Editing Ronnie Barker

{{Short description|English actor, comedian and writer (1929–2005)}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{good article}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Ronnie Barker
| honorific_suffix   = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|OBE}}
| image              = Ronnie Barker (cropped).jpg
| caption            = Barker in the 1980s
| birth_name         = Ronald William George Barker
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|df=yes|1929|9|25}}
| birth_place        = [[Bedford]], [[Bedfordshire]], England
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2005|10|3|1929|9|25}}
| death_place        = [[Adderbury]], [[Oxfordshire]], England
| other_names        = Jonathan Cobbald<br />Bob Ferris<br />Jack Goetz<br />David Huggett<br />F.B. Jones<br />Gerald Wiley
| education          = [[City of Oxford High School for Boys]]
| occupation         = Actor, comedian, writer
| years_active       = 1946–2005
| spouse             = {{marriage|Joy Tubb|1957}}
| children           = 3, including [[Charlotte Barker|Charlotte]]
| module             = {{Infobox comedian|embed=yes
| medium       = Books, film, stand-up comedy, television, theatre
| genre        = [[Black comedy]], [[improvisational comedy]], [[insult comedy]], [[observational comedy]], [[ribaldry]], [[shock humour]]
}}
}}
'''Ronald William George Barker''' (25 September 1929&nbsp;– 3 October 2005) was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as ''[[Porridge (1974 TV series)|Porridge]]'', ''[[The Two Ronnies]]'', and ''[[Open All Hours]]''.

Barker began acting in Oxford amateur dramatics while working as a bank clerk, having dropped out of higher education. He moved into [[repertory theatre]] with the Manchester Repertory Company at Aylesbury and decided he was best suited to comic roles. He had his first success at the [[Oxford Playhouse]] and in roles in the West End including [[Tom Stoppard]]'s ''[[The Real Inspector Hound]]''. During this period, he was in the cast of BBC radio and television comedies such as ''[[The Navy Lark]]''. He got his television break with the satirical sketch series ''[[The Frost Report]]'' in 1966, where he worked with future collaborator [[Ronnie Corbett]]. He joined [[David Frost]]'s production company and starred in [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] shows. 

After rejoining the BBC, Barker achieved significant success with the sketch show ''The Two Ronnies'' (1971–87), with Ronnie Corbett. The duo maintained their careers as solo performers; Barker notably starred as inmate [[Norman Stanley Fletcher]] in the sitcom ''Porridge'' (1974–77) and its sequel ''[[Going Straight]]'' (1978) and as shopkeeper [[Arkwright (Open All Hours)|Arkwright]] in ''Open All Hours'' (1976–85). He wrote comedy under his own name, though for much of his written material after 1968 he adopted pseudonyms (including "'''Gerald Wiley'''") to avoid pre-judgment of his writing talent. He won a BAFTA for [[British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance|best light entertainment performance]] four times, among other awards, and was appointed an [[Officer of the Order of the British Empire|OBE]] in 1978.

Later television sitcoms such as ''[[The Magnificent Evans]]'' and ''[[Clarence (British TV series)|Clarence]]'' were less successful and he retired in December 1987. The following year, he opened an antiques shop with his wife, Joy. After 1999, he appeared in smaller, non-comic roles in films. He died of heart failure on 3 October 2005, aged 76.

==Early life==
[[File:RonnieBarkerPlaque.JPG|thumb|right|Plaque marking Barker's birthplace]]
Barker was born on 25 September 1929 at 70 Garfield Street, [[Bedford]], the only son of Leonard William Barker (always known as "Tim")<ref name="Remembering Ronnie Barker 2010, p. 10">Remembering Ronnie Barker, Richard Webber, Arrow Books, 2010, p. 10</ref><ref>Ronnie Barker: The Authorized Biography, Bob McCabe, BBC Books, 2004, p. 11</ref> and Edith Eleanor (née Carter; known as "Sis", by virtue of being the youngest sister amongst her siblings).<ref name="Remembering Ronnie Barker 2010, p. 10"/><ref>Ronnie Barker: The Authorized Biography, Bob McCabe, BBC Books, 2004, p. 12</ref><ref>Oxford Dictionary of National Biography entry URL= http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-95460 Date accessed= 22 October 2018</ref><ref name=C35>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=35}}</ref><ref name=timesobit>{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article574647.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100525055249/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article574647.ece|archive-date=25 May 2010|title=Ronnie Barker|date=5 October 2005|work=[[The Times]]|access-date=13 April 2010|location=London}}</ref><ref name=M11/>

Barker's elder sister Vera was born in 1926 and his younger sister Eileen was born in 1933.<ref name=C35/><ref name=M11>{{harvnb|McCabe|2005|pp=11–12}}</ref> His father was a clerk for [[Shell Oil|Shell-Mex]], and this job saw the family move to [[Church Cowley Road]] in [[Cowley, Oxfordshire]], when Barker was four.<ref name=M11/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19756786|title=Ronnie Barker: Oxford childhood home plaque unveiled|publisher=[[BBC]]|work=[[BBC News]]|location=UK|access-date=29 September 2012|date=28 September 2012}}</ref><ref name=indobit>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/ronnie-barker-509590.html|title=Ronnie Barker|work=[[The Independent]]|date=5 October 2005|author=Anthony Hayward|location=London, UK|access-date=8 February 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100905144342/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/ronnie-barker-509590.html|archive-date=5 September 2010}}</ref>

Barker's biographer Bob McCabe described Barker's childhood as "a happy time, marred by no ructions or family tensions, apart from the occasional wet sock."<ref>{{harvnb|McCabe|2005|p=14}}</ref> As a child, Barker enjoyed dressing up, particularly in his father's [[pierrot]] outfit, as well as films, comics and animals.<ref name=C35/><ref>{{harvnb|McCabe|2005|pp=11–14}}</ref> He developed a love of the theatre, often attending plays with his family. The first play he saw was ''[[Cottage to Let]]'' and he once skipped school to see [[Laurence Olivier]] in ''[[Henry V (play)|Henry V]]''.<ref name=C36/> He frequently stood outside stage doors to collect autographs, his first being the actress [[Celia Johnson]].<ref name=C36>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=36–37}}</ref>

Barker grew up in the [[Florence Park, Oxford|Florence Park]] area of Oxford, and went to Donnington Junior School, and then the [[City of Oxford High School for Boys]].<ref>[http://oxonblueplaques.org.uk/plaques/barker.html Ronnie Barker: Oxfordshire Blue Plaques Scheme]</ref> His chemistry textbook at Oxford had previously been used by [[T. E. Lawrence]].<ref name=telegraphobit>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1499900/Ronnie-Barker.html|title=Ronnie Barker|work=[[The Daily Telegraph (UK)|The Daily Telegraph]]|date=5 October 2005|access-date=4 April 2011}}</ref> He found his talent for humour at school and developed his musical ability by singing in the choir at St James's, his local church.<ref name=C36/><ref name=guardobit/> He got into the sixth form a year early after gaining the [[School Certificate (UK)|School Certificate]]<ref>{{harvnb|McCabe|2005|p=18}}</ref> but he felt what he was learning would be of no use to him in later life and so left as soon as he could.<ref name=C36/>

