Comic Frank Carson dies aged 85

The comedian was a familiar face on television in the 1970s and 80s

Northern Irish comedian Frank Carson best known for the catch phrases “It’s a cracker” and “It’s the way I tell ‘em”, has died aged 85.

Carson had suffered from poor health and his family said he passed away at his home in Blackpool, Lancashire.

The comic rose to fame in the 1960s after winning talent show Opportunity Knocks three times. He went on to appear in The Comedians and Tiswas.

Plans are being made for a funeral in his home town of Belfast.

Carson had a successful operation for stomach cancer last year, but told the BBC his health had been a problem for some time.

“I have had a bad five years,” he added.

“First it was the pacemaker, then it was a new knee, then I had a hernia and then of course I had this problem.”

The family statement said Carson “husband, father, Gaga and comedian set off for his final gig today”.

“He went peacefully at his home in Blackpool surrounded by his greatest fans – his extended family. We will be taking him home to Belfast to lay him to rest and celebrate his joyful life.

“It’s quieter down here now. God help them up there!!”

Papal recognition

Born in Belfast on 6 November 1926 to a family of Italian descent, Carson was the son of a binman.

He grew up in the Little Italy area of the city and worked as a plasterer and electrician, and then joined the Parachute Regiment.

He served three years in the Middle East in the 1950s, before his attention turned to showbusiness.

Spotted for his stand-up work, he was a popular performer on Irish television before moving to England.

There, the comedian appeared in the TV music hall revival show The Good Old Days, before his appearances on Opportunity Knocks propelled him into the mainstream.

He went on to appear alongside fellow comics Charlie Williams, Bernard Manning, Mike Reid and Jim Bowen in the 1970s TV series, The Comedians.

A familiar face on British TV for the next two decades, Carson’s other shows included Who Do You Do? and variety show The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club.

He became known for his self-deprecating sense of humour.

In 1975, Carson signed up to play Paddy O’Brien in Spike Milligan sitcom The Melting Pot, but the show was shortly cancelled after the first episode was broadcast.

He later claimed Milligan had mocked his constant stream of wisecracks – by writing a joke of his own: “What’s the difference between Frank Carson and the M1? You can turn off the M1.”

Carson continued to work following a heart operation in 1976, and was a frequent guest on children’s series Tiswas.

He was also at home on radio, appearing alongside David Frost and Leslie Crowther on 1980s BBC Radio 2 show Pull The Other One.

In 1987, Pope John Paul II knighted Carson into the order of St Gregory at a private audience in Rome, in recognition of his charity work in Northern Ireland.

“He kissed me and said I was a wonderful man,” Carson later told the Daily Mail.

“I was in there for 17 minutes – the priests time it. President Reagan only got 11, so that was nice.”

Despite his showbusiness career, the comedian also served as Mayor of Balbriggan in North Dublin twice.

“It is my favourite place in the world,” said Carson, who spent his honeymoon in the area, “it always brings back happy memories”.

Following the ascent of alternative comedy in the late 1980s, the performer largely returned to his roots in stand-up, and was performing hundreds of shows a year as recently as 2008.

He moved to Blackpool in later life, where he became involved with the Eurosceptic UK Independence Party.

Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph last year, Carson said he wanted to be cremated and his ashes scattered around the Corporation Street in Belfast, where he grew up.

He leaves a wife, Ruth, daughter Majella and sons Tony and Aidan, as well as 10 grandchildren.