By Ryan Paton,Steve Bagnall
Copyright dailypost
Ricky Tomlinson takes his responsibilities as a Freeman of Liverpool extremely seriously. The Brookside and Royle Family actor was bestowed with the accolade in 2014 and believes it’s his obligation to do everything possible to champion his beloved home city that has provided him with so much.
Speaking exclusively to the ECHO, he declared: “I absolutely love Liverpool and I love the job that I do. Liverpool has been very good to me because a lot of people forget that I was a political prisoner for two years. When I came back, I was living in a little village in Wales.
“There was no work there, so I had to come back to Liverpool. I learned my trade on the clubs and the pubs, got an Equity [membership] and that’s when I broke into film and met some incredible people. It’s been an amazing journey.”
Ricky, who lived in Wrexham for many years, has opened up on his amazing life and career, telling of the moments he had gun pulled on him and had to dive for cover in a bar when a shotgun was fired.
He remains eternally thankful for how the city stood by him during his darkest hour – which explains why he continues to demonstrate his backing whenever possible, including at occasions such as the Epstein Theatre’s reopening, where he chatted with the ECHO last week.
The iconic Scouser’s booming chuckle and vibrant character continues to command attention in every space he enters – making it remarkable to think he’s celebrating his 86th birthday. Regarding the key to his ongoing vitality and his commitment to appearing at local gatherings, he quipped: “I’ve got no option. My wife says, ‘You’re going and that’s it.”
He added: “I love the business. It takes me back to my childhood. I was a crackpot. I used to march up and down the gutter with a frying pan, and a spoon, singing. We’d only be about 7/8 and I’d have all the kids singing. It’s obviously been in me from when I was a kid.”
Ricky has come a long way since his humble beginnings in a two up-two down terraced house off Heyworth Street in Everton. He shared the home with his mum, dad and three brothers, when he learned first hand the importance of the community values that he continues to hold so dearly.
He said: “We were very lucky because we had electricity. 90% of the houses in the street didn’t have electricity. They had a gas lamp so, really, we were a bit posh. I know where I’ve come from and I’ve never forgotten where I’ve come from. And I’ve never forgotten my neighbours.
“My dad was the street handyman. His toolkit was a four pound lump hammer and a screwdriver. If anyone had a window broke, or a door broken, he’d be there [to help]”. He laughed: “He was a baker by trade, so didn’t have a clue.”
Ricky said his late mum used to tell him he’s lived a dozen lives – and it’s hard to disagree, as the actor has been on one of the most fascinating journeys since his early years in Everton. His aspirations to become a writer suffered a setback when he had an asthma attack on the day of his 11-plus exam, which put him down the route of becoming a tradesman.
His first career came as a plasterer, when he become heavily engaged in the trade union movement, and was imprisoned following the 1972 builders’ strike as one of “The Shrewsbury Two”. The actor describes himself as one of the last political prisoners in the UK and has since successfully cleared his name in the Court of Appeal in 2021.
However, the two year sentence and conviction he served had devastating consequences, as he lost his home and believes the conditions his friend, Des Warren, faced in jail led to his death aged 66 in 2004. At his lowest ebb was when Liverpool stepped up for Ricky, which is why he describes the city as meaning “everything” to him.
Throughout his time as a tradesman, Ricky also led another life by night as a comedian at cabaret clubs across the city. It is fascinating to be in the company of the legendary entertainer, as he walks through tales of his life in the social clubs of Liverpool, which sometimes put him face to face with shady characters from the city’s underworld.
From having a revolver pulled out on him in Huyton, to witnessing a police raid during a show at the Colombo Club, and even performing a routine at the lost bar in Seel Street when two men burst in and fired a double-barrelled shotgun.
He said: “We all dived behind the amplifiers. I remember lifting my head up and you could see the smoke rising.” When the gunmen left, Ricky said: “Tony Gallagher [the owner of the bar] jumped on the stage and went, ‘That’s it, in future, no one gets in this club unless they’ve got a tie on.'” Ricky laughed: “What good was that going to do?”
After honing his skills in Liverpool’s pubs, Ricky finally got his big break when he auditioned for an episode of the BBC anthology series, A Play for Today. He said: “I bluffed my way into the job. I couldn’t put my own name on the application form because I was not long out of prison. So I put a phony name on.
“The fella gave me an audition. A director named Roland Joffe, who I love. He’s a wonderful man. He said to me, ‘If I give you a few lines in this play, you won’t let me down, will you?’ I was the lead.
“It went on the television, a three hour play called United Kingdom and it’s never been shown again. It’s about civil unrest. The director tried to buy it, but they won’t show it again.”
The play marked Ricky’s official foray into showbusiness as Roland, who went on to direct classics such as The Killing Fields and The Mission, invited the Scouser to his leaving party when he was about to head to America to launch his career in directing movies across the Atlantic.
He said: “He was having it at the Groucho Club. The beauty of that is, if you’re invited, then you can’t pay for a drink so Roland was paying for everything. I was the only person there I didn’t know. Everyone was someone in the movie game.”
Ricky was enjoying a pint of mild, on account of the Scousers behind the bar, during the toasts in honour of the director, when he spotted a man who looked a little bit lost. He said: “I thought I’m going to have a word with this little fella and just see if he was alright and ask are you in showbusiness.”
Before he got there, Roland stepped in and introduced Ricky to the “little fella”, who was none other than Robert De Niro. Recalling the moment with the ECHO, Ricky laughed: “Is Robert De Niro in showbusiness?” As he always does, the Royle Family actor left an impression on the iconic film star after their encounter, as he told the ECHO: “Apparently, he’s a big boxing fan De Niro.
“There was a big boxing night in Leeds and De Niro came. A few lads from Liverpool went and he apparently said to them, ‘Give my regards to Rick’.”
From having to lie on his initial audition, Ricky soon got his first TV role as Bobby Grant in Brookside and has went on to enjoy a legendary career playing iconic roles that will always be remembered, such as Jim Royle and Mike Bassett.
Throughout his rise to the top, Ricky has never lost sight of his roots in his city and told the ECHO he feels lucky to have had the life he’s had. Just as his dad did when he helped the neighbours out in Everton, Ricky will always give back to others – and he’s grateful to be able to do it on a much larger scale.
He said: “I’ve been lucky because I’ve made a few bob. My weak link is kids. I can’t bear to see anyone ill treating them. I gave a million pound to Alder Hey, £200,000 to the Countess of Chester. There’s a little local club not far from here called the Florence Institute.
“I’ve got a caravan in North Wales. They have full access to that for kids so they can have a full holiday. You want to see the letters I get from kids who have been the fields and seen a cow, and a horse for the first time. That should be a right.”
He may have just turned 86, but Ricky laughs he is still in his prime and has no intentions of slowing down soon as he wants to leave a legacy for his family. He said: “I can’t. I’ve got grandkids, great grandkids and I’ve got to make sure there’s a few bob for them when I snuff it.”
He also remains as passionate as ever about his craft as an entertainer, as he will reprise his role as Bobby Grant in the Brookside crossover special next month – and is also looking forward to returning to the stage this Christmas with close collaborator, Asa Murphy, on Irish Annie’s.
However, it’s his other “job” as a Freeman of Liverpool that remains Ricky’s main source of inspiration, as he vowed to continue to do his duty in representing the city he adores in his next chapter. He said: “Really I’m an ambassador for Liverpool and I make sure I do my job.
“It doesn’t matter where I go, I tell them how good Liverpool is. If you’ve never been to Liverpool, you’ve got to come. If you like music, dancing or having a laugh, get to Liverpool.”
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