John Hanson (31 August 1922 – 4 December 1998)[1] was a Canadian-born English tenor and actor, who starred in several West End musicals during the 1950s and 1960s.
[2] Born John Stanley Watts[1] in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada, of English parents, who moved back across the Atlantic three years later.
[3] Hanson was most famous for his role as the "Red Shadow", the hero of the musical The Desert Song,[2] which enjoyed a record-breaking revival at the Palace Theatre in 1967.
He also appeared in the 1973 Christmas Special of the BBC's Morecambe and Wise Show in which he sang "Stout-Hearted Men".
He also appeared on BBC TV's long running variety show, The Good Old Days.