Editing Richard Digance

{{Short description|English comedian and folk singer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2014}}
{{BLP sources|date=November 2011}}
{{Infobox person
| name        = Richard Digance
| image       = Richard Digance at the 2010 Cropredy Festival (cropped).jpg
| alt         = Richard Digance at the 2010 Cropredy Festival
| caption     = Digance on screen at the 2010 Cropredy Festival
| birth_date  = {{Birth date and age|1949|2|24|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Plaistow, Newham|Plaistow]], England
| occupation  = Comedian, folk-singer, media executive
| website     = [http://www.richarddigance.com www.richarddigance.com]
| footnotes   = 
}}

'''Richard Digance''' (pronounced DYE-jance; born 24 February 1949)<ref name="AMG">{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/richard-digance-mn0000851689|title=Richard Digance &#124; Biography & History|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=23 August 2021}}</ref> is an English [[comedian]] and [[folk music|folk singer]].

== Early life ==
Digance was born in [[Plaistow, Newham|Plaistow]], [[East London]]. After his family moved to nearby [[East Ham]], he attended Vicarage Lane Primary School and then Thomas Lethaby Secondary Modern. After gaining two A-Level passes in [[English literature|English Literature]] and Modern British History, he moved to [[Glasgow]], where he studied [[mechanical engineering]] during which time he was inspired by [[Billy Connolly]].

== Career ==
Richard Digance was a member of British folk band, Pisces, who released an album called ''Pisces'' in 1971.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://therockasteria.blogspot.com/2020/07/pisces-pisces-1971-uk-beautiful.html|title=Plain and Fancy: Pisces - Pisces (1971 uk, beautiful acoustic folk, 2002 remaster)|website=Therockasteria.blogspot.com|date=13 July 2020|access-date=12 September 2024}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=November 2024}}

In the 1970s, Digance toured the United States. He supported [[Steve Martin]], whilst in Britain he also supported [[Jethro Tull (band)|Jethro Tull]] on two British tours, [[Steeleye Span]], [[Tom Jones (singer)|Tom Jones]], [[Elkie Brooks]], [[Supertramp]] and [[Joan Armatrading]]. From 1974 until 1978 Doug Morter, guitarist and singer with [[Hunter Muskett]], joined Digance as accompanist on vocals and guitar.

Digance began his television career on ''Sound of The City'' for [[Thames Television|Thames TV]], produced by [[Richard Newman (broadcaster)|Richard Newman]], in the early 1970s. This debut appearance was followed by ''[[The Old Grey Whistle Test]]'' and then the ''Today'' programme. ''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' was his only [[BBC Television|BBC TV]] appearance, except for appearing on ''The [[Ronnie Corbett]] Show'' years later, and then link-man for [[BBC Two|BBC2]] coverage of [[Cambridge Folk Festival|The Cambridge Folk Festival]]. He then became a regular contributor on ''[[The Six O'Clock Show]]'' with [[Michael Aspel]].

Digance was given his first television special in 1985 for Thames TV, ''A Dabble With Digance''. He was later signed to TVS in Southampton after being a studio warm-up act for [[Matthew Kelly]] and this first series of six programmes was screened on Thursday nights.

Digance left for [[London Weekend Television]] under [[Greg Dyke]] and filmed numerous Saturday night television specials for [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]. His guests included [[Status Quo (band)|Status Quo]], [[Brian May]], [[Elkie Brooks]], [[The Moody Blues]], [[Julia Fordham]], [[Chris de Burgh]] and many others. An additional series with [[Jim Davidson]], ''Wednesday At 8'', made him a popular guest during the period from 1985 to 1995. 

