Sid James, one of Britain's most beloved comedy stars, died a harrowing death on stage in front of an audience who believed his collapse was part of the act. The 62-year-old actor suffered a massive heart attack while performing The Mating Season at the Sunderland Empire Theatre, just four days after wrapping filming on the sixth series of Bless This House.
His co-stars, Olga Lowe and Audrey Jeans, initially assumed he was playing a practical joke. It was only when he failed to respond to their ad-libbing that they realised something was seriously wrong. The stage manager ran to the wings and asked for the curtain to come down, leaving the audience baffled and unaware of the tragedy unfolding before them.
From Johannesburg to Stardom
Born Solomon Joel Cohen in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1913, Sid James was the second son of Jewish vaudeville performers Reina and Lazarus. Known as Sollie in his younger years, he changed his name to Sid James when he started school following confusion with his cousin, who had a similar name. His new surname was inspired by his parents' stage names.
After leaving school, Sid had an array of jobs including diamond cutter, dance teacher and boxer, but his main job was as a hairdresser at the salon his mother owned. It was while working as a hairdresser that he met his first wife, Berthe Delmont. His father-in-law bought him a salon, but just 12 months into his life as a businessman, Sid knew the life of an actor was for him and he joined the Johannesburg Repertory Players.
Carry On Success and Health Struggles
Sid's first film roles were in the crime dramas Night Beat and Black Memory before his first comedy film role came along in The Lavender Hill Mob in 1951. The film is ranked as the 17th best out of 100 British films by the British Film Institute. He also worked with Tony Hancock, who wrote a part for him in the BBC Radio series Hancock's Half Hour, where he played a petty criminal called Sid James.
In 1960, Hancock ended their working relationship, and Sid began another key part of his career when he was cast in the first of the Carry On films, Carry On Teacher. Sid starred in 19 Carry On films, receiving top billing in 17 of them. While filming Carry On Doctor, he suffered a massive heart attack, and most of his scenes in the film show him in a hospital bed owing to his real-life health problems.
Death and Aftermath
Olga Lowe later said: "The doctor called the ambulance and I believe he died on the way to hospital. It was awful. Ten minutes earlier, he had been the same old laughing Sid. After the curtain came down we sat in the dressing room, not knowing what to say. We were all so shocked."
Sid James was taken to Sunderland General Hospital by ambulance, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. He was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium. Following his death, Barbara Windsor paid tribute to the star, saying: "It (touring to provincial theatres) was everything Sid hated. He liked his films and his television. The only time he did theatre was if he could have some lovely location. Everyone said to him: Don't go up to Sunderland. He looked so ill, so unhappy. He went up to Sunderland and the rest is history."
Several people have claimed to see something that could be his ghost haunting the boards where he once performed. Graham Lay was watching Mamma Mia in front row seats at Sunderland Empire in 2017 when he saw what he later described as a "supernatural light". He said: "It was really bizarre. I sat there and decided to take a picture as I'd never had seats right at the front before so hadn't been able to see into the orchestra pit. As I was taking the picture I noticed these two balls of light flashing and moving really, really fast. It was very weird as you couldn't see it with your naked eye, only through the camera, and they were moving in a way that wasn't natural – nothing like a moth or any sort of insect. It definitely wasn't fluff or dust – there's no logical reason."
