Robert Harper (28 January 1944 – 28 October 2020), known professionally as Bobby Ball, was a British comic, actor, singer and television host.

Ball then went on to have acting roles in various sitcoms and dramas including Last of the Summer Wine, Heartbeat and Not Going Out.

Ball was born at Boundary Park General Hospital in Oldham, Lancashire, on 28 January 1944,[2] to May (née Savage) and Bob Harper.

[3][4] He attended Crompton House C of E school, Shaw, Oldham, and briefly studied Shipping Management at Wigan Mining & Technical College[2] before going to work in a factory as a welder, where he also met his future partner in comedy, Thomas Derbyshire (Tommy Cannon).

[6][8] Other notable guest appearances were The Kenny Everett Television Show in 1982 and Shooting Stars in 1996.

[6] In 2009, Ball starred in the comedy The Fattest Man in Britain playing Morris Morrissey.

[14] Ball made his final appearance as Frank in the eleventh season, which began airing in January 2021, and was filmed a few weeks before his death.

[18] In 2013, Ball played the role of Duckers in the ITV sitcom pilot The Security Men, starring alongside the likes of Brendan O'Carroll and Paddy McGuinness.

[25][26] In an interview on BBC Tees on 28 June 2016, Ball said that he met Yvonne while performing with Cannon at a club in Norton, County Durham: "We were playing there ... she came downstairs in a little mini skirt, looked at me and Tommy, shook her head and walked away.

[34] He was a supporter of the Variety Children's Charity, presiding over the organization's ceremonies and appearing in fundraising events.