Eddie Leslie

Eddie Leslie, born Frederick Edward Leslie Whitaker on 11 October 1903 in Camberwell, London, was a British performer, screenwriter, and actor who worked across stage, film, and television. He died on 27 June 1975.

Leslie's Broadway career spanned from 1924 to 1932 and included appearances in several productions. His credits encompassed the revue Manhattan Varieties, the revue Belmont Varieties, the musical The Girl Friend, and the 1925 edition of Earl Carroll's Vanities.

In Britain, Leslie became closely associated with comedian Norman Wisdom after the two met while performing on the same variety bill. He appeared alongside Wisdom in six films: Trouble in Store (1953), Up in the World (1956), Just My Luck (1957), The Square Peg (1958), Follow a Star (1959), and A Stitch in Time (1963). Beyond acting in these productions, Leslie wrote the screenplays for five of Wisdom's films and contributed to two of Wisdom's early television programmes in 1952.

His theatre work in Britain included the role of Luther Billis in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific, staged at Glasgow's Alhambra Theatre in 1954 and directed by Joshua Logan. The cast included Patrica Hartley, Nevil Whiting, Helen Landis, David Williams, Robert Henderson, and Sean Connery.

Leslie's television work was extensive. In 1956 he appeared in the first episode of the television series Hancock's Half Hour, and he performed on television with Jimmy Clitheroe, Sid James, Freddie Frinton, Thora Hird, and Frankie Howerd, among others.