in local clubs while working in a factory in Leeds during the day. In 1955 he appeared on What Makes A Star? on BBC local radio and he became a regular on regional radio, working with, among others, Jimmy Clitheroe and Harry Worth.
His acting career began in radio, appearing in the sitcom, The Clitheroe Kid which starred Jimmy Clitheroe, in 1957 as the grumpy taxi driver, Horatio Higginbottom, which he played until 1972. This was followed by the role of compère and singer with the BBC's Northern Dance Orchestra, in the 1950s radio show The Straw Hat Club.
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