Digance made guest appearances on many programmes such as ''[[Surprise Surprise (British TV series)|Surprise Surprise]]'' with [[Cilla Black]], ''The [[Gloria Hunniford]] Show'', ''The Jim Davidson Show'', ''[[Des O'Connor]] Show'', ''Live From The Palladium'' with [[Roy Orbison]], ''Magpie'', ''[[Pebble Mill at One]]'', ''Saturday Night At The Mill'' and ''The [[Tom O'Connor (comedian)|Tom O'Connor]] Show''. Digance received a [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts|BAFTA]] nomination as 'TV Entertainer Of The Year'.{{when|date=November 2024}}

He was also a regular guest on the popular Sunday evening ''Live from... (Her Majesty's/the Piccadilly/the Palladium)'' variety series (produced by [[London Weekend Television|LWT]] for [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]) and also on ''Summertime Special'', a variety showcase of the 1980s.

He is known for his television one-hour specials, starting in 1985 with ''A Dabble of Digance''. ''Abracadigance'' was a series of four shows in 1988. The 1992 show, ''Richard Digance's Greatest Bits'', recorded at the [[Brighton Dome]], included some of his most popular routines from stage and screen.

Appearances on other television specials included ''[[The Prince's Trust|HRH The Prince of Wales Princes Trust Galas]]'' at the [[London Palladium]] with [[Elton John]] and [[Robin Williams]], ''All At Sea'', ''Christmas Eve Forces Special'' from The Berlin Wall and ''The Zeebrugge Disaster Concert'' at The London Palladium.

In the next decade he made two series for Carlton Westcountry TV visiting villages in a Morris Traveller, and using locals as guests. Digance also had a [[BBC Radio]] career through the 1980s with his show ''A Digence Indulgence'' which had a seven year run until the summer of 1987.

He has been a frequent guest in '[[Dictionary Corner]]' on the [[Channel 4]] game show ''[[Countdown (game show)|Countdown]]''.

In October 2003, he received the Gold Award from the [[British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors]] for his services to music.{{cn|date=November 2024}}

== Personal life ==
He has two daughters and two grandchildren. He now lives just outside [[Salisbury|Salisbury, Wiltshire]]. He semi-retired from live performance in 2021 and now only performs at his favourite theatres.

==Discography==
* ''England's Green and Pleasant Land'' (1974)
* ''Treading the Boards'' (1975)
* ''How the West was Lost'' (1975)
* ''In Concert'' (1975)
* ''Earl's A Winger'' (1977)
* ''Live At The Q.E.H.'' (1978)
* ''Commercial Road'' (1979)
* ''Homework'' (1984)
* ''A Digance Indulgence'' (1985)
* ''Richard Digance at the Fairfield Halls'' (1985)
* ''A Drop of Digance'' (1996)
* ''On a Serious Note'' (1996)<ref name="ReferenceA">The CD is undated. Date given by Richard Digance himself in an email dated 15 June 2020</ref>
* ''Best of the Transatlantic Years'' (compilation CD) (1997)
* ''A Varied Selection'' (1998)
* ''Guitar Tunes'' (1998) <ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* ''Richard Digance Compilation'' (2002)<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* ''The New Richard Digance CD'' (2002)<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* ''Back on Song'' (2005)
* ''Past and Present'' (2007)
* ''This is Great Britain'' (2013)
* ''The Toast of Christmas Past'' (2013)
* ''Golden Anniversary'' (2017)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.richarddigance.com Official website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041209171728/http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/talent/d/digance_richard.shtml List of credits at BBC Online]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081206171159/http://showusyourtitters.com/richard_digance.html Richard Digance on Show Us Your Titters]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Digance, Richard}}
[[Category:1949 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Plaistow, Newham]]
[[Category:English male comedians]]
[[Category:English television executives]]
[[Category:English folk singers]]
[[Category:Mercury Records artists]]
[[Category:Chrysalis Records artists]]
[[Category:20th-century English comedians]]
[[Category:21st-century English comedians]]
[[Category:Singers from the London Borough of Newham]]
[[Category:People from East Ham]]
[[Category:Comedians from the London Borough of Newham]]