Biography

Tony Hancock

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Born
May 12, 1924 · Hall Green, Birmingham, England, UK
Died
June 25, 1968 · Bellevue Hill, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia (suicide by overdose)
Birth name
Anthony John Hancock
Nicknames
- Anthony Aloysius St John Hancock
- The Lad
- Tub
- The Great White Hope
Height
5′ 7″ (1.70 m)

Tony Hancock was born in Birmingham, England, the son of John and Lillian Hancock. He was educated at Durlston Court, Swanage, and Bradfield College, Reading. He served in the R.A.F. (ground crew) during the war. In 1942 he was in the R.A.F. Gang Show. He was de-mobbed in 1946. He appeared at the Windmill Theatre, London in 1948. His radio show "Hancock's Half Hour" ran from 1954 - 1959, written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson with co-stars Hattie Jacques, Kenneth Williams, Sidney James and Bill Kerr. This popular show was adopted by TV and the shows were re-recorded and broadcast 1956-1960.
- IMDb mini biography by: Steve Crook <steve@brainstorm.co.uk>

Immensely self-critical and plagued by alcohol, drug and marital problems, he committed suicide in Australia, leaving a note saying "Things seemed to go wrong too many times".
Being a private person by nature, Hancock enjoyed the seclusion of country life. Where he and his first wife Cicely lived, the local villagers pretended they didn't recognize him so as to help him maintain his privacy.
Was greatly disliked by one time co-star Kenneth Williams, owing to the latter being fired from Hancock's radio series.
Of dry wit, Hancock's characters were invariably glum, bound to fail and resigned to their inevitable fate.
Sid James confirmed that Hancock had sex with men, saying it got to the point that he would try literally anything.

Because comedy absolutely fascinates me, because I love it and because it is my entire life.
Ray Galton and Alan Simpson and myself, after six years together, are very close both professionally and in every other way. We are going to do four or five films with ABC. We haven't got the story for the next film yet, but as with the television series, we're moving away from plot - at least plots that bind you down too much. We intend to have a story out of which emerge high spots of comedy.
I think you express your own pomposity and other people's and get probably to the real truth of the way you live.

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