TOMMY HANDLEY

'Tommy (Thomas Reginald) Handley' (17 January 1892 – 9 January 1949) was an English comedian mainly known for the BBC radio program ''ITMA'' ("It's That Man Again").
He was born at Toxteth Park, Liverpool on 17 January 1892 and died on 9 January 1949 from a brain hemorrhage.
He served in the British Army during World War I and went on to work in variety, and in the infancy of radio became known as a regular broadcaster. He worked with people such as Arthur Askey and Bob Monkhouse, and wrote many radio scripts, but it is the BBC comedy series ''ITMA'' for which he is best known. He later starred in the ''IMTA'' film in 1942 and in ''Time Flies'' in 1944.
In later years, he suffered with high blood pressure, the result of his driving commitment to ''ITMA'', and died suddenly on January 9, 1949. In a eulogy at his memorial service at St Paul's Cathedral, the Bishop of London said that "he was one whose genius transmuted the copper of our common experience into the gold of exquisite foolery. His raillery was without cynicism, and his satire without malice...".
The BBC decided that he was such a key figure of ''ITMA'' that the show must die with him.
On 7/11/2006 BBC Radio 4 broadcast a review of one of his partnerships - "Mr Murgatroyd and Mr Winterbottom" - 'The story of Tommy Handley and Ronald Frankau, a comedy partnership which had its heyday in the 1930s world of radio. There was no straight man, so the partnership was a rare one. Tommy was a fast talking Liverpudlian, while Ronald in contrast was upper class and Eton-educated. Presented by Nicholas Frankau, actor and grandson of Ronald.' http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/pip/cqry9/