Dustin Gee

Dustin Gee (24 June 1942 - 3 January 1986) was an English impressionist and comedian most famous for his double act with fellow comic, Les Dennis.

Born Gerald Harrison in York, Gee lived in Manchester, where he studied at an art college. He later took a job as an artist - working mainly with stained glass, whilst playing in a rock band in the evenings. The group were called 'Gerry B and the Hornets' before they altered the name to 'Gerry B and the Rockafellas'. When the group disbanded, Gee became a compere, then later a comedian.

After 20 years in show business, he got his break on Who Do You Do?, a mid seventies ITV showcase for mimics, where they impersonated a host of stars, including Robert Mitchum and Mick Jagger. Both went on to appear on Russ Abbot's Madhouse.

Dustin also branched out on his own when he appeared on ITV's new talent show, Success, alongside a sixteen year old Lisa Stansfield making her TV debut.

But he made his biggest impact on BBC1's The Laughter Show. The first series also featured Hale and Pace and British comic Roy Jay, but later series concentrated exclusively on Gee and Les Dennis. This was the show that included their most famous impression, Coronation Street's Vera Duckworth (played by Gee) and Mavis Riley (played by Dennis).

Gee & Dennis were also the act that had to follow Tommy Cooper, when he collapsed and died onstage on ITV's Live From Her Majesty's in April 1984.

In 1986 Dustin Gee succumbed to a fatal heart attack after suffering from cardiomyopathy at the age of 43, whilst working in pantomime with Dennis in Southport, Merseyside. Basil Soper the show's company manager revived him and Roger Edwards (his PA) accompanied him to Southport General Hospital where he passed away three days later surrounded by his family. It was later revealed he'd had a heart condition all his life and had been born with an enlarged heart, which eventually gave up after his misuse of poppers.

Skirting Board Incident

On Thursday 17th March 1983 Dustin Gee purchased four packs of 6 foot skirting board from Wickes Building Supplies on Stirling Road, York. Gee was helping a friend with a DIY project at his home on Hall Rise in the nearby village of Haxby. Gee inexpertly lashed the packs of skirting board onto the roof of his brand new Austin Maestro. Gee drove down the A1237 towards his friend's house. However, as he turned left at the roundabout onto Haxby Road, the packs of skirting boards slid loose and caused two other vehicles to collide. Local Magistrates subsequently fined Gee and endorsed his driving licence with penalty points. Gee spoke to the local press about the incident and said, “I’m not a very practical sort of person. Today, I learnt a lesson. Tomorrow I'll learn how to tie a proper knot.”.

External links

• Dustin Gee at the Internet Movie Database
• Dustin Gee at BBC Comedy Guide
• Article on British Saturday night television, has some information on Success

References