New biography of John Henry tells all

The full story of the comedian who was once one of the biggest stars of the BBC – until scandal over his private life led to him being doomed to obscurity – is revealed in a new biography.

John Henry was a star of the new medium of radio in the 1920s and early 1930s, but took his life a month after the death of his romantic and stage partner Gladys Horridge. At her inquest, he claimed they were man and wife, although in reality he was still married to his first wife, and he feared that the exposure of his lies would end his career.

The full story is now being told by comedy historian Alan Stafford, who previously told Chortle:‘I suspect his early death is why he’s largely forgotten today. But he was one of the great innovators of radio comedy and deserves far more recognition.’

His new book, Bigamy Killed the Radio Star, Stafford reveals how Henry rise from nondescript office clerk to British broadcasting’s first comedy sensation and yet, not much more than a decade later, was reduced to a footnote in the history of radio comedy.

‘John Henry was the right person in the right place at the right time,’ says Stafford now. 

‘It was 1923, when the BBC was only a few months old. But theatre managers were so scared of radio stealing their audiences that they banned all their comedians from broadcasting. The only solution was for the BBC to form its own company of performers who had no connection with the theatre, and John Henry was a perfect fit.’

Henry’s real name was Norman Clapham and while performing on air was initially a moonlighting job, it was not long before he chucked in the day job to become the first comedian to earn a living through radio broadcasts alone.

‘In those days the BBC was a series of low-range local stations scattered around the country, each with its own schedule of programmes’ says Stafford. ‘So it was possible to go on tour and perform from a different station each night. 

‘But John Henry quickly realised the need to keep coming up with new material, and soon established himself as one of the most prolific comedy writer/performers in the business.’

Seán Street, emeritus professor of Radio at Bournemouth University, has described Henry as the 'forerunner of a number of great radio comedians, among them Tommy Handley, Gillie Potter, Arthur Askey, Frankie Howerd and Tony Hancock'.

As previously reported on Chortle, several of his routines were highly topical, including one that satirised a recent attempt by the BBC to train an elephant by wireless. 

Other ambitious comedy stunts included a live broadcast from an aeroplane flying over London with his partner ‘Blossom’, and what he claimed to be an original opera that ran for two hours.

However, as the BBC made its peace with theatreland, a rich variety of comic talent was now free to broadcast. John Henry found his radio engagements falling off dramatically, leading to a number of very public rows with BBC management.

‘Researching a comedian with such a commonplace name as John Henry is far from easy,’ admits Stafford. ‘You do end up sifting through a multitude of totally unconnected court cases. But, ironically, it was an appearance in court that led to John Henry’s tragic end.’

'Today, it would be virtually impossible for a comedian to conceal his true identity for his entire career. But it was in a courtroom, a month or so before John Henry’s death, that his real name of was finally revealed. And with that revelation, the true nature of his complicated private life suddenly became public knowledge.'

• Bigamy Killed the Radio Star has just been released by  Fantom Publishing, priced £19.99. It is available here

Published: 5 Nov 2024