In accordance with Chris Sievey's own wishes before his untimely death, we pledge to preserve his legacy by producing high-quality, authentic 'official' merchandise that is made with love, integrity and attention to detail. Was he bitter? As I walked in he started playing a tight soul-funk riff with seeming nonchalance, but I understood it to be an act of aggression. I picked it up. Frank sometimes had a sidekick in the form of "Little Frank", a hand puppet who was otherwise a perfect copy of Frank. One of them produced a ball, the audience split into teams and, ignoring us, played a game. [36], Frank performed at Bloom Festival in 2007 and Kendal Calling in 2008. Frank Sidebottom Talk To Frank Drug Parody Comedian Chris Sievey Unofficial Unisex 3/4 Sleeve Baseball Tee Available In 7 Colour Choices ad vertisement by CustardGB. They released 2 further cassettes, "Manchester Plays the Freshies" and "London Plays the Freshies", these were both essentially radio interviews with local and national DJs and concert recordings from each city. I said. I let out a gasp. [10] In the documentary Being Frank, Martin Sievey (Chris's brother) states this was made using plaster of Paris.[11]. The arrival of a decent pay cheque allowed him to indulge his worst habits. I asked. Sievey was a creative powerhouse, yet as with so many artists, he had extreme Peter Pan qualities. The premise was simple but hilariously effective an aspiring suburban pop star who still lived at home with his mum, and whose chirpy ambition only served to magnify an innate lack of talent. In 1987 I was 20 and the student union entertainments officer for the Polytechnic of Central London. Afterwards he was signed to Marc Riley's In Tape label, on which he would release two albums and four EPs.[17]. In memory of Chris Sievey, 1955-2010. The exhibition covered both Frank Sidebottom as well as Sievey's other creative endeavours. Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story is in cinemas now. I'd walk on stage, alone, into a spotlight, and play a powerful C with my left forefinger. Among the singles and extended EPs were Frank's Firm Favourites and The Magic of Freddie Mercury & Queen, for which Frank struck a cover pose in white vest and thick black moustache. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. Mick Middles, who wrote Chriss authorised biography, said: Famously, Frank and Chris had two separate phones. The longest-serving line-up, however, comprised Barry Spencer (guitar), Rick Sarko (bass, ex-Ed Banger & The Nosebleeds) and Mike Doherty (drums, ex-Smirks) and lasted from 1980 until 1982. [54] After it was reported that Sievey had died virtually penniless and was facing a pauper's funeral provided by state grants,[55] a grassroots movement on various social networking websites raised 6,500 in a matter of hours. They also have their own children, who appear to be very much chips off their grandfathers comedyblock. He was wondering if I'd write something about my time in the band to help him with the comeback. He had first spotted the future Royle Family star working in a bar. Detailsatwww.beingfrank.film, The exhibition Bobbins: Frank Sidebottom & Chris Sievey, containing some of Chriss huge personalarchive, is at Manchester Central Library until the end of April, The Telegraph values your comments but kindly requests all posts are on topic, constructive and respectful. He is known for What's Up Doc? Chris hung up Frank'shead in the late 1990s, by which time he was drinking too much, dealing witha large unpaid tax bill and struggling to find direction. "But I don't know any of your songs," I said. He was probably spending it on prostitutes.. Pepper Knew My Father, which featured other acts like Michelle Shocked, the Christians, Sonic Youth, Billy Bragg, Hue and Cry, the Fall and Wet Wet Wet. EMI were interested and offered him an interview. The all-star supporting cast includes Chris O'Dowd as a volatile butcher, M. Emmet Walsh as a suicidal writer, Kelly Reilly as the priest's daughter who feels he abandoned her, and Domhnall. A Timperley village councillor, Neil Taylor, started his own fund-raising campaign for a memorial statue Frank cast in bronze. Young Sievey, born in 1955, grew up in the Greater Manchester area of England, loved the Beatles (nothing surprising there), was . Specifically, Chris wondered, would Chris be in it? [32] After the first two seasons, Sievey left the show. In February of 1982, Sievey abandoned the quartet lineup of the Freshies, and reformed it as a duo with Barbara O'Donovan. (1992), No 73 (1982) and TX (1985). I never understood why Chris sometimes kept Frank's head on for hours, even when it was only us in the van. Chris Sievey was a musician, songwriter, artist, comedian, filmmaker, performance artist and wayward genius who created an alter ego that he grew to resent. It is understood that his girlfriend called an ambulance and he was taken to Wythenshawe Hospital, where his death was confirmed.Manchester Evening News, 22 June 2010. Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story is finally released in selected cinemas and as a digital download on 29 March, and audiences can see for themselves what's kept Sullivan so busy. Do you have any pamphlets?" There were 50,000 people in the crowd. His greatest creation, the mysterious Frank Sidebottom, became a star - a manic, insane . Despite the minimal chart success from these EPs, Frank had developed a cult following that allowed him to attract audiences upwards of 500 in Northern England and London. So I clicked another link: Stars lead tributes as Frank Sidebottom comic dies at 54Chris Sievey, famous as his alter ego Frank Sidebottom, was found collapsed at his home in Hale early yesterday. By this point he had split from Paula and had moved in with girlfriend Michelle Pouncey, who he dated for six years. And towards the end of the crowd-funded film, which was a hit at last years South By Southwest Festival in Texas, we see Frank singing: I hope when Im dead Ill be fantastically famous.. Talking to his ex-wife Paula and children Stirling, 40, and Asher, 39 (their younger brother Harry also a talented musician, like his father - was killed in a road accident in 2017 aged 24), you realisehow much Sievey needed their support. [2] Richard was not the only proper musician Chris brought in. A single decision that starts everything lumbering down the wrong path, speeding up, careering wildly, before lurching to a terrible stop in a place where nobody is interested in hearing your songs any more. "I'm Richard," he said. "I'm Mike Doherty. Sidebottom was fully inhabited by Sievey. [16] It was likely the failure of his third Zonophone EP, Sci-Fi, that caused him to be dropped by the label. I thought he was crazy, not my type at all. Ten years later I was in the park with my son when the phone rang. While many in England had wondered who was inside of the giant paper mache head of Frank Sidebottom, a cultural sensation during the '80s and '90s who might be best known now on American shores as an inspiration for the 2014 Michael Fassbender comedy "Frank," director Steve Sullivan was far more interested in what was going on inside of it after becoming familiar with Chris Sievey, the . Audience Score Fewer than 50 Ratings. This guywith long hair, red knee-length boots and a mad suede jacket walked in, and everyone was goingWho is this?," she remembers. His popularity peaked in the early 1990s, with the TV series Frank Sidebottom's Fantastic Shed Show and guest slots on the children's Saturday morning ITV show No 73. But this new band: I felt like I was in a college sports team. It wasnt. Chris filled me in on the past 10 years. Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story. I completely believe that Chris was born as two people." When he'd remove the peg after a long stint I'd see him wince in pain. Sievey's funeral was held on 2 July 2010 at Altrincham Crematorium. This album introduced the character Mrs Merton, portrayed by Caroline Aherne. Trivia (4) British comedian best known for the giant papier mache head cast that he wore while performing. [9], The character was instantly recognizable by his large spheroidal head, styled like an early Max Fleischer cartoon. Liz Whitaker, Brian Little, Nick Herbert & Sarah Ball, Frank Sidebottom's Proper Telly Show (Season 1), Frank Sidebottom's Proper Telly Show (Season 2), The Most Annoying Pop Songs. We Hate to Love: Episode 3, Gareth Cornick, Nick Cory Wright, Richard Dean, Chris Hill, Kevin Hylands, Lindsay Jex, Kate Morey & Lyn Rowett, Side A is a song, Side B is a computer program, Demo mini-album, sent to fan club members, With the Freshies; promotional EP meant to promote, Collection of unreleased recordings sold through, Collection of telephone calls answered by Frank. Sievey's life was a fantastical, subversive piece of performance art. By the end of the day it was 1,632 donors raising a total of 21,631.55. Chris Sievey Paula Sievey, nee Dean Stirling John Sievey (born 1980) is the second child of Chris Sievey, creator of Frank Sidebottom, and his wife, Paula. [26][27] He later recorded "Flying" for another Beatles tribute album, Revolution No. However, the TV was repossessed, and the family ended up cooking burgers over aBunsen burner after the electricity was turned off when the bill wasnt paid. Sievey subsequently cut various demos, mailing them to record companies and receiving bushels of rejection slips. A poignant reminder of one of Chris Sievey's (AKA Frank Sidebottom) finest moments. The EP reached 97 in the UK Charts on 31 August 1985 before dropping completely. Paula revealed: He made me a pair of papier-mch boobs and head for a party. But and Chris and I shuffled awkwardly around the question what would the film actually be about? It is the story of two men . [20], In 1987, Frank released his first album, a spoken word cassette called 'Fantastic Tales', released through his own 11:37 label. But he did leave a league of fans, whoclubbed together to crowdfund a send-off, with enough money left for a memorial concert. In the late 1990s he hung up the papier-mch head and soon found himself jobless and bankrupt. Christopher Mark Sievey (25 August 1955 21 June 2010) was an English musician, comedian and artist known for fronting the band the Freshies in the late 1970s and early 1980s and for his comic persona Frank Sidebottom from 1984 onwards. Franks Fantastic Shed Show introduced Caroline Aherne to the world, with her playing the nosey, grey-haired Mrs Merton a character Chris claimed he had invented. Like all of his demos, the songs failed to land a record deal so Chris set up his own label called Razz in 1974. Throughout the rest of the 1990s, Frank's television appearances would lessen, not attaching himself as a regular cast of anything, but making occasional appearances. A biography of Chris Sievey was written by Manchester author Mick Middles,[64] and was published in November 2014.