Paul Shane

Not to be confused with Paul McShane (disambiguation).

Paul Shane
Born	George Frederick Speight 19 June 1940 (1940-06-19) Thrybergh, South Yorkshire, England, UK
Occupation	Actor, comedian
Years active	1972 - present

Paul Shane (born 19 June 1940) is a British comedian and actor, best known for his part in the sitcom Hi-de-Hi! and other television roles.

Early life and career

Shane was born as George Frederick Speight in Thrybergh, near Rotherham, South Yorkshire. He originally worked as a miner, but had an accident at Silverwood Colliery in 1967 by slipping in the pit-head baths on some soap, resulting in double herniated discs, and he was pensioned off from the pit at the age of 27. Two years later, he made the decision to become a professional entertainer since he already had ten years' experience as a part-time entertainer around the pubs and clubs in South Yorkshire.^{[citation needed]}

His first appearance, as a straight singer, was at the Grafton pub (now demolished) on St. Ann's Road, Rotherham. His first club booking was at St. Ann's Club in Rotherham, for thirty shillings (£1.50). His transformation from singer to comedian was a gradual one, starting with his rendition of Green Green Grass of Home, straight at first, but ultimately a hilarious send-up of Tom Jones, which marked the start of the Paul Shane act.^{[citation needed]}

Hi-de-Hi

Small parts and guest appearances in television series began to materialise throughout the 1970s, and, in May 1979, comedy writer Jimmy Perry spotted Paul playing Frank Roper in a 1979 episode of Coronation Street, and offered him the part of Ted Bovis in his new holiday-camp sitcom Hi-de-Hi!. The series ran from 1980 through until 1988, when Perry and co-writer David Croft penned the pilot episode of You Rang, M'Lord?, and invited Shane to play Alf Stokes. The show ran until 1993. In 1991, Shane was given his own series, Very Big, Very Soon, but it failed to achieve anything like the popularity of his other comedy roles, and ended after one series.^{[citation needed]}

Later career

Between 1995 and 1997, he played Jack Skinner in two series of Oh, Doctor Beeching!. Subsequently, he has appeared most frequently in theatre, but has also enjoyed recurring roles in television series Holby City and Emmerdale.

Shane's performance of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" on Pebble Mill at One in 1996 was voted the 72nd Funniest Moment on British Television in a poll on Channel 4 in 2004.

Shane has also appeared in variety theatre in popular tourist venues such as Blackpool in 2006, and in pantomime in Jack and the Beanstalk in 2008. In 2008, he also guest-starred in an episode of the ITV drama series A Touch of Frost, playing the role of boatsman "Diesel Bob".

Personal life

Shane was married to Dory (died 2001; they had three daughters.

In May 2009, he entered hospital at Sheffield Northern General Hospital to undergo a life-saving heart operation, and made a full recovery.

Television Roles

Comedy

Year	Title	Role
1979 to 1980	Turtle's Progress	Mashcan
1980 to 1988	Hi-de-Hi!	Ted Bovis
1988 to 1993	You Rang, M'Lord?	Alf Stokes
1991	Very Big Very Soon	Harry James
1995 to 1997	Oh, Doctor Beeching!	Jack Skinner
1996	Two Minutes	Ernie

Drama

Year	Title	Role
2004	Emmerdale	Solomon Dingle
2008	A Touch of Frost	Diesel Bob

Film roles

• 1996: La Passione - Papa
• 2002: Heartlands - Zippy

External links

• IMDb profile