Robert Alan Monkhouse OBE (1 June, 1928 – 29 December, 2003) was an English entertainer in the traditional sense, though primarily known as a comedian and game show host.
The Bob Monkhouse Show was an entertainment show presented by Bob Monkhouse.
The show celebrated the art of comedy and comedian guests were invited to perform a stand-up. The programme began in 1983 and ran for three series until 1986. A number of notable guests appeared on the show, such as Joan Rivers (2 episodes), Janet Brown (2 episodes) and Jim Carrey (1 episode in 1986).
One of British TV's most popular performers with a career that spanned over four decades, funnyman Bob Monkhouse started off as a radio broadcaster (1949) and stand-up comic. He earned success early on as a gag writer partnering with Denis Goodwin. In 1953, the duo won their own TV show called Fast and Loose (1954), which was sketch-comedy based. A nightclub comedian to boot, he also pursued films on occasion appearing in such slapstick dillies as _Carry On Sergeant (1959)_(qv, Dentist in the Chair (1960), Dentist on the Job (1961), and Weekend with Lulu, A (1961). But TV would be his prime venue, and he moved quite easily into various parlor game and variety show hosting duties. "For Love or Money" was his first, a Brit version of "Candid Camera." Along the way he found emceeing chores with "London Palladium Show, The" (1966), "Golden Shot, The" (1967) (which made him a household name), "Celebrity Squares" (1975) (based on "Hollywood Squares, The" (1965)), "Family Fortunes" (1980), "The $64,000 Question," "Opportunity Knocks" (1956), "National Lottery, The" (1994), and many others. Monkhouse died in 2003 of prostate cancer.
