Bob Grant (actor)

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Wikidata image Robert St Clair Grant (14 April 1932Template:Spaced ndash8 November 2003) was an English actor and writer, best known for playing bus conductor Jack Harper in the television sitcom On the Buses, as well as its film spin-offs and stage version.

Early life

Grant was born in Hammersmith, West London, on 14April 1932, the son of Albert George Grant (1909Template:Ndash1985) and Florence (1909Template:Ndash2001), Template:Nee. He was educated at Aldenham School.Template:R

Career

Early career

Black and white photograph of Joan Littlewood sat on rubble outside the Theatre Royal, Stratford, East London

Joan Littlewood directed Grant, as Kitely, in Every Man in His Humour, at the Fourth International Season of the Theatre of the Nations Festival in 1960.

Grant trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, working in his spare time as a frozen food salesman and also (coincidentally, in view of his later career) as a bus driver.Template:R After doing national service in the Royal Artillery, he made his stage debut in 1952 as Sydney in Worm's Eye View at the Court Royal, Horsham.Template:RTemplate:Efn

Grant's first London appearance was in The Good Soldier Schweik at the Duke of York's Theatre in 1956, and he spent several years at the Theatre Royal Stratford East before getting the lead role in the musical Blitz! at the Adelphi Theatre in the West End for two years.Template:R In 1964, he appeared at the Piccadilly Theatre in Instant Marriage, a musical farce, for which he wrote the book and lyrics, with music by Laurie Holloway.Template:R

Grant had by now started to make film appearances, including Sparrows Can't Sing (1963),Template:RTemplate:Efn and the film version of Till Death Us Do Part (1969).Template:RTemplate:Efn He returned to the Theatre Royal, Stratford, in 1967, and starred in the satirical play Mrs Wilson's Diary as George Brown, the Foreign Secretary in Harold Wilson's Labour government; this play later transferred to the West End.Template:R After George Brown's resignation from the Government on 15March 1968,Template:R the character of George Brown was switched with Barbara Castle, as the plot required a cabinet minister.Template:R

In January of that year, Grant appeared as The Major in a six-part radio comedy drama The 17-Jewelled Shockproof Swiss-Made Bomb, featuring Peter Coke. It was written by Roy Clarke and produced by Alan Ayckbourn. The programne was transmitted on the BBC Light Programme.Template:R

On the Buses

Grant played the bus conductor Jack Harper in the television sitcom On the Buses, which ran for 74 episodes between 1969 and 1973;Template:R he co-wrote 11 episodes, and one special, with co-star Stephen Lewis (who played Blakey, the Inspector).Template:R It was an instant success with the viewers, and led to three feature films On the Buses (1971), Mutiny on the Buses (1972) and Holiday on the Buses (1973).Template:R The series was the peak of his career.

Later career

When On the Buses finished, Grant found himself heavily typecast as Jack Harper and struggled to get other parts. He toured Australia in the farce No Sex Please, We're British, and continued to appear in musicals and pantomimes. In 1975, he wrote and starred in a one-off pilot Milk-O alongside his On the Buses co-star Anna Karen, an attempt to reinvigorate his career by means of a similar character, a milkman who spent his time fighting off amorous housewives he was delivering to. However, this did not lead to a series, and Grant never acted for television again. In 1981, he appeared in a touring production of the once-controversial revue Oh! Calcutta!, accompanied by a chorus line of naked men and women less than half his age.Template:R

In 1980, Grant played the title role in John Arden's BBC radio adaptation of Don Quixote, with Bernard Cribbins as Sancho Panza.Template:R In 1986, he played a cockney detective inspector in The Red Telephone Box, a comedy thriller by Ken Whitmore on BBC Radio 4.Template:R On stage he later played Autolycus in Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale for the Birmingham Repertory Theatre.Template:R

In 1990, it was announced that On the Buses would be revived as a new show called Back on the Buses, and the entire cast, including Grant, Reg Varney, Stephen Lewis, Doris Hare, Michael Robbins and Anna Karen would appear on Wogan. Back on the Buses eventually fell through when funding from STV was not forthcoming. The project was to have been backed by STV's executive producer Bryan Izzard who had produced seven episodes of the series and the final spin-off film, Holiday on the Buses.Template:R

His last acting role was in Funny Money at Devonshire Park Theatre from July 1998.Template:R

Personal life

In 1954, he married Jean Hyett;Template:R the marriage would end in divorce.

In 1962, he married for the second time, to Christine Sally Kemp; they later divorced.

He was in a relationship with On the Buses guest star Gaye Brown, until he broke up with her to date (and eventually marry) Kim Benwell. When Grant married for the third time in 1971, with his On the Buses co-star Stephen Lewis as Best Man, there were huge crowds outside the register office. Consequently the couple had to abandon their hired Rolls-Royce and walk to the reception.Template:R A double-decker bus had been provided for the guests, but they had to walk as well.Template:R

Mental illness

In the 1980s, he suffered from depression, bipolar disorder and other mental health problems, because of a lack of work and his considerable debts. This eventually led to a suicide attempt. In 1987, he disappeared from his home in Leicestershire for five days; it later emerged that he had taken the ferry to Dublin intending to kill himself. "I was in a horrible state", Grant said during an interview with Pamela Armstrong after the event, "I just had to get out of the house. I left the house and thumbed a lift to Melton Mowbray, and then got a train to Birmingham New Street where I sat sobbing in a station buffet. Everyone ignored me. Normally I get asked in the street something like 'When you back on telly then?', but not this time".Template:R

