Actor / Comedian / Writer / TV Presenter / Singer
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Sir Lenworth George Henry CBE is an English stand-up comedian, actor, singer, writer, and television presenter.
His earliest television appearance was on the New Faces talent show, which he won in 1975 with an impersonation of Stevie Wonder.
He introduced characters who both mocked and celebrated black British culture. The first series of The Lenny Henry Show appeared on the BBC in 1984 and ran in various incarnations for 19 years.
In 1985 Henry founded the charity Comic Relief with Richard Curtis in response to the famine in Ethiopia. At the end of the 2015 Red Nose Day telethon on 14 March it was announced that in the 30-year history of Comic Relief the Red Nose Day and Sport Relief appeals had raised in excess of £1 billion.
Comic Relief is the legacy. I’m Red until I die. When Richard asked me to be part of it I was very, very happy. What’s great about it is that people keep giving up their time and everyone in the industry gives their time for nothing and I love that.
The creativity that goes into helping people have a better life is extraordinary. We have some marvellous people and it’s wonderful to be considered fit enough to be part of it.
It’s an honour and it will continue to be an honour.
Although widely known for working in comedy, Henry has also worked extensively in the theatre, playing demanding roles including Shakespeare's Othello and Antipholus of Syracuse in The Comedy of Errors.
Henry was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1999 New Year Honours. He was knighted in the Queen's 2015 Birthday Honours for services to drama and charity.
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