Harry H Corbett (he added the "H" to avoid being confused with Sooty's friend) was born in Burma in 1925. His father was an officer in the army. His mother died when he was very young and he moved to England as a child and was brought up in Manchester by an aunt. After his war service, he joined a repertory company and during the 1950s appeared in many stage productions. At the end of this period he made the move to the big screen and appeared in about twenty movies during the years from 1959 to 1980, including the starring role of Detective Sergeant Bung in Carry on Screaming! (1966), Rattle of a Simple Man (1964) and the two "Steptoe and Son" movies in the early 1970s. He suffered a series of heart attacks between 1979 and 1982, before his premature death aged 57.

Father of actress Susannah CorbettThe middle initial 'H' was just to avoid confusion with the other Harry Corbett (who operated the glove puppet "Sooty"). He said it stood for "Hanyfink" (anything).He could do a very accurate impression of British prime minister Harold Wilson and used it for the film Percy's Progress (1974).Served in the Royal Marines during the Second World War.He was awarded the O.B.E. (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in 1976 for his services to drama. Prime Minister Harold Wilson intended the award to go to him partly because he was a Labour Party supporter but the "H" got missed out of the name and the offer initially went to Sooty and Sweep entertainer Harry Corbett instead.Corbett was a Labour Party campaigner, a personal friend of Prime Minister Harold Wilson , and recorded a party political broadcast.He suffered a heart attack in 1979 and was involved in a serious car crash shortly afterwards.