Paul Shane is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 comedian and actor

Actor

An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...

, best known for his part in the sitcom

Situation comedy

A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...

 Hi-de-Hi!

Hi-de-Hi!

Hi-de-Hi! is a British sitcom that aired on the BBC from 1980-1988. It was set in a holiday camp during the 1950s and 1960s and was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who had written Dad's Army and It Ain't Half Hot Mum. The title was the phrase used to greet the campers and in early episodes...

and other television roles.

Early life and career

Shane was born as George Frederick Speight in Thrybergh

Thrybergh

Thrybergh is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England, from Rotherham. It had a population of 4,327 in 2001...

, near Rotherham

Rotherham

Rotherham is a town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Don, at its confluence with the River Rother, between Sheffield and Doncaster. Rotherham, at from Sheffield City Centre, is surrounded by several smaller settlements, which together form the wider Metropolitan Borough of...

, South Yorkshire

South Yorkshire

South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...

. He originally worked as a miner

Miner

A miner is a person whose work or business is to extract ore or minerals from the earth. Mining is one of the most dangerous trades in the world. In some countries miners lack social guarantees and in case of injury may be left to cope without assistance....

, but had an accident at Silverwood Colliery

Silverwood Colliery

Silverwood Colliery was owned by Dalton Main Collieries Ltd., and was originally called Dalton Main. It was renamed after the local woodland where it was situated, between Thrybergh and Ravenfield, in Yorkshire, England, although it could easily have been called Gulling Wood.- History :Dalton Main...

 in 1967 by slipping in the pit-head baths on some soap, resulting in double herniated discs, and he was pensioned off from the pit at the age of 27. Two years later, he made the decision to become a professional entertainer since he already had ten years' experience as a part-time entertainer around the pubs and clubs in South Yorkshire.

His first appearance, as a straight singer, was at the Grafton pub (now demolished) on St. Ann's Road, Rotherham

Rotherham

Rotherham is a town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Don, at its confluence with the River Rother, between Sheffield and Doncaster. Rotherham, at from Sheffield City Centre, is surrounded by several smaller settlements, which together form the wider Metropolitan Borough of...

. His first club booking was at St. Ann's Club in Rotherham, for thirty shillings (£1.50). His transformation from singer to comedian was a gradual one, starting with his rendition of Green Green Grass of Home

Green Green Grass of Home

"Green, Green Grass of Home", written by Claude "Curly" Putman, Jr., is a country song originally made popular by Porter Wagoner in 1965 and Bobby Bare in 1965. It was sung later by Tom Jones in 1966 when it reached number one in the UK Singles Chart on 3 December staying there for a total of seven...

, straight at first, but ultimately a hilarious send-up of Tom Jones

Tom Jones (singer)

Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...

, which marked the start of the Paul Shane act.

Hi-de-Hi

Small parts and guest appearances in television series began to materialise throughout the 1970s, and, in May 1979, comedy writer Jimmy Perry

Jimmy Perry

Jimmy Perry OBE is an English writer, scriptwriter, producer, author and actor, most famous for devising and co-writing the BBC sitcoms Dad's Army with David Croft.-Education:...

 spotted Paul playing Frank Roper in a 1979 episode of Coronation Street

Coronation Street

Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...

, and offered him the part of Ted Bovis in his new holiday-camp sitcom Hi-de-Hi!

Hi-de-Hi!

Hi-de-Hi! is a British sitcom that aired on the BBC from 1980-1988. It was set in a holiday camp during the 1950s and 1960s and was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who had written Dad's Army and It Ain't Half Hot Mum. The title was the phrase used to greet the campers and in early episodes...

. The series ran from 1980 through until 1988, when Perry and co-writer David Croft penned the pilot episode of You Rang, M'Lord?

You Rang, M'Lord?

You Rang M'Lord? is a British television series written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, the creators of Dad's Army, It Ain't Half Hot Mum and Hi-de-Hi! It was broadcast between 1990 and 1993 on the BBC...

, and invited Shane to play Alf Stokes. The show ran until 1993. In 1991, Shane was given his own series, Very Big, Very Soon, but it failed to achieve anything like the popularity of his other comedy roles, and ended after one series.

