Cliff Richard

Life and career

1940–1958: Childhood and adolescence

Cliff Richard was born Harry Rodger Webb on 14 October 1940 at King George's Hospital (now King George's Medical University), Victoria Street, in Lucknow, which was then part of British India. His parents were Rodger Oscar Webb, a manager for a catering contractor that serviced the Indian Railways, and the former Dorothy Marie Dazely. His parents also spent some years in Howrah, West Bengal. After the violence of Direct Action Day, they decided to relocate to Britain permanently. Richard is primarily of English heritage, but he had one great-grandmother who was of half-Welsh and half-Spanish descent, born of a Spanish great-great-grandmother named Emiline Joseph Rebeiro.

The Webb family lived in a modest home in Maqbara, near the main shopping centre of Hazratganj in Lucknow. Dorothy's mother served as the dormitory matron at the La Martiniere Girls' School. Richard had three sisters, Joan, Jacqui and Donna (1942–2016).

In 1948, following Indian independence, the family embarked on a three-week sea voyage to Tilbury, Essex, England, aboard the SS Ranchi. The Webbs moved from comparative wealth in India, where they lived in a company-supplied flat at Howrah near Calcutta, to a semi-detached house in Carshalton, north Surrey. Harry Webb attended a local primary school, Stanley Park Juniors, in Carshalton.

In 1949, his father obtained employment in the credit control office of Thorn Electrical Industries, Enfield, and the family moved in with other relatives in Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire, where he attended Kings Road Junior Mixed Infants School, until a three-bedroom council house in nearby Cheshunt was allocated to them in 1950, at 12 Hargreaves Close.

He then attended Cheshunt Secondary Modern School from 1952 to 1957. As a member of the top stream, he stayed on beyond the minimum leaving age to take GCE Ordinary Level examinations and gained a pass in English literature. He then started work as a filing clerk for Atlas Lamps. A development of retirement flats, Cliff Richard Court, has been named after him in Cheshunt.

Harry Webb became interested in skiffle. When he was 16, his father bought him a guitar, and in 1957, he formed the school vocal harmony group The Quintones, before singing in the Dick Teague Skiffle Group.

1958–1963: Success and stardom

Harry Webb became lead singer of a rock and roll group, the Drifters (distinct from the US group of the same name). The 1950s entrepreneur Harry Greatorex wanted the up-and-coming rock 'n' roll singer to change his name. The name Cliff was adopted as it sounded like "cliff face", which suggested "Rock". It was "Move It" writer Ian Samwell who suggested the surname "Richard" as a tribute to Webb's musical hero Little Richard.

Before their first big appearance, at the Regal Ballroom in Ripley, Derbyshire in 1958, they adopted the name "Cliff Richard and the Drifters". The four members were Harry Webb (by then going under the stage name "Cliff Richard"), Ian Samwell on guitar, Terry Smart on drums and Norman Mitham on guitar. None of the other three played with the later and better known Shadows, although Samwell wrote songs for Richard's later career. Agent George Ganjou saw the group perform in London, and recommended them to Norrie Paramor for an audition.

For Richard's debut session, Paramor provided him with "Schoolboy Crush", a song previously recorded by American Bobby Helms. Richard was permitted to record one of his own songs for the B-side; this was "Move It", written and composed by the Drifters' Samwell while he was on board a number 715 Green Line bus on the way to Richard's house for a rehearsal. For the "Move It" session, Paramor used the session guitarist Ernie Shears on lead guitar and Frank Clark on bass.

There are various stories about why the A-side was replaced by the intended B-side. One is that Norrie Paramor's young daughter raved about the B-side; another was that influential TV producer Jack Good, who used the act for his TV show Oh Boy!, wanted the only song on his show to be "Move It" as opposed to "Schoolboy Crush". Richard was quoted as saying:

It's wonderful to be going on TV for the first time, but I feel so nervous that I don't know what to do. I shaved my sideburns off last night... Jack Good said it would make me look more original.The single went to No. 2 on the UK singles chart. John Lennon credited "Move It" as being the first British rock record.

