Royston ClarkeOBE, usually known as Roy Clarke, is an English comedy writer best known for creating the sitcoms Last of the Summer Wine, Keeping Up Appearances, Open All Hours and its sequel series, Still Open All Hours.
In the late 1960s Clarke wrote thrillers for BBC Radio. The first in January 1968, The 17-Jewelled Shockproof Swiss-Made Bomb, featured Peter Coke, Ben Kingsley, Bob Grant and Anne Stallybrass. A couple of months later. The Events at Black Tor was a police thriller which also featured Bob Grant along with James Beck. Clarke was the sole writer of Last of the Summer Wine, which at its peak had over 18 million viewers. During its long run it featured Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, Brian Wilde, Kathy Staff and Dame Thora Hird in leading roles. Clarke was not involved in casting the actors, but he wrote the character named Clegg with Sallis specifically in mind. He also wrote a prequel, First of the Summer Wine, The Misfit, starring Ronald Fraser; Open All Hours, starring Ronnie Barker and David Jason; Keeping Up Appearances, starring Patricia Routledge; and Ain't Misbehavin'. He created and wrote the short-lived fantasy drama, The Wanderer starring Bryan Brown, for Sky One. He also created the sitcomOh No, It's Selwyn Froggitt! in 1974, writing the pilot episode, though Alan Plater wrote the eventual series. Clarke has worked in film penning the screenplay to Hawks and he wrote the acclaimed drama A Foreign Field. In 2003, Clarke adapted his Last of the Summer Wine chronicle The Moonbather for a world premiere performance at the Scunthorpe Little Theatre Club. In 2002, he received an OBE for his contribution to British comedy. In 1994, Clarke was granted the Freedom of the Borough of Doncaster; the highest honour the Council can bestow. He was awarded the lifetime achievement award at the 2010 British Comedy Awards. In 2013, he resurrected Open All Hours for a sequel series, Still Open All Hours starring David Jason. So far six series have been broadcast. In 2016, he created a prequel to Keeping Up Appearances titled Young Hyacinth. The one-off episode premiered on 2 September 2016 on BBC One.
