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Sinatra tribute singer thrills audience 150 150 mhamer

Sinatra tribute singer thrills audience
Frank Sinatra tribute act Frank Forde compered the Manchester City FC Social Club in the 70s

Frank Sinatra tribute act Frank Forde compered the Manchester City FC Social Club

A Frank Sinatra tribute artiste and performer delighted the audience with his singing at Jimmy Cricket’s latest Golden Wellington Club night.

Manchester-born Frank Forde received a rapturous reception for his performance on another night of top music and comedy at St Vincent’s Parish Centre in Norden, Rochdale.

Jimmy said: “Frank compered the Manchester City FC Social Club for many years in the 70s. It opened from Wednesday to Sunday and had three acts a night.

“His vocal impressions brought him a big following among the patrons and he was on first-name terms with most of the players at the time.

“One of his best friends is Mike Yarwood who had his own television series and specialised in impressions of Harold Wilson, the-then Prime Minister.”

Frank’s website says he “had the pleasure of introducing and performing with some of the top stars”.

These included Bill Haley & His Comets, The Drifters, Matt Monro, Frankie Vaughan, Mike Yarwood, Bob Monkhouse, Ken Dodd, The Supremes, Tony Christie, The Three Degrees, Lulu and most of the TV comics like Freddie Star, Bernard Manning, Frank Carson and – of course – Jimmy Cricket!

To hear Frank singing at the Golden Wellington Club, go to the homepage of this website and click on the arrow in the middle of the screen.

Treading the Comedy Carpet 150 150 mhamer

Treading the Comedy Carpet
The Crickets' grandson, Tristan, points out Jimmy's famous catchphrase "And there's more..."

The Crickets' grandson, Tristan, points out Jimmy's famous catchphrase "And there's more..."

The Comedy Carpet in Blackpool celebrates the work of more than 1,000 comedians and comedy writers – including our very own Jimmy Cricket.

It features jokes, songs and catchphrases dating from the early days of variety to the current day.

Situated in front of Blackpool Tower, the 2,200 square metres of art contains over 160,000 granite letters embedded into concrete. It was created by artist Gordon Young and commissioned by Blackpool Council as part of the multi-million pound regeneration of the sea front.

Mrs Cricket took their grandson Tristan to visit the Comedy Carpet.

“It’s a fantastic idea, a superb piece of public art. But most importantly it recognises the undeniable contribution that comedians have made to Blackpool over the years as they performed in the resort’s much-loved theatres,” says Jimmy.

“My grandson was gently guided to where my name was located in the lengthy roll call of comedians that have been included within the Comedy Carpet.

“Then – and this must have been quite a feat given that this carpet stretches out over quite a huge land mass – he and grandma managed to located my catchphrase – ‘And there’s more…’ which is one of the many sayings and jokes listed on this carpet.

“I have been told by Mrs Cricket that this is quite a comedy hall of fame, as many comedians who have trodden the Blackpool boards have a joke or catchphrase presented on the carpet. I cannot wait to view the carpet myself!”