In the early days, Richard was marketed as the British equivalent of Elvis. Like previous British rockers such as Tommy Steele and Marty Wilde, Richard adopted Elvis-like dress and hairstyle. In performance he struck a pose of rock attitude, rarely smiling or looking at the audience or camera. His late 1958 and early 1959 follow-up singles, "High Class Baby" and "Livin' Lovin' Doll", were followed by "Mean Streak", which carried a rocker's sense of speed and passion, and Lionel Bart's "Living Doll".

1964–1975: Changing circumstances

As with the other contemporary rock acts in Britain, Richard's career was affected by the advent of the Beatles and the Mersey sound in 1963 and 1964. He continued to be popular and have hits in the charts throughout the 1960s, though not at the level that he had enjoyed before. Nor did doors open to him in the US market; he was not considered part of the British Invasion, and despite four Hot 100 hits (including the top 25 "It's All in the Game") between August 1963 and August 1964, the American public had little awareness of him.

Although baptised as an Anglican, Richard did not practise the faith in his early years. In 1964, he became an active evangelical Christian and his faith is an important aspect of his life. Standing up publicly as an evangelical affected his career in several ways. Initially, he believed that he should quit rock 'n' roll, feeling he could no longer be the rocker who had been called a "crude exhibitionist" and "too sexy for TV". Richard intended at first to "reform his ways" and become a teacher, but evangelical Christian friends advised him not to abandon his career. Soon after, Richard re-emerged, performing with Christian groups and recording some overtly Christian material. He still recorded secular songs with the Shadows but devoted a lot of his time to Christian-based work, including appearances with the Billy Graham crusades. Over time, Richard balanced his faith and work, enabling him to remain one of the most popular singers in Britain as well as one of its best-known evangelical Christians.

Richard's 1965 UK No. 12 hit "On My Word" ended a run of 23 consecutive top ten UK hits between "A Voice in the Wilderness" in 1960 to "The Minute You're Gone" in 1965, which, to date, is still a record number of consecutive top ten UK hits for a male artist. Richard continued having international hits, including 1967's "The Day I Met Marie", which reached No. 10 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 5 in the Australian charts.

Richard acted in the 1967 film Two a Penny, released by Billy Graham's World Wide Pictures, in which he played Jamie Hopkins, a young man who gets involved in drug dealing while questioning his life after his girlfriend changes her attitude. He released the live album Cliff in Japan in 1967.

In 1968, Richard sang the UK's entry in the Eurovision Song Contest, "Congratulations", written by Bill Martin and Phil Coulter; it finished second, however, by one point to Spain's "La La La" by Massiel. According to John Kennedy O'Connor's The Eurovision Song Contest—The Official History, this was the closest result yet in the contest, and Richard locked himself in the toilet to avoid the nerves of the voting. Nevertheless, "Congratulations" was a big hit throughout Europe and in Australia and another UK No. 1 in April 1968.

1976–1994: Renaissance

In 1976, the decision was made to repackage Richard as a rock performer. That year, Bruce Welch relaunched Cliff's career and produced the landmark album I'm Nearly Famous, which included the successful but controversial guitar-driven track "Devil Woman", which became Richard's first true hit in the United States, and the ballad "Miss You Nights". In reviewing the new album in Melody Maker, Geoff Brown heralded it the renaissance of Richard. Richard's fans were excited about this revival of a performer who had been a part of British rock from its early days. Many big names in music such as Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton and Elton John were seen sporting I'm Nearly Famous badges, pleased that their boyhood idol was getting back into the heavier rock in which he had begun his career.

Notwithstanding this, Richard continued to release albums with contemporary Christian music content in parallel with his rock and pop albums, for example: Small Corners from 1978 contained the single "Yes He Lives". On 31 December 1976, he performed his latest single, "Hey, Mr. Dream Maker", on BBC1's A Jubilee of Music, celebrating British pop music for Queen Elizabeth II's impending Silver Jubilee.

