Collinson and Dean

London-born Collinson had toured Britain, Australia and America as a comedy sketch writer and performer, before he established a working partnership with Alfie Dean in 1925.

Collinson was a blustery and middle-aged straight man, while Dean goaded him with inane questions, quips, puns and non sequiturs.

Unlike many other double acts such as Flanagan and Allen, the audience never felt that Collinson and Dean had an underlying affection for one another, more that they were obliged to co-exist.

[5][6][7] After the end of the war, Dean worked as a foil to comedian Sid Field, and appeared in a second Royal Variety Performance in 1946.

[8] In July 1948, Dean suffered serious head injuries when he was hit by a car; although he seemed to be making a recovery, he died two months later from a blood clot on the brain, aged 46.