Grant started to write his first note to his wife Kim, intending her to receive it after he had killed himself. "Tears streamed down my face as I wrote", he recalled. After hours of pounding the streets of Birmingham, Grant instead caught the ferry to Dublin, "It was a horrible night on that boat", he continued. "I'd been to Dublin before and it seemed such a nice place. I wanted to end it all, either by jumping in the River Liffey or ironically under a bus." Grant stayed at a guesthouse in Dublin to think things over. He called Kim, but there was no answer; she was at the time filming an appeal to find him. On the strength of the appeal, Grant eventually returned to England, where his absence had caused a small stir, which allowed him to gain a few more acting jobs.Template:R

A further long gap in employment led to another suicide attempt in 1995, this time by carbon monoxide poisoning. Grant was discovered just in time, slumped over the steering wheel of his car, which was filled with exhaust fumes, and admitted to hospital for treatment. He and Kim took a holiday to Goa in India to recover and on their return, it seemed things were finally going right again. They moved to a small cottage in Church End Twyning, about a mile south of Twyning, near Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire with the ambition of making a fresh start. Grant lived very reclusively and neighbours would only see him when he was trimming his hedge.Template:R

Death

His "new life" did not last, as once more substantial bills continued to arrive and work did not. In despair, Grant made a third and final suicide attempt in 2003. This time he succeeded, dying in his fume-filled car in his garage with a hose attached to the exhaust pipe, and was found dead soon after.Template:R

Selected filmography

Film

Film credits

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
Template:Dts	I'm All Right Jack	Card player	Uncredited: Four workers playing cards behind the pallets. Grant is on the left and nearest the camera. The other three card players were played by David Lodge, Keith Smith, and Kenneth J. Warren	Template:R
Template:Dts	The Criminal	Prisoner	Uncredited	Template:R
Template:Dts	Sparrows Can't Sing	Perce		Template:R
Template:Dts	Help!	Cameo	Grant's scenes were cut from the film	Template:R
Template:Dts	Till Death Us Do Part	Man in Pub		Template:R
Template:Dts	On the Buses	Jack Harper		Template:R
Template:Dts	Mutiny on the Buses	Jack Harper		Template:R
Template:Dts	Holiday on the Buses	Jack Harper		Template:R

Television

The following is a list of television programmes in which Grant was involved.

Television appearances of Grant

Year	Title	Episode	Station	Role	Notes	Ref.
Template:Dts	Quatermass and the Pit	The Wild Hunt	BBC One	Ted (Electrical technician Template:Mdash uncredited)	Series 1, Episode 5	Template:R
Template:Dts	Quatermass and the Pit	Hob	BBC One	Ted (Electrical technician Template:Mdash uncredited)	Series 1, Episode 6. He was electrocuted while laying a power cable inside the chamber	Template:R
Template:Dts	Sir Francis Drake		Independent Television	Clements		Template:R
Template:Dts	No Hiding Place	Solomon Dancey's Luck	Independent Television	Alexander Mudgeon		Template:R
Template:Dts	Armchair Theatre	A Jug of Bread	Independent Television	Ben		Template:R
Template:Dts		Appointment in Brussels	Independent Television	Antique Dealer	Series 3, Episode 11	Template:R
Template:Dts	MerryTemplate:HyphenGoTemplate:HyphenRound		BBC One	Professor Branestawm	Broadcast as part of the MerryTemplate:HyphenGoTemplate:HyphenRound children's education series	Template:R
Template:Dts	Softly, Softly	James McNeil, Aged 23	BBC One	Napier	Series 2, Episode 12	Template:R
Template:Dts	Z-Cars	PunchTemplate:HyphenUp: Part 1	BBC One	Ted Griffin	Series 6, Episode 157	Template:R
Template:Dts	Z-Cars	PunchTemplate:HyphenUp: Part 2	BBC One	Ted Griffin	Series 6, Episode 158	Template:R
Template:Dts	Mrs. Wilson's Diary		Independent Television	George Brown	It was scheduled originally to be broadcast on 23November 1968Template:Efn	Template:R
Template:DtsTemplate:NdashTemplate:Dts	On the Buses		Independent Television	Jack Harper	Grant appeared in all 74 episodes and as a writer with Stephen Lewis for a number of episodes from series 5 onwards	Template:R
Template:Dts	All Star Comedy Carnival		Independent Television	Jack Harper		Template:R
Template:Dts	Comedy Playhouse		BBC One	Robert Jugg	Written by Grant and Stephen Lewis. Comedy pilot for Series 9 of the Comedy Playhouse	Template:R
Template:Dts			BBC Two	William Peck	Series 2, Episode 7	Template:R
Template:Dts	This Is Your Life	Reg Varney	Independent Television	Himself	Series 10, Episode 25	Template:R
Template:Dts	This Is Your Life	Doris Hare	Independent Television	Himself	Series 12, Episode 7	Template:R
Template:Dts	All Star Comedy Carnival		Independent Television	Jack Harper	The On the Buses segment was written by Grant and Stephen Lewis	Template:R
Template:Dts	It's a Celebrity Knockout	Craven Cottage	BBC One	Himself		Template:R
Template:Dts	Comedy Premiere	MilkTemplate:Hypheno	Independent Television	Jim Wilkins	Written by Grant and Anthony Marriott	Template:R
Template:Dts	Daytime		ITV	Himself	Discussion show with Sarah Kennedy	Template:R
Template:Dts	Wogan	Interview	BBC One	Himself	Interview with the former cast of On the Buses about plans to revive the series as "Back on the Buses"	Template:R

External links

• Template:British Comedy Guide.
• Template:Trim/ Bob Grant at IMDbTemplate:EditAtWikidata