Tommy Cooper

Tommy Cooper

Date of birth: 19-03-1921
Date of death: 15-04-1984

Tommy Cooper was a true original - the trademark Fez, that distinctive laugh, the clumsy, bewildered delivery, and, of course, the catchphrases make him one of the most instantly recognisable of all comedy icons. He didn't have to say anything to make his audience laugh, his appearance alone was enough.

Like many others, Cooper's first foray into showbusiness was with the forces. After serving as an apprentice shipmaker he joined Horse Guards, from where he became part of the entertainments unit.

It was while entertaining the troops, at a Naafi show in Egypt, that the fez became part of his look. Legend has it that he simply lost the pith helmet he had intended to wear, and grabbed the waiter's hat instead.

The tale of how he adopted his maladroit stage act is equally apocryphal . He supposedly botched an audition as a serious magician so badly that everyone thought it was deliberately hilarious.

If the persona came about by accident, Cooper was meticulous in honing it for every last laugh. A notoriously demanding perfectionist, he would be the bane of those working alongside him.

He was a hard worker, too. On demob in 1947 he joined London's Windmill Theatre - the devilishly hard venue where so many comics learned their craft, performing to uninterested punters between the strip shows. Cooper reputedly performed up to 52 shows a week there.

Tours, TV and a role in Eric Syke's film The Plank followed as, throughout the Sixties and Seventies, he cemented his place in the public's affections. In 1969 he was voted ITV's Personality of the Year.

His appetite for work was so voracious that few were surprised that his death came on stage, doing what he loved. And such was his reputation as a relentless joker that when he collapsed during that televised show, most of the audience thought it was just another of his gags.

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Want to buy the robe Tommy Cooper died in?

Morbid memorabila is up for sale

The robe worn by Tommy Cooper when he collapsed of a fatal heart attack live on TV is being auctioned off.

The rather morbid piece of memorabilia was previously owned by fellow magician Paul Daniels.

Cooper's robeCooper was wearing it on stage at Her Majesty's Theatre in London on April 15, 1984, for a gag in which he produced items of increasing size from within the garment.

Fellow comic Jimmy Tarbuck was waiting behind the stage curtain to pass him the props through a panel in the robe when Cooper slumped to the floor. The audience continued to laugh, believing it was part of the act, until it became clear something was wrong. 

The TV broadcast cut to a commercial break, but the show continued as an ambulance rushed Cooper to Westminster Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival, at the age of 63.

Auctioneers Tennants of Leyburn, North Yorkshire, have placed an estimate of £4,000 to £6,000 on the robe, which was made to fit the Welsh comedian’s 6ft 4in frame,  when it goes under the hammer on July 23.

Daniels bought the garment at  auction, selling in in 2003 to the current vendor. It is accompanied by a signed letter from Daniels – who died in 2016 – confirming the its provenance.

Auctioneer Kegan Harrison, told the BBC: ‘We have very high hopes for it and hope it will find a good home to go to.’

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Published: 18 Jun 2025

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Agent

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