Donna Stoneman obit

“First Lady of the Mandolin” Donna Stoneman Has Died

 

She was not on the list.

The First Lady of the Mandolin has died. And with her passing, the story of one of the most important families in country music history comes to a close. Ernest “Pop” Stoneman’s success predated the formation of country music and 1927’s “Big Bang of Country Music,” also known as The Bristol Sessions. Along with his family, they would create the foundations of country music, and contribute greatly to it for many decades. Donna Stoneman was the last of that lineage. She has passed away at the age of 92.

Donna wasn’t just any mandolin player. She was a show stealer from the mandolin position, not just from her world-class playing that had her fellow mandolinists from across the world of bluegrass singing her praises, but the energy and enthusiasm she brought to the instrument, dancing around on stage, featuring the mandolin as a lead instrument, and leading the charge as a woman playing in what was very much a male-dominated discipline. Her other nickname was “Little Dancin’ Donna” with the way she bounced around the stage.

Donna’s playing earned her rare praise from fellow mandolin player and Father of Bluegrass Bill Monroe, as well as Jethro Burns from Homer & Jethro. She also contributed mandolin to the pioneering bluegrass album of Rose Maddox in 1962, and was a primary member of the Blue Grass Champs, which was an extension of the Stoneman Family.

Donna Stoneman was born on February 7th, 1934 in Alexandria, Virginia to Ernest V. “Pop” Stoneman and Hattie Frost Stoneman. She was one of 23 children from the musical family. In 1924, Ernest “Pop” Stoneman had a hit with “The Sinking of the Titanic”—three years before The Bristol Sessions. He was set to become one of the first country music stars, but then the Great Depression hit, and Pop already had over a dozen mouths to feed.

Donna Stoneman grew up in poverty conditions in Virginia and Maryland. Her early childhood was spent in a one-room cottage with the rest of her large family. She left formal education after the 7th grade, but learned and performed music from a very early age. At first she wanted to be a banjo player like her sister Roni, but due to the instrument’s weight, decided to pick up the mandolin. She obtained a Gibson F-5 at the age of 18, and playing mandolin became her life’s calling.

Donna and her banjo-playing sister Ronni joined the family band around the same time, and right before they won a contest on the televised Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts show in 1956 as the Blue Grass Champs. The band quickly became regulars on TV shows of the era. 1962 saw their debut on the Grand Ole Opry, and soon The Stonemans became known as one of the most important family bands in country music. They officially moved from Washington D.C. to Nashville in 1966, even hosted their own series called Those Stonemans between 1966 and 1968. They also won the CMA’s Vocal Group of the Year award in 1967.

Donna Stoneman was considered a star at the time, or as much as you could be considered one in bluegrass. But when she started experiencing frustrations in the country music industry, as well personal challenges including the dissolving of her marriage in the early 1970s, she went through a personal transformation, and devoted herself almost strictly to religious and Gospel music. She became an ordained minister in 1982, and traveled internationally, as well as worked on Native American reservations and in prisons.

Later in the 1980s, Donna Stoneman would rejoin the reunions of the Stoneman Family Band in various incarnations, and kept a long-time partnership with sister Roni, releasing albums as recently as 2020. When Roni passed away in 2024, it left Donna as the final link to the family’s vital musical legacy. Donna’s death truly marks the end of an era, and the passing of a living link to the very formation of what we call “country music” today.

Donna Stoneman wasn’t just a mandolin player or a family band member. She brought a passion to the music that was conferred to audiences, and made both the mandolin, and elemental string and bluegrass music accessible to many. Donna Stoneman was a spark that is responsible for the raging fire that has taken bluegrass to the area level, across continents, and kept it a very vital and vibrant form music musical expression well into the digital age, despite all odds.

Phyllis Kinney obit

Tribute to Phyllis Kinney

 

She was not on the list.

The National Library of Wales extends its deepest condolences to the family and friends of Phyllis Kinney, one of the most influential figures in traditional Welsh music. Through her work as a singer, scholar, collector and historian, she made an outstanding contribution to protecting, interpreting and promoting the musical heritage of Wales to generations of researchers, performers and audiences. Her dedication to the Welsh language and Welsh culture was a constant inspiration.

Dr Rhodri Llwyd Morgan, Chief Executive of the National Library of Wales, said:

“Phyllis Kinney was a scholar of international renown and a great friend to Wales. Throughout her long and productive life, she bridged cultures and ensured that the musical traditions of Wales were recorded, understood and appreciated. Her legacy, along with that of Meredydd Evans, continues in the Library's collections and in the nation's cultural life.”

Nia Mai Daniel, Head of Unique Collections Department and one who got to know Phyllis well, said:

“It was a privilege to get to know Phylis and collaborate with her to transfer her musical archive to the National Library of Wales. She had immersed herself in our folk culture, working side by side with her husband Mered on their thorough research into traditional Welsh music. He was particularly generous in sharing his knowledge, and enthusiastic in inspiring a new generation of researchers and musicians.”

Her immense contribution to the cultural life of Wales and her passion for folk music will continue to inspire for many years to come. The Library is grateful to the family that the archive of Merêd and Phyllis, which includes their detailed and valuable research into traditional music, is preserved here for the benefit of future generations.

Phyllis will be greatly missed, but her legacy remains an integral part of the musical story of Wales.

Kinney was born in Pontiac, Michigan on 4 July 1922. After completing her education at Pontiac High School, Kinney enrolled at Michigan State College in East Lansing. There, she was tutored in music by Gomer Llewelyn Jones, a Welshman who had moved to America in 1934. Jones sparked an interest in Welsh music in Kinney, who later said she had "hardly heard of Wales" before meeting him. By 1942, Kinney was giving public performances of Welsh songs, assisted by Jones at the piano. Jones considered her soprano renditions to bring "a vivid understanding of the character of the Welsh people" to audiences in Michigan. Kinney graduated in 1943 and secured a fellowship at the Juilliard School in New York City.

