Ben Lee (born Ben Levy; 11 August 1916 – 9 December 1995) was a British actor and singer. He started his career in stage roles, subsequently developing a television and film career.
Early life
Lee was born on 11 August 1916 to a Jewish family in The Gorbals, Glasgow, and originally named Ben Levy. He began his singing career as tenor in the school choir. Leaving school at 14, he became a tailor's apprentice, but soon left to join an all-purpose act, which sang, danced and performed acrobatics all around one of the main variety circuits of Britain.
Lee's acrobatic days lasted for only one evening on account of a nose injury. He was back in Glasgow, tailoring shirts and in his spare time playing drums for his own semi-professional dance-band. He also worked as a song-plugger for Essex Music Publishers. Wishing to return to the stage full-time, he joined the Princess's Theatre (now the Citizens Theatre) in the Gorbals), where he gained experience in straight acting. This led to his first BBC Radio audition in 1938.
^ "Benny Lee – Scottish actor -Theiapolis". Archived from the original on 19 April 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
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Young, Andrew (13 January 1996). "Benny Lee". The Herald. Glasgow.