In 1979, Richard teamed up again with producer Bruce Welch for the pop single "We Don't Talk Anymore", written by Alan Tarney, which hit No. 1 in the UK and No. 7 in the US. Bryan Ferry added hummed backing vocals to the song. The record made Richard the first act to reach the Hot 100's top 40 in the 1980s who had also been there in each of the three previous decades. The song was quickly added onto the end of his latest album Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile, which was re-titled We Don't Talk Anymore for its release in the United States. It was his first time at the top of the UK singles chart in over ten years, and the song would become his biggest-selling single worldwide, selling almost five million copies throughout the world. Later in 1979, Richard performed with Kate Bush at the London Symphony Orchestra's 75th anniversary celebration at the Royal Albert Hall.

With "We Don't Talk Anymore" in 1979, Richard finally began to receive some extended success in the United States to follow on from the success of "Devil Woman" in 1976. In 1980, "Carrie" broke into the US top 40, followed by "Dreamin'", which reached No. 10. His 1980 duet "Suddenly" with Olivia Newton-John, from the film Xanadu, peaked at No. 20, followed by "A Little in Love" (No. 17) and "Daddy's Home" (No. 23) in 1981. After many years of limited success in the US, three of his singles simultaneously charted on the last Hot 100 of 1980 ("A Little in Love", "Dreamin'" and "Suddenly").

1995–2007: Knighthood

On 17 June 1995, Richard was appointed a Knight Bachelor (invested on 25 October 1995), becoming the first rock star to be so honoured. In 1996, he led the Wimbledon Centre Court crowd in singing during a rain delay when asked by Wimbledon officials to entertain the crowd. In the late 1990s, Richard and former EMI UK managing director Clive Black established the record label Blacknight. In 1998, Richard demonstrated that radio stations were refusing to play his music when he released a dance remix of his forthcoming single "Can't Keep This Feeling In" on a white label record using the alias Blacknight. The single was featured on playlists until the artist's identity was revealed. Richard then released the single under his own name as the lead single for his album Real as I Wanna Be, with each reaching No. 10 in the UK on their respective charts.

In 1999, controversy again arose regarding radio stations refusing to play his releases when EMI, Richard's label since 1958, refused to release his song, "The Millennium Prayer", having judged that the song did not have commercial potential. Richard took it to an independent label, Papillon, which released the charity recording (in aid of Children's Promise). The single went on to top the UK chart for three weeks, becoming his fourteenth and, as of December 2022, most recent No. 1 single.

Richard's next album, in 2001, was Wanted, followed by another top ten album, Cliff at Christmas. The holiday album contained both new and older recordings, including the single "Santa's List", which reached No. 5 in 2003. Richard went to Nashville, Tennessee for his next album project in 2004, employing a writers' conclave to give him the pick of all new songs for the album Something's Goin' On. It was another top 10 album, and produced three UK top 20 singles: "Something's Goin' On", "I Cannot Give You My Love", with Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees, and "What Car".

On 14 June 2004, Richard joined the Shadows on-stage at the London Palladium. The Shadows had decided to re-form for another tour of the UK. It was not to be their last tour together, however, as they would re-form once again for a final tour five years later, in 2009.

Two's Company, an album of duets released in 2006, was another top 10 success for Richard and included newly recorded material with Brian May, Dionne Warwick, Anne Murray, Barry Gibb and Daniel O'Donnell, plus some previously recorded duets with artists such as Phil Everly, Elton John and Olivia Newton-John. Two's Company was released to coincide with the UK leg of his latest world tour, Here and Now, which included lesser known songs such as "My Kinda Life", "How Did She Get Here", "Hey Mr. Dream Maker", "For Life", "A Matter of Moments", "When The Girl in Your Arms" and the Christmas single "21st Century Christmas", which debuted at No. 2 on the UK singles chart.

2008–present: 50th anniversary and Shadows reunion

In 2008, Richard's 51st year in the music business, the eight-CD box set And They Said It Wouldn't Last (My 50 Years in Music) was released. In September, a single celebrating his 50 years in pop music, "Thank You for a Lifetime", was released. On 14 September 2008 it reached No. 3 on the UK music charts.

On 11 November 2008, Richard's official website announced that he and the Shadows would reunite to celebrate their 50th anniversary in the music business. A month later they performed at the Royal Variety Performance. In 2009, they brought their partnership to an end with the golden anniversary concert tour of the UK.

