Les Dawson grave, former home & statue, Lytham St Annes
Join Mr H out and about with the pram in Lytham St Annes as he visits the grave and former home of the late comedian and TV star Les Dawson, before taking a look at a statue of the funnyman unveiled on the North Promenade in 2008.
Les Dawson’s daughter speaks about keeping his memory alive after losing him as a baby
Every Christmas Day, Charlotte and her mum Tracy visit the comedian’s memorial statue in the pier-side gardens in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, Les’s hometown. “On Christmas morning, we dress him up and put a hat and a scarf on to make him feel warmer,” says Charlotte, whose natural charm and ebullience has seen her move from make-up artist to appear on a series of hit reality TV shows. “Then we go to the chippy, have a pint and visit the tree I planted in the grounds of the church where mum and dad got married. At Christmas, we always have a little ceremony for him.” Charlotte has even told her boyfriend, former rugby player Matthew Sarsfield, that if he wants to marry her, he’ll have to ask permission from her dad’s statue. Frankly, there is no doubt that even after death, Les remains omnipresent – the family patriarch. At their Christmas Day meal, Charlotte, who is a refreshingly frank interviewee, says she brings a life-size cut-out of him to the table. “Ever since I popped out of mum’s womb, we’ve had this cardboard cut-out,” she laughs. “Dad used to put it in the window when he went away so no burglars would come in and so we have kept up with the tradition. “We have Christmas dinner at my sister’s house and we put the cardboard cut-out at the table although it can scare my little nieces. “But they even go past his statue on the way to school and always say: “Hi, grandad Les.” Les, famous for his facial expressions and deadpan character, made his debut on the talent show Opportunity Knocks in 1967 and became a prominent comedian and game show host on Blankety Blank and was a much-loved Panto dame. He was a heavy smoker and drinker and, on rare occasions, he wasn’t at work, he would drink and smoke heavily. Eventually, he suffered a major heart attack, ironically while waiting for the results of a medical check-up with Tracy at a Manchester hospital. “If I could have said one thing to him, it would have been to stop smoking, eat healthily and not to work as much,” says Charlotte. “He had a bit of a nightmare of a lifestyle and I would definitely have told him to slow down. But dad always lived by the rule that you could die tomorrow. “His philosophy was, ‘Don’t be worried about living healthily. If you want to get a meal from the chippy, go for it’.” Charlotte, who has made her own name in showbusiness, jokes that she has inherited her father’s work ethic – and his double chins! “I feel like I am a reincarnation of him. I love being on the stage and in front of a camera,” she laughs. “He passed his sense of humour and northern charm down to me. I’ve inherited his double chins and his work ethic. I worked non-stop in my 20s as a make-up artist before I landed parts in Ex On The Beach and shows like Celebs Go Dating. “Now I’m about to star in Celebrity Christmas Come Dine With Me. It can be hard when I get trolled on social media and I get comments like, ‘You’re not as funny as your dad.’ But I reckon he is looking dow