Les Dawson: The Lost Tapes is getting another outing on Channel 5 tonight (Thursday, December 30).
The world-weary, deadpan comic and presenter was one of British TV’s biggest stars for decades.
As well as countless variety and stand-up performances, he was also adored for his appearances on Blankety Blank and The Les Dawson Show.
Les was also an aficionado of the mother-in-law gag and gurning. And he is still fondly remembered for his Cissy and Ada sketches with Roy Barraclough.
However, since Les passed away in 1993, anyone under 30 may not be all that familiar with his TV work.
Les Dawson: The Lost Tapes: How did breaking his jaw ‘boost his career’?
Much has been made over the years about Les’ literary ambitions growing up interwar Manchester.
He was also reputed to have scribbled away in between shifts as a pianist in dubious establishments in Paris.
On stage and screen, his balance of curmudgeonly eloquence, resonant delivery and hilarious malapropisms were key to his act.
Read more: Charlotte Dawson in tears over diabetes fears as late dad Les also battled condition
But one tidbit Les offered in autobiography A Clown Too Many indicated how he mastered his comedic expressions.
Les apparently had his jaw broken in a boxing match. And this meant he could pull faces all the more easily by pulling his jaw over his upper lip.
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How much was Les Dawson worth when he died?
Les’ exact fortune is not known.
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