Who Should Have Been Cancelled Forever But Wasn't?

[Jake Thingray]

Wyngarde was never exactly cancelled but following his Jason King heyday his career declined into scandal, including a conviction for cottaging, as well as alcoholism and later bankruptcy. His Wikipedia personal life section is certainly worth a read.

He also lived off grants from theatrical charities near the end, but to me the real tragedy of Wyngarde was that he could never be truthful about his sexuality even after the Gloucester bus station lavs incident, he should have begun a second career as a wittily bitchy showbiz raconteur like the Australian actor (and top derek stitt lookalike) Frank Thring did, when back Down Under after his film fame.

[Cold Meat Platter]

Wyngarde also recorded a quite staggeringly offensive song.

[Dr Rock]

To be fair he also did this lovely one

[George White]

The thing is though, I'd heard that he'd always been difficult.
His film career is quite sparse.
Only about eight films - over a forty year period.
After Flash Gordon, he should have gone to the US and been a regular villain in uS TV.

[Jake Thingray]

Playing smooth British villains on American episodic television is something he could have indeed done with his eyes closed, but possibly the conviction for toilet fun might have prevented his getting a visa.

[George White]

True.
He had worked in America in the 60s though (he did an I, Spy and a Disney TV film - Gallegher), so maybe he didn't like it out there.
He also claims DeLaurentiis wanted him as the Invisible Man.

I actually have a theory they wanted him for Dynasty to play King Galen of Moldavia, and that there was some confusion, when someone said 'the guy from Department S', so they got his costar Joel Fabiani, who looked less like a Mittel-European monarch and more like an Andy Williams impersonator. And Fabiani at times sounds like he's trying to do Wyngarde.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvKUkjC6qQw

[holyzombiejesus]

Roman Polanski has a new film out soon. It starts Mickey Rourke and John Cleese.

[Jake Thingray]

He also claims DeLaurentiis wanted him as the Invisible Man...actually have a theory they wanted him for Dynasty to play King Galen of Moldavia, and that there was some confusion, when someone said 'the guy from Department S'

Given what Wyngarde stated about his age, name, sexuality, ethnicity, father's occupation, having been to Oxford, having been to RADA, marital status, and size of his penis, it's best to take any career claims he made with the largest possible dose of salt.

I doubt the makers of Dynasty had ever even heard of Department S, Fabiani was a reliable, jobbing actor on the episodic American television guest star circuit, the ITC things weren't really all that popular in the American market they were aimed at, something latter-day geeks don't realise, and when it came to British TV imports, Dynasty's creators preferred I, Claudius.

[George White]

Yes,that's why I put 'Wyngarde claims'.
I know he was probably the biggest bullshitter in the world, maybe alongside Amanda Lear, another probable Singaporean Eurasian, who probably has him beat in that her birth gender is also (citation needed).

I knew about the I, Claudius/Dynasty connection, certainly.

I knew that Department S and Jason King weren't on the networks - they went into syndication and were far more popular in Europe. Most of the ITC shows weren't successful in US. If they were, they'd have lasted more than 1 series.
And Jason King I think was made purely because Germany wanted a spinoff.
I think the one producer influenced by ITC in the US in the 80s was Michael Sloan, and he'd lived in the UK, and even been in a Persuaders!

[mrClaypole]

Leonard Rossiter?. I see to remember reading something about him watching a couple of teenage boys have sex in his dressing room whilst he was filming "the sex olympics" for the BBC.
No ages of the males involved but again took place in the warm bosom of an Aunties dressing room

[Thursday]

Sorry to interrupt, but I only just thought of this joke...

"Yes, I agree with the thread title, Doctor Who Should have been cancelled forever, but no, unfortunately it wasn't."

Thanks.

[Famous Mortimer]

Leonard Rossiter?. I see to remember reading something about him watching a couple of teenage boys have sex in his dressing room whilst he was filming "the sex olympics" for the BBC.
No ages of the males involved but again took place in the warm bosom of an Aunties dressing room

Sorry to give the Daily Mail a click, but here
Not sure I'd believe that one without some corroboration, but who knows.

[George White]

Various experts have dismissed the claim due to its historical inaccuracies.