In 1947, Kinney became lead solo with the Carl Rosa Opera Company. With the company, she toured the UK in March of that year. During a stop in Bangor, Wales, Kinney met Meredydd Evans, a Welsh folk musician who was a member of the popular close harmony group Triawd y Coleg. Kinney learnt to speak, read and write Welsh, and introduced Evans to folk music from around the world. The couple married on 10 April 1948 and had a daughter, Eluned, in 1949.

Like Evans, Kinney began to work for the BBC, often performing duets with her husband. Kinney sang in "impeccable Welsh, which had a delightful American burr occasionally", according to the Western Mail. In June 1952, the family moved to America, where Evans enrolled at Princeton University. In 1960, the family moved back to Wales, where they settled. With Evans, Kinney edited collections of Welsh songs described as "definitive reference-works for this genre of national song." In 1962, Kinney provided operatic vocal accompaniment on Evans' album A Concert of Welsh Songs, with backing by the Russian harpist Maria Korchinska and several musicians and singers conducted and arranged by Robert Docker. Kinney later described the album, Evans' first to use instrumental backing, as "tradition dressed up to suit the audience".

In the 1980s, Kinney and Evans settled in Cwmystwyth, where they contributed to the community and taught Welsh to a host of their non-Welsh-speaking neighbours; according to biographer R. Arwel Jones, the couple's home became "a magnet for people of all ages, from all over Wales and the world who would flock there to enjoy their company and to benefit from the couple's intellectual generosity". Their home's proximity to the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth allowed the couple to devote their retirement to studying the history of folk songs and tunes, and their research appeared regularly in Canu Gwerin, the journal of the Welsh Folk Song Society. Kinney was awarded an honorary M Mus degree by the University of Wales in 1991 and became honorary fellow of Bangor University alongside her husband in 1997. In April 2007, the University of Wales published a Festschrift volume for Evans and Kinney, "a fully bilingual collection of critical essays on various aspects of Welsh song and traditional music by Wales’ leading experts and musicologists" to celebrate their contribution "not only to Welsh traditional music but to the very culture and language of Wales."

Being Welsh is like belonging to an exclusive club without membership. I can appreciate why Welshmen want to preserve their language. It's a beautiful, imaginative language.

— Phyllis Kinney, 1964

In 2011, University of Wales Press published Kinney's final book to date, Welsh Traditional Music, an extensive history and analysis of the instrumental and vocal traditions of Wales.

Penelope Keith obit

Penelope Keith Dies: BAFTA-Winning ‘The Good Life’ Actress Was 86

 

She was not on the list.

Dame Penelope Keith, the BAFTA-winning British actress best known for the BBC comedy The Good Life, has died. She was 86.

In a statement sent to British media, Keith’s family said: “We are deeply saddened to announce that Dame Penelope Keith died peacefully whilst living with cancer at her home in Surrey where she had lived for more than 50 years.

“The family is grateful for the care and support she received throughout her treatments, and ask that their privacy be respected at this time.”

Keith was born in 1940 under her real name, Penelope Anne Constance Hatfield. She joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1963 and secured her first major screen credit in The Army Game, the ITV comedy that aired between 1957 and 1961.

Keith progressed to roles in Carry on Doctor, The Avengers, and Private Lives before she was cast in The Good Life in 1975.

The Good Life is woven into the fabric of British comedy and featured Keith as Margo Leadbetter, a straight-laced neighbour to Richard Briers and Felicity Kendal’s Tom and Barbara Good, who escape the rat race to live a self-sufficient lifestyle in suburbia.

Keith won her first BAFTA for The Good Life in 1977. A year later, she doubled her tally of bronze masks, winning for her work in The Norman Conquests: Living Together, a television play written by Alan Ayckbourn.

She was also BAFTA-nominated for To the Manor Born, the BBC comedy. One of her final screen credits was Death Comes to Pemberley, the 2013 limited series based on PD James’s homage to Pride and Prejudice, co-starring Matthew Rhys.

Early in her career she worked in repertory in Manchester and while there obtained occasional television roles. When offered scripts she can usually tell within 5 pages if it is suitable for her. When it came to 'To the Manor Born' which was intended for a radio series, she considered it one of the best scripts that she'd read and asked to show it to BBC television light entertainment head John Howard Davis and the rest is history.

She made her name in the theatre in Alan Ayckbourn's The Norman Conquests before which she had played mostly everything including a season at Stratford. She was spotted in 'Conquests' and offered a role in the tv series The Good Life. Her 1st tv break had been in 'Kate' with Phyllis Calvert.

Penelope Keith was educated at a convent school in Bedford then spent 2 years at a drama school before going to a reportary theatre at Chesterfield in Derbyshire for 6 months. She's best known for the television series The Good Life and To the Manor Born. She has produced a production of Hayfever.