A new album, titled Reunited, by Richard and the Shadows, was released in September 2009. It was their first studio project in 40 years. The 28 tracks recorded comprise 25 re-recordings of their earlier work, with three "new" tracks, originally from that era (and earlier), the single "Singing the Blues", along with Eddie Cochran's "C'mon Everybody" and the Frankie Ford hit "Sea Cruise". The album charted at No. 6 in the UK charts in its opening week and peaked at No. 4. The reunion tour continued into Europe in 2010. In June 2009, it was reported by Sound Kitchen Studios in Nashville that Richard was to return there shortly to record a new album of original recordings of jazz songs. He was to record fourteen tracks in a week.

Richard performed "Congratulations" at the 70th birthday celebrations of Queen Margrethe II in Denmark on 13 April 2010. On 14 October 2010, Richard celebrated his 70th birthday, and to mark the occasion, he performed a series of six concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, London. To accompany the concerts, a new album of cover versions of swing standards, Bold as Brass, was released on 11 October. The official party celebrating Richard's 70th birthday was held on 23 October 2010, with guests including Cilla Black, Elaine Paige and Daniel O'Donnell.

After a week of promotion, Richard flew out to rehearse for the German Night of the Proms concerts in Belgium at the end of October. He made a surprise appearance at the Antwerp concert of the Night of the Proms on Thursday, 28 October 2010 and sang "We Don't Talk Anymore" to a great reaction from the surprised 20,000 fans at Sportpaleis Antwerp. In all, he toured 12 German cities in November and December 2010, during the Night of the Proms concerts, as the headline act. The total of 18 concerts were attended by over 300,000 fans. Richard performed a selection of hits and tracks from the Bold As Brass album. In November 2010, he achieved his third consecutive UK No. 1 music DVD in three years with the DVD release of Bold as Brass.

Criticism of the music industry and commercial support

Richard has openly complained about the lack of commercial support he receives from radio stations and record labels. He spoke about this on The Alan Titchmarsh Show on ITV in December 2007, pointing out that while new bands needed airplay for promotion and sales, long-established artists such as himself also relied upon airplay for the same reasons. He also noted that 1980s radio stations did play his records and that this went some way to help sales and maintain his media presence. In the BBC Radio 2 documentary Cliff – Take Another Look, he pointed out that many documentaries charting the history of British music (e.g. I'm in a Rock 'n' Roll Band!) fail to mention him (or the Shadows).

In 1998, Chris Evans, the then breakfast show host on Virgin Radio, vowed he would never again play a record by Richard, stating that he was "too old". In June 2004, British disc jockey Tony Blackburn was suspended from his radio job at Classic Gold Digital for playing records by Richard against station policy. The head of programmes, Paul Baker, sent an e-mail to Blackburn stating that Richard "doesn't match our brand values. He's not on the playlist, and you must stop playing him." On Blackburn's next morning breakfast show, he read a print-out of the e-mail live on air to the show's 400,000 listeners and went on to play two songs by Richard. Classic Gold managing director John Baish later confirmed Blackburn's suspension from the show.

In 2011, digital station Absolute Radio '60s, dedicated to playing popular music from the 1960s, announced they would not be playing any of Richard's records because they said they did not fit "the cool sound... we're trying to create". DJ Pete Mitchell said: "Timeless acts of the decade that remain relevant today are the Beatles, the Stones, the Doors and the Who, not Sir Cliff." Richard responded to this by saying: "They're lying to themselves, and more importantly they're lying to the public."

Richard has spoken of his irritation about other stars who are praised after taking drugs. In 2009, Richard said he was the "most radical rock-and-roll singer Britain has ever seen" as he did not indulge in drugs or sexual promiscuity. Richard said he is proud that he never adopted the hedonistic lifestyle of a typical rock star. He said: "I've never wanted to trash a hotel room."

Personal life

Richard's father, Rodger Webb, died in 1961, aged 56, which greatly affected Richard. He later said: "My father died very young. He missed the best parts of my career. When my father was sick, we became very close." Richard's mother, Dorothy, died in October 2007, aged 87, after a decade with Alzheimer's disease. In a 2006 interview, he spoke about the difficulties he and his sisters had in dealing with their mother's condition.

