Stephen Lewis (actor)

Stephen Lewis
As Inspector Blake in On the Buses, 1969
Born	(1926-12-17)17 December 1926 Poplar, Middlesex, England
Died	12 August 2015(2015-08-12) (aged 88) Wanstead, London, England
Occupation	Actor comedian director screenwriter playwright
Years active	c. 1958–2007

Stephen Lewis (17 December 1926 – 12 August 2015), credited early in his career as Stephen Cato, was an English actor, comedian, director, screenwriter, playwright. He is best known for his roles as Inspector Cyril "Blakey" Blake On the Buses, and Clem "Smiler" Hemmingway in Last of the Summer Wine, and Harry Lambert in BBC Television's Oh, Doctor Beeching!, although he also appeared in numerous stage and film roles.

Early life

Lewis was born at All Saints Maternity Hospital in Poplar, Middlesex, England. He worked as a bricklayer, electrician's mate and carpenter and also joined the Merchant Navy before turning to acting. He was persuaded to go to a performance by the Theatre Workshop, under their director Joan Littlewood. It was common, after these performances, to invite members of the audience to meet the cast. He was invited to an audition, landed the part, and left the sea to become a member of the company.

Stage

Lewis made his West End theatre debut with the transfer of Brendan Behan's The Hostage in 1958. In 1960 he wrote Sparrers Can't Sing with the Theatre Workshop, which was made into the film Sparrows Can't Sing in 1963, starring Barbara Windsor, Roy Kinnear and Lewis himself, as well as his future On the Buses co-star Bob Grant. He used the name Cato in his early stage career, but after writing Sparrows Can't Sing he was urged by his agent to use his real name.

Television

From 1969 Lewis starred in his best-remembered role as the gruff inspector Blakey in the British sitcom On the Buses, which ran for 74 episodes and spawned three films: On the Buses (1971), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), and Holiday on the Buses (1973). He co-wrote 12 episodes with fellow star Bob Grant. Lewis was made up to look much older than his actual age with heavy make-up; he was only 42 when the programme began. A spin-off series, Don't Drink the Water (1974–1975), ran for two series. This featured Blakey retiring to Spain with his sister Dorothy (played by Pat Coombs). In the 1990s, Blakey (or a very similar-looking character) appeared regularly on Jim Davidson's version of The Generation Game on BBC One. In addition, Lewis played a coach driver with very similar characteristics to Blakey in a 2000 edition of ITV's 1970s-set sitcom The Grimleys. He also appeared in Manhunt in a rare villainous role.

Film

His film roles included A Prize of Arms (1962), Negatives (1968), Staircase (1969) with Richard Burton and Rex Harrison, Some Will, Some Won't (1969), The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins (1971), The Last Remake of Beau Geste (1977), Personal Services (1987), Out of Order (1987), and The Krays (1990). He also appeared in two British sex comedies, Adventures of a Taxi Driver (1975) and Adventures of a Plumber's Mate (1978).

Later television roles

In 1988, he took on one of his longest-running roles, playing "Smiler" Hemingway in the BBC sitcom Last of the Summer Wine. The character appeared in many episodes for 17 years, until ill health forced Lewis to leave the series in 2007. In 1995, Lewis played Harry Lambert, the signalman, in the BBC pilot of sitcom Oh, Doctor Beeching!, which ran to two further series. He appeared as a guest in sitcoms such as One Foot in the Grave, 2point4 Children, Father, Dear Father and The Grimleys. He also played the character of Alf, a comedy writer, in the second series of The All New Alexei Sayle Show (1995).

Death

Lewis died at the age of 88 on 12 August 2015, in a nursing home in Wanstead, London, where his sister Connie, aged 84 also resides. His health had been gradually declining over the previous few years. According to the manager of the nursing home, during his final years he would still deliver his famous lines from On the Buses, like "I'll get you for this, Butler" and "Get these buses out, Butler". His funeral was attended by Anna Karen, his co-star and only surviving member from On the Buses. At the funeral Karen described Lewis as "extremely talented and very funny man and wonderful to work with".

Partial filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1961	The Frightened City	Alf's First Thug
1962	A Prize of Arms	Military Police Corporal
1963	Sparrows Can't Sing	Caretaker
1966	Kaleidoscope	Truck Driver	Uncredited
1968	Negatives	The Dealer
1969–1973	On the Buses	Cyril "Blakey" Blake
1969	Staircase	Jack
1970	Some Will, Some Won't	Police Constable Arthur
1971	On the Buses	Cyril "Blakey" Blake
1971	The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins	Jarvis	(segment "Wrath")
1972	Mutiny on the Buses	the Inspector
1973	Holiday on the Buses	Cyril "Blakey" Blake
1974–1975	Don't Drink the Water	Cyril "Blakey" Blake
1976	Adventures of a Taxi Driver	Doorman
1977	The Fosters	Mr Wilberforce
1977	The Last Remake of Beau Geste	Henshaw
1978	Questo si che è amore	Policeman
1978	Adventures of a Plumber's Mate	Crapper
1982	Rep	Royston Flagg
1987	Personal Services	Mr. Dunkley
1987	Out of Order	Bus Driver
1988–2007	Last of the Summer Wine	Clem "Smiler" Hemmingway
1990	One Foot in the Grave	Vince Bluett
1990	The Krays	Policeman
1991	2point4 Children	Driving Instructor
1995	The All New Alexei Sayle Show	Alf
1995–1997	Oh, Doctor Beeching!	Harry Lambert
2004	Revolver	Various characters

External links

• Stephen Lewis on IMDb
• Interview with Stephen Lewis