He instead joined Woolworths and moved around the country managing its stores, finally transferring from Gravesend to Oxford, where Brian spent most of his early years.

One day he noticed an advertisement for a job for a young boy or girl at the Playhouse; this turned out to be sweeping the stage, but the manager encouraged him to continue his studies and later return to acting.

During the 1950s, he acted in repertory theatre and toured with productions of Ladies for Hire, Intimate Relations, Peter Pan, Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2 and Macbeth.

More than 5,000 staff entered the "Golden Voice" competition, which ended on 5 December 1984 when Cobby, an assistant supervisor at a telephone exchange in Withdean, Brighton, was selected from 12 finalists.

Perhaps recalling his leading role in the 1960 film The Nudist Story, he wryly remembered hoping that the selection panel in 1984 would choose "a clock with a pendulum".