Actress

Matthew Rhys and Anna Maxwell Martin in Death Comes to Pemberley (2013)

Death Comes to Pemberley

7.1

TV Mini Series

Lady Catherine de Bourgh

2013

1 episode

 

Tinga Tinga Tales (2010)

Tinga Tinga Tales

7.6

TV Series

Queen Bee (voice)

2011

1 episode

 

Peter Bowles and Penelope Keith in To the Manor Born (1979)

To the Manor Born

7.4

TV Series

Audrey fforbes-HamiltonAudrey DeVere

1979–2007

22 episodes

 

Kate Harbour and Rob Rackstraw in The Secret Show (2006)

The Secret Show

7.0

TV Series

Nana Poo-Poo (voice)

2006

1 episode

 

June Brown and Penelope Keith in Margery and Gladys (2003)

Margery and Gladys

6.9

TV Movie

Margery Heywood

2003

 

A Garden is Lovesome Thing

Video

(voice)

2001

 

Pui Fan Lee, John Simmit, Nikky Smedley, and Dave Thompson in Teletubbies (1997)

Teletubbies

3.9

TV Series

The BearDancing Bear (voice)

1997–1998

2 episodes

 

Peter O'Toole, Joanna Lumley, and Emily Mortimer in Coming Home (1998)

Coming Home

6.8

TV Mini Series

Aunt Louise

1998

1 episode

 

Next of Kin (1995)

Next of Kin

8.1

TV Series

Maggie

1995–1997

22 episodes

 

Flight of the Amazon Queen (1995)

Flight of the Amazon Queen

7.9

Video Game

Temple Guardian (voice)

1995

 

Penelope Keith in Law and Disorder (1994)

Law and Disorder

7.8

TV Series

Phillippa Troy

1994

6 episodes

 

La Treizième voiture (1993)

La Treizième voiture

4.5

TV Movie

Aunt Tanya

1993

 

Beauty and the Beast (1992)

Beauty and the Beast

3.8

Video

Madame Bonbec (voice)

1992

 

Tales of the Tooth Fairies (1992)

Tales of the Tooth Fairies

7.4

TV Series

(voice: English version)

1992

 

Aladdin (1992)

Aladdin

2.7

Video

Madam Dim Sum (voice)

1992

 

No Job for a Lady (1990)

No Job for a Lady

7.2

TV Series

Jean Price

1990–1992

18 episodes

 

Woof! (1989)

Woof!

7.1

TV Series

Miss Robson

1989–1992

2 episodes

 

Santa and the Tooth Fairies (1991)

Santa and the Tooth Fairies

7.1

TV Movie

(voice: English version)

1991

 

Executive Stress (1986)

Executive Stress

7.3

TV Series

Caroline Fielding

1986–1988

19 episodes

 

Tickle on the Tum (1984)

Tickle on the Tum

6.2

TV Series

Dora the Driver

1984–1987

8 episodes

 

Moving (1985)

Moving

TV Series

Sarah Gladwyn

1985

6 episodes

 

Hay Fever (1984)

Hay Fever

7.6

TV Movie

Judith Bliss

1984

 

Jackanory (1965)

Jackanory

7.2

TV Series

Storyteller

1975–1984

11 episodes

 

Waters of the Moon (1983)

Waters of the Moon

7.9

TV Movie

Helen Lancaster

1983

 

Sweet Sixteen (1983)

Sweet Sixteen

7.0

TV Series

Helen WalkerHelen Morgan

1983

6 episodes

 

Spider's Web (1982)

Spider's Web

7.3

TV Movie

Clarissa Hailsham-Brown

1982

 

BBC Play of the Month (1965)

BBC Play of the Month

7.0

TV Series

Maria Wislack

1982

1 episode

 

Priest of Love (1981)

Priest of Love

6.0

The Honourable Dorothy Brett

1981

 

Donkeys' Years (1980)

Donkeys' Years

5.3

TV Movie

Lady Driver

1980

 

Penelope Keith, Eric Morecambe, and Ernie Wise in Morecambe and Wise at the BBC (1979)

Morecambe and Wise at the BBC

7.7

TV Series

Various

1979

1 episode

 

Much Ado About Nothing (1978)

Much Ado About Nothing

7.0

TV Movie

Beatrice

1978

 

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978)

The Hound of the Baskervilles

4.5

Massage Receptionist

1978

 

Richard Briers and Felicity Kendal in The Good Life (1975)

The Good Life

8.0

TV Series

Margo Leadbetter

1975–1978

30 episodes

 

Richard Briers, Tom Conti, and Penelope Keith in The Norman Conquests (1977)

The Norman Conquests

8.7

TV Mini Series

Sarah

1977

3 episodes

 

Lynda Bellingham in Cottage to Let (1977)

Cottage to Let

TV Series

Peggy Rodway

1977

1 episode

 

Mr & Mrs Edgehill (1985)

Private Lives

7.6

TV Movie

Amanda Prynne

1976

 

Seven Nights in Japan (1976)

Seven Nights in Japan

5.7

Mrs. Hollander (voice)

1976

 

Two's Company (1975)

Two's Company

7.8

TV Series

Mrs. Philips

1975

1 episode

 

Parker Pens: Finishing School

5.5

Video

1975

 

Turandot (1974)

Turandot

Short

Turandot (voice, voice: English version)

1974

 

Susan Hampshire, Philip Latham, Donal McCann, Barbara Murray, and Bryan Pringle in The Pallisers (1974)

The Pallisers

8.3

TV Mini Series

Mrs. Hittaway

1974

2 episodes

 

Larry Dann, Marianne Faithfull, Vivian MacKerrell, Murray Melvin, and Barbara Shelley in Ghost Story (1974)

Ghost Story

4.9

Rennie

1974

 

Penny Gold (1973)

Penny Gold

5.4

Miss. Hartridge

1973

 

Phyllis Calvert and Jack Hedley in Kate (1970)

Kate

8.3

TV Series

Wenda Padbury

1970–1972

33 episodes

 

Julie Ege in Rentadick (1972)

Rentadick

3.8

Reporter

1972

 

Take a Girl Like You (1970)

Take a Girl Like You

5.6

Tory Lady

1970

 

Marty Feldman in Every Home Should Have One (1970)

Every Home Should Have One

5.0

Lotte

1970

 

Grounds for Suspicion (1969)

Grounds for Suspicion

Short

Jo

1969

 

Gerald Harper in Hadleigh (1969)

Hadleigh

7.1

TV Series

Angela Frampton

1969

1 episode

 