Richard is a lifelong bachelor. In a three-page letter written in October 1961 to "his first serious girlfriend", Australian dancer Delia Wicks, which was made public in April 2010 after her death from cancer, Richard wrote, "Being a pop singer I have to give up one priceless thing—the right to any lasting relationship with any special girl. I've just had to make, probably, one of the biggest decisions I'm ever going to make and I'm hoping that it won't hurt you too much." The couple had been dating for 18 months. In the letter he goes on to say, "I couldn't give up my career, besides the fact that my mother and sisters, since my father's death, rely on me completely. I have showbiz in my blood now and I would be lost without it." Richard urged her to "find someone who is free to love you as you deserve to be loved" and who "is able to marry you".

After Delia Wicks died in 2010, aged 71, her brother Graham Wicks said that she had been "devastated" by Richard's decision to end their relationship, describing Richard as "a very pleasant man".

At the age of 22, a year after his relationship with Delia Wicks ended, Richard had a brief romance with the actress Una Stubbs. Later in the 1960s, Richard considered marriage to the dancer Jackie Irving. Richard described Irving as "utterly beautiful" and says for a time they were "inseparable". Irving went on to marry Adam Faith.

In his autobiography, Richard stressed that "sex is not one of the things that drives me", but he also wrote of his seduction by Carol Costa, who at the time was the estranged wife of Jet Harris.

In the 1980s, Richard considered asking Sue Barker, a former French Open tennis champion and Wimbledon semi-finalist, if she would agree to marry him. In 2008, Richard said of his relationship with Barker: "I seriously contemplated asking her to marry me, but in the end I realised that I didn't love her quite enough to commit the rest of my life to her."

Health

In December 2025, Richard revealed that he had been treated for prostate cancer during the preceding year, stating that the disease was "gone at the moment" and expressed support for the introduction of a national screening programme for men.

Nationwide Festival of Light

In 1971, Richard was a leading supporter of the Nationwide Festival of Light, a movement formed by British Christians who were concerned about the development of the permissive society. Richard joined public figures such as Malcolm Muggeridge, Mary Whitehouse and Bishop Trevor Huddleston to demonstrate in London "for love and family life, against pornography and moral pollution". Muggeridge criticised the media as being "largely in the hands of those who for one reason or another favour the present Gadarene slide into decadence and Godlessness".

One of the targets for the Festival of Light's campaign was the growth of sexually explicit films. Richard was one of approximately 30,000 people who gathered at London's Trafalgar Square for a demonstration. One focus of their protest was against the Swedish sex education film Language of Love, which was showing at a nearby cinema.

Philanthropy

Since March 1966, Richard has followed the practice of tithing, giving away at least one-tenth of his income to charity. Richard has stated that two biblical principles have guided him in how to use his money. He said: "Firstly, it was the love of money (not money itself) that was the root of all evil. Secondly, to be good and responsible stewards of what was entrusted to us." In 1990, Richard said: "Those of us who have something to offer have to be prepared to give all the time."

For over forty years, Richard has been a supporter of Tearfund, a Christian charity that aims to tackle poverty in many countries across the world. He has made overseas visits to see their work in Uganda, Bangladesh and Brazil. Richard has said: "Playing a part in relieving poverty is, as I see it, the responsibility of us all."

Richard has donated to the dementia research charity, Alzheimer's Research UK. He has helped to raise funds and awareness of the disease by speaking publicly about his mother's condition.

Richard has also supported numerous UK charities over many years through the Cliff Richard Charitable Trust, both through donations and by making personal visits to schools, churches, hospitals and homes for special needs children. Richard's passion for tennis, which was encouraged by his former girlfriend, Sue Barker, also led him in 1991 to establish the Cliff Richard Tennis Foundation. The charity has encouraged thousands of primary schools in the UK to introduce the sport, with over 200,000 children taking part in the tennis sessions which tour the country. The foundation has since become part of the charitable wing of the Lawn Tennis Association.

