Tommy Cooper
Born in Caerphilly, South Wales, at 19 Llwyn Onn Street, Trecenydd, Cooper was delivered by the woman who owned the house in which the family was lodging. His parents were Welsh-born army recruiting sergeant father Thomas H. (Tom) Cooper, and his English-born wife Gertrude (née Gertrude C. Wright) from Crediton, Devon. In light of the heavily polluted air and the offer of a job for his father, the family moved to Exeter, Devon, when Cooper was three and gained the West Country accent that was part of his act. The family lived in the back of Haven Banks, where Cooper attended Mount Radford School for Boys, and helped his parents run their ice cream van, which attended fairs on the weekend. At the age of eight an aunt bought Cooper a magic set and he spent hours perfecting the tricks. Magic ran in his family—his brother David (born 1930) opened a magic shop in the 1960s in Slough High Street (then Buckinghamshire now Berkshire) called D. & Z. Cooper's Magic Shop. On 15 April 1984, Cooper collapsed and soon after died from a heart attack in front of millions of television viewers, midway through his act on the London Weekend Television variety show Live From Her Majesty's, transmitted live from Her Majesty's Theatre. His stage persona required that his act intentionally went wrong for comic purposes, leading to some initial uncertainty about whether this collapse was real.
The Plank
as Larger WorkmanA slapstick comedy about two workmen delivering planks to a building site. This is done with...
Movie pageAnd the Same to You
as Horace HawkinsDickie Dreadnought is the boxing-mad nephew of pious clergyman Reverend Sydney Mullet. To...
Movie pageParkinson at 50
as Self (archive footage)Sir Michael Parkinson looks back over his 50 years as a broadcaster, revealing some tricks of...
Movie pageTommy Cooper - A Feztival Of Fun With Tommy Cooper
as HimselfJoin in this feztival of fun which contains the best loved sketches and classic routines from...
Movie pageThe Best of Tommy Cooper
as SelfIn his trademark fez, look of heroic confusion and perfect sense of comic timing, Tommy Cooper...
Movie pageJust Like That!
as Self (archival footage)Just Like That! is a celebration of the comic genius of Tommy Cooper] - just like that! But...
Movie pageAn Audience with Joan Rivers
as uncreditedThe shockingly controversial, outrageous, and wickedly funny comedienne performing live in front...
Movie pageIt's Your Move
as Big Removal ManA silent slapstick comedy depicting the travails of young couple moving into a new home, who...
Movie pageTommy Cooper: In His Own Words
as uncreditedAn affectionate look back at Tommy Cooper's life and career. Sir Michael Parkinson, Jimmy...
Movie pageThe Cool Mikado
as Pooh-Bah, Private DetectiveIn this musical, the Gilbert and Sullivan classic is updated and set in post-war Japan. This...
Movie pageTommy Cooper - The Magic Touch
as uncreditedTommy Cooper, the hapless magician who was in a league of his own, is joined here by a...
Movie pageTommy Cooper - The Very Best Of
as himselfTommy Cooper's comedy was timeless, a true original who was everyone's favourite clown. Wearing...
Movie pageTommy Cooper at the BBC
as Self (archive footage)To mark 100 years since the birth of comedy legend Tommy Cooper, Sir Lenny Henry - one of...
Movie pageTommy Cooper - Tribute To A Comic Genius
as uncreditedTommy Cooper, one of Britain's most loved magicians, features in some of the best sketches from...
Movie pageTommy Cooper: Master Of Comedy
as uncreditedA Fez-tival of Fun! Join the feztival of fun which contains the best loved sketches and...
Movie pageAn Audience with...
as SelfAn Audience with... is a British entertainment television show produced by London Weekend...
TV Show pageThe Bruce Forsyth Show
as uncreditedBeginning in 1959 as Bruce's Show, mixing music, dancing and comedy in the time honoured...
TV Show pageThe Tommy Cooper Hour
as uncreditedTommy Cooper stars in a series of hour-long specials dedicated to his unique and hilarious blend...
TV Show pageThe Tommy Cooper Hour
as SelfTommy Cooper stars in a series of hour-long specials dedicated to his unique and hilarious blend...
TV Show pageCooper
as SelfThe incomparable master of muffed magic returns with this six-part series from 1975. There are...
TV Show pageCooper - Just Like That
as uncredited'Tragic magic' rules in this six-part series from 1978, which saw Tommy Cooper at the height of...
TV Show page