After leaving school, he trained as an architect; however, feeling he was not skilled enough, he quit after six months. Barker took his sister Vera's job as a bank clerk at the [[Westminster Bank]] after she had left to become a nurse.<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=C38>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=38}}</ref> He harboured dreams of becoming an actor, and took up amateur dramatics, although initially he just saw the pastime as a chance to meet girls.<ref name=M11/>

For 18 months, while at the bank, he worked as an actor and stage manager, making his first appearance in ''A Murder Has Been Arranged'' as the musical director of the play-within-a-play.<ref name=C38/> Eventually he gave up his job to become a professional actor.<ref name=indobit/> His father did not support his acting ambition.<ref name=guardobit>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2005/oct/04/broadcasting.guardianobituaries|title=Ronnie Barker|access-date=13 April 2010|date=4 October 2005|author=Dennis Barker|work=The Guardian|location=London, UK}}</ref>

==Career==

===Theatrical career===
Barker failed to get into the [[Young Vic]] School,<ref name=guardobit/> but joined the Manchester Repertory Company, which was based in [[Aylesbury]], Buckinghamshire, often taking comic roles in their weekly shows. Initially he was employed as the assistant to the assistant stage manager, earning £2.10s. 0d (£2.50) a week.<ref name=C38/> He made his debut as a professional actor on 15 November 1948 as Lieutenant Spicer in a performance of [[J. M. Barrie]]'s ''[[Quality Street (play)|Quality Street]]''.<ref name=timesobit/> He went on to play the organist in ''[[When We Are Married]]'' and by his third role, the chauffeur Charles in ''Miranda'', Barker realised he wanted to be a comic actor. He was described as "ha[ving] the talent to be a great straight actor",<ref name=C39/> but noted: "I want to make people laugh. Never mind about ''[[Hamlet]]''. Forget ''[[Richard the Second]]''. Give me ''[[Charley's Aunt]]''. My mission in life was now crystal clear."<ref name=C39>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=39}}</ref> He appeared in stage adaptations of ''[[Treasure Island]]'' and ''[[Red Riding Hood]]'' before getting his first leading role in ''[[The Guinea Pig (Chetham-Strode)|The Guinea Pig]]'' as a working-class boy at a public school.<ref name=C39/> When the production moved to [[Rhyl]], Barker followed. The Manchester Repertory Company closed, as did the Rhyl company shortly after.<ref name=guardobit/>

Barker, aged 20, then spent some time as a porter at [[Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre|Wingfield Hospital]]; he became distressed through his contact with [[polio]] patients and so opted to take on the persona of "Charlie" so as not to be himself. He and a male nurse often entertained the patients with comedy routines. He found work at the Mime Theatre Company, performing mimed folk music and dance, which soon folded in [[Penzance]].<ref name=C40>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=40–41}}</ref> He made his way back to Oxford and then worked in [[Bramhall]] for the Famous Players.<ref name=guardobit/> There he met actor Glenn Melvyn; the two became firm friends and Barker stated Melvyn taught him everything he "ever learned about comedy".<ref>{{harvnb|McCabe|2005|p=31}}</ref>

He joined the [[Oxford Playhouse]] in 1951 and worked there for three years, appearing in plays such as ''[[He Who Gets Slapped]]'' as Polly.<ref name=guardobit/><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i0GdPirNqNIC&dq=%22He+Who+Gets+Slapped%22+%22Ronnie+Barker%22&pg=PA271|title=Remembering Ronnie Barker|author=Richard Webber|year=2010|publisher=[[Random House]]|isbn=9781407089355}}</ref> [[Peter Hall (theatre director)|Peter Hall]] worked with Barker at Oxford and gave him his break, casting him as the Chantyman and Joe Silva in his production of ''[[Mourning Becomes Electra]]'' at the [[Arts Theatre]] in [[West End theatre|London's West End]] in 1955.<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=indobit/> By the time he had made it to the West End, Barker had appeared in an estimated 350 plays.<ref name=C39/>

Barker remained a West End actor for several years, appearing in numerous plays between 1955 and 1968. These included, in 1955, two performances each night as he played a gypsy in ''Listen to the Wind'' at the Arts Theatre and then a peasant in ''Summertime'' later in the evening.<ref name=C44>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=44–45}}</ref> Other roles included Mr. Thwaites in ''Double Image'' in 1956 (with Olivier), ''[[Camino Real (play)|Camino Real]]'' (directed by Hall) in 1957,<ref name=C44/> French gangster Robertoles-Diams in ''[[Irma La Douce (musical)|Irma La Douce]]'' for two years from 1958,<ref name=C2/> Lord Slingsby-Craddock in ''Mr. Whatnot'' in 1964 and Birdboot in ''[[The Real Inspector Hound]]'' in 1968. He also appeared in several [[Royal Court Theatre]] productions, including ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'' as Quince.<ref name=indobit/>

===Early media career===
Barker's theatrical success enabled him to move into radio work. Barker, who had previously been known by his full name "Ronald", was now referred to as the less formal form "Ronnie", after a director changed it in the credits, although he did not tell Barker.<ref name=indobit/> His first radio appearance was in 1956, playing Lord Russett in ''Floggit's''.<ref name=indobit/> He went on to play multiple characters, but primarily the put-upon Able Seaman "Fatso" Johnson and Lieutenant-Commander Stanton in ''[[The Navy Lark]]'', a navy based sitcom on the [[BBC Light Programme]], which ran from 1959 to 1977, with Barker featuring in some 300 episodes.<ref name=indobit/><ref name=bbcobit>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/473779.stm|title=Obituary: Ronnie Barker|work=BBC News|date=4 October 2005|access-date=13 April 2010}}</ref>

