Ronnie Barker in August 2017 by Ben Elton. Elton's lecture focused on the future of the British sitcom. Ronnie Barker Ronald William George Barker, (25 September 1929 – 3 October 2005) was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as "Porridge", "The Two Ronnies", and "Open All Hours". Barker began acting in repertory theatre and decided he was best suited to comic roles. He had his first success at the Oxford Playhouse and in roles in the West End including Tom Stoppard's "The Real Inspector Hound". During this period, he was in
Play UK the closure of ITV Digital in July 2002; also it could not compete with MTV. Play UK's comedy programming was then moved to UK Gold (now Gold). The majority of the music programmes broadcast (quizzes, interviews and compilations) on Play UK were produced by themselves. Play UK also used to air reruns of "TOTP2", which were originally broadcast on BBC Two. Most of the comedy programming on Play UK had already been broadcast on the BBC's channels. Play UK also produced original comedy programming and, later on, broadcast American comedy and animation. Play UK Play UK was a television channel