When mention is made of ‘The Two Ronnies’ – one of the finest sketch and revue shows ever made – and one of its most influential (‘Fry & Laurie’) and derided (by some of the alternative comedy scene), Ronnie Barker is regularly lauded as an incredibly talented writer and performer, whose tongue-twisting spoonerisms and parodies of presentational figures went further than even Eric Idle was capable of. Yet little Ron, on the other hand, is often stated as having made his career from hanging onto Barker’s coat-tails, which I deem to be unfair to this arguably equally talented entertainer.
The impression critics give is that Corbett was a kind of chirpy friend and straight man to Barker. Yet by the time ‘The Two Ronnies’ got its first series in 1971, however, he was already a highly experienced actor on stage and screen, appearing with the likes of Bob Monkhouse and Graham Stark, and making a bizarre appearance in the chaotic Bond spoof Casino Royale. He would also go on to appear in other movies in the early 1970s such as the farce ‘No Sex Please We’re British’ alongside comedy legends such as Arthur Lowe, further establishing his endearing sympathetic on-screen persona beset by numerous problems not of his own making.
Furthermore the pint-sized Ron would go on to prove his skills as an actor, whilst he was often modest about them, were far more advanced than he’s given credit for. His portrayal of the creepy Lord Doomsday in one of the more Hammer Horror-influenced episodes of ‘Hampton Wick’ (during series 1 of ‘The Two Ronnies’) is a mini-masterclass of acting, to the point that one might wonder if it’s even Ronnie C playing the character. Whilst ‘Hampton Wick’ wasn’t the most popular serial in the series – a predictable mix of ‘Benny Hill’-style speeded-up sauce and a series of increasingly unconnected ‘period’ segments culminating in a recursive ‘it was all a dream’ ending – and not the equal of ‘The Worm That Turned’ or ‘The Phantom Raspberry Blower Of Old London Town’ – those who attack little Ron for lacking Barker’s character acting skills would be wide of the mark on the evidence presented here.
Later on, as the show became a little less loose and a little more formulaic – one of several brickbats aimed at it, along with its seaside postcard-style double entendres and old-fashioned revue musical segments – Corbett seemed to settle more into his stock on-screen persona – the genial, bubbly and giggly little man with the hearty voice and chuckle, making the occasional detour into deliberately stereotypical characters such as his ‘gangster’ who attempts to do menial things such as pass his driving test with the aid of bribery. It has generally been stated that Ronnie C had a narrower acting range than his performing partner yet John Cleese, who of course worked with the pair on The Frost Report, went on to state that Corbett had “extraordinary” comic timing. That worked to his favour in his deliberately long-winded monologue, playing to Ronnie’s strengths as a performer – outsized by the chair, constantly sidetracking himself affably – and after apparent nervousness in the first series, where he often seems to react to the studio audiences’ occasional bemusement with a plaintive “I’m laughing – won’t you join me?” the segment became a vital change of pace between the preceding two-hander sketch and the big musical finale. It was a further example of the differences between the two leads being as vital for the success of their material as their comic chemistry – right down to Corbett saying ‘goodbye from me’ and Barker’s ‘goodbye from him, which as much referenced Barker’s inability to ‘be himself’ in front of an audience the way Corbett was increasingly comfortable with.
In many ways Ronnie C was the equivalent of Harry Secombe in the Goons (if Ronnie B, as writer and versatile performer, could be a hybrid of Spike Milligan and Peter Sellers). Harry may not have had the wildly fizzing comic mind of Milligan nor the chameleon-like performing skills of Sellers but the sheer energy and infectious enthusiasm of the Welshman made Neddie Seagoon the ‘anchor’ of the show, and his likeability was the glue that kept the quartet turned trio together. Corbett and Barker would later claim there was never a single cross word between them during the show’s run up until 1987 – remarkable indeed.
Perhaps the turning point for me was upon seeing Corbett in sitcoms where Barker was absent – the two comic talents had been determined their double act would not impede on each other’s solo careers. Indeed Ronnie C’s now-established character on-screen would lead to specially-written series for him, the most successful being the meek, mother-dominated librarian Timothy Lumsden in the now-underrated hit series ‘Sorry’. His diminutive, good-natured joie de vivre contrasted brilliantly with Barbara Lott’s monstrous mother and William Moore’s weary, confused father, particularly in the darker-tinged earlier seasons. Timothy wasn’t a 3 dimensional study like Norman Stanley Fletcher in ‘Porridge’ or (perhaps to a lesser extent) Arkwright in ‘Open All Hours’, but only Corbett could have played the part quite as successfully as he did.
Alternative comedy didn’t seem to faze Corbett as it did Barker. The ‘Not The 9 O’Clock News’ skit was reportedly offensive to Barker, but taken with good humour by Corbett. The King of edgy observation, Ben Elton, even invited him to do his sit-down joke routine on ‘The Ben Elton Show’, which contrasted completely with Elton’s loud, direct banter but proved a big success. As well as his legendary ‘coke-snorting’ appearance on ‘Extras’ in later years the small Scotsman had a career revival in films – appearing with Cleese in ‘Fierce Creatures’ as Reggie Sea Lions and putting in a fine character performance in the otherwise lamentable ‘Burke And Hare’. Moreover whilst the notoriously private and retiring Barker largely ducked out of a potential late career in serious acting (despite a well-reviewed role as Churchill’s butler in ‘The Gathering Storm’) Corbett still took a surprising amount of work when at pensionable age. If Barker was the great serious acting talent that could have been Corbett was the cuddly national treasure who kept himself in the public eye.
So let us remember the little Ronnie as more than just the chirpy foil to his equally-spectacled friend, and as more than just a playful puppy-like sidekick. His body of work stands with anyone’s and will hopefully go on to inspire and give pleasure to many more generations.
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