He also featured in the show's radio spin-off ''The TV Lark'', in which his character, Fatso, was now a camera operator after the main characters were drummed out of the service, and as a trainee chef in ''Crowther's Crowd'' in 1963,<ref name=indobit/> and had roles on ''Variety Playhouse''.<ref name=C5>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=5}}</ref> Barker soon began working in film and television. His first acting job on television was in Melvyn's show ''I'm Not Bothered''.<ref name=M32>{{harvnb|McCabe|2005|p=32}}</ref> He appeared in various roles in the comedy series ''[[Faces of Jim|The Seven Faces of Jim]]'' from 1962, alongside [[Jimmy Edwards]] and [[June Whitfield]], as well as parts in ''Bold as Brass'' and ''[[Foreign Affairs (1966 TV series)|Foreign Affairs]]'' (as Russian embassy worker Grischa Petrovitch).<ref name=C56/> This was followed with dramatic parts in ''[[A Tale of Two Cities (1965 TV series)|A Tale of Two Cities]]'' as Jerry Cruncher in 1965 as well as a single episode role in  ''[[The Avengers (TV series)|The Avengers]]'', in which he played Cheshire, a cat lover.<ref name=C56>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=56}}</ref>

He had an uncredited role in the 1958 film ''[[Wonderful Things!]]''. In 1964 he appeared in [[Galton & Simpson]]'s gentle comedy ''[[The Bargee]],'' as 'Ronnie', the [[illiterate]] cousin of [[Harry H. Corbett]]'s rascally 'Hemmel Pike'.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057872/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl The Bargee (1964) – Plot Summary], imdb.com; accessed 24 January 2018.</ref> He did his first bit of on-screen 'porridge' as fellow convict to [[Charlie Drake]] in ''[[The Cracksman]]'' (1963).<ref>{{cite web|title=The Cracksman|url=http://www.prisonmovies.net/the-cracksman-1963-uk|website=Prison Movies|access-date=19 January 2018}}</ref> Other film work at that time included: ''[[Doctor in Distress (film)|Doctor in Distress]]'' (1963), ''[[Father Came Too!]]'' (1963) and ''[[A Home of Your Own]]'' (1965).<ref name=indobit/><ref name=guardobit/>

In 1966, Barker appeared in ''[[The Saint (TV series)|The Saint]] (S5, E9 "The Better Mousetrap")'' as the detective Alphonse.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Saint: The Better Mousetrap (Series 5, Episode 9) |url=https://tv.apple.com/gb/episode/the-better-mousetrap/umc.cmc.631hcweod35k0d47xl2xxfbkk?showId=umc.cmc.4ev1xwuij2ksyr0kso0tgxvgf |publisher=Apple TV |access-date=2 February 2025}}</ref> In 1966, Barker got his break with the satirical sketch series ''[[The Frost Report]]'', having been recommended for the show by producer [[James Gilbert (producer)|James Gilbert]].<ref name=C5/> The show starred [[David Frost]], [[John Cleese]] and Barker's future comedy partner [[Ronnie Corbett]], whom he had met in 1963 when Corbett was the barman at the Buckstone Club near the [[Haymarket Theatre]].<ref name=C2>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=2}}</ref> Corbett stated in his autobiography that the two had gravitated towards each other because of their similar backgrounds; neither had attended university, while many of the other cast and writers on ''The Frost Report'' had.<ref name=C13/> Each episode of the show, which was performed and broadcast live, focused on a single topic and principally revolved around a continuous monologue from Frost, with sketches from Barker, Corbett and Cleese as the show went on.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=51}}</ref> Barker starred alongside Cleese and Corbett in  [[Class sketch|''The Frost Report''{{'}}s best-known sketch]], which satirised the [[Social structure of Britain|British class system]], with Barker representing the middle class.<ref name=C13>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=13}}</ref>

After the first series, the special ''Frost Over England'' was produced, winning the [[Rose d'Or|Golden Rose]] at the Montreux Television Festival.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=52}}</ref> With a second series of the show announced, Frost, recognising their potential, signed both Barker and Corbett up to his production company [[David Paradine Productions]].<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=53}}</ref> As part of the deal Barker was given his own show in 1968, ''[[The Ronnie Barker Playhouse]]'', which comprised six separate, thirty-minute plays. Barker starred in each piece as a different character.<ref name=C55>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=55}}</ref> After two series of ''The Frost Report'' on the [[BBC]], totalling 26 half-hour episodes, Frost moved to [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] after helping to set up [[London Weekend Television]]. There, Frost hosted ''Frost on Sunday'', with Barker and Corbett following and again performing sketches on the programme.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=58}}</ref> Barker began writing sketches for the programme under the pseudonym Gerald Wiley.<ref name=timesobit/> Barker and Corbett had a greater role on the show than on ''The Frost Report'' and Corbett felt "more aware of what [they] were doing."<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=63}}</ref>

Barker began using the pseudonym Gerald Wiley when writing sketches because he wished the pieces to be accepted on merit and not just because he, as a star of the programme, had written them; he continued this tradition with the material he wrote later in his career, using a variety of pseudonyms.<ref name=indobit/> Barker brought his sketches in, claiming they had come from Wiley through Barker's agent [[Peter Eade]], and they were very well received. To maintain the deception, Barker had criticised material he himself had submitted under the pseudonym; when a Wiley-credited sketch about a [[ventriloquist]] had been poorly received by the audience Barker told Corbett "Well, Gerald Wiley let us down there", and on another occasion, when looking at a script, "I don't understand this line. What's he getting at?"<ref name=C67/> One of the first sketches he wrote was called "Doctor's Waiting Room", with the main part written for Corbett. Barker encouraged Corbett to buy the rights to the sketch and, further maintaining the myth, told him to reject Wiley's "request" for £3,000 as too expensive, before giving Corbett the sketch for free.<ref name=C67/> Speculation began about Wiley's identity, with [[Tom Stoppard]], [[Frank Muir]], [[Alan Bennett]] and [[Noël Coward]] all rumoured. After the second series of ''Frost on Sunday'', the cast and crew were invited to a Chinese restaurant, while Wiley said that he would reveal himself. Barker, who had told Corbett earlier in the day, stood up and announced he was Wiley, although initially nobody believed him.<ref name=C67>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=67–72}}</ref> In 1969, Barker was able to write, produce and star as Sir Giles Futtock in the film ''[[Futtocks End|Futtock's End]]'' which featured little dialogue and only "grumble[s] and grunt[s]".<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=indobit/> 

''The Ronnie Barker Playhouse'' had been designed to find a successful idea for a sitcom, and the episode "Ah, There You Are" by [[Alun Owen]], which introduced the bumbling aristocratic character Lord Rustless, was chosen.<ref name=indobit/><ref name=C55/> Despite Barker's success on ITV, LWT's programme controller [[Stella Richman]] opted to fire Frost's company Paradine (Frost was sacked from the LWT board) and as Barker was contracted to the company rather than the network, he lost his job, as did Corbett.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=73}}</ref>