[65]. His wife and children try to join him, but are separated, and the children grow up amid suffering and oppression.David Levene. Chris would be Frank for such long periods the clip had deformed him slightly, flattened his nose out of shape. And now our Frank film directed by Lenny Abrahamson and starring Michael Fassbender, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Domhnall Gleeson, is going to be premiered at the Sundance film festival. Based on the life of Chris Sievey, who donned a similar disguise to become his alter ego, Frank Sidebottom . For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, New documentary Being Frank sheds light on Chris Sievey's troubled life behind the mask, Chris Sievey died aged 54 from cancer in June 2010, Frank Sidebottom with Caroline Aherne as Mrs Merton in 1992, Frank pictured with Corrie's Barbara Knox, Chris Sievey's band The Freshies' closest attempt to chart success was reaching number 51 in 1981, Frank Sidebottom Oh Blimey Big Band's van driver was Chris Evans, Chris would keep his Frank Sidebottom on off stage and would not respond if someone called him 'Chris', Chris cheated on his wife with groupies who would ask to have sex with him while he wore Franks head, Chris Sievey started smoking cannabis at the age of 12 and was experimenting with LSD four years later, Chris brought back Frank in 2006 however the onset of cancer just before Christmas 2009 ripped apart what had been a warmly received comeback, BFI London Film Festival clip from the documentary Being Frank, the story of Chris Sievey, Harry, who died in a crash in 2017 at the age of 24, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). He choreographed it so I would begin the show. In 2003, he became a writer on Fimbles, and then, in 2004, on the British revival of the Swiss stop motion programme Pingu. "The moment the head is placed the change occurs. I'd like to say that during the years since Richard the bass player took an instant dislike to me a dislike that only intensified during the months that followed before the band imploded, and climaxed in him yelling that he'd like to break my "keyboard-playing fingers" he went on to have a disappointing life. In the photographs, Frank looked like he'd been kidnapped but was fine with it. He also appeared at "Late" at Tate Britain on 3 August 2007. Ad vertisement from shop CustardGB. And then I walked out into the spotlight. Sometimes the show also included lectures. Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story. Mini Bio (1) Chris Sievey was born on August 25, 1955 in Ashton on Mersey, Greater Manchester, England. I thought I saw a flash of something under there, some contraption attached to his face. Like when Frank was asked to support the boy band Bros at Wembley. "Would a pound a week suffice, m'lud?" Not merely a change in attitude or outlook but a journey from one person to the other. Please review our, You need to be a subscriber to join the conversation. His innovative ideas extended far beyond indie labels and bizarre song titles. Frank Sidebottom was possibly the strangest pop star in history. By the end of the tour we were playing to almost-empty houses. 73,[19] eventually being grandfathered into its spin off, 7T3. His five year plan that was cut short by his death involved using the character of Frank to build up a public profile and then remove the head at his zenith like an unmasked Kendo Nagasaki to emerge as Chris Sievey, musician. And if Chris was secretly more obsessive about Frank than he let on, how would he feel if the film reflected that? Chris Sievey English musician and comedian (1955-2010) . He added that his name was Mike, and Frank Sidebottom's real name was Chris. Christopher Mark Sievey, musician and comedian, born 25 August 1955; died 21 June 2010, Musician, entertainer and alter ego of the cult comedy creation Frank Sidebottom, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Frank Sidebottom as played by Chris Sievey. he said. The show was produced by Dave Behrens[44] for Yorkshire Television and was shown on ITV. Later, he presented Frank Sidebottom's Proper Telly Show in B/W for the Manchester-based television station Channel M. Throughout his career, Sidebottom made appearances on radio stations such as Manchester's Piccadilly Radio and on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 5, alongside Mark and Lard. Theyd go into record shops in their lunchhour, and Chris would introduce her to music beyond the soul and Tamla Motown she loved. Chris and Paula married at a registry office during their lunch hour and went back to workafterwards. But he was worried that however the film might depict Chris, any reality would surely damage Frank. I had to be the sensible one, but it was still a very difficultdecision to leave Chris. Chris Sievey was a 'live in the moment' man, his friends said More than 200 people gathered to pay their respects to Chris Sievey - the creator of comedian Frank Sidebottom - at his. [6] In 1971, he hitch-hiked to London with his brother, staging a sit-in at the Apple Records HQ, demanding to see one of The Beatles. Sievey returned to television as Frank in 2006, hosting Frank Sidebottom's Proper Telly Show on the Manchester station Channel M. Most recently he had been touring with the punk poet John Cooper Clarke. Nigel Carr reviews the release for Louder Than War. English musician and comedian Chris Sievey in character as his comic alter-ego, Frank Sidebottom, and holding his puppet sidekick, Little Frank, 1988. We began to sound like an excellent 1980s wedding band. They had regional success in the Manchester area with "My Tape's Gone", "No Money" / "Oh Girl" and "Yellow Spot". . Comedy character Mrs Merton started out as Frank's sidekick on his radio show Radio Timperley, and the similarity of the characters is evident, exuding a sense of great ambition which belies a domestic lifestyle in the North of England. He reminded me of George Bernard Shaw's unreasonable man: "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Was instantly recognizable by his large spheroidal head, styled like an early Max Fleischer cartoon as with so artists., No 73 ( 1982 ) and TX ( 1985 ) a registry office during their lunch and. 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