Who Do You Think You Are Kidding?

Everyone knows Arthur Lowe, be it for the bumbling, bumptious bank manager George Mainwaring, captain of the Home Guard in the classic sitcom Dad’s Army, for being the original narrator of the BBC’s beloved Mr Men animated TV series, or as the decapitated head on a bottle of milk outside Ian Hendry’s penthouse flat in the cult classic Theatre of Blood.

 

But what you might not know is that he also had a recording career.

 

Born on 22 September 1915, former barrow boy and office clerk Lowe’s acting career spanned almost 40 years: he was nominated for seven BAFTAs, and is – 40 years after his death – still one of the most recognisable faces on UK television.

 

He began acting professionally in 1945, after serving in the army during the Second World War. He worked in theatre, film and television throughout the 1950s, appearing in a number of serial dramas an several sitcoms, but it was not until he landed the part of lay preacher Leonard Swindley in the soap opera Coronation Street in 1960 that he became a star. He played the character until 1967, including appearances in two spin-off series, but in 1968 he was approached to appear in a new sitcom for the BBC about a home guard unit.

 

Originally called The Fighting Tigers, Lowe was not the first actor considered for the role; others included Jon Pertwee, Leonard Rossiter, and even John Le Mesurier, who would go on to define the role of Sgt Wilson. The production team originally wanted Lowe for the role of Wilson, but by the time The Fighting Tigers had become Dad’s Army the classic cast, known and loved to this day, was in place.

 

Lowe would play Mainwaring on TV until the show ended, after more than 80 episodes and one feature film. Radio and live stage adaptations would follow, and Dad’s Army has proved so popular that it is still being shown on TV today. Following the portrayal of Mainwaring, Lowe went on to star in other sitcoms, including Bless Me Father and Potter. As he aged he began a battle with narcolepsy, and his habit of falling asleep was often dismissed by others around him as drunkenness, as he had a fondness for a glass or three. He died, after suffering a stroke in his dressing room in a theatre in Birmingham, on 15 April 1982.

 

Luckily for us, alongside his stellar career in film and television, Arthur Lowe also made a series of recordings. The first came in 1952, when he recorded songs from the soundtrack of the stage show Call Me Madam. During the 1970s there was a series of albums and singles featuring his narrations of the Mr Men stories, but there were also a number of releases inspired by his portrayal of Captain Mainwaring, including the 1969 album Bless ‘Em All: Arthur Lowe Sings the Songs of WWII, 1971 45 Dad’s Army March, released to promote the film, and the disc I present for you today, the 1972 release How I Won The War (not related to the John Lennon/Michael Crawford film of the same name) backed with My Little Girl, My Little Boy. His final single was the 1980 RCA release And Yet, And Yet.

 

A brief aside: one of co-writers credited on both sides of How I Won The War is ‘Ridley’. This is not Arnold Ridley, the actor and playwright who appeared in Dad’s Army as the gentle medic Mr Godfrey, but Walter ‘Wally’ Ridley, A&R man at HMV, who also produced Ernie (The Fastest Milkman in the West), a Number One for Benny Hill, gave Morecambe and Wise their signature song Bring Me Sunshine and produced the 1975 Number One Whispering Grass for Windsor Davies and Don Estelle.

 

Enjoy!

 

Download War HERE

Download Little HERE