Eddie Large

Large was born Edward Hugh McGinnis in Glasgow in 1941.[1] His father Teddy served as a Petty Officer in the Royal Navy during World War II and after he returned from the war the family moved to a tenement in Oatlands.[2] When he was nine years old, the family moved again to Manchester, where he attended Claremont Road Primary School[3] and a grammar school.[4] He played football as a schoolboy, becoming a supporter of nearby Manchester City which had its ground opposite his home,[5] and he maintained a lifelong devotion to the club. After he left school, he worked as an electrician and was a singer.[6]

Large met singer and guitarist Cyril Mead in the Stonemason's Arms pub in Timperley and they formed a double act following the reaction to Eddie's comic heckling of Cyril,[3] who switched to comedy. The duo then performed in northern clubs, turning professional in 1963.[7] As Little and Large, the two men began their television career on the talent show Opportunity Knocks winning in 1971[8] and starred in many television comedy programmes, including their own series The Little and Large Show[1] and the ITV series Who Do You Do? doing impressions and also performing as pantomime stars.[9]

In an interview in 2010, Large said that he and Syd Little had not spoken to each other for several years.[10] During the 2010–11 football season, football entertainment show Soccer AM produced comedy sketches with Peterborough footballer Mark Little, and Eddie Large, as the newly reformed Little and Large.[11]

Large worked on the after-dinner circuit[12] and, in the latter years of his life, performed some cameo acting roles in dramas such as The Brief and Blackpool.[9] His autobiography, entitled Larger than Life, was published in 2005.[13] In 2013, Large released his first single without Little, a parody of "Je t'aime... moi non plus" by Serge Gainsbourg entitled "Gee Musky... Moi Non Plus".[14]

Large married his first wife, Sandra Baywood, in 1965. The marriage ended in divorce, with Large marrying his second wife, Patsy Scott, in 1983.[15] Large lived in Portishead, near Bristol, with his wife Patsy and 26-year-old son.[9] He also had two daughters and three grandchildren.[1]

After being admitted to hospital in March 2002 due to kidney problems, Large underwent a heart transplant at Papworth Hospital, Cambridge in 2003 at the age of 62, and recovered fully.[9] Large was hospitalised for some weeks in late 2013 after tripping over a road sign near his Portishead home.[16]

Large died on 2 April 2020, aged 78 at Southmead Hospital in Bristol after contracting coronavirus while receiving treatment for heart failure. Large had suffered from kidney and heart problems for a number of years.[13] Large's funeral took place at South Bristol Crematorium on 24 April 2020, in Bristol, with Syd Little in attendance, who said that Large was his "best friend".[17]

• Eddie Large at the British Film Institute
• Eddie Large at IMDb