- Russell Harty
Frederic Russell Harty (
5 September 1934 –8 June 1988 ) was an Englishtelevision presenter , with a distinctly camp turn of phrase; his name has been used asCockney rhyming slang for party.Born in
Blackburn , he attended Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School on West Park Road andExeter College, Oxford , where he obtained a first-class degree in English Literature. He worked as an English teacher atGiggleswick School , where one of his pupils wasRichard Whiteley , the future TV presenter and host of "Countdown".He got his first break in 1970 presenting the arts programme "Aquarius" that was intended to be London Weekend Television's response to the BBC's "Omnibus". A memorable programme involved a typically bizarre clash of cultures as Harty travelled to
Italy to unite on camera the singerGracie Fields and the classical composerWilliam Walton .In 1973 he was given his own series "Russell Harty Plus" on
ITV which placed him against the BBC's "Parkinson", conducting lengthy celebrity interviews. Parts of Russell Harty's interview withThe Who in 1973 were included in Jeff Stein's 1979 film "The Kids Are Alright ", providing some of its most memorable moments, such asPete Townshend andKeith Moon ripping off each other's shirt sleeves. The show lasted until 1981.In 1981, Harty moved to the BBC with an early evening celebrity chatshow, which gained some notoriety when he was smacked in the face by
Grace Jones on live TV. He had offended Jones by turning away from her to talk to another guest. This show ended in 1985.Harty began working on a new series "Russell Harty's Grand Tour" for the BBC in 1987; the few interviews completed before his death included
Salvador Dalí andDirk Bogarde . His partner from 1982 to 1988 was the novelistJamie O'Neill . He died ofHepatitis B in 1988 inLeeds , aged 53.Russell Harty was a good friend of the
playwright Alan Bennett , who talks about him and his family, in relation with Bennett's own family, in the episode "Written on the Body", taken from his semi-biography "Untold Stories".External links
*imdb name|id= 0367334|name= Russell Harty
* [http://www.rip-her-to-shreds.com/archive_videos_tv_russellharty.php Interview with Debbie Harry]
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