===Move to the BBC and ''The Two Ronnies''===
Soon after, Barker, Corbett and [[Josephine Tewson]] performed a sketch about [[Henry VIII]] at the 1971 [[British Academy Television Awards|BAFTAs]], with Barker playing Henry. The three also had to keep the audience entertained for around eight minutes as the show was stopped because of technical difficulties. Their performance at the award show impressed the BBC's Head of Light Entertainment [[Bill Cotton]] and Controller of [[BBC One|BBC1]], [[Paul Fox (television executive)|Paul Fox]], who were sitting in the audience. Not knowing they were both essentially unemployed, although still contracted to Paradine, Cotton signed the duo up for their own show together, and a series each on their own; he later joked he "must have offered them too much money."<ref name=indobit/><ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=74–75}}</ref> Barker and Corbett wished to avoid being remembered primarily as a duo, and felt they could not work in the same way as a conventional double act like [[Morecambe and Wise]], and so each maintained their solo careers as well.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=77}}</ref> They each were given a one-off variety special; Barker's, called ''The Ronnie Barker Yearbook'', featured a sketch for each month of the year although, because of time constraints, the first two had to be cut.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=84}}</ref> Barker also reprised his character Lord Rustless in the sitcom ''[[His Lordship Entertains]]'' in 1972.<ref name=indobit/> Barker wrote all seven episodes, now using the pseudonym Jonathan Cobbald.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/articles/h/hislordshipenter_66600370.shtml |title=His Lordship Entertains|publisher=BBC|author=Mark Lewisohn|access-date=13 April 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040522160514/http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/articles/h/hislordshipenter_66600370.shtml |archive-date = 22 May 2004}}</ref>
[[File:Susie Silvey and Ronnie Barker.jpg|thumb|right|Barker during filming of ''The Two Ronnies'' (with [[Susie Silvey]])]]
Their show together was ''[[The Two Ronnies]]'', a sketch show which aired for twelve series and eight specials between 1971 and 1987, to immediate success.<ref name=bbcobit/> The show, as described by [[Anthony Hayward]] of ''[[The Independent]]'', was "a cocktail of comedy sketches, playlets, songs and parodies, a long-winded Corbett monologue and a singing star, sandwiched between the opening and closing news summaries."<ref name=indobit/> The usual format consisted of many sketches between the two, an ongoing filmed serial, a solo character sketch from Barker, Corbett's monologue, a musical number, a special guest, bookended by joke news items, delivered from a desk by the two in the style of [[News presenter|newsreader]]s, before ending with the catchphrase "It's good night from me – and it's good night from him."<ref name=timesobit/>

This was a set format which was used for almost the entirety of the show's run.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=86–89}}</ref> The end catchphrase and newsreader characters were devised because Barker found it difficult to appear as himself: Corbett explained that Barker "was a very private man, a quiet man ... He found it almost impossible to talk directly, as himself, to an audience."<ref name=C78>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=78}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=80}}</ref> Each also had their own solo segments to help ensure they were not totally associated as a double act.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=79}}</ref> Filming took place over four months of each year.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=95}}</ref> After outdoor and serial sketches were filmed on location, the studio material was filmed on Sunday evenings at [[Television Centre, London|BBC Television Centre]] in front of a live audience; the musical finale was filmed the day before without the audience.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=123}}</ref>

Barker wrote much of the show's material, roughly three-quarters, again under the name Gerald Wiley.<ref name=indobit/> He was heavily involved with the show's production, especially the serial. Corbett explained that Barker was a "perfectionist" and "as he wrote it Ronnie knew how he wanted every shot to look."<ref name=C98>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=98–99}}</ref> After filming the show all day, he spent the evenings helping technician Jim Franklin to edit it.<ref name=C98/> While filming on location Barker and Corbett would look through all of the potential material for the studio recording of the rest of the show's content and decide on the running order.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=109–111}}</ref> He and Corbett always got on, with Barker noting "People refuse to believe that we don't have rows, tensions, private wars. It's a strange thing after so many years but we never have. Actually, it's even more amicable than a marriage – wedlock without the bad patches. Our sense of humour and perception of what's good and what's rubbish are uncommonly in tune."<ref name=indobit/> They took turns to play the parts which had the "good lines".<ref name=timesobit/> One of the show's other writers, [[Barry Cryer]], said: "You could write almost anything knowing these two would do it brilliantly. Because they weren't a double act; they were two men who worked together and had their own careers."<ref name=indobit/>

Barker's material included the sketch which came to be known as "[[Four Candles]]", airing in 1976, although in the original script it was titled "Annie Finkhouse".<ref name=four/> It sees a customer (Barker) ask for a series of items in a hardware store. The sketch's humour derives from similarities in word pronunciation, leading to confusion on the part of the store owner (Corbett). These misunderstandings include the confusion between "four candles" and "fork handles".<ref name=four/> The idea for the sketch came from the owners of a hardware shop in [[Hayes, Hillingdon|Hayes]] who wrote in to ''The Two Ronnies'' to describe some of the amusing events and misunderstandings in their store.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=179}}</ref> Barker was never happy with the sketch's final line (a male assistant asking "What sort of billhooks did you want?") and changed it (to a female assistant asking "What sort of knockers were you looking for?") for the stage version of ''The Two Ronnies'', although he was still not totally satisfied with it.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=183}}</ref> Nevertheless, the sketch is considered the show's most famous one and was voted as the show's best in a TV special,<ref name=four>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7155024.stm|title=Fork handles script makes £48,500|work=BBC News|access-date=13 April 2010|date=20 December 2007}}</ref> while also placing fifth on [[Channel 4]]'s ''50 Greatest Comedy Sketches''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest/comedy_sketches/results.html|title=50 Greatest Comedy Sketches|publisher=[[Channel 4]]|access-date=13 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080527085445/http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest/comedy_sketches/results.html |archive-date=27 May 2008}}</ref> The original script, handwritten by Barker, was sold for £48,500 at auction in 2007 after featuring in an episode of ''[[Antiques Roadshow]]'' the previous year.<ref name=four/>