Property search, investigation and BBC litigation

In August 2014, Richard's apartment in Berkshire was searched after a complaint to the Metropolitan Police's Operation Yewtree, which investigated sexual misconduct allegations in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal. Richard was not arrested, and strongly denied the allegations. The BBC was criticised for its coverage of the search. The former Director of Public Prosecutions, Lord Macdonald of River Glaven, QC, criticised the police force for its "completely disreputable conduct" and said its action could make the warrant unlawful. Richard pulled out of a visit to the US Open tennis championships, turned down the freedom of his adopted Portuguese home city of Albufeira, in the Algarve, and cancelled a scheduled appearance at Canterbury Cathedral because he did not want the event to be "overshadowed by the false allegation". He returned to the UK and was interviewed voluntarily by members of South Yorkshire Police. He was never arrested or criminally charged. David Crompton, chief constable of South Yorkshire Police, was criticised for his interactions with the BBC, and publicly apologised to Richard.

In February 2015, South Yorkshire Police announced that the inquiry into the alleged offences had increased and would be continuing. Richard released a statement maintaining that the allegations were "absurd and untrue". The development came a day after an independent report had concluded that South Yorkshire Police had "interfered with the singer's privacy" by telling the BBC about the August 2014 property search. A review by former chief constable Andy Trotter said South Yorkshire Police had breached police guidance on protecting the identity of those under investigation and the handling of the search had dented the force's reputation. The BBC's tip-off regarding the search reportedly came from within Operation Yewtree, although Crompton said he could not be certain that the leak originated from there.

In May 2016, South Yorkshire Police sent a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service. The following month, the CPS announced that after reviewing "evidence relating to claims of non-recent sexual offences dating between 1958 and 1983 made by four men", there was "insufficient evidence" to charge Richard with an offence and that no further action against him would be taken. Richard said he was "obviously thrilled that the vile accusations and the resulting investigation have finally been brought to a close". He said his naming by the media, despite not being charged, meant he had been "hung out like live bait". South Yorkshire Police later "apologised wholeheartedly" to Richard after its investigation into the singer was dropped on 16 June 2016. Richard commented, "My reputation will not be fully vindicated because the CPS's policy is to only say something general about there being 'insufficient' evidence. How can there be evidence for something that never took place?" It was reported that during the 22-month police investigation a man was arrested over a plot to blackmail Richard. The unnamed man in his forties contacted Richard's aides and threatened to spread "false stories" unless he received a sum of money.

Cultural significance and impact

Cliff Richard's 1958 hit "Move It" is widely regarded as the first authentic British rock and roll record, and "laid the foundations" for the Beatles and Merseybeat music. John Lennon reportedly said of Richard that before Cliff and the Shadows, there had been nothing worth listening to in British music. His successful performing and recording career in the UK has extended over six decades. In 2004, he was named by Channel 4 as the UK's "ultimate pop star", for having sold almost 21 million singles in the nation, which, at that point, was more than any other artist.

Filmography

Publications

2020: The Dreamer: An Autobiography

2023: A Head Full Of Music (scheduled release October 2023)

Theatre work

Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp: music by the Shadows and Norrie Paramor

Cinderella: music by the Shadows and Norrie Paramor

Five Finger Exercise by Peter Shaffer

The Potting Shed by Graham Greene

Time: music by Dave Clark

Heathcliff: music by John Farrar and lyrics by Sir Tim Rice

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (pre-recorded) guest appearance as the Magic Mirror

Awards

Brit Awards

1977: Best British male solo artist

1982: Best British male solo artist

1989: Lifetime achievement: Outstanding contribution to music (excluded the Shadows)

TV Times

1980: Most Exciting Male Singer on TV

1987: Best Male Singer

1989: Favourite Singer

The Sun Reader Polls

1970: Male Pop Personality

1971: Top Male Pop Personality

1972: Top Male Pop Personality

NME Reader Polls

1958: Best New Disc or TV Singer

1959: UK Male Singer

1959: Best Single: "Living Doll"

1960: Best UK Single: "Living Doll"

1961: UK Male Singer

1962: UK Male Singer

1963: UK Male Singer

1963: Best World Male Singer

1964: UK Male Singer

1964: UK Vocal Personality

1965: UK Male Singer