Clapham and Dwyer

Charlie Clapham, born in Birmingham, was a barrister's clerk working in London, and amateur performer, who turned professional in 1919 after serving in the First World War.

He met London-born Bill Dwyer, who was a commercial traveller and semi-professional entertainer from a show business family, and they began working together at garden parties in 1925.

[2] Their sketches often featured "Cissie the Cow", a disruptive influence that was initially imaginary but was later played onstage in the manner of a pantomime horse.

[4] It is said that, during a live broadcast, when they discovered that a page of their script was missing they ad-libbed: "What’s the difference between a champagne cork and a baby?” asked Clapham.

"[8][9] In 1946, the chairman of the Board of Governors of the BBC, Lord Inman, objected to one of their broadcast jokes – "When I got into my hotel bedroom last night, I found a lady's nightdress on the bed, and I rang the bell."