This Is Your Life: Roy Barraclough

Roy BARRACLOUGH (1935-2017)

THIS IS YOUR LIFE - Roy Barraclough, actor, was surprised by Eamonn Andrews - disguised as an AA man attending to Julie Goodyear's 'broken down' Rolls Royce - on a dual carriageway outside Manchester city centre.

Roy, who was born in Preston, first began acting with local amateur dramatic groups while working as a trainee draughtsman. Following a stint as an entertainer in a holiday camp on the Isle of Wight, he accepted a full-time acting contract with a repertory theatre company in Huddersfield before joining the Oldham Repertory Theatre in 1966.

After appearing in Yorkshire Television's first soap opera, Castle Haven, he became well known throughout the 1970s for his partnership with comedian Les Dawson - playing two gossipy old ladies, Cissie and Ada. He also occasionally appeared in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street as sleazy theatrical agent Alec Gilroy before joining the cast permanently in 1986.

"Oh no it's not!"

programme details...

Edition No: 732
Subject No: 726
Broadcast date: Wed 21 Oct 1987
Broadcast time: 7.00-7.30pm
Recorded: Tue 13 Oct 1987
Venue: Granada Studios, Manchester
Series: 28
Edition: 2
Code name: Wedding

on the guest list...

Julie Goodyear
Bill Podmore
Chris Quinten
Johnny Briggs
Thelma Barlow
Helen Worth
Warren Jackson
Bill Waddington
Bill Tarmey
Elizabeth Dawn
Michael Le Vell
Sue Jenkins
Tom Mennard
Sean Wilson
Mark Eden
Lisa Lewis
Kevin Kennedy
Helene Palmer
Sally Ann Matthews
Anne Kirkbride
Barbara Knox
William Roache
Dora Bryan
Philip - father
Florence - mother
Evelyn - aunt
Bessie - aunt
Annie - aunt
Laurence - uncle
Mavis Rogerson
Eddie Regan
Marion McElmore
George Noonan
Terry Bramley
Frank Woodruff
Fred Newnham
Olive Newnham
Kenneth Alan Taylor
Susan Staff
Katherine Staff
Hilda Roberts
Holly Chamarette
Whiskey - dog
Les Dawson
Margaret Newnham
Rosalind Newnham
Alison Newnham
David Newnham
Gretchen Franklin
Kathy Staff

production team...

Researchers: David N Mason, Louise Clover
Writer: Roy Bottomley
Directors: Stuart Hall, Terry Yarwood
Associate Producer: Brian Klein
Producer: Malcolm Morris

names above in bold indicate subjects of This Is Your Life

related pages...

Street Life

from Elsie Tanner to Eddie Yates

Screenshots of Roy Barraclough This Is Your Life

Scriptwriter Roy Bottomley recalls this edition of This Is Your Life in his book, This Is Your Life: The Story of Television's Famous Big Red Book...

Alec Gilroy, landlord of the Rover's Return (actor Roy Barraclough) was enjoying a break in Marbella after a long stint of work on Coronation Street when he was summoned back to Manchester.

Executive producer Bill Podmore told him on the phone that two scenes he had shot with his new screen wife Bet (Julie Goodyear) had gone wrong technically. There was a fault on the tape. He would have to come back for one day only. Roy Barraclough was not pleased.

When he found out the real reason for his holiday being interrupted he was downright furious. The Life team was behind it all.

A combination of circumstances led to the plot to bring him back. On that date, 13 October 1987 – only three weeks before the death of Eamonn Andrews – we had intended surprising striker Gary Lineker. Researchers had already been to Barcelona, for whom he was playing, to talk to his wife Michelle and to Gary's friend and then Barcelona manager, Terry Venables. Then Terry and Barcelona suddenly parted company, and Gary was in a rare off-form spell: he hadn't scored in eight games for the club. We decided to postpone.

Meanwhile, in Manchester, Roy Barraclough had 'married' Julie Goodyear, finished an exacting period of work, signed a new contract and, unknown to us at that time, planned to take time off for a well-earned rest.

In London, we had planned an outside broadcast for Gary's Life and, consequently, had lost our studio availability there.

Following the Street wedding, Alec Gilroy was now a firm favourite with viewers. Bill Podmore was always a good friend of the Life. A telephone call confirmed he could help us again and, even better, Granada had a studio free that day.

Smiles all round among the team in London, as researchers set to work on Roy's story – and an excellent story it was, from holiday camp 'Bluecoat' to dramatic roles in rep, and his Ada to Les Dawson's Cissie in their hugely comic TV act.

Then the phone rang. It was Bill Podmore. There was a snag – our subject would be out of the country. There was no way we could stop him but, with Bill's co-operation, we could get him back for that one vital day.

Even that wasn't easy. There were no scheduled flights to Manchester. He would have to fly into Gatwick, where we would lay on a private plane. From Gatwick, Roy telephoned. He couldn't find the pilot.

Back in Manchester, we had hatched a pick-up plot which had Eamonn in the uniform of an AA patrolman with his head under the bonnet of Julie Goodyear's Rolls-Royce, conveniently 'broken down' on Roy's route by chauffeur-driven car from Manchester Airport to Granada.

Julie waved to the car, which stopped. Out stepped Roy and our 'AA patrolman' looked up from under the car bonnet, holding the Big Red Book.

Roy Barraclough was totally stunned.

'Tonight, Coronation Street's Alec Gilroy, alias actor Roy Barraclough, This Is Your Life,' beamed Eamonn.

'Oh no it bloody isn't,' snorted the landlord of the Rover's though viewers never heard that bit.

When Julie realised that Roy really was annoyed about his holiday being interrupted for his Life, she went to her dressing room for a weep.

But on screen it was all smiles and, afterwards, Roy told us he had enjoyed it; and the programme certainly got a great reaction when it went out. When he returned (again) from Marbella he telephoned our office to thank everyone involved. In fact, he said it was the most exciting part of his holiday (the weather had been terrible).

Series 28 subjects