Trivia

He is often quoted as saying that although Monty Python was brilliant it marked the start of a decline in comedy.

His treatment of Hattie Jacques in their last few years working together was so bad that her sons banned him from attending her funeral and memorial service.*The Sykes family dispute this saying Eric was invited to the funeral and memorial service but was unable to attend as he was working in Australia; his children attended in his absence.

He was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1986 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to drama.

He was enormously successful on 70s TV, teamed with Hattie Jacques playing his heavyset but timid sister in a number of settings, particularly with the series, Sykes (1972).

He was awarded the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2005 Queen's New Year Honours List for his services to drama.

In 2002 he suffered a stroke and underwent heart bypass surgery.

His comedy heroes were Laurel and Hardy.

He stopped submitting scripts to the BBC in the 1980s when he was informed that he was too old. His television roles dried up after a badly-received ITV sitcom set in a golf club, "The Nineteenth Hole", in 1989.

He blamed at least part of his hearing loss on the Allied shelling of Caen.

He is the father of three daughters: Kathy Sykes (born in 1952), Susan Stronge (born in 1953) and Julie Sykes (born in 1958), and one son, David Kurt Sykes (born in 1959).

The ninth Harry Potter film series cast member to die.

A memorial service was held for him at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, London on 28 January 2013.

Gave up smoking cigarettes in 1966 and cigars in 1998.

He was a supporter of Ian Smith's regime in Rhodesia, and continued to perform in South Africa despite criticism during the apartheid era. He admitted he could not understand why he was criticized for continuing to perform in South Africa during the apartheid era.

As a performer, he had a flat Lancashire voice that was capable of great sarcasm, but that he regarded in his down moments - which were many and profound - as plain dull.

He was a fan of Ayn Rand.

Sykes struggled with hearing loss for most of his life, as well as suffering gradual eye failure which left him almost deaf and blind by the 1990s.

He received The Bernard Delfont Award For Outstanding Contribution To Show Business Award, at The Variety Club Show Business Awards in 2002.

His manager was Norma Farnes, and his personal assistant Janet Spearman.

His first stage name was Rick Allen.

Despite the alleged fall-out between him and Hattie Jacques during the theatre tours of Sykes in the late 70's, which led to the reported banning of him from the funeral (which his family deny), Sykes was warm and affectionate about Hattie, in his later autobiography. He also repeatedly ruled out any suggestion of a new "Sykes" series, as being impossible without her.

He is the grandfather of Matt Stronge.

Was a lifelong supporter of the Conservative Party.