The entertainer

AT 76, you’d think that veteran entertainer Des O’Connor would be happy to take things easy. The Queen spoke for many TV viewers when she presented him with his CBE, thanking him “for many enjoyable hours of entertainment’’. It was a fitting tribute for a man who has starred in his own mainstream TV show every year since 1963.

Most recently he’s been on Channel 4, hosting Countdown, but his stint on the show finished last week.

“I’ve never been paid before for sitting and watching the clock go around,’’ he says, reflecting on his long career.

While maintaining a TV career would be enough for most people, O’Connor has also made a name for himself in the music world. His 36th album, Inspired, is out now and O’Connor couldn’t be more proud.

“I said to Alan Hawkshaw who I did the last album with, ‘let’s try and captivate and recreate the Swing era’.

We thought it would be a mammoth task, and we sat down that same day and wrote a song, then over a period of 22 months we wrote 28 songs and we thought we’d put it out as an album and call it Inspired, because we both inspired each other.

“I’ve never sung so well in my life, even Eric Morecambe wouldn’t insult me these days!’’ O’Connor’s long career is even more remarkable when you consider his humble beginnings.

“I came from a very poor family, my mother was a cleaning lady and my dad was a dustman,’’ he explains.

“In fact, on my birth certificate it says ‘Father’s Position: Scavenger’!’’ The family may have lacked money but there were always plenty of laughs to go round. We got a lot of love and a lot of humour,’’ he says.

“My mum could always sing and my dad was very funny and was always making me laugh. I remember once we went to a cinema to see a horror movie and you weren’t allowed to see it until you were 16 and I was 13. The lady behind the ticket counter said ‘how old is he?’. My dad replied, ‘Sixteen’, with his fingers crossed. She said ‘rather small isn’t he?’, and he said ‘he worries a lot’. I can remember having to bite my lip to stop me laughing and thinking, I hope I can make people laugh like that when I’m older.’’ That was all the inspiration he needed to set off in search of fame.

He did the rounds as a stand-up comic, entertained in the Airforce during his days of National Service, did a stint at Butlin’s, and then went on to perform in theatres.

O’Connor was rewarded for his hard work with his own television series in 1963, The Des O’Connor Show, which led on to Des O’Connor Entertains and then the series he says was the highlight of his career, Des O’Connor Tonight.

“I said ‘let’s bring over some Americans, I can’t do what Parkinson does because he’s a journalist’,’’ O’Connor remembers.

“I wanted to do fun conversations 2 not too giggly but just keep it loose. I went out to the American clubs and I found four guys – David Letterman, Jay Leno, Gary Shandling and Jerry Seinfeld – and they were all in the first series and now they practically own America.’’ O’Connor loved being able to give a platform to home-grown young comics, too.

“Today, I could list at least 30 comics who made their mainstream debut on there,’’ he says. “From Frank Skinner and Ben Elton, to Joe Pasquale and Bradley Walsh, the list could go on and on. I take a lot of pride from it.’’ In recent years O’Connor’s TV career gained momentum with his daytime show, Des and Mel.

He’s very keen to work with co-host Mel Sykes again.

“Paul O’Grady took a day off on November 3 and asked if me and Mel would step in, which we did, and the ratings were fantastic,’’ he says.

“We didn’t think we had quite got into our stride as it was a new studio with a new feel, but we loved it. There were little flirtatious lines thrown over to us about doing it again but we’ll see. I certainly would, Mel and I get along so well. Twice a year we go out for dinner at a restaurant and we are asked to keep it down because we can’t stop laughing. In fact I had one man shout ‘I’ll have what those two are having’.’’ O’Connor is a busy man, but he’s still got plenty of time to devote to his famil – wife Jodie and their fouryear- old son, Adam. He also has four daughters from three previous marriages.

“I’ve always been fortunate to have children as a part of my life and these days I have the luxury of choice,’’ he says. “I don’t have to go to Australia for eight weeks – now I can say when’s it Sports Day? I can be there for Adam because I’m not trying to scrape together money for a mortgage and schooling, so I’m a very lucky person.’’ What will O’Connor do next?

Watch this space.

■ Des O’Connor’s album, Inspired, is available now