After Dinner Speakers: Harry Hill, Squeeze, Francis Alan

Harry (real name Matthew Hall) is a former doctor (the one fact that everyone knows about him) and achieved his big breakthrough in 1992 when he won the Perrier Award for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. A radio series ('Harry Hill's Fruit Corner') for the BBC soon followed. The BBC, suitably impressed, then gave the Affable Affenpinscher a short TV series - 'Harry Hill's Fruit Fancies' - and we all sat back and awaited global domination. It didn't happen. Harry continued to be an attraction on the live circuit and a regular on the short-lived TV series 'Saturday Live' and was eventually given a TV series by Channel 4 in 1997. Two more series for Channel 4 followed, the last in 2000. Harry continues to be a huge draw on the live circuit but, at the time of writing, we are awaiting his next move. Channel 4 apparently dropped him following poor viewing figures for his last series.