FAMOUS THEN

JULY 29 1984: BRIAN CANT

From the Guardian Weekend, July 29 2000

There was something for every young viewer on this day in 1984, when the much-loved children's entertainer, Brian Cant, appeared on two channels at the same time. For those keen on mystery, there was ITV's Dramarama, in which he played an absent-minded major wrapped up in the world of detective work, and for the younger viewers there was BBC's PlayAway.

Not much later, PlayAway came to an end, as did Cant's role on Play School. 'All my regular programmes disappeared in one fell swoop,' he says. 'PlayAway had really run its course, but I was, rather unfortunately, considered too old for Play School.'

Cant moved back into theatre - his career began in repertory - and has since toured the UK with a number of plays, including Les Dawson's Run For Your Wife and Doctor In The House. Most recently, he appeared as Lord Caversham in An Ideal Husband, a new tour of which begins in September.

Cant also writes. Over the past three years, he has written and directed shows for Legoland and regularly reads his stories on TV's Teletubbies. He has also written a film script 'I ought really to turn it into a novel, but it's finding the time, and with three young children, that's not always easy.'

extract from the Guardian newspaper, 29/7/00, by Jane Crinnion. Picture credits: now: Simon Cherry, then: BBC

Also See: The Trumptonshire Web

At the Trumptonshire Web you will find everything there is to know about the three Trumptonshire series, from the original transmission dates to details of the latest CD release. Includes Brian Cant interview