Reginald Barratt, Richard Beckinsale, Freddie Fletcher, Bernard Hepton, Arthur Lowe, Brian Miller, Ron Moody, Jack Rosenthal, Liz Smith, and Paula Wilcox in ITV Playhouse (1967)

ITV Playhouse

7.2

TV Series

Housekeeper

1969

1 episode

 

A Touch of Love (1969)

A Touch of Love

6.3

Nurse (uncredited)

1969

 

The Avengers (1961)

The Avengers

8.3

TV Series

Audrey LongBrideNanny Brown

1965–1969

3 episodes

 

John Bennett in Market in Honey Lane (1967)

Market in Honey Lane

6.1

TV Series

Frankie

1969

2 episodes

 

Robert Mitchum, Elizabeth Taylor, and Mia Farrow in Secret Ceremony (1968)

Secret Ceremony

6.3

Hotel Assistant (uncredited)

1968

 

Comedy Playhouse (1961)

Comedy Playhouse

7.0

TV Series

Daisy

1968

1 episode

 

Barbara Windsor in Wild, Wild Women (1968)

Wild, Wild Women

TV Series

Daisy

1968

1 episode

 

Jim Dale, Anita Harris, Frankie Howerd, Hattie Jacques, Sidney James, Valerie Van Ost, Jennifer White, Kenneth Williams, and Barbara Windsor in Carry on Doctor (1967)

Carry on Doctor

6.5

Plain Nurse (uncredited)

1967

 

ITV Play of the Week (1955)

ITV Play of the Week

6.7

TV Series

Betty Brogan

1967

1 episode

 

Emergency-Ward 10 (1957)

Emergency-Ward 10

6.4

TV Series

Iris BedfordMiss Willy Williams

1966–1967

5 episodes

 

William Lucas and Neil McCallum in Vendetta (1966)

Vendetta

7.5

TV Series

W.P.C. Ritchie

1966

2 episodes

 

Sam Kydd, David Munro, and Judy Robinson in Orlando (1965)

Orlando

6.5

TV Series

Waitress

1966

1 episode

 

Love Story (1963)

Love Story

7.0

TV Series

HelenThe waitress

1965–1966

2 episodes

 

The Liars

8.5

TV Series

Lady Winnie

1966

1 episode

 

Pamela Brown and Barry Warren in Six Shades of Black (1965)

Six Shades of Black

TV Series

Lady Pandora Brewster

1965

1 episode

 

Derek Godfrey and Roddy McMillan in Front Page Story (1965)

Front Page Story

TV Series

Morgue Girl

1965

1 episode

 

Jack Warner in Dixon of Dock Green (1955)

Dixon of Dock Green

6.9

TV Series

Miss Nash

1965

1 episode

 

Call Oxbridge 2000

TV Series

Eileen

1962

1 episode

 

Alfie Bass, Bill Fraser, and William Hartnell in The Army Game (1957)

The Army Game

7.4

TV Series

1957–1961

 

Director

A Garden is Lovesome Thing

Video

Director

2001

 

Soundtrack

Peter Bowles and Penelope Keith in To the Manor Born (1979)

To the Manor Born

7.4

TV Series

performer: "Cheek to Cheek"

1979

1 episode

 

The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968)

The Morecambe & Wise Show

8.1

TV Series

performer: "Darn It, Baby, That's Love"

1977

1 episode

 

Richard Briers and Felicity Kendal in The Good Life (1975)

The Good Life

8.0

TV Series

performer: "My Favourite Things", "The Sound of Music"performer: "Do Re Mi"

1976

2 episodes

 

Self

Saving Country Houses with Penelope Keith

TV Series

Self - Presenter

2026

 

Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh (2020)

Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh

6.5

TV Series

Self

2023–2024

3 episodes

 

Peter Bowles and Penelope Keith in To the Manor Born: Britain's Best Loved Comedy (2024)

To the Manor Born: Britain's Best Loved Comedy

7.1

TV Special

SelfSelf - Various Characters

2024

 

Martin Scorsese, David Harewood, Zoë Wanamaker, David Olusoga, and Gemma Arterton in Remembers... (2022)

Remembers...

7.4

TV Series

Self

2024

1 episode

 

The Good Life: 50 Years of Laughter

7.6

TV Movie

SelfSelf - Various Characters (as Dame Penelope Keith)

2023

 

When 70s TV Goes Horribly Wrong

5.2

TV Special

Self - Narrator (voice)

2023

 

Agathaland: The Making of Agatha Raisin (2023)

Agathaland: The Making of Agatha Raisin

TV Special

Self - Narrator

2023

 

Elizabeth: Her Passions and Pastimes (2022)

Elizabeth: Her Passions and Pastimes

6.8

TV Movie

Self - Sandringham WI Guest Speaker (as Dame Penelope Keith)

2022

 

Britain's Most Expensive Home: Building for a Billionaire (2020)

Britain's Most Expensive Home: Building for a Billionaire

4.8

TV Movie

Self - Narrator (voice)

2020

 

Penelope Keith in Penelope Keith's Village of the Year (2018)

Penelope Keith's Village of the Year

9.2

TV Series

Self - Host

2018

 

Penelope Keith in Penelope Keith's Coastal Villages (2017)

Penelope Keith's Coastal Villages

8.7

TV Series

Self - Presenter

2017–2018

3 episodes

 

Penelope Keith in Penelope Keith's Hidden Villages (2014)

Penelope Keith's Hidden Villages

8.5

TV Series

Self - Presenter

2014–2016

12 episodes

 

Penelope Keith in Penelope Keith at Her Majesty's Service (2016)

Penelope Keith at Her Majesty's Service

8.5

TV Mini Series

Self - Host

2016

 

