Following a heart attack, Barry Fantoni, who wrote the scripts for That Was the Week That Was and hosted A Whole Scene Going On for the BBC, passed away at the age of 85. He passed away on May 20 at his Turin, Italy, home. He also made a name for himself as a cartoonist in Private Eye magazine, which confirmed the news.
Ian Hislop, the editor of Private Eye and Have I Got News For You, paid tribute. “Barry was a brilliant multitalented writer, artist, and musician. From the beginning of the 1960s, he was a significant member of Private Eye’s comic writing staff, and I greatly enjoyed working with him when I later joined the magazine.
He was the voice of the legendary poet and obituarist E J Thribb for a long time and he was the author of formats, characters, and jokes that are still popular. So, Barry, farewell.
Fantoni, a man of many talents, established himself in British pop culture in the 1960s. He received a Wedgewood Scholarship to attend the Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts when he was 14 years old.
Early in his creative career, he became a key figure in the 1960s’ vibrant pop art scene in the UK.
Fantoni joined the writing team for David Frost’s renowned satirical program That Was The Week That Was, which he hosted. His sharp wit and writing abilities earned him a spot on the show.
He hosted the BBC’s youth-focused music and fashion program A Whole Scene Going in 1966, which he himself took to the stage.
The Spencer Davis Group and Pete Townshend were just two of the performers in the show, which became a cultural focal point for Britain’s under-21s.
Fantoni worked for The Times, a caricaturist for Radio Times, and later, a record reviewer for Punch magazine in the 1970s, in addition to his contributions to Private Eye, which he was a staple from 1963.
Sir Bruce Forsyth, DJ Tony Blackburn, and comedian Sir Ken Dodd are just a few of Britain’s most well-known figures whose likeness and spirit are captured in his caricatures.
After nearly five decades, Fantoni officially retired from Private Eye in 2010. He told The Independent, “It was just time to leave,” when he explained his decision to step back. I had already done it. The place is no longer even worth puncturing.
Follow Mirror Celebs on Threads, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok.
Source: Mirror
Leave a Reply