Jack Howarth MBE

 

 


Real name: Jack Howarth
Born: 19 February 1896, Rochdale, Lancashire
Parents: Bert Howarth (comic)
Married: Betty Murgatroyd
Died: 31 March 1984
Children:John

 

Played: Albert Tatlock (9 December 1960 - 25 January 1984)

Jack Howarth was born in Rochdale, Lancashire on 19th February 1896, the son of comic Bert Howarth. He lived at 96 Mitchell Street, Rochdale and was educated at Board Council School where a fellow student was Gracie Fields.

As a child he sold theatre programmes at the Theatre Royal, Rochdale and in 1908 at the age of twelve he began playing juvenile roles on stage. When World War I broke out in 1914 he joined the Lancashire Fusiliers and later transferred to the Bantams, for people under 6ft but was demobbed after just six weeks. Jack then ran a small cinema.

Jack then toured the country in the original productions of Dracula and Frankenstein and met actress Betty Murgatroyd. The couple married in Hull between a matinee and evening performance in July 1929. In 1935 he ran a theatre in Colwyn Bay, North Wales and during World War II he played most of the male roles himself. He stayed there until 1947. Jack then began appearing on television and soon took the role of Maggs in the radio soap Mrs Dale's Diary, a role he played for fourteen years.

Jack made over 100 television appearances and appeared in eighteen films including The Cure For Love (1950); Scotland Yard Inspector (1952); No Three (1953); Hobson's Choice (1953); Professor Tim(1957); and Spring and Port Wine (1970). In 1960 he auditioned for the role of Albert Tatlock in Coronation Street and he made his screen debut in episode one, transmitted on 9 December 1960. He appeared in over 1700 episodes, making his last appearance on 25 January 1984.

Jack was a reluctant subject of This Is Your Life in the early eighties and was awarded the MBE in 1983. He was Vice President of the Stars Organisation for Spastics and raised thousands of pounds from personal appearances for them. Jack lived in Llandudno and stayed at Manchester's Midland Hotel when working on Coronation Street. He died of kidney failure and Pneumonia in Llandudno General Hospital on 31 March 1984 at the age of 88 years. His wife Betty and son John were with him.

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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