Mike Berry (born Michael Hubert Bourne; 24 September 1942)[1] is a British singer and actor. He is known for his top ten hits "Don't You Think It's Time" (1963) and "The Sunshine of Your Smile" (1980) in a singing career spanning nearly 60 years. He became an actor in the 1970s, and was best known for his appearances as Mr. Spooner in the British sitcom Are You Being Served? in the early 1980s.
Early life
Berry was born in Northampton. His parents grew up in Rhodesia but met in England and his mother was an amateur actress and singer. Six months after his birth his mother moved with him to North Wales for two years. The family then moved to Stoke Newington where he attended William Patten Primary School and passed his eleven plus exam, winning a scholarship to Hackney Downs Grocers' School. He left the school aged 16 without qualifications to become an apprentice compositor.[1][2]
Career
Music
Berry was a fan of skiffle and rock and roll music as a teenager and he formed his own skiffle group called The Rebels and then introduced electric guitars as Kenny Lord and the Statesmen. Joe Meek became their recording manager and producer, and he signed up a group called the Stormers as his new back-up band, naming the new group Mike Berry and the Outlaws.[1][2]
He had three hits in the 1960s on the UK Singles Chart; his most successful being "Don't You Think It's Time", reaching No. 6 in January 1963. His "Tribute to Buddy Holly" is also noted for having been banned by the BBC for being "morbid."[3] The hit singles were all produced by Joe Meek.[4] In 1972, his album Drift Away was released on York FYK 409. It contained "Drift Away", the first version of the song to be released, as well as "Take Me Home Country Roads".[5]
In the mid-1970s, Berry returned to the charts in the Netherlands and Belgium, as pirate radio station Radio Mi Amigo and Radio Veronica played his new record material, released on Dutch record label Pink Elephant Records. "Don't Be Cruel" made No. 14 on the Dutch Nationale Hitparade in May 1975.[6] His next record, a remake of his 1960 debut song "Tribute to Buddy Holly", hit No. 2 in October of that same year.[6] In 1977, "I'm a Rocker", released on Flemish record label Scramble Records (owned by Radio Mi Amigo DJ Norbert), failed to chart.
In 1980, he had a chart success in the UK, with "The Sunshine of Your Smile", a cover of a romantic song which was produced by Chas Hodges;[4] this had originally been written before the First World War and recorded by Jessie Broughton in about 1915. In 1985, his song "Everyone's a Wally" was included as the B-side to the video game by Mikro-Gen of the same name. His most recent CD was About Time Too!, recorded in Nashville, Tennessee with the Crickets and released on the UK label Rollercoaster Records, Berry's label of choice since their reissue of Joe Meek productions and new material from the 1990s. In 1988, Berry co-wrote "This Is the Kiss" with Mel Simpson which was chosen to be among the final eight songs in A Song for Europe (the UK selection vehicle for the Eurovision Song Contest) performed by Two-Che. The song placed second with 73,785 televotes.[citation needed]
In 2016, Berry auditioned for the fifth series of The Voice but was not successful.[7] The following year, in 2017, he went on a UK tour with The Solid Gold Rock'n'Roll Show, which featured Eden Kane, Marty Wilde, Mark Wynter, and the Wildcats.[8] In 2019, he toured again with The Solid Gold Rock'n'Roll Show, alongside Marty Wilde, Charlie Gracie, Nancy Ann Lee (Little Miss Sixties) and the Wildcats.[9]
Acting
In the 1970s, Berry developed a career as an actor and he appeared in many television commercials. In 1979, he was cast as the father (Mr. Peters) of the two children in the TV version of the Worzel Gummidge books, along with Jon Pertwee and Una Stubbs.[4] In 1981, he replaced Trevor Bannister's character (Mr. Lucas) in the British sitcom Are You Being Served? and stayed until the end of the show's run in 1985. Since the death of Nicholas Smith in December 2015, he has been the lone surviving actor from the show who played a major recurring character. Berry also starred in a series of commercials for Blue Riband in the 1980s.[10] His most recent film work was acting in Julie and the Cadillacs (1999).
Family
His brother was drag performer and activist Bette Bourne (1939-2024).
