The Stage

Malcolm Vaughan

Published Friday 12 March 2010 at 16:05 by Richard Anthony Baker

One of Britain’s earliest pop stars, Malcolm Vaughan had a string of chart hits in the fifties, including his first record Ev’ry Day of My Life, reached number five in 1955. The BBC banned his follow-up release, St Therese of the Roses, because of its religious overtones, but it still got to number three in the charts. Other hits followed, including My Special Angel (1957) and More Than Ever (1958). All the while, Vaughan kept his pop career in parallel with a comedy act he had formed with Kenneth Earle a few years previously.

Born Malcolm Thomas in the mining village Abercynon, near Merthyr Tydfil on March 22, 1929, he began his career in an Emlyn Williams’ comedy in 1944. His singing abilities were noted in his next part in musical comedy Jenny Jones at the London Hippodrome. The critic James Agate said he was “allowed to talk too much and sing too little”. There followed a variety show, a role in a Thornton Wilder play directed by Laurence Olivier and the first stage version of the adventures of Larry Lamb, which had become immensely popular on BBC Radio’s Children’s Hour.

After National Service, Vaughan appeared in pantomime at the Empire Theatre, Bristol, where he got to know Ken Macey, one half of a double act. Macey, who changed his name to Earle, then teamed up with Vaughan and their act together lasted for 18 years. A turning point came in 1955 when they shared a bill at the Chiswick Empire with the bandleader/disc jockey Jack Jackson. So impressed was Jackson that he contacted Wally Ridley of HMV, who went to see them. Ridley was similarly impressed - not by the act, but by Vaughan’s singing. He signed him up but, sensing that this new career may not last, Vaughan insisted on continuing to work with Earle. In fact, for every pound that Malcolm earned in royalties, he gave ten shillings to Earle.

Earle and Vaughan made their first appearance at the London Palladium in The British Record Show in 1956. They were back there in January 1957 to take part in Independent Television’s first major success, Sunday Night at the London Palladium and, in November 1957, Vaughan returned on his own to join other fifties stars, including Dickie Valentine, David Whitfield and Ronnie Hilton, in the Royal Variety Show.

Earle and Vaughan dissolved their partnership in 1972 and Vaughan’s last professional work was in a summer show in Morecambe ten years later.

He died in Eastbourne on February 9 at the age of 80.