BBC: The Secret Files

TV Mini Series

Self - Presenter

2015–2016

2 episodes

 

The Secret Files (2015)

The Secret Files

7.2

TV Movie

Self

2015

 

5 NewsTalk Live (2013)

5 NewsTalk Live

TV Series

Self (as Dame Penelope Keith)

2014

1 episode

 

Morecambe & Wise: The Whole Story (2013)

Morecambe & Wise: The Whole Story

7.4

TV Series

Self - 'The Morecambe & Wise Christmas Show', 1972

2013

1 episode

 

Cat Deeley, Alison Hammond, Dermot O'Leary, and Ben Shephard in This Morning (1988)

This Morning

4.3

TV Series

Self

2013

1 episode

 

Richard Briers: A Tribute

TV Movie

Self

2013

 

Goodbye Television Centre (2013)

Goodbye Television Centre

6.6

TV Movie

Self

2013

 

Tales of Television Centre (2012)

Tales of Television Centre

8.5

TV Movie

Self - Actress

2012

 

John Howard Davies: A Life in Comedy

TV Short

Self - Presenter

2012

 

Penelope Keith and Paul Martin in The Manor Reborn (2011)

The Manor Reborn

7.5

TV Series

Self - Presenter

2011

4 episodes

 

The One Show (2006)

The One Show

3.6

TV Series

Self

2011

1 episode

 

Jo Brand and Alan Yentob in Imagine (2003)

Imagine

7.6

TV Series

Self - Interviewee

2011

1 episode

 

Behind the Britcoms: From Script to Screen

TV Movie

Self - Actress

2011

 

Eric & Ernie: Behind the Scenes (2011)

Eric & Ernie: Behind the Scenes

TV Movie

Self (as Penelope Keith CBE)

2011

 

All About 'The Good Life' (2010)

All About 'The Good Life'

7.1

TV Movie

SelfSelf - Margo Leadbetter

2010

 

The Comedy Christmas

TV Movie

Self

2007

 

Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg (2005)

Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg

6.3

TV Series

Self

2007

1 episode

 

The National Trust: Garden Treasures

TV Mini Series

Self - Narrator

2007

 

Lifeline (1986)

Lifeline

TV Series

Self - Presenter

1989–2006

4 episodes

 

Comedy Connections (2003)

Comedy Connections

7.5

TV Series

Self

2003–2006

2 episodes

 

The Funny Blokes of British Comedy (2005)

The Funny Blokes of British Comedy

7.3

TV Movie

Self

2005

 

Call My Bluff (1996)

Call My Bluff

6.0

TV Series

Self

1996–2005

7 episodes

 

The Unseen Eric Morecambe

6.3

TV Movie

Self

2005

 

The Funny Ladies of British Comedy

7.3

TV Movie

Self - Host

2004

 

Breakfast (2000)

Breakfast

5.2

TV Series

Self

2004

1 episode

 

Britain's Best Sitcom (2004)

Britain's Best Sitcom

7.2

TV Series

Self

2004

3 episodes

 

Masters and Servants

TV Series

Self - Narrator (voice)

2003

1 episode

 

The Royals and Their Pets

TV Series

Self - Narrator

2003

 

The Sitcom Story

5.2

TV Series

Self

2003

1 episode

 

Designing the Decades

TV Series

Self - Narrator

2003

4 episodes

 

A Week in the West End

TV Series

Self

2002

1 episode

 

80 Years: A Royal Celebration

TV Movie

Self

2001

 

Songs of Praise (1961)

Songs of Praise

4.3

TV Series

Self - Presenter

2001

1 episode

 

Funny Turns (1999)

Funny Turns

6.3

TV Series

Self

2000–2001

3 episodes

 

Laughter in the House: The Story of British Sitcom (1999)

Laughter in the House: The Story of British Sitcom

7.2

TV Mini Series

SelfSelf - Margo Leadbetter

1999

1 episode

 

Going for a Song (1995)

Going for a Song

TV Series

Self - Team Captain

1997–1998

3 episodes

 

Auntie: The Inside Story of the BBC (1997)

Auntie: The Inside Story of the BBC

6.2

TV Mini Series

Self

1997

1 episode

 

Auntie's All-Time Greats

8.3

TV Special

Self (uncredited)

1996

 

Northern Eye

TV Series

Self

1995

1 episode

 

One Foot in the Past

7.5

TV Series

Self - Reporter

1995

1 episode

 

Eamonn Andrews in This Is Your Life (1955)

This Is Your Life

6.4

TV Series

Self - Filmed Tribute

1972–1994

5 episodes

 

Pebble Mill at One (1972)

Pebble Mill at One

6.2

TV Series

Self

1994

1 episode

 

The Travel Show (1982)

The Travel Show

6.9

TV Series

Self - Reporter

1993

1 episode

 

Noel Edmonds in Telly Addicts (1985)

Telly Addicts

6.2

TV Series

Self

1993

1 episode

 

Aspel & Company (1984)

Aspel & Company

6.8

TV Series

Self

1991

1 episode

 

The Write Stuff

TV Series

Self

1989

1 episode

 

A Night of Comic Relief 2

8.0

TV Special

Self

1989

 

Terry Wogan in Wogan (1982)

Wogan

6.2

TV Series

Self

1985–1988

2 episodes

 

What's My Line? (1984)

What's My Line?