The show was considered a "national institution" with audiences of between 15 and 20 million regularly tuning in to its 93 episodes.<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=indobit/><ref name=bbcobit/><ref name="Corbett 2006 94">{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=94}}</ref> Barker won the [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts|BAFTA]] for Best Light Entertainment Performance in 1971 and 1977 for the show.<ref name=bafta/> ''The Two Ronnies'' ended with the 1987 Christmas special.<ref name=c244/> In 1978 the two performed a stage version of the show at the [[London Palladium]]; lasting for three months, it followed the same format as the show, with old sketches and some new material, supported by variety acts. Barker's unease with appearing as himself in the stage show led him to create a fictionalised version of himself to play instead.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=189–190}}</ref> A second stage series took place in 1983.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=203}}</ref> Barker was reportedly offended by a sketch called "The Two Ninnies" on the BBC's ''[[Not the Nine O'Clock News]]'', which mocked their act as being based on dated innuendo-based humour.<ref name="Remembering Ronnie Barker">{{cite book|last1=Webber|first1=Richard|title=Remembering Ronnie Barker|date=7 October 2010|isbn=978-1407089355|page=196|publisher=Random House }}</ref><ref name="Remembering Ronnie Barker, by Richard Webber">{{cite web|last1=Bennett|first1=Steve|title=Remembering Ronnie Barker, by Richard Webber|url=http://www.chortle.co.uk/books/2010/11/03/12075/remembering_ronnie_barker,_by_richard_webber|website=Chortle|access-date=16 October 2015}}</ref><ref name="It's like being in a marriage - except that you always end up in bed together">{{cite web|last1=Rhys-Jones|first1=Griff|title=It's like being in a marriage – except that you always end up in bed together|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/3620242/Its-like-being-in-a-marriage-except-that-you-always-end-up-in-bed-together.html|website=[[Daily Telegraph]]|date=9 October 2005 |access-date=16 October 2015}}</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A6359556 "Ronnie Barker OBE – Comic Actor and Writer"]</ref>

After a tip-off from [[Dick Clement]] and [[Ian La Frenais]], Barker and Corbett opted to move with their families to Sydney, Australia, in 1979 for the year to exploit a tax loophole and avoid paying the year's income tax. They performed their stage show for four weeks in Sydney and a further four in Melbourne; because of their existing popularity in Australia and what Corbett termed the Australian audiences' "[comedic] soul that still related to the UK", they made no changes to the routine. Barker made no other appearances that year and spent his time writing and engaging in recreational activities.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=193–201}}</ref> Following the show's success, [[Kerry Packer]] commissioned a six-episode TV series of ''The Two Ronnies in Australia'' for [[Nine Network]]. The show comprised material not yet shown in Australia from ''The Two Ronnies'' and new content targeted more towards an Australian audience.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=203–206}}</ref> They returned for a second series in 1986.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=240}}</ref>

Barker and Corbett also starred in the short, mostly silent, films ''[[The Picnic (1976 film)|The Picnic]]'' (1976) and ''[[By the Sea (1982 film)|By the Sea]]'' (1982), both written by Barker as "David Huggett and Larry Keith".<ref name=indobit/> ''By the Sea'' was Barker's tribute to the seaside-postcard humour of [[Donald McGill]] and his most "personal" work.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=217}}</ref> The show was also widely syndicated in North America by PBS and CBC, and in 1980 they appeared in the short-lived NBC variety show ''[[The Big Show (TV series)|The Big Show]]''; the two were glad the show did not last as they objected to the use of [[canned laughter]] by the American networks.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=133–134}}</ref>

===''Porridge'', ''Open All Hours'' and other work===
Following the success of ''The Two Ronnies'', the BBC let Barker decide what he wanted to do.<ref name=timesobit/> ''The Two Ronnies'' took up one third of a year to produce, allowing time for Barker and Corbett to do a solo project each.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=148–149}}</ref> Barker opted to produce some sitcom pilots shown as part of 1973's ''[[Seven of One]]''. Two of these pilots, ''Open All Hours'' (written by [[Roy Clarke]]) and ''Prisoner and Escort'' (written by [[Dick Clement]] and [[Ian La Frenais]]) became series. ''Prisoner and Escort'' became ''[[Porridge (1974 TV series)|Porridge]]'', airing from 1974 to 1977, with Barker starring as the cynical and cunning prisoner [[Norman Stanley Fletcher]]. ''Porridge'' was the first sitcom to take place in a prison; ''[[The Times]]'' said the show "was about what it took to survive in prison, the little day-to-day triumphs over the system that kept the prisoners sane."<ref name=timesobit/>

The opening sequence of the programme showed Fletcher being directed to his cell, as prison doors are locked behind him, all the while the judge can be heard pronouncing judgement and sentence. The judge's voice was performed by Barker. The show became a huge success, attracting 15 million viewers and earning what the BBC described as "a chorus of critical acclaim and public adoration for what remains one of the most classic British sitcoms ever produced."<ref name=bbcporridge>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/porridge/index.shtml|title=Porridge|publisher=BBC|access-date=13 April 2010}}</ref> ''The Times'' called Fletcher his "finest creation".<ref name=timesobit/> Barker privately regarded the series as the finest work of his career.<ref name=bbcobit/> He won the BAFTA for Best Light Entertainment Performance in 1975 for his performance.<ref name=bafta/>

In 1976, Barker played [[Friar Tuck]] in the film ''[[Robin and Marian]]'', directed by [[Richard Lester]].<ref name=indobit/> The same year, determined not to be remembered only as Fletcher, Barker opted to end ''Porridge'' after three series and instead focused on the second pilot ''[[Open All Hours]]'', alongside [[David Jason]]. Barker starred as Arkwright, a money-grabbing, stuttering shopkeeper.<ref name=timesobit/> Arkwright's stutter was not in the script; Barker was inspired to use it by Melvyn's performance and use of a stutter in a 1955 play the two performed at the [[Palace Theatre, London|Palace Theatre]] called ''Hot Water''.<ref name=M32/> ''Open All Hours'' aired one series in 1976 on [[BBC Two|BBC2]] but was not renewed due to low ratings.<ref name=timesobit/> As a result, Barker backtracked on his earlier decision and produced a third series of ''Porridge'', as well as a [[Porridge (film)|film adaptation]]. It was followed by the spin-off sitcom ''[[Going Straight]]'' which focused on Fletcher after his release from prison. While not as popular as ''Porridge'', Barker again won the BAFTA for Best Light Entertainment Performance.<ref name=bafta>{{cite web|url=http://www.bafta.org/awards-database.html?pageNo=1&sq=Ronnie+Barker|title=Awards Database|publisher=BAFTA|access-date=13 April 2010}}</ref>

Further plans for the show were ended when Barker's co-star [[Richard Beckinsale]] died of a heart attack in 1979, aged 31.<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=bbcporridge/>  With repeats of ''Open All Hours'' earning high ratings on BBC1, the BBC commissioned a further series of the show in 1981, with another two made as well as the show continued its ratings success.<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=indobit/>  Both shows placed in the top ten of the 2004 poll to determine [[Britain's Best Sitcom]]; ''Porridge'' finished seventh and ''Open All Hours'' eighth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sitcom/winner.shtml|title=Britain's Best Sitcom|access-date=13 April 2010|publisher=BBC}}</ref>

Barker was the first actor originally considered for the role of Frank Spencer in ''[[Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em]]''. However, he turned the role down and it went to [[Michael Crawford]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/somemothers/|publisher=BBC|access-date=6 February 2019}}</ref>

Barker's next sitcom, ''[[The Magnificent Evans]]'', which was about a Welsh photographer and aired in 1984, was not successful.<ref name=timesobit/>  His final sitcom, ''[[Clarence (British TV series)|Clarence]]'', in which he played Clarence Sale, a removal man with failing sight, aired in 1988. Barker wrote the show himself, again using a pseudonym, this time as "[[Bob Ferris (Likely Lads)|Bob Ferris]]", <ref name=indobit/> the name of a character in [[The Likely Lads]].

