Latest news with #CarryOnCamping
Daily Mirror
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Barbara Windsor's widower still 'wakes in panic' after star's Alzheimer's death
Scott Mitchell opens up on effect caring for the late EastEnders legend still has on him, her legacy and his own cancer scare One of the most joyful stars to grace TV screens, it's no surprise that Barbara Windsor 's light continues to shine brightly more than four years after her death. Millions mourned the EastEnders and Carry On favourite's passing from Alzheimer's at 83 in December 2020. And while Dame Barbara may have gone, she's certainly not forgotten – as her widower carries on campaigning for dementia research, treatment and care in her name. 'She'd be incredibly proud now to know that her name is still helping people,' says Scott Mitchell, 62, at the home they once shared in London. He talks about the amazing legacy Barbara has left, the lasting effect her death has had on him as he still struggles to sleep five years on – and finding love again with former EastEnders actress Tanya Franks. Scott leads the government-backed Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Goals programme and wants a meeting with Health Secretary Wes Streeting to push for further action. 'I'm very proud of the lady she was and the mark that she's left,' smiles Scott, speaking ahead of Dementia Action Week. 'I always joke and say, 'She won't only be remembered for a bra flying off in Carry On Camping or telling people to get out of her pub'. There's a new legacy for Barbara Windsor. And that is the world of dementia, helping people, and that's very important.' The actress who played Queen Vic landlady Peggy Mitchell was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2014. Watching her fade away over six years was incredibly tough for Scott. 'You're powerless against it,' he explains. 'It's a much bigger force and presence than we are. You watch someone you love slowly being taken away. Everything they stood for is stripped away. You see them reverting back to childhood. 'You will do things as a carer for your loved one that maybe you should never have to do in their lives. Personal care. And that's the hard part. Not being able to do anything about it. That's what has always pushed me with the campaigning. That's what drives me.' Together for 27 years, Scott and Barbara got married in 2000. Eyebrows were raised over their 26-year age gap but they proved the doubters wrong. 'It would be impossible for me not to miss her,' says Scott. 'However, I also look at the fact that Barbara led an incredible life. And some! And she most likely lived 10 lives over compared to the rest of us. 'Before she had dementia, she would say to me, 'When I die, be broken hearted, please. I want you to cry your eyes out. But then you promise me that you have the best life ever. Because that's what I did'. 'The fact that we had 27 years together anyway was the most incredible thing. It shouldn't have worked but we did spend this incredible life together. 'Now when I look back, I feel blessed for the time we spent together. Barbara changed my life in so many ways.' Scott says Barbara would have wanted him to find love again and two years ago he began a relationship with her co-star Tanya Franks, 57, who played Rainie Cross in the soap. 'I'm incredibly happy,' he says. 'Me being unhappy and alone is not going to bring Barbara back. Life is very much for the living and we all get one shot at living. Of course, there's always someone on the internet, who's going to say, 'Oh, it didn't take him long.' 'Well, maybe they forget the fact that Barbara's illness possibly started initially 10 years before she passed so you're grieving while they're alive. You lose them while they're alive. I didn't feel guilty because I knew I had Barbara's blessing because of what she'd always said to me. 'Tanya is a wonderful lady. She's very private. She's not how Barbara was in that respect. Barbara was an open book. Barbara told you every detail about her life. Tanya has no interest in celebrity. She is a very good actress. At the moment, she's appearing with the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon in Much Ado About Nothing. 'I don't compare the two ladies. They're very different and I have love for both of them. I wouldn't be with anyone who wasn't truly lovely.' But Scott still has problems sleeping from being his late wife's carer for so long. 'I've never recovered from my sleep from when I was caring for Barbara,' he explains. I'll fall asleep at 11 but I can be waking up through the night. "I was so aware of when she used to get up in the night because she used to have falls in the night. So I never really used to sleep. I used to constantly be alert. My awareness was so acute that my sleeping pattern got completely out of sync and it never really recovered. 'The impact it has on the family and carers is something that should never be estimated. That's the kind of hangover that I've got from it still nearly five years later. 'There are times when I wake up and I panic because I think, is she OK? Like I used to. I have to talk to myself and say, 'it's OK. She's at peace'. It's a lot less than it used to be now.' Scott suffered his own health scare recently when a biopsy revealed that skin damage on his nose was pre-cancerous. Diagnosed with actinic keratosis, a condition that appears as scaly, rough patches on skin, it's caused by sun damage and can potentially develop into cancer if left untreated. 