Leeds venue honours Ken Dodd

'The War of the Roses is well and truly over!'

The City Varieties Music Hall in Leeds is to rename its auditorium in honour of Sir Ken Dodd.

The veteran comedian – who died in 2018 at the age of 90 – played there several times between 1953 to 1983.

His widow, Lady Dodd, pictured with her late husband, above, said: ‘If he'd known then that in years to come the city of Leeds would honour him by naming this glorious auditorium after him, he'd never have believed it. A man from Lancashire being honoured in Yorkshire - the War of the Roses is well and truly over!’

To mark the renaming, the venue will also be the first to screen the documentary The Real Ken Dodd: The Man I Love – on June 9

Narrated by Miriam Margolyes, the movie features Lee Mack, Harry Hill, Johnny Vegas, Paul O’Grady, Tim Vine, Les Dennis, and more – and true to Dodd’s reputation for long shows, runs for three hours.

And proceeds from he film will help fund the to build The Sir Ken Dodd Happiness Centre, a £15 million national comedy museum planned for the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool.

Thanks for reading. If you find Chortle’s coverage of the comedy scene useful or interesting, please consider supporting us with a monthly or one-off ko-fi donation.

Any money you contribute will directly fund more reviews, interviews and features – the sort of in-depth coverage that is increasingly difficult to fund from ever-squeezed advertising income, but which we think the UK’s vibrant comedy scene deserves.

Subscribe or donate here

Published: 12 May 2024