===Retirement and re-appearances===
{{quote box2
| width = 30em
| bgcolor = transparent
| align = right
| halign = left
| quote = "I had completely run out of ideas and it scared and panicked me. I was always able to write scripts but, you know, I couldn't think of a single thing to write about. It was a very weird sensation. I had seen friends of mine start burning out. No one wants to see a 70-year-old on television who can't remember his lines. And also I had lost interest."
| source = —Barker on his decision to retire<ref name=indobit/>
}}
In 1987,<ref name=c244>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=244}}</ref> before ''Clarence'' aired and after rejecting Hall's offer of the part of [[Falstaff]] in a [[Royal National Theatre]] production of ''[[Henry IV, Part 1]] & [[Henry IV, Part 2|2]]'',<ref name=indobit/> Barker retired from show business, aged 58, "at the height of his fame",<ref name=guardobit/> citing a decline in his own writing quality,<ref name=bbcobit/> lack of ambition and ideas, and a desire to go out on top so as not to damage his legacy,<ref name=timesobit/> as well as concerns about the state of his heart.<ref name=C235>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=235}}</ref> He had decided to retire in 1985 but his decision was kept secret for two years, Corbett being the only one knowing about it.<ref name=C235/> He made his decision public on an appearance on the chat show ''[[Wogan]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8241166.stm|title=Sir Terry's long career on radio|date=7 September 2009|access-date=13 April 2010|work=BBC News}}</ref>

Retired, Barker opened and ran an antiques shop called The Emporium in [[Chipping Norton]], Oxfordshire,<ref name=funeral>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/family-and-friends-lay-ronnie-barker-to-rest-510907.html |title=Family and friends lay Ronnie Barker to rest |work=The Independent |date=14 October 2005 |access-date=13 April 2010 |author=Cahal Milmo |location=London |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100428092429/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/family-and-friends-lay-ronnie-barker-to-rest-510907.html |archive-date=28 April 2010 }}</ref><ref name=c254>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=254}}</ref> and resisted all calls to come out of retirement from then onwards. He joked: "I lose money every week, but it's a hobby. It's cheaper than skiing and safer at my age."<ref name=timesobit/> Because of its unprofitability, the shop was sold after ten years.<ref name=c254/> He wrote his [[autobiography]], ''Dancing in the Moonlight: My Early Years on Stage'', in 1993 and released ''All I Ever Wrote'', his complete scripts, in 1999.<ref name=timesobit/> He wrote the play ''Mum'' (initially as "Richard Mervyn", but as the play was opening, consenting to use his own name) for his daughter [[Charlotte Barker|Charlotte]] in 1998. The play was performed at [[The King's Head Theatre]], but garnered a negative response, with Barker stating it got "the worst notices of any play in the history of the theatre."<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=indobit/>

Just over a decade after retiring, Barker was persuaded to make occasional appearances on television again. In 1997 he appeared with Corbett at the [[Royal Command Performance]], driving on stage on a motorcycle combination as the [[Two Fat Ladies]],<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=269–269}}</ref> and in 1999 he was reunited with Corbett for ''Two Ronnies Night'' on BBC One, and the following year for ''A Tribute to the Two Ronnies''.<ref name=indobit/> In 2002, director [[Richard Loncraine]] persuaded Barker to appear as [[Winston Churchill]]'s butler David Inches in the BBC-[[HBO]] drama ''[[The Gathering Storm (2002)|The Gathering Storm]]'' and then cast him in the larger role of the General in the TV film ''[[My House in Umbria]]'' in 2003, alongside [[Maggie Smith]] (whom Barker had advised, early in their careers, to give up acting as he felt she would not be a success).<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=262–263}}</ref>  In the same year, he briefly reprised his role as Norman Stanley Fletcher in the spoof documentary ''[[Life Beyond the Box: Norman Stanley Fletcher|Life Beyond the Box]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/782867|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090129104920/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/782867|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 January 2009|title=Life Beyond the Box Norman Stanley Fletcher|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=13 April 2010}}</ref>

Barker received several lifetime achievement awards. He won the [[Royal Television Society]]'s award for Outstanding Creative Achievement in 1975.<ref name=bbcobit/> [[Alec Guinness|Sir Alec Guinness]] presented him with a lifetime achievement honour at the inaugural [[National Comedy Awards|British Comedy Awards]] in 1990, while he received another such honour at the BBC Centenary Programme in 1996.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=266–67}}</ref> In 2004 he was given a special [[BAFTA]] lifetime achievement award at ''Ronnie Barker: A BAFTA Tribute'', a televised celebratory tribute evening.<ref name=bbcobit/> In 2005, he and Corbett were part of the first 100 people given stars on [[Avenue of Stars, London|London's Avenue of Stars]].<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=287–288}}</ref> Previous awards included the [[Variety, the Children's Charity|Variety Club of Great Britain]] Award in 1969, 1974 and 1980, the Radio Industry Club Award in 1973, 1974, 1977 and 1981.<ref name=guardobit/>

Following the success of ''Ronnie Barker: A BAFTA Tribute'', Barker wanted to return ''The Two Ronnies'' to television and the BBC commissioned ''[[The Two Ronnies Sketchbook]]'', a clip show of their best sketches along with newly recorded introductions. These were recorded in one day because of Barker's declining health and aired in 2005.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=278}}</ref> The project, when announced, met with "some derision among the professional critics", but after the first episode drew eight million viewers, they had to "eat their words".<ref name=indobit/><ref name=bbcobit/>  The final special, and Barker's final appearance on television – ''The Two Ronnies Christmas Sketchbook'' – was recorded in July 2005 as a result of Barker's failing health and aired posthumously in December.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=285–286}}</ref>

