I'm Free!

Author: David Clayton

England | c 1945 to c 2000 (Post-war period) | Of specific Gay interest | Individual actors & performers | Television | Biography: arts & entertainment | Postwar 20th century history, from c 1945 to c 2000 | Gay studies (Gay men)

Published on 12^th September 2024 by The History Press Ltd in the United Kingdom.

Hardback | 20 Illustrations, black and white
234mm x 156mm | 0g

Legendary British comic actor John Inman broke down many boundaries by playing the camp Mr Humphries in BBC’s long-running sitcom Are You Being Served? The show ran for 13 years, had a spin-off movie and regularly attracted 22 million viewers in the UK.

Inman’s character, whose innuendos were adored by viewers, invariably got the biggest laughs – and this at a time when being homosexual was largely frowned upon. In 1976, he was voted the BBC Personality of the Year and TV Times’ Funniest Man on TV. Away from television, he soon became one of the most in-demand pantomime actors, making a small fortune over several decades.

Though he would regularly appear on television and the stage after the series ended, it was as Mr Humphries that he was best loved and why he was regarded as a national treasure. Inman was secretive about his sexuality until he married his long-term partner Ron Lynch in a civil ceremony in London in 2005. He died two years later following a long battle with hepatitis.

Are You Being Served? is regularly repeated, and Inman’s catchphrase ‘I’m free!’ is perhaps one of the most famous on British television. Author David Clayton reveals the full story of a man who was adored by millions and who broke down barriers by just being himself.