5.0

TV Series

Self - Host

1988

25 episodes

 

Celia Imrie and Rik Mayall in Comic Relief (1988)

Comic Relief

6.8

TV Special

Self

1988

 

The Royal Variety Show

TV Special

Self

1986

 

The Paul Daniels Magic Show (1979)

The Paul Daniels Magic Show

7.3

TV Series

Self

1985

1 episode

 

Keith Chegwin, John Craven, Sarah Greene, Mike Read, and David Icke in Saturday SuperStore (1982)

Saturday SuperStore

6.6

TV Series

Self

1983

1 episode

 

Michael Parkinson in Parkinson in Australia (1979)

Parkinson in Australia

6.3

TV Series

Self

1982

1 episode

 

Royal Variety Performance (1980)

Royal Variety Performance

TV Special

Self

1980

 

The Variety Club Awards for 1979

TV Special

Self

1980

 

Call My Bluff (1965)

Call My Bluff

7.1

TV Series

Self

1976–1980

6 episodes

 

The 70s Stop Here!

TV Movie

Self - Presenter

1979

 

The British Academy Awards

TV Special

Self - Presenter

1979

 

The Brian Connell Interview

TV Series

Self

1978

1 episode

 

Keith Chegwin, John Craven, Noel Edmonds, and Maggie Philbin in Multi-Coloured Swap Shop (1976)

Multi-Coloured Swap Shop

6.9

TV Series

Self

1978

1 episode

 

The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968)

The Morecambe & Wise Show

8.1

TV Series

SelfSelf - Roxanne

1977

1 episode

 

Michael Aspel in Ask Aspel (1970)

Ask Aspel

6.2

TV Series

Self

1977

1 episode

 

Night of 100 Stars

TV Special

Self

1977

 

The British Academy Awards

TV Special

Self - Winner & Nominee

1977

 

Andrew Faulds in Open Door (1973)

Open Door

TV Series

Self

1977

1 episode

 

The Variety Club Awards for 1976

TV Special

Self - Show Business Personality

1977

 

It's Childsplay

TV Series

Self

1976

1 episode

 

Archive Footage

Grace Dent in What We Were Watching (2018)

What We Were Watching

6.6

TV Series

Judith BlissAudrey fforbes-HamiltonSelf (archive footage, uncredited, archive footage, uncredited, archive footage, uncredited)

2019–2024

2 episodes

 

Annette Crosbie and Richard Wilson in One Foot in the Grave: 30 Years of Laughs (2023)

One Foot in the Grave: 30 Years of Laughs

6.8

TV Movie

Self - Margo LeadbetterSelf - Audrey fforbes-Hamilton (archive footage, uncredited)

2023

 

Penelope Keith in Penelope Keith: From Margo to the Manor Born (2022)

Penelope Keith: From Margo to the Manor Born

7.0

TV Special

Self (archive footage)

2022

 

Peta Credlin in Credlin (2017)

Credlin

2.4

TV Series

Self (archive footage, uncredited)

2022

1 episode

 

Britain's Best Loved Sitcoms (2015)

Britain's Best Loved Sitcoms

5.0

TV Series

Self - Comedy Role (archive footage, uncredited)

2015

1 episode

 

Eddie Braben, Paul Merton, Eric Morecambe, and Ernie Wise in Morecambe and Wise: The Show What Paul Merton Did (2009)

Morecambe and Wise: The Show What Paul Merton Did

TV Movie

Self (archive footage, uncredited)

2009

 

The Greatest Christmas Comedy Moments

TV Movie

Self - Various Roles (archive footage, uncredited)

2008

 

The Story of Jackanory

TV Movie

Self - 'Jackanory' Storyteller (archive footage)

2007

 

Greatest TV Comedy Moments (2005)

Greatest TV Comedy Moments

5.4

TV Movie

Self - Margo Leadbetter (archive footage, uncredited)

2005

 

Bruce Forsyth's Comedy Heroes

TV Movie

Self - Margo Leadbetter (archive footage)

2005

 

Life Beyond the Box: Margo (2003)

Life Beyond the Box: Margo

TV Movie

Margo Leadbetter (archive footage)

2003

 

The Greatest (1998)

The Greatest

6.4

TV Series

Self - Margo Leadbetter (archive footage, uncredited)

2001

1 episode

 

Jon Anderson, Bill Bruford, Tony Kaye, Chris Squire, Peter Banks, and Yes in Top Ten (1995)

Top Ten

6.0

TV Series

Self - Audrey fforbes-Hamilton (archive footage)

2000

1 episode

 

The 100 Greatest TV Ads (2000)

The 100 Greatest TV Ads

7.0

TV Special

Self - Teacher (archive footage)

2000

 

Monkey Business (1993)

Monkey Business

7.6

Video

Self - PG Tips Chimp (archive sound, voice)

1993

 

Television's Greatest Hits

TV Series

Self - Audrey fforbes-Hamilton (archive footage)

1992

1 episode

 

Justin Richards obit

Justin Richards, 1961-2026

 

He was not on the list.

Big Finish Productions is sad to report the death of Justin Richards, a writer and script editor who worked with the company on many audio productions.

Born in Epping in 1961, Richards studied English and Theatre at the University of Warwick before beginning his career as a developer and technical writer at IBM, also contributing articles to Doctor Who Monthly.

His first published fiction was for the Virgin New Adventures series of Doctor Who novels, beginning with 1994’s Theatre of War. He soon became a regular writer of Doctor Who prose fiction. In the 2000s, his contributions to the New Series Adventures range and related reference books introduced a new generation of Doctor Who fans to a universe beyond the televised episodes. As the Creative Consultant for the BBC Books range, he contributed his expertise as an editor and supported numerous new writers.

Richards’ involvement with Big Finish Productions began when he scripted the Doctor Who – The Monthly Adventures title Whispers of Terror, which was released in November 1999. He wrote many more scripts for audio adventures set in the Doctor Who universe, in ranges such as The Fourth Doctor Adventures, Gallifrey, and The Diary of River Song. He was the script editor on the Jago & Litefoot series as well as several volumes of Blake’s 7 audio dramas.