==Acting and writing style==
{{quote box2|width=30em|bgcolor=transparent|align=right|halign=left|quote="I'll tell you who my favourite performer is. Ronnie Barker. Surprised? You shouldn't be. He's really great."|source=[[Alec Guinness|Sir Alec Guinness]]<ref>{{harvnb|Guinness|1985|p=216}}</ref>}}
Barker became a comic actor in his theatre days, noting "I think it's better to make people laugh than cry."<ref name=timesobit/> He has been described by ''[[The Times]]'' as "not a comedian, [but] an actor with a talent for comedy," who "slipped into characters with apparent ease."<ref name=timesobit/> Barker felt he was funny only in character.<ref name=timesobit/> The BBC wrote of him:  "Able to deliver the great tongue-twisting speeches required of his characters, Barker pronounced himself 'completely boring' without a script."<ref name=bbcobit/> [[Peter Hall (director)|Peter Hall]] spoke of Barker's skills as a dramatic actor, calling him "the great actor we lost" and lamented that Barker was unable to take a role in one of his Shakespearean productions.<ref name=C236>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=236}}</ref> Barker, though, preferred comedy,<ref name=C39/> and felt it was "as good and as important as serious work" and he was not "dumbing down" by doing it.<ref name=C236/> Actor [[Gene Wilder]] compared him to [[Charlie Chaplin]] in saying "no matter how farcical [his performance] was ... there was always an element of reality to what he did."<ref name=baftatrib>{{Cite episode|title=Ronnie Barker: A BAFTA Tribute|credits=Presenter: [[Ronnie Corbett]]|network=[[BBC]]|station=[[BBC One]]|location=London, England|series=BAFTA Tributes|airdate=7 February 2004}}</ref> Corbett praised Barker's skill at playing serious authority figures saying absurd things, using Barker's verbal dexterity and energetic performances.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=229–232}}</ref>

Barker's writing style was, for ''The Times'', "based on precise scripts and perfect timing." It often involved playing with language, including humour involving such linguistic items as [[spoonerisms]] and [[double entendres]].<ref name=timesobit/> Dennis Baker of ''[[The Guardian]]'' wrote that Barker "preferred innuendo over the crudely explicit, a restraint that demanded some imagination from the audience and was the essence of his comedy."<ref name=guardobit/> Corbett said he had "a mastery of the English language".<ref name=C39/>

In private, he annotated a copy of ''A Book of Nonsense'' by [[Edward Lear]], penning punch lines of his own for each limerick. On the title page he wrote, "There was an old fossil named Lear, Whose verses were boring and drear. His last lines were worst – just the same as the first! So I've tried to improve on them here." The annotated copy of Lear's book, signed and dated November 2001, was auctioned in 2012.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ronnie Barker rewrote 'boring' book of Lear limericks|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-18421603|work=BBC News|access-date=28 September 2012|date=13 June 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Ronnie Barker's Edward Lear book fetches £3,600 at auction|url=http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/Ronnie-Barker-s-Edward-Lear-book-fetches-3-600/story-16429147-detail/story.html|publisher=thisisgloucestershire.co.uk|access-date=28 September 2012|date=21 June 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120623071111/http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/Ronnie-Barker-s-Edward-Lear-book-fetches-3-600/story-16429147-detail/story.html|archive-date=23 June 2012}}</ref>

==Personal life==

Barker met Joy Tubb in [[Cambridge]] while she was a stage manager for two plays he was in.<ref name=C44/> They married nine months later in July 1957 and had three children: two sons, Larry (born 1959) and Adam (born 1968), and one daughter, [[Charlotte Barker|Charlotte]] (born 1962), who became an actress.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=46–48}}</ref> Larry, a leading advertising creative director,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://futermanrose.co.uk/barker.html|title = Barker}}</ref> was named after Barker's idol [[Laurence Olivier]].<ref>{{harvnb|McCabe|2005|pp=47}}</ref> Adam Barker became an actor, but was jailed for twelve months in 2012 on twenty counts of making indecent images of children, having evaded police for eight years; he was not present at his father's funeral.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-20000822|title = Ronnie Barker's son Adam Barker jailed for indecent images|work = BBC News|date = 19 October 2012}}</ref>
The family lived in [[Pinner]] for many years,<ref name="Corbett 2006 94"/> and subsequently in a converted mill in [[Dean, Oxfordshire|Dean]], Oxfordshire.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=239}}</ref> According to Corbett, Barker was "first and foremost a family man".<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=237}}</ref> Joy died in January 2011, aged 78.<ref>[https://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/224572/Ronnie-Barker-s-lost-son ''Daily Express'']</ref>

Barker was appointed an [[Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire|OBE]] in 1978.<ref name=timesobit/> He was an avid collector of antiques, books and posters and amassed a collection of over 53,000 postcards.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=159–162}}</ref> He produced several compilation books of them, including ''Ronnie Barker's Book of Bathing Beauties'', ''A Pennyworth of Art'', and ''Sauce''.<ref name=timesobit/><ref name=indobit/><ref name=guardobit/> Barker rarely appeared in public, and when he did, it was almost always in character.<ref name=C78/> He once said, "I've always known I haven't a personality of my own, I have to be someone else to be happy. That's why I became an actor, I suppose."<ref name=indobit/>

Barker was a [[Chain smoking|heavy smoker]] until 1972, when he gave up the habit after having a [[Precancerous condition|pre-cancerous growth]] removed from his throat; he took to drinking wine and using [[placebo]] cigarettes to maintain his concentration and help him sleep.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=144–146}}</ref> He underwent a [[heart bypass]] in 1996 and survived a [[pulmonary embolism]] the following year.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=256}}</ref>

==Death==
Barker opted not to have heart valve replacement surgery, and his health rapidly declined after the recording of ''The Two Ronnies Christmas Sketchbook''.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|pp=285–287}}</ref> He died of heart failure at the Katherine House [[Hospice care|hospice]] in [[Adderbury]], [[Oxfordshire]], on 3 October 2005, aged 76, with his wife by his side.<ref name=bbcdeath>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4307216.stm|title=Comedy legend Ronnie Barker dies|work=BBC News|date=4 October 2005|access-date=2 March 2010}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=290}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1528214/Ronnie-Barker-left-fugitive-son-92000.html|title=Ronnie Barker left fugitive son £92,000|author=David Sapsted|access-date=13 April 2010|date=7 September 2006|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|location=London}}</ref> News of his death made top billing on television news bulletins.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbett|Nobbs|2007|p=291}}</ref>

