Redcoats Who Made The Big Time Back

Freddie Davies

Written by Rocky Mason

Freddie Davis was born in Brixton, London in 1937 and is the grandson of Music Hall comedian Jack Herbert.

After his National Service in the Royal Army Pay Corps he joined Butlins as a Redcoat in 1958. He became a Redcoat compere at Minehead and our paths first crossed at Butlins Cliftonville, in 1963. Freddie was anxious to get a start on the cabaret circuit and we phoned the Mike Hughes agency from my office. This resulted in Freddie leaving Butlins to start a professional career. He very soon appeared on Hughie Green's TV talent show "Opportunity Knocks". The public loved him and he became an instant success and he was snapped up by producers to appear on "The Tom Jones Show", "The Bachelors Show", "The Des O'Connor Show" and "Blackpool Night Out". This was followed by many top rating television shows in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

His act featured jokes about budgies and he eventually picked up the name 'Parrot Face' partly because of the faces he pulled on stage. He became known as Freddie 'Parrot Face' Davies, wore a bowler hat and became popular with young and old alike. The long-running children's comic "Buster" featured him on a comic strip, and he had his own BBC children's television series, "The Small World of Mr Tweet".

Freddie has recorded several children's albums and stories for children. He recorded a romantic ballad called "So Lucky" and it became a hit in Brazil, The Philippines, and South America and Freddie received a gold disc for record sales in Brazil.

After a spell touring the U.S.A he returned to the UK and began a successful acting career appearing in Heartbeat, Casualty, Last of The Summer Wine, Preston Front and two series of Harbour Lights (As George Blade).

Freddie's films include the 1995 classic "Funny Bones" with Hollywood legend Jerry Lewis and the popular comedian Lee Evans and 2004's "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Askaban."

Freddie wrote a contribution to my Butlin book "Gumshield to Greasepaint" part of which I have included here.

"Getting a start in show business is like getting a date with a woman you know will never look at you in a month of Sundays. It is easy when you've been out once: it's getting that first date that is hard work. Butlins gave me that chance. I went straight out of the Royal Pay Corps and into a Redcoat. How could I go wrong? I developed the art of talking to an audience by calling bingo and compering shows. In the 1970s I went back to Butlins as a guest star for their late-night cabaret shows, which I enjoyed enormously meeting up with old faces. I know I have been one of the lucky ones, only a few have my luck, but at least with Butlins one did have the chance to try one's luck. I owe my career to my roots, where I started and the people who shaped my thoughts, people like Frank Mansell, Wally Goodman, Dizzy Mansell and all the pals like Rocky who encouraged me over the years."

Signed Freddie Davies.