Outside of the Doctor Who world, Richards found success with his original young adult fiction novels, including the 1930s London-set mystery series The Invisible Detective, the supernatural Victorian series Department of Unclassified Artefacts, and the sci-fi series Time Runners. He also co-wrote the Chance Twins series with acclaimed novelist Jack Higgins.

Richards leaves behind his wife Alison and his two sons, Chris and Julian, the latter of whom has followed in his father’s footsteps and become a writer of Big Finish Doctor Who audio dramas.

Julian Richards said: "There is no shortage of places where I can, and have, and will, talk about Justin’s merits as a father: his kindness, his care, his wisdom, his love. He was the finest father I could ever have wished for, and I will say that every chance I get.

"But here I also want to talk about him as a writer and the abiding and driving compassion of his writing. He adored writing, and especially writing Doctor Who. He wrote because it was a chance to share not just stories, but the feelings he’d had growing up with them.

"That compassion, that absolute love that made him want to share them, infused and bled out of everything he wrote. It got me reading, it got me writing. Dad’s stories, not just those he wrote but those he read to me as a child, and even those he told me like the mad dash from his exciting childhood trip to see Doctor Who actually being rehearsed (The Web of Fear episode 3, forever fresher in his memory with the yeti’s human from the waist up) to get home in time to see Salamander sucked out of the TARDIS at the end of The Enemy of the World, brought worlds to life for me and my brother, as they did for countless readers and listeners. 

"Dad adored the work he did for Big Finish, and the people he worked with: for Doctor Who, for Bernice Summerfield, for Gallifrey, for all the other ranges he dipped into. And most especially for Jago & Litefoot.

"In the end, in a way that’s almost infuriatingly common, he wrote what I’m trying to say better than I can back in 1996. So I’ll hand over to him now, from The Sands of Time:

'He listened, always. I was always talking sense when I spoke to Dad; I was always interesting when I spoke to Dad; I was always right when I spoke to Dad, even if he then told me something that was even more right.'"

Everyone at Big Finish Productions would like send our deepest condolences to Justin's family and friends.

Big Finish’s creative director Nicholas Briggs said: “Justin was such a kind and decent chap. Thoroughly reasonable and relentlessly scientific in his approach to everything. He was a mild-mannered man, never given to outbursts, but with the superpower of a passion for stories in general, and in particular, Doctor Who.

“That passion was woven into every script he wrote, but it shone just as brightly in his role as a champion for other creators. Immediately after the release of The Sirens of Time, he was on the phone, eager to offer support and encouragement and nudging me toward novel-writing. (It took until the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who for him finally to get his way.) Justin possessed a visionary persistence and could spend years advocating for a project he believed in until it finally became a reality.

“Along the way, he and I had spent many hours together at various cafés and restaurants in London, plotting all sorts of adventures for the Daleks, in fantastical film projects that sadly never saw the light of day. But whenever we met, especially when he attended studio sessions for his many Big Finish scripts, we would smirk and make secretive remarks about our many fiendish masterplans.

“It feels somehow fitting that when I last communicated with him, it was to send him a special, recorded message with the Daleks singing ‘Happy Birthday, dear Justin!’. It was an honour to know him.”

David Richardson, the producer of many Big Finish stories written by Richards, said: “As a very shy and very young teenager, I joined the Doctor Who Appreciation Society and, keen to make like-minded friends, I advertised in their pen pals section. I received a reply from Justin, who was a year older than me, and we became firm friends. We first met face to face at a convention in London where, I recall, An Unearthly Child was screened for the first time since 1963. We watched together in awed silence.

“We would go and stay at each others’ homes – he’d come to Nottingham, and I’d go and stay with his family in the Rectory in the beautifully named village of Dumbleton. Gradually our social circle grew: Peter Anghelides, Gary Russell, Craig Hinton, Andy Lane, Peter Lovelady… We would gather at conventions, meet as a group and stay at each other’s homes, and drink lots of lager. Justin, like several of our group, went on to be a hugely successful writer: away from his many Doctor Who books, he wrote the Invisible Detective, Time Runners and Department of Unclassified Artefacts series of novels. How I envy a generation of readers who grew up with his work!

“Our group was delighted when Justin met the wonderful Alison, and subsequently so happy for them when the equally talented sons Julian and Chris came along. Sadly, life took us in different directions for a decade or so, but when I joined Big Finish as a producer I was really eager to get Justin on board, and he wrote excellent scripts for many ranges I worked on. Significantly, he was the series script editor on Jago & Litefoot, which was close to all of our hearts, and the success of it largely belongs to Justin, who knew exactly what it should be, how it worked, and what stories we should be telling. Of course, in Justin’s hands, it went on to thrive in 14 much-loved series, ending only because of the death of the beloved Trevor Baxter.

“Justin’s talents go without saying, but for those who only know him through his work, it’s worth stating that he was a genuinely lovely person. People wanted to be around him because he was decent and kind; a benevolent force for good with vast amounts of talent.

“He’ll be missed by everyone who knew him. Deepest condolences to his family, who he adored.”

Justin Richards, writer, born 14 September 1961, died 28 June 2026.

Mignon Dunn obit

Obituary: Legendary Mezzo-Soprano Mignon Dunn Dies at 98

 She was not on the list.

American mezzo-soprano Mignon Dunn has died at the age of 98.

Dunn was born on June 17, 1928 in Memphis, Tennessee and grew up in Tyronza, Arkansas.

Dunn went on to study with Karin Branzell and Beverley Peck Johnson and made her professional debut, in the title role of Bizet’s opera “Carmen,” on Sept. 8, 1955, at the New Orleans Opera. That would lead her to the Lyric Opera Chicago and the New York City Opera followed by the Metropolitan Opera where she debut in 1958 and performed over 650 times in such works as “Boris Godunov,” “Elektra,” “Luisa Miller,” “Il trovatore,” “Salome,” “Jenufa,” “Lohengrin,” “Arabella,” “Die Walküre,” “La Gioconda,” and “Parsifal,” among others. Her final performance with the company was in 1994 as Klytämnestra in “Elektra.”

