Sir Lenny Henry: Living here taught me to work hard
From humble beginnings to his big break on the talent show New Faces and now to being given a knighthood – Dudley's Lenny Henry has come a long way in a career spanning four decades.
The Comic Relief founder turned thespian was raised in the town along with his siblings by immigrant Jamaican parents.
He grew up in Douglas Road near Buffery Park and has since heaped praise on the town for providing a springboard for his career in the early days when he performed at venues including the Town Hall and the Queen Mary Ballroom.
As a youngster in the 1970s he attended the area's Bluecoat School where classmates have fond memories of him keeping them entertained with his jokes and Tommy Cooper impressions.
His early years were spent in Black Country working men's clubs where his act was as a young black man impersonating white characters such as the Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'E character Frank Spencer
He came to the attention of TV bosses and viewers alike when he appeared on the talent break-through series New Faces in 1975. He won it with an impersonation of superstar Stevie Wonder. Then the following year he appeared with the late Norman Beaton in LWT's sitcom The Fosters the UK's first comedy series with predominantly black actors.
He also made guest appearances on programmes including Celebrity Squares, Seaside Special and The Ronnie Corbett Show.
He went on to present the children's programme Tiswas from 1978 to 1981. Other shows followed including Three of a Kind and The Comic Strip after which he forged a career as a stand-up comic and character comedian.
His own series The Lenny Henry Show was aired on the BBC in 1984 and in the next decade he starred in the Hollywood film True Identity and TV series including the BBC's Chef.
Lenny, who has performed in the region many times in recent years,
was made a Freeman of Dudley borough two years ago. Now aged 56, he said: "People always ask what Dudley did for me – living here taught me you had to work hard to get anywhere in life. Three minutes on stage at the Queen Mary Ballroom would teach you that real quick, if you ain't funny someone from the Priory Estate would throw a cinder block at you."
