HARRY H. CORBETT. Born in Rangoon, Burma, 28 February 1925. Attended schools in Manchester. Married 1) Sheila Steafel (divorced); 2) Maureen Blott; two children. Served in Royal Marines during World War II. Trained as radiographer before embarking on career as an actor, joining the Chorlton Repertory Company, later being recruited by Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop in Stratford East, London; acted extensively in the theatre and in films before achieving fame as Harold Steptoe in long-running Steptoe and Son comedy series, 1962-65 and 1970-75. Officer of the Order of the British Empire, 1976. Died in Hastings, Kent, 21 March 1982.

TELEVISION SERIES

1964-73 Steptoe and Son
1967 Mr Aitch
1969 The Best Things in Life
1979-83 Potter
1980 Grundy

RADIO

Steptoe and Son

STAGE (selection)

Hamlet; The Power and the Glory; The Way of the World.

FILMS

The Passing Stranger, 1954; Floods of Fear, 1958; Nowhere to Go, 1958; In the Wake of a Stranger, 1959; Shake Hands With the Devil, 1959; The Shakedown, 1960; Cover Girl Killer, 1960; The Big Day, 1960; The Unstoppable Man, 1960; Marriage of Convenience, 1960; Wings of Death, 1961; Time to Remember, 1962; Some People, 1962; Sparrows Can't Sing, 1963; Sammy Going South, 1963; Ladies Who Do, 1963; What a Crazy World, 1963; The Bargee, 1964; Rattle of a Simple Man, 1964; Joey Boy, 1965; Carry On Screaming, 1966; The Vanishing Busker, 1966; The Sandwich Man, 1966; Crooks and Coronets, 1969; Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins, 1971; Steptoe and Son, 1972; Steptoe and Son Ride Again, 1973; Percy's Progress, 1974; Hardcore, 1976; The Chiffy Kids, 1976; Adventures of a Private Eye, 1977; Jabberwocky, 1977; What's Up Superdoc, 1979; Silver Dream Racer, 1980; The Moles, 1982.

FURTHER READING

Burke, Michael. "You Dirty Old Man!" The People (London), 9 January 1994.

"How We Met: Ray Galton and Alan Simpson." The Independent (London), 11 June 1995.

See also Steptoe and Son

 

 

 

   

British actor Harry H. Corbett is best remembered for the single role which dominated his career--Harold Steptoe in the BBC's most popular and successful sitcom, Steptoe and Son. Corbett added the "H" to his stage name to distinguish himself from the children's entertainer, Harry Corbett, creator of Sooty, but did not show any particular leaning towards comedy in his early career, which consisted both of supporting and lead roles in film and television. His bulky frame made him a natural to play tough-guy roles. Corbett appeared regularly in ABC's ground-breaking anthology drama series, Armchair Theatre, contributing at least two performances to each season between 1957 and 1961. Notable productions included the death row drama The Last Mile (1957), directed by Philip Saville, and Eugene O'Neill's The Emperor Jones (1958).

When creating Steptoe and Son in 1962, writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson wanted to cast straight actors, rather than comedians, in the lead roles of Harold and Albert Steptoe. Wilfrid Brambell was cast as Albert and Corbett given the role of his son, Harold. Corbett was later to claim credit for altering Galton and Simpson's original conception by lowering the ages of these characters, making Harold a man approaching his forties (his own age).

Albert and Harold Steptoe run the rag-and-bone business of the show's title. Albert is a widower and his son, Harold, does most of the work. But Harold has dreams of betterment--he wants to be sophisticated, to get out of the business he is in, to get married and, most of all, to get away from his father. These remain dreams--he really knows that his life will not change, however much he tries, but the struggle with his father goes on. The pilot episode, "The Offer", ends with Harold pitifully failing to drag his belongings away to a new life on the back of a cart--a heavily symbolic scene which set the tone for the series as a whole. Over the next four years, and four series of Steptoe and Son, Harold had all his dreams shattered by Albert, whether it be his cultural pursuits--classical music, antiques and foreign films--or his romantic involvements.

Harry H. Corbett brought great dramatic pathos to the part of Harold, creating a character who hit a nerve in the audience. He had ambitions and pretentions beyond his abilities and social position and was often left bitterly disappointed, but remained a decent and honest man despite it all. Corbett enriched Galton and Simpson's wonderful scripts and gave them a character to develop further as the series progressed. His own comic timing also developed with his character, particularly his delivery of the predictable catchphrase, "You dirty old man!", when his father displayed his more earthy characteristics.

Between series and when Galton and Simpson brought Steptoe and Son to an end in 1965, both Corbett and Brambell were sought for movie roles because of their popularity, though Corbett's starring roles in Ladies Who Do, The Bargee and Rattle of a Simple Man are scarcely remembered today. Corbett also became a regular on the chat show scene, particularly as a frequent guest on the Eamonn Andrews Show. The audience expected him to be funny and he knew it, but his failure only pointed up the fact that Harold Steptoe was his career.

Fortunately, the BBC brought Steptoe and Son back for a further four series, in colour, between 1970 and 1974, and there were two Steptoe and Son movies as well. The new episodes simply took up where the series had left off and achieved the same level of popularity and quality as before.

-Steve Bryant