Barker's body was cremated at a private [[Secular humanism|humanist]] funeral at [[Banbury]] Crematorium, which was attended only by family and close friends.<ref name=funeral/><ref name=funeral2>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4338658.stm|title=Family funeral for Ronnie Barker|work=BBC News|access-date=13 April 2010|date=13 October 2005}}</ref> A public memorial service for Barker was held on 3 March 2006 at [[Westminster Abbey]], with some 2,000 people in attendance. Ronnie Corbett, [[Richard Briers]], [[Josephine Tewson]], [[Michael Grade]], and [[Peter Kay]] all read at the service, while others in attendance included [[David Jason]], [[Stephen Fry]], [[Michael Palin]], [[Leslie Phillips]], [[Lenny Henry]], [[Dawn French]], [[June Whitfield]] and [[David Frost]]. A recording of Barker's [[rhyming slang]] sermon from ''[[The Two Ronnies]]'' was played,<ref name=mem>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4771368.stm|title=Ronnie gave us all a good night|date=3 March 2006|author=Chris Leggett|access-date=13 April 2010|work=BBC News}}</ref> and while the cross was in procession in the aisle of the abbey, it was accompanied by four candles instead of the usual two, in reference to the [[Four Candles]] sketch.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article737147.ece|title=Four candles and a short eulogy recall humour of a comic legend|newspaper=The Times|date=4 March 2006}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Barker was the third comedy professional to be given a memorial at Westminster Abbey, after [[Joyce Grenfell]] and [[Les Dawson]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4769132.stm|title=Abbey memorial for Ronnie Barker|date=3 March 2006|access-date=13 April 2010|work=BBC News}}</ref>

===Legacy===

[[File:Four Candles sign.jpg|thumb|The sign of the [[Four Candles]], a [[Wetherspoons]] pub in Oxford named after Barker's comedy sketch.]]

Following his death, the Writer of the Year Award at the [[National Comedy Awards|British Comedy Awards]] was renamed in his honour.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2005/12/01/541/ronnies_awards_honour|title=Ronnie's awards honour|work=Chortle|date=12 January 2005|access-date=13 April 2010}}</ref> In 2005, he was voted as the 16th greatest comedy act ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders, in a poll to find ''The Comedians' Comedian''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2004/12/01/26/the_comedians_comedian|title=The comedians' comedian|date=1 December 2004|work=Chortle|access-date=16 February 2011}}</ref>

The BBC described him as "one of the leading figures of British television comedy", and "much loved and admired".<ref name=bbcobit/> ''The Independent'' called him "a master of television sitcom".<ref name=indobit/> ''The Guardian'' said he was "much loved ... both as an actor and a writer he was recognised as a master of pyrotechnic puns, surreal behaviour in public and private places, and crackling cross-chat". It concluded that "it says much about the decline of the British television industry that Ronnie Barker, one of its most creative comic talents, should have turned his back on it long before he died at the age of 76."<ref name=guardobit/> In a eulogy for Barker, the Reverend Robert Wright stated that he was "undoubtedly one of the very greatest television comedy actors" and that "as a performer he made comedy look effortlessly funny".<ref name=mem/>

In 2006, Barker's stage play ''Mum'' was adapted and directed by Neil Cargill for [[BBC Radio 4]], and broadcast as an ''[[Drama (BBC Radio 4)|Afternoon Play]]'', starring [[Maxine Peake]] and [[Sam Kelly]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/3655600/Todays-TV-and-radio-choices.html |title=Today's TV & radio choices |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=27 September 2006 |author=Reynolds, Gillian |access-date=16 February 2011}}</ref>

A bronze statue of Barker, sculpted by [[Martin Jennings]] and showing him in character as Norman Stanley Fletcher, was unveiled at the entrance of the [[Aylesbury Waterside Theatre]] in September 2010 by his widow Joy, David Jason and Ronnie Corbett.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/threecounties/hi/people_and_places/newsid_9026000/9026186.stm |title=Ronnie Barker statue unveiled in Aylesbury |work=BBC News |date=30 September 2010 |access-date=30 September 2010}}</ref>

In 2015, the Ronnie Barker Comedy Lecture (also referred to as The Ronnie Barker Talk) was commissioned by the BBC at the instigation of the head of comedy commissioning, Shane Allen.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/bbc/11450716/BBC-to-host-Ronnie-Barker-comedy-lectures.html |title=BBC to host Ronnie Barker comedy lectures |website=The Telegraph|date=4 March 2015 |access-date=28 August 2017}}</ref> The first lecture was given in August 2017 by [[Ben Elton]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2017/ronnie-barker-lecture |title=Ben Elton to give inaugural BBC comedy lecture The Ronnie Barker Talk |website=BBC Media Centre |date=21 April 2017 |access-date=28 August 2017}}</ref> Elton's lecture focused on the future of the British [[sitcom]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2017/aug/25/snobbery-is-killing-the-great-british-sitcom-says-ben-elton |title=Snobbery is killing the great British sitcom, says Ben Elton |author=Tara Conlan |website=The Guardian |date=25 August 2017 |access-date=28 August 2017}}</ref>

==Filmography==

{{main|Ronnie Barker filmography}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

;Bibliography 
{{cite book|author=Barker, Ronnie|title=It's Hello From Him|year=1988|publisher=Hodder & Stoughton|isbn=0-450-48871-3}}
*{{cite book | author=Barker, Ronnie | title=Dancing in the Moonlight: My Early Years | publisher=Hodder & Stoughton | year=1994 | isbn=0-340-59104-8|edition=Paperback}}
*{{cite book | author=Barker, Ronnie | title=All I Ever Wrote: The Complete Works of Ronnie Barker | publisher=Sidgwick & Jackson | year=2001 | isbn=0-283-07334-9|edition=Paperback}}
*{{cite book | last1=Corbett |first1=Ronnie|author-link1=Ronnie Corbett|last2=Nobbs |first2=David | title=And It's Goodnight From Him ...: The Autobiography of the Two Ronnies| publisher=Penguin | year=2007 |orig-year=2006 | isbn=978-0-14-102804-0|edition=Paperback}}
* {{cite book|last=Guinness |first=Alec|author-link=Alec Guinness|title=Blessings in Disguise|year=1985|publisher=Hamish Hamilton|location=London|isbn=0-241-11681-3}}
*{{cite book |last=McCabe |first= Bob | title=The Authorized Biography of Ronnie Barker|type=Paperback edition | publisher=BBC Books | year=2005 |orig-year=1998 | isbn=0-563-52246-1|edition=4th}}
*{{cite book|author=Webber, Richard|title=Remembering Ronnie Barker|publisher=Century|year=2010|isbn=978-1-84605-712-0}}
*{{cite book | author=Barker, Ronnie | title=Pebbles on the Beach: A pictorial tribute to the seaside girl|publisher=Hodder & Stoughton | year=1985 | isbn =0-340-35765-7|edition=Paperback}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0054985|name=Ronnie Barker}}
* {{Screenonline name|id=462765|name=Ronnie Barker}}
* The [https://archive.today/20121223091500/http://archiveshub.ac.uk/data/gb71thm-407 Ronnie Barker Collection] held by the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]], Department of Theatre and Performance.
* [http://oxonblueplaques.org.uk/plaques/barker.html Blue Plaque to Ronnie Barker] at his childhood home in Church Cowley Road, Oxford.

{{British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, Ronnie}}
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