Spike Rawlings
Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Template:Use British English Template:Infobox football biography Spike Rawlings (birth name John Anderson Rawlinson; 7 April 1944 – 14 March 2006) was an English professional footballer who later became a TV entertainer after retiring as a sportsman.
Career
Football career
After playing for amateur side Corinthian Juniors, Rawlinson - who played as a centre half - made his professional debut for Bury during the 1964–65 season, making a total of two League appearances that season.[1] After the football season finished, Rawlinson moved to Barrow. During the 1965–66 season, Rawlinson scored two goals in nineteen League games for Barrow.[1] Rawlinson later played non-league football for Runcorn, and eventually returned to Barrow (although he never appeared in a first team League game for the club again), where he got his first taste of showbiz in 1969 - after the half-time entertainment failed to show up, Rawlinson stepped in and performed instead.[2]
Entertainment career
After finishing his career as a professional footballer, Rawlinson adopted the stage name of Spike Rawlings. His early career was spent warming audiences up on local TV show Those Wonderful TV Times.[2] Rawlings achieved fame by winning the 1976 edition of TV talent show Opportunity Knocks, which allowed him to have his own TV show.[2] Rawlings later had a small part on When the Boat Comes In, and he regularly acted in pantomimes.[2][3]
Later life
During the late 1980s and 1990s, Rawlings suffered from financial issues.[2] He died in March 2006 in hospital, awaiting a liver transplant.[2] A charity night, organised by his children Matthew and Catherine, was held in October 2006 in Rawlings' memory.[4]
References
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External links
- Template:PAGENAMEBASE at IMDbTemplate:EditAtWikidataScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Pages with script errors
- 1944 births
- 2006 deaths
- English men's footballers
- Bury F.C. players
- Barrow A.F.C. players
- Runcorn F.C. Halton players
- English Football League players
- Men's association football defenders
- Reality show winners
- English television presenters
- Footballers from Wallsend
- 20th-century English sportsmen