Eric Morecambe

Comic Relief: 'Eric Morecambe' fun run to be held

A fun run inspired by Eric Morecambe will be held in his Lancashire hometown for Comic Relief on 14 March.

So, Miranda's over, and leaves us in a fine tradition - Fawlty Towers, The Office - of going on just long enough and no longer, and creating a newly Hollywood-bound personality. Some fusspot critics adopted airs of frenetic postmodern sophistication towards what was, after all, a comedy show. I loved it, every bit, not least for allowing me to finally "get" - albeit only a bit - slapstick. I especially loved it for every reason the detractors resented: its retro nature, its channelling of Eric Morecambe (she even managed, along with his trademark deadpans to camera, to slap Stevie's cheeks) and its big, warm, sexy lunk of a star.

It ended rightly on a high (she married Gary, needless to say) and included bits of girly fun (meh), sharp observation (yay!) and, actually, a twitch more seriousness than has been usual. "That is not being a child," she says at one stage, grown strangely grave. "Sometime the world just needs to be... jollied." Indeed it does, and I raise my glass to Miranda Hart, producer Sarah Fraser, director Mandie Fletcher and all the other splendid women involved: 2015 deserves to be their brilliant year.

How Ernie Wise (almost) made the UK's first mobile call

This week marks the 30th anniversary of the first ever (civilian) mobile phone call made in the UK. The call was made from London's St Katharine Docks on 1 January 1985, via the Vodafone network, by comedian Ernie Wise. The patronage of Little Ern may seem a little incongruous, but Wise had already done an ad for Atari with Eric Morecambe earlier that decade, and was already well-versed in hawking grey, clunky pieces of tech, for presumably a neat little pay packet.

Making a Christmas special 'special'

"Eric Morecambe and Eddie Braben [Eric and Ernie's principal writer] used to tell me that they started thinking about the Christmas shows in January," recalls Barry Cryer.

Eric Morecambe statue returns after attempted theft

Eric Morecambe's statue is back in its rightful place after a man tried to saw off one of its legs.

Eric Morecambe statue is coming home

Excitement is building as the town prepares to welcome home the Eric Morecambe statue.

Eric Morecambe statue to return next month

The damaged Eric Morecambe statue is to be returned to its rightful spot next month.

Eric Morecambe Day plan proposed in comic's home town

Plans for an "Eric Morecambe Day" and a sculpture of him with comic partner Ernie Wise have been proposed after his statue in his home town was vandalised.

Morecambe and Wise tribute plan revealed

A bronze piece of wall art paying tribute to both Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise could go on permanent display in Morecambe.

Eric Morecambe's daughter reacts to statue attack

Gail Stuart, the daughter of Eric Morecambe, has spoken of her sadness at the attempt to steal the statue of her famous father.