Les Dennis

Leslie Dennis Heseltine (born 12 October 1953) is an English television presenter, actor and comedian. He presented Family Fortunes from 1987 until 2002. Early life Dennis was born Leslie Dennis Heseltine on 12 October 1953 in the Liverpool suburb of Garston. His mother worked in a factory while his father, who worked in a betting shop after serving in the Royal Navy during the Second World War, was listed as a football player on the books of Liverpool FC but did not play for the first team. He lived in the suburb of Speke for a while and attended the Stockton Wood and Joseph Williams primary schools, before going to Morrison Rose Lane Secondary Modern school in Allerton. From 1967 he went to Quarry Bank Comprehensive. Dennis left there in June 1972 with an A-level in Art and failed History and English Literature. He had a weekend job in the men's clothing store Burton whilst still at school, and started as a stand-up comedian in working men's clubs. Career Early work and Family Fortunes As a comedian, Dennis performed in social clubs all around the northwest of England. He was given his earliest opportunities in his home city of Liverpool; in his autobiography, he later credited husband-and-wife theatrical agents Stuart and Dorene Gillespie (who had themselves been a successful variety act) with discovering him. His debut radio broadcast was in 1971 on Stuart's BBC Radio Merseyside series Variety Time (the programmes were taped in front of a live audience in Merseyside clubs). In 1974, he won the ITV talent show New Faces and appeared on numerous light entertainment shows. It's a common myth that he almost became the first contestant ever to score the maximum 120 points on New Faces, but had to settle for 119 when Tony Hatch gave him 9 out of 10 in his final mark, drawing derision from the rest of a judges' panel that included fellow Liverpool comedian Arthur Askey. He actually scored 39 for Presentation, 36 for Content and 36 for Star Quality, meaning he only scored 111 with the score of 9 out of 10 leaving him one mark short of a maximum in just the Presentation category.