[willbo]

Ozzy Osbourne has done a lot of dark stuff that his "cuddly metal grandad" persona dilutes IMO. In his book he says he always carried date-rape drugs around in the 80s "to play pranks" and slipped them to a woman who was annoying him on a plane so she would sleep. I wonder what he really used them for tbh

[JaDanketies]

Ozzy Osbourne rapist

Beat the shit out of Sharon on many occasions too, including an apparent attempted murder

[willbo]

Beat the shit out of Sharon on many occasions too, including an apparent attempted murder

I think they're both pretty troubled and abusive tbh. She says in her book she forgave him because she had assaulted him loads and broken china over his head etc

[Lisa Jesusandmarychain]

Did anyone watch that brace of Ron Jeremy documentaries? Quite disturbing viewing. The worst part was probably

Spoiler alert

That picture of his disgusting feet

[close]

,
but He's been cancelled good and proper now. The feller's quite clearly suffering from some form of dementia now, so it looks like he won't be put on trial, but what a fuzzy, horrible man.

[Lisa Jesusandmarychain]

^ meant to type "scuzzy", but am happy to keep that adjective in as a description.

[Kankurette]

I think they're both pretty troubled and abusive tbh. She says in her book she forgave him because she had assaulted him loads and broken china over his head etc

She also shat in a box and sent it to someone, I forget who. And there was that awful Would I Lie To You? moment.

[willbo]

Jerry Lee Lewis. And I've just read that he's still alive, so there's still time to throw the book at him. But it was the '50s and marrying your 13-year-old cousin while in your mid 20s was just considered good manners.

What part of "Johnny Cash said it was ok" don't you understand??

[Butchers Blind]

And there was that awful Would I Lie To You? moment.

What was that?

[Gurke and Hare]

What was that?

Sharon: It says "possession".
Rob: Okay, there's a box under the desk, get it out and read the card on it.
Sharon: This is the shit that I sent to someone in the post.

[Thomas]

Roman Polanski has a new film out soon. It starts Mickey Rourke and John Cleese.

Cleese is only doing it so that when somebody politely asks why he's chosen to work with Polanski, he can tweet feverishly about cancel culture.

Sorry to interrupt, but I only just thought of this joke...

"Yes, I agree with the thread title, Doctor Who Should have been cancelled forever, but no, unfortunately it wasn't."

Every time I see one of the old Doctor Whos trending on Twitter, I fear two possibilities.

[JaDanketies]

Sharon Osbourne is just a nasty piece of work all-round but then again so is pretty much anyone who has ever judged a TV talent show. And she doesn't like Corbyn.

Would I Lie To You story

[Egyptian Feast]

And you should never accept a wine gum from her.

[dissolute ocelot]

Cleese is only doing it so that when somebody politely asks why he's chosen to work with Polanski, he can tweet feverishly about cancel culture.

I liked the Chortle article on this which started "John Cleese has signed up to work with paedophile Roman Polanski on his new film."

One of Polanski's more recent films, Venus in Fur, had a cast of 2 which suggests one way he can continue to work - down from Carnage which was pretty much a four-hander. I'd like to think his next film will have a cast of 0, or maybe just Cleese in a lot of wigs.

[willbo]

Jonathan Ross started dating Jane at 16 and 26, married at 18 and 28

[shoulders]

Also writing a load of shitty scripts, Chronicle is the only decent film he's written, the rest have been indescribably awful. 

Chronicle is a piece of rancid fucking shite.

[shoulders]

Popbitch's take on it:

https://popbitch.com/raking-over-old-coles-2/

Fun read, although quite, quite barmy.

Now there's evidence that the rumour mill can be just as scummy in its gleeful prurience. Everything about the whole thing,  Popbitch included can get fucked.

[poodlefaker]

Brambell was briefly connected with the Yewtree thing - something about visiting boys in orphanages, two men alleged he abused them, but that seems to have brushed aside. He was from the generation of Irish queers where you had either two choices - theatre or the church.
He had a whole secret life in Hong Kong, where he had a 20 years younger lover, the English-born radio broadcaster Ralph Pixton who was one of the myriad British/Commonwealth queers living in Hong Kong and working for Radio Hong Kong. BUt I believe he used to go around Asia as a sex tourist, soliciting from twinky Asian rent boys. He had a Malaysian lad he brought home as a valet, a bit like the Irish writer Cathal O'Searcaigh, known for adopting Nepalese teens and then having weird sexual relationships with his 'sons'.
That 2002 doc When Steptoe Met Son has stuff on WB being in gay bars, 'furtively staring at teenage boys on the crowded street', but no evidence of underage sex ever having occured.
He definitely was a bit of a Spacey.

Reminds me of the stuff in The Joe Orton Diaries about young lads in Morocco, which everyone thought was wonderfully edgy when it was published in the 80s, but now reads as pretty grim.