Later career

Between 1995 and 1997, he played Jack Skinner in two series of Oh, Doctor Beeching!

Oh, Doctor Beeching!

Oh, Doctor Beeching! is a British television sitcom written by David Croft and Richard Spendlove, which, after a broadcast pilot on 14 August 1995, ran for two series from 8 July 1996, with the last episode being broadcast on 28 September 1997...

. Subsequently, he has appeared most frequently in theatre, but has also enjoyed recurring roles in television series Holby City

Holby City

Holby City, stylised as Holby Ci+y, is a British medical drama television series that airs weekly on BBC One.The series was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama Casualty, and premiered on 12 January 1999...

and Emmerdale

Emmerdale

Emmerdale, is a long-running British soap opera set in Emmerdale , a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, Emmerdale was first broadcast on 16 October 1972...

.

Shane's performance of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" on Pebble Mill at One

Pebble Mill at One

Pebble Mill at One was a popular British lunchtime chat show broadcast live originally on BBC2 before transferring to BBC1. It was produced from the Pebble Mill facilities of BBC Birmingham, and uniquely was hosted from the centre's main reception area rather than a traditional studio...

in 1996 was voted the 72nd Funniest Moment on British Television in a poll

Opinion poll

An opinion poll, sometimes simply referred to as a poll is a survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of questions and then extrapolating generalities in ratio or within confidence...

 on Channel 4

Channel 4

Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...

 in 2004.

Shane has also appeared in variety theatre in popular tourist venues such as Blackpool

Blackpool

Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...

 in 2006, and in pantomime in Jack and the Beanstalk

Jack and the Beanstalk

Jack and the Beanstalk is a folktale said by English historian Francis Palgrave to be an oral legend that arrived in England with the Vikings. The tale is closely associated with the tale of Jack the Giant-killer. It is known under a number of versions...

in 2008. In 2008, he also guest-starred in an episode of the ITV drama series A Touch of Frost

A Touch of Frost (TV series)

A Touch of Frost is a television detective series produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV from 1992 until 2010, initially based on the Frost novels by R. D. Wingfield....

, playing the role of boatsman "Diesel Bob".

Personal life

Shane was married to Dory (died 2001; they had three daughters.

In May 2009, he entered hospital at Sheffield Northern General Hospital to undergo a life-saving heart operation, and made a full recovery.

Comedy

Year	Title	Role
1979 to 1980	Turtle's Progress Turtle's Progress Turtle's Progress is a British television series broadcast between 1979 and 1980.The series was an ITV ATV Drama, and dealt with a petty criminal named Turtle and his minder, "Razor" Eddie , who by accident come into possession of the proceeds of a major bank robbery...	Mashcan
1980 to 1988	Hi-de-Hi! Hi-de-Hi! Hi-de-Hi! is a British sitcom that aired on the BBC from 1980-1988. It was set in a holiday camp during the 1950s and 1960s and was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who had written Dad's Army and It Ain't Half Hot Mum. The title was the phrase used to greet the campers and in early episodes...	Ted Bovis
1988 to 1993	You Rang, M'Lord? You Rang, M'Lord? You Rang M'Lord? is a British television series written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, the creators of Dad's Army, It Ain't Half Hot Mum and Hi-de-Hi! It was broadcast between 1990 and 1993 on the BBC...	Alf Stokes
1991	Very Big Very Soon	Harry James
1995 to 1997	Oh, Doctor Beeching! Oh, Doctor Beeching! Oh, Doctor Beeching! is a British television sitcom written by David Croft and Richard Spendlove, which, after a broadcast pilot on 14 August 1995, ran for two series from 8 July 1996, with the last episode being broadcast on 28 September 1997...	Jack Skinner
1996	Two Minutes	Ernie

Drama

Year	Title	Role
2004	Emmerdale Emmerdale Emmerdale, is a long-running British soap opera set in Emmerdale , a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, Emmerdale was first broadcast on 16 October 1972...	Solomon Dingle
2008	A Touch of Frost A Touch of Frost (TV series) A Touch of Frost is a television detective series produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV from 1992 until 2010, initially based on the Frost novels by R. D. Wingfield....	Diesel Bob