Sid James

Sid James arrived in Britain from South Africa in the 1940s and built a career on his gravelly voice, distinctive cackling laugh and easy comic timing. He first found wide fame as Tony Hancock's co-star in Hancock's Half Hour on radio and television through the 1950s, before becoming one of the most recognisable faces in British comedy as a mainstay of the Carry On series, appearing in 19 films — including Carry On Camping and Carry On Cleo — and taking top billing in most of them. He kept working right up to the end of his life, starring in the sitcom Bless This House until 1976, when he collapsed and died of a heart attack while performing on stage in Sunderland.