Tommy Cooper

Comedian, Comedy actor, Magician

Thomas Fredrick Tommy Cooper

Date of Birth: 19th March 1921

Place of Birth: 19, Llwyn On Street,
Cearphilly.

Tommy was born in Wales but his family moved to Exeter when he was only three years old.

As a young boy he would help his father run their Ice Cream van at shows and fairs. Tommy at the age of 8 received a magic set from one of his aunts and he would spend hours perfecting his tricks.

After working for a while as a shipwright he was called up in 1940 to become a trooper in the Royal Horse Guards owing to the conflict of the Second World War. He served as one of Montys desert rats in Egypt, where he became part of the NAFFIs entertainment party performing his magic tricks. One evening while performing a sketch in Cairo, where he was supposed to be wearing a pith helmet which he had forgotten to bring, he borrowed a FEZ, from a passing waiter this item proved to be a huge success and became Tommys hallmark.

After serving seven years he was demobbed from the army and took up show business on Christmas Eve 1947 working tirelessly performing 52 shows a week at the Windmill Theatre. Tommy was known for his disastrous blundering magic tricks that were doomed to fail, but his timing was impeccable and he would have the audiences rolling in their seats, until he would finally pull off what can only be described as pure magic in a masterful climax.

Sadly, Tommy died during his performance on stage on 15th April 1984.