Among her signature roles were Amneris in “Aida,” Azucena in “Il trovatore,” Eboli in “Don Carlo,” both Laura and La Cieca in “La Gioconda,” the Princess in “Adriana Lecouvreur,” and Santuzza in “Cavalleria rusticana.” She also sang a lot of French roles including Dalila in “Samson et Dalila,” Giulietta in “The Tales of Hoffmann,” and Dulcinée in “Don Quichotte.” She performed the role of Carmen over 400 times in four different languages.

The mezzo also sang around the world at the Teatro alla Scala, Wiener Staatsoper, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, San Francisco Opera, New York City Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Opera Company of Boston, New Orleans Opera Miami Opera, Royal Opera, Covent Garden, Paris Opéra, Bolshoi Theatre, Deutsche Oper Berlin and Arena di Verona, among many others.

Dunn was also a well-respected vocal teacher who taught at the University Texas at Austin, University of Illinois, Northwestern University, and Brooklyn College. She was also on the voice faculty at Manhattan School of Music from 1985 until her retirement in December 2023.

For her work in opera she received an Honorary Degree from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, the President’s Medal for Distinguished Faculty Service from Manhattan School of Music, the Sherrill Milnes Voice Award in 2014 for her “outstanding contribution in teaching and mentoring the next generation of opera singers and the VERA Award from The Voice Foundation.

The mezzo left a number of recordings including “Rigoletto” with Beverly Sills and another recording from the Metropolitan Opera. There is also a recording of “La Gioconda” and “La Forza del Destino,” among many others.

Khadijah Farrakhan obit

Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, Wife Of Louis Farrakhan, Dies At 90

Mother Khadijah and Louis Farrakhan would have celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary in September of this year.  

She was not on the list.

Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, wife of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, has died at the age of 90.

A message posted to the Final Call website from Student Minister Ishmael R. Muhammad, On Behalf of The Executive Council of the Nation of Islam read as follows:

The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan with deep sadness yet with profound gratitude to Allah informs you that his beloved wife of 72 years, the First Lady of the Nation of Islam, Mother Khadijah has returned to Allah (may Allah be pleased).

We thank Allah for the precious life of a loving wife, mother, a faithful devoted follower of The Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Mother Khadijah will forever be cherished and remembered. May Allah give His unequaled comfort to the family as we mourn this tremendous loss and lift the family in our prayers and thoughts.

Allah, there is no God but He, He gives life and to Him is our eventual return.

Funeral (Janazah) services will be sent as soon as it’s available.

The Farrakhans married in 1953 at St. Cyrpian’s Episcopal Church in Boston, and they had nine children together, including Louis Farrakhan Jr., who preceded his mother in death in 2018; Mustapha; Joshua Nasir; Abnar; Donna; Hanan; Maria; Fatimah; and Khallada.

The Farrakhans were celebrated last year in a “sacred celebration” at The Salaam Restaurant in Chicago, which marked the 92nd birthday of Minister Farrakhan and “the unwavering strength and grace of his wife, Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, on the occasion of Mother’s Day.”

More from the Final Call:

Throughout the night, expressions of love and gratitude for Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, known as the First Lady and Mother of the Faithful, rang out with reverence. Her quiet strength, dignity, and commitment to her husband’s divine mission were repeatedly honored.

“She is the wind beneath his wings,” said Student Minister Abdul Rasul Muhammad, general manager of The Final Call and the evening’s emcee, quoting Minister Farrakhan. “She provides support, encouragement, and strength—often behind the scenes—that enables another to soar.”

He added, “She is one of the most beautiful women on the earth and will be remembered for generations to come for her sacrifices—known and unknown.”

This is a developing story, and more details will be added as they become available.

Joe Doering obit

Joe Doering Passes Away At The Age Of 44

 He was not on the list.

Joe Doering has sadly passed away at the age of 44.

Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling first announced the news, publishing the following statement:

“At 9:13 a.m. today, June 26, our brother Joe Doering passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family.

“Though his time on this earth lasted only 44 years, Joe packed a thousand years’ worth of living into every one of them.

“Joe is survived by his beloved wife, Lindsay, his family, and leaves behind countless friends and devoted fans around the world who will forever remember his strength, courage, and spirit.

“Rest in peace, Joe. You will never be forgotten.”

On August 30, 2022, it was announced Joe Doering would be stepping away from wrestling as his brain cancer had returned and he would need to undergo surgery. In December 2025, it was revealed that he was battling a third brain tumor. Doering has spent nearly ten years fighting brain cancer.

Doering made his debut in 2004 and competed for TNA Wrestling, AJPW, NJPW, and various independent promotions.

Fightful sends condolences to the family, friends, and fans of Doering.

Norbert Likulia Bolongo obit

Obituary: Former Congolese Prime Minister Norbert Likulia Bolongo dies in Paris

 He was not on the list.

The former Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, General Norbert Likulia Bolongo, has died in Paris, France.

A prominent figure in Congolese political and military life, he held several high-ranking positions within the state during his career. Norbert Likulia Bolongo led the Government of National Salvation from April 11 to May 1997, a particularly turbulent period in the country's history.

His government had been put in place about a month before the AFDL - Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo - took power, marking the end of Marshal Mobutu Sese Seko's regime.

Throughout his career, General Likulia Bolongo held numerous positions within Congolese institutions. He notably served as Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense, Minister of Land Affairs, Minister of State Portfolio, and Director General of State Security.

His death marks the passing of a major figure in the political history of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The circumstances of his death have not yet been made public.