Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
No Kydding.. TV star memoirs found in loft
Belfast actor was prisoner of war
THE memoirs of a Belfast-born TV star have been published 40 years after he died.
Sam Kydd was a well-known actor between the 1950s and 1980s, starring in Passport to Pimlico, Reach for the Sky and I’m Alright Jack.
He worked alongside Tommy Cooper, Benny Hill and Dick Emery.
He also played factory owner Mike Baldwin’s father on Coronation Street.
The actor died of emphysema in 1982, aged 67.
After finding his unpublished autobiography in the loft, Sam’s son Jonathan has discovered more about his father than he ever imagined.
Jonathan was clearing out the family’s house after his mum died in 2012 when he came across his dad’s archives.
He said: “It was like a kind of time capsule. It was stuff about my dad I never knew.”
Jonathan, also an actor and voice-over artist, said he has “filled the gaps” in his father’s unpublished work, discovering what an “immensely talented man” he was along the way. He added: “You imagine, 20 million people are watching you, it’s a huge success. There were only three channels.”
The first of four books, entitled Be A Good Boy Sam, explores Kydd’s life between 1945 and 1952.
During these seven years, the actor starred in 119 films, and the book takes us through his efforts to get into acting after being a prisoner of war. Sam was born in Belfast and was “very proud” of his roots. He enjoyed watching Linfield FC as he lived near Windsor Park. A lot of his family worked at Gallaher’s cigarette factory.
Sam was captured at the beginning of the Second World War and was a prisoner of war in Germany until he escaped five years later.
He spent his time as a captive producing and performing plays.
He was offered repatriation after three years but refused to keep morale up in the camp.