'My sunbathing days are over,' he says. 'It has to be Factor 50 every day. When we're in the height of the summer I'll be wearing a hat and clothes, which will be torture for me.' An acting agent and huge EastEnders fan, Scott praised the soap's 'sensitive' dementia storyline and says Barbara would have loved its recent 40th celebrations. He said the show changed both of their lives after she joined in 1994. 'It was a year after I'd met Barbara and she was having a really tough time and had a huge debt,' he says. Accused of being after her money when they got together, Scott scoffs: 'She had a million pound debt, I would have been the worst gold digger in the United Kingdom 's history.' Now nobody questions his mission to beat dementia in her name. Last year he was appointed People's Champion for the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission and addressed scientists, NHS chiefs and tech bosses at 10 Downing Street. 'I thought of Barbara and I thought of my dad who I lost 18 months before Barbara,' he recalls. 'And I thought to myself, 'If you could see me now'. 'I left school with no qualifications and here I am at the heart of government, telling my story. It was the most amazing 'pinch me' moment.' Scott, an ambassador of Alzheimer's Research UK, has helped bring in more than £250,000 running three marathons and secured £200million in government funding. 'Our programme is about speeding up treatments, trials, getting new treatments to patients faster,' he says. 'The odds of finding a cure in my generation are highly unlikely. But maybe future generations will not go through the painful experiences that we have been through. Treatments are going to get better and better. We now know you can drastically start slowing this down – now that is incredible.' With dementia our biggest killer, Scott says there is more to be done. Having met Wes Streeting just before the General Election, he is hoping to sit down with him again to push for further action. 'I appreciate the many pressures facing the NHS and the range of issues the Secretary of State is seeking to address right now,' he says. "However, it's important to recognise that the impact of dementia is driving many of these pressures. Breakthroughs in science mean we have an opportunity to change this but it will require leadership from the government. 'I'm concerned that right now dementia doesn't have sufficient prominence in the national debate about the future of the health service despite the fact it remains the UK's biggest killer. 'I'm really keen to work with Wes Streeting to address this and want to meet with him soon to discuss a way forward. 'If Barbara's name can help generations in the future – by bringing awareness, or finding a cure one day, or bringing out treatments – then I will keep doing it.' Dementia Action Week starts on Monday and Alzheimer's Research UK's Walk For A Cure campaign is organising 5k walks.
Daily Mirror
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Carry On TV legend leaves £25k in his will to supermodel daughter
Carry On legend actor Julian Holloway has left £25,000 to his model daughter Sophie Dahl, his will has revealed. The TV icon and voice-over artist, who died the age of 80 in February, had an estate worth nearly half a million pounds, with the most of it going to his stepson Joel Gregory. The late actor's fortune totalled £493,917 before final expenses, which brought it down to £480,891. His final wishes included having his ashes scattered at either Lord's Cricket Ground or Sudbrooke Park Golf Club. While the actor left both his daughter Sophie and stepdaughter Kate Gregory with £25,000 each, it was stepson Joel who inherited the bulk of his assets and was named executor of the will. Holloway, who lived in Poole in Dorset at the time of his death, was celebrated for his roles in eight Carry On films, such as Carry On Doctor and Carry On Camping. Sophie Dahl - born in 1977 to Holloway and British actress Tessa Dahl - is a renowned model and author whose grandfather was famed children's writer Roald Dahl, reports Devon Live. Actress Sarah Douglas mourned the loss of Holloway, saying at the time of his death: "I lost a dear friend yesterday and I'm so, so sad. I have known Julian Holloway since the early 70's and he has been the best of friends to me all these years. "Julian was the wittiest of men and we would laugh and laugh. He was a friend through thick and thin, first in London then LA then back home again. He was also the associate producer of The Brute (1977) but I had first met him professionally in 1973 on a BBC drama called 'Secrets'. There will be lots written about him and all his wonderful work but right now he is just a dear and sorely missed friend." The Carry On stalwart, who also graced screens with roles in The Sweeney, Doctor Who, and Beverly Hills 90210, was born in Watlington, Oxfordshire, in 1944 to the actor and singer Stanley Holloway and his wife, Violet. Finding love in the acting world, he tied the knot twice, with Zena Walker and later Debbie Wheeler. Holloway's impressive range of roles spanned from timeless TV series such as Minder, The Professionals, The New Avengers, and Z Cars to the voice-over parts in the animations and video games including Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Pirates of the Caribbean At World's End and Medal of Honor.
