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Max Miller
Portrait of Miller in 1936
Background information
Birth name:	Thomas Henry Sargent
Date of birth:	November 21, 1894
Birth location:	Hereford Street, Brighton
Date of death:	May 7, 1963
Death location:	Brighton
Official site:	Max Miller Society
Genres:	Music hall Comedian & Actor
Spouse(s):	Kathleen Marsh

Max Miller (November 21, 1894 - May 7, 1963), the "Cheeky Chappie", was a 1930s English music hall comedian famous for his daringly risqué (for the period) repertoire (see Censorship) and gaudy suits.

Born in Hereford Street,Brighton as Thomas Henry Sargent, Max became notorious for his double entendre based humour, which at the time saw him banned from the BBC on more than one occasion. His jokes were written in two notebooks, one white notebook for 'clean' humour, and a blue one for 'adult' jokes. He was known for his outlandish outfits, which generally included patterned plus fours and matching long jacket (a look which has clearly influenced the stage outfits of modern comedian Roy 'Chubby' Brown), with a trilby hat and kipper tie. He was also a popular singer of comedy songs, his most famous being Mary From the Dairy, which was also his signature tune. He also appeared in 14 films and made 3 Royal Variety Show appearances.

Max died on May 7th 1963, at his home at 25 Burlington Street, Brighton, from a heart ailment, he had been cared for by his wife Kathleen Marsh.

A statue of Miller was unveiled in his home town of Brighton on 1 May 2005 by Roy Hudd, George Melly, June Whitfield and Norman Wisdom on behalf of the Max Miller Appreciation Society. Hudd appeared as his hero in the Big Finish Productions Doctor Who audio play Pier Pressure in 2006. The Appreciation Society was formed In 1999 by a group of fans in Brighton with Roy Hudd as President. The Society publishes a quarterly magazine 'There'll Never be Another' and has a website www.maxmiller.org. By 2007 the Society had enrolled over 700 members. The Society has erected 2 plaques on properties owned by Miller - Ashcroft, Kingston Lane, Shoreham in 2000 and 160 Marine Parade, Brighton in 2006. It has also published the 'Max Miller Appreciation Society Blue Book', which records vitually every Miller joke.

He was renowned for his use of catchphrases, in performance

• "There'll never be another"
• "Now there's a funny thing"
• "They don't make 'em today, ducks"
• "It's people like you who get me a bad name"
• "It's all clever stuff I'm giving you"
• "How's your memory, gal?"
• "Miller's the name lady"
• "I don't care what I say, do I?"
• "That's nice Maxie"
• "You can't help liking him"

• Site run by the Max Miller Appreciation Society
• Max Miller at the Internet Movie Database
• Biography on Comedy Zone

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