Gorden Kaye is best known to all of us for his role as René in the famous British comedy series' Allo! 'Allo!' However, his private life could not have been more different than that of a French cafe owner, sought after by women. His story is a story about hidden secrets and passing away in solitude and oblivion.
Gordon "Gorden" Kaye was born in Huddersfield on April 7, 1941, the only child of Harold and Grace. During World War II, his father was a truck driver, joining the ranks of ARP (Air Raid Precautions), and then an engineer in a tractor factory. Gorden, however, felt no need to follow in his footsteps and ended his education in high school.
Over the next few years, he caught up with various activities. He worked in a textile factory, a wine company and a tractor factory. He also had the opportunity to make his first stage contacts while running a hospital radio in Huddersfield, including an interview with The Beatles in 1965 . Working on the air turned out to be the first step to his real career, which not only made him famous, but also became a kind of therapy.
As a child, Gorden faced many internal problems and was overweight, which made him a very secretive and withdrawn boy. The fact that he was a homosexual did not help in his openness to the world. He lived in unfavorable times to accept his different sexual orientation. However, he found himself in the world of stage artists, which allowed him to enter the path of a professional acting career.
Read also:What did the greatest actresses have to sacrifice for fame?
Road to fame
The actual career of Gorden Kaye began with participation in radio dramas. Then came the television theater engagement and finally the stage roles at Manchester's Bolton Theater. He played there, among others in "The Cherry Orchard" by Chekhov, "Returning Home" and "Luther". The roles allowed him to gain self-confidence and spread his wings, and the following years brought engagements in television production. Acting also influenced the spelling of his name, which stemmed from a typo committed by the British Actors' Equity Association .
As a child, Gorden faced many internal problems and was overweight, which made him a very secretive and withdrawn boy
With his theater performances, Kayen drew the attention of the creators of the soap opera "Coronation Street", to which he was invited for a year of collaboration. From that moment on, he began to appear regularly in television series, playing episodic or supporting roles. He has appeared in productions such as "Mansfield Park", "Are You Being Served?" or "The Journey of Mrs. Noah." However, his breakthrough role, which we remember him for today, was yet to come.
In 1982, Gorden was offered to play a cafe owner in Nazi-occupied France. He took the role without hesitation, and René, the main character of the series' Allo! 'Allo!' The character, however, was quite different from its impersonator. Smart, sharp-eyed and in demand by women, René faced the life-threatening Germans that threatened his and his family, as well as indolent members of the resistance movement, family crises and a jealous wife. He was also a magnet for women who almost threw themselves into his arms . And it was this element that was the most difficult for Gorden to play.
Also read:Too famous to be punished? Celebrities escaping punishment for rape
Unwanted publicity
This is how Vicki Michelle, who played the role of Yvette, talked about working with Kay in one of her later interviews:
"He was gay back in the days when it wasn't talked about, and he wasn't proud of it. So when we had to sink into a hug, and that happened in every episode, I really had to work hard. It was as if his whole body was pushing me away by itself, moving away from me. In fact, I had to build everything around this scene myself. ”
The role of René earned Gorden a BAFTA nomination but also an unhealthy tabloid interest . More and more rumors began to circulate about him. They became an ideal breeding ground for tabloids and it was under their influence in the late 1980s that Gorden Kaye decided to reveal his true sexual orientation.
In 1989, he published an autobiography in collaboration with Hilary Bonner, entitled "René &Me:A Sort of Autobiography". Although he usually did not like to share his private life, he wrote openly in the book about demons who had been stalking him from childhood and his struggle with homosexuality.
Read also:Success destroyed their lives. Learn the heartbreaking story of five unhappy women
Fall into oblivion
On January 25, 1990, cyclone Daria struck north-west Europe. During the storm, at its peak the winds reached a speed of 119 km per hour, and the strongest gusts were 172 km per hour. During his lifetime, Gorden had a serious car accident. A wooden advertising pole broke his Honda's windshield and stuck into the head of the actor who miraculously escaped death .
The cast of "'Allo' Allo!" in 1988
Initially, it was believed that the only memento of this event would be a scar after several hours of brain surgery. Unfortunately, as the years passed, his memory began to deteriorate more and more until he was finally diagnosed with dementia. Gorden spent the last years of his life in a nursing home, not remembering who he is. He died on January 23, 2017 at the age of 75.
He was buried in his hometown of Huddersfield, with both his friends from 'Allo! 'Allo!':Vicki Michelle, Sue Hodge and Kim Hartman, as well as Ken Morley, who played General Leopold von Flockenstuffen on the series.
Although Gorden spent his last years in oblivion, he has permanently entered the pantheon of best-remembered TV comedy characters.
Read also:Soviet sex bomb. Who was Stalin's favorite actress?
Bibliography
- Kayen, H. Bonner; René and Me:An Autobiography , Pan Books, 1990.
- https://viva.pl/kultura/film/serialowy-rene-z-allo-allo-ukrywal-swoja-orientacje-cudem-uniknal-smierci-umieral-w-samotnosci-tajemnice-gordena-kaye-134142 -r1 / / access:August 16, 2021.
- https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/jan/23/gorden-kaye-obituary / accessed:August 126, 2021.
- https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news/15043694.tribute-to-star-of-allo-allo-who-launched-career-at-boltons-octagon-theatre/ / accessed:12.06. 2021.