Lightly educated he got into entertaining during his wartime stint in the army. Despite suffering from appalling stage fright he continued to work after the war, mainly in theatre and revue, where he developed a series of catchphrases. He also got into radio, on the BBC Bandbox programme with a number of other ex-servicemen. His fame built steadily even as Howerd suffered a nervous breakdown in the early 1960s. One of his writers was Barry Took. He was boosted by success on That Was The Week That Was (TW3) in 1962 and on stage with A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1963-65) this led into regular television work, He was awarded a OBE in 1977.
He was famous for his seemingly off-the-cuff remarks to the audience, especially in the show Up Pompeii, which was a direct follow up from Forum.
Television
That Was The Week That Was (1962), Howerd's Hour (1968), The Frankie Howerd Show (1969), Up Pompeii (1970), The Frankie Howerd Show (1976), Howerd Confessions (1976), Up the Convicts (1976), Frankie Howerd Strikes Again (1981), Then Churchill Said to Me (1982), Frankie's On... (1992)
Selected Filmography
Further Up the Creek (1958), The Great St. Trinian's Train Robbery (1966), Carry on Doctor (1968), Carry on Up the Jungle (1969), Up Pompeii (1971), Up the Chastity Belt (1971), Up the Front (1972).