Wales Online
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Carry On and Star Wars actor left £25,000 to daughter Sophie Dahl
Carry On and Star Wars actor left £25,000 to daughter Sophie Dahl The star left behind almost £500,000 Carry On star Julian Holloway (Image: Jam Press ) Carry On and Star Wars star Julian Holloway left £25,000 to his model daughter Sophie Dahl in his will. The actor and voice-over artist left the bulk of his £500,000 fortune to his stepson Joel Gregory, documents reveal. Holloway, who died aged 80, in February, had £493,917 to his name at the end of his life, which was reduced to £480,891 after deductions. He stated in his will that he wanted his ashes scattered at Lord's Cricket Ground in the capital or Sudbrooke Park Golf Club in Surrey. Documents show he left £25,000 each to his daughter, Sophie Dahl, and stepdaughter, Kate Gregory. But the rest of his estate was left to his stepson, Joel Gregory, who was also appointed as the will's administrator. Holloway, who lived in Poole, Dorset, at the time of his death played various characters in eight Carry On films including Carry On Doctor, Carry On Up The Khyber and Carry On Camping. In 1977, he had a daughter, model-turned-author, Sophie Dahl, with British actress Tessa Dahl, daughter of children's author, Roald Dahl. At the time of his death, actress Sarah Doglas said: "I lost a dear friend yesterday and I'm so, so sad. 'I have known Julian Holloway since the early 70's and he has been the best of friends to me all these years. Article continues below 'Julian was the wittiest of men and we would laugh and laugh. He was a friend through thick and thin, first in London then LA then back home again. 'He was also the associate producer of The Brute (1977) but I had first met him professionally in 1973 on a BBC drama called "Secrets". There will be lots written about him and all his wonderful work but right now he is just a dear and sorely missed friend." He was born in Watlington, Oxfordshire, in 1944. His parents were actor and singer, Stanley Holloway and his wife, Violet. Article continues below He married twice, to actors, Zena Walker and Debbie Wheeler. Holloway was a mainstay of the Carry On franchise and had roles in The Sweeney, Doctor Who, Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads, Benerly Hills 90210, Minder, The Professionals, The New Avengers and Z Cars. As a voice-over artist he had roles in numerous animations and video games, including as Prime Minister Almex in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and in Pirates of Casribbean At World's End and Medal of Honor.
The Guardian
19-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Julian Holloway obituary
Julian Holloway, who has died aged 80, was a prolific television actor and voice artist, and had a stage career that took him to Broadway, but he was best known for appearing in eight Carry On movies. In later years he freely disowned them. 'I am not remotely proud of my involvement in the films,' he said in a 2018 interview with Callum J Phoenix for the Retroboy website, adding that Kenneth Williams – who appeared in more of the productions, known for their saucy seaside postcard humour, than any other actor – once advised him: 'Don't let the stigma of the Carry Ons attach itself to you.' Nevertheless, Holloway – son of Stanley Holloway, the actor and singer known for his comic monologues and songs – said that during his 10 years in the films he enjoyed his third venture, Carry On Up the Khyber (1968), the most. Holloway played the long-suffering Major Shorthouse of the 3rd Foot and Mouth Regiment, who reports directly to Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond (Sid James), the British governor in the north-west province of India. He considered the historical Carry Ons, complete with period costume, to be the best in the series. It was downhill from there, with Holloway's roles including the lecherous coach driver in Carry On Camping (1969), taking girls from Chayste Place finishing school to Devon and, while at a hostel there, tripping over, crashing into Barbara Windsor and accidentally ripping off her nightdress. Cast in the role after Jim Dale was unavailable, Holloway was set to have a screen romance with one of the girls, played by Trisha Noble, but most of the scenes – including one of him rescuing her from a goat in a shower – ended up on the cutting-room floor. In a similar vein was Carry On Loving (1970), in which Holloway was a highly strung photographer on a quest to find a well-endowed model. His other Carry On parts were as a railway ticket collector in Follow That Camel (1967); Simmons, in charge of X-rays, in Doctor (1967); Sir Thomas, one of Henry VIII's riding pals, in Henry (1971); Roger, a friend of Lewis Boggs (Richard O'Callaghan), in At Your Convenience (1971); and Major Butcher, a medical officer, in England (1976). He also appeared in the 1973 TV special Carry On Christmas, but eventually turned down the offer of another movie. 'My agent got a message from the casting director to say that if I didn't do the film I would never work with Peter Rogers [the director] again!' recalled Holloway. 'I said, 'OK, fine by me.'' In between the Carry On films – which were known for the derisory fees paid to actors, and for which he was never paid more than £300 – Holloway was becoming one of the busiest character actors on television, in both comedies and dramas. His stage career was progressing, too. He took over from Michael Gambon as Tom in Alan Ayckbourn's trilogy The Norman Conquests in the West End (Globe and Apollo theatres, 1975-76). Later, in a well-received revival of My Fair Lady on Broadway starring Richard Chamberlain as Higgins (Virginia theatre, 1993-94), Holloway played Alfred P Doolittle, recreating the role taken by his father in the original 1950s New York and London productions, as well as the 1964 film version. 'The admirably boisterous Julian Holloway, as Eliza's dustman father, is understandably very like his own illustrious father, Stanley,' wrote Clive Barnes in the Stage. The only son of Stanley Holloway's second marriage, to Violet Lane, an actor and former chorus dancer, Julian was born in Watlington, Oxfordshire, and brought up in Penn, Buckinghamshire. After leaving Harrow school, he trained at Rada in London. While still studying, he was an extra in 1961 in the film Dentist on the Job and an episode of The Avengers, and went to the US to appear in the sitcom Our Man Higgins (1962-63) as Quentin, nephew of the prim English butler played by his father in the starring role. On graduating from Rada in 1963, he joined Beryl Reid and others in the revue All Square, which included a West End run at the Vaudeville theatre. Three years later, he starred as Jimmy, alongside Victor Henry as Ian, in Christopher Hampton's first play, When Did You Last See My Mother?, performed by the English Stage Company at the Royal Court, then the Comedy Theatre. In the following decade, Holloway starred in a revival of Arsenic and Old Lace as Mortimer Brewster, a drama critic dealing with a murderous family and the police (Whitehall and Westminster theatres, 1977). His screen career was given an early boost when the director Richard Lester cast him in small roles in the Beatles film A Hard Day's Night (1964) and The Knack… and How to Get It (1965), although he struggled for a while to get beyond bit parts on the big screen. Television proved more fruitful. He was Corky, hapless friend of the title character created by PG Wodehouse (played by Anton Rodgers), in Ukridge (1968); Algernon Moncrieff in The Importance of Being Earnest (1972); a mobster in The Sweeney (1975); Jack Favell, the heroine's cousin and lover, in Rebecca (1979); the English politician Harry Cust in Nancy Astor (1982); and Paterson in the Doctor Who adventure Survival (1989). He voiced the title character in the British cartoon Captain Z and the Zee Zone (1991-92). After providing various voices for the American animated series James Bond Jr (1991), Holloway settled in Los Angeles in 1992. Eventually, he divided his time between California and Britain, left stage acting behind and became a successful voice artist on US television series such as Dan Dare, Pilot of the Future (2002, after a 2001 TV movie), Father of the Pride (2004-05) and Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2010-2020). Back in Britain, Holloway played Uncle George in the TV series My Uncle Silas (2001-03). Both his marriages, to the actors Zena Walker (1971) and Debbie Wheeler (1991), ended in divorce. He is survived by his daughter, the author and former model Sophie Dahl, from a brief relationship in the mid-1970s with the writer and actor Tessa Dahl. Julian Robert Stanley Holloway, actor, born 24 June 1944; died 16 February 2025
Sky News
18-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Sky News
Carry On actor Julian Holloway dies at 80 after brief illness
British actor Julian Holloway, best known for his appearance in eight Carry On films, has died at the age of 80. Theatrical agency Sharkey and Co said he died on Sunday at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital in Dorset after "a brief illness". Another agency, Damn Good Voices, told the Press Association he will be missed. In the 60s and 70s, he played various characters in eight of the cult Carry On film series, including Carry On Doctor, Carry On Up The Khyber, and Carry On Camping. Holloway had a daughter, the supermodel turned author Sophie Dahl, who was born in 1976 to British actress Tessa Dahl, daughter of children's author . In the 70s he also had parts on Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads?, The New Avengers and The Professionals and continued acting through the 80s and 90s appearing on shows like Doctor Who and Rumpole of the Bailey His film roles included The Rum Diary starring Johnny Depp and A Christmas Carol with Jim Carrey. Heartfelt tributes have been posted online from the world of showbiz. Actress Sarah Douglas, who played Ursa in Superman, expressed her sadness in a post on Facebook describing her longtime friend as the "wittiest of men". Meanwhile, he was called "an accomplished actor" by the author Morris Bright who also shared pictures on X. He said Holloway "could play comedy as deftly as serious roles". In his later years, Holloway lived in California and performed voice work, mainly for cartoons. He featured in James Bond Jr, Where's Wally?, Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Captain Zed And The Zee Zone. Recent animation shows include the sitcom Regular Show, where he voiced the character of death. Holloway was born in Oxfordshire in 1944. His father was the comedian and film star Stanley Holloway, known for films including My Fair Lady and The Lavender Hill Mob.
