Rob Halliday

Trivia: Wilfrid Brambell portrayed Albert Steptoe as an untidy, badly groomed, slovenly old man. In real life Wilfrid Brambell was a smart dresser who was very particular about his appearance. When episodes of Steptoe and Son were being filmed, either in a television studio, or on location, autograph hunters might congregate hoping to collect the autograph of, or make social contact with the actors. Popular folklore about the programme holds that, after a day's filming, Wilfred Brambell would change from Albert's scruffy clothes into a tailored suit, shave and brush himself, and then blithely walk offset past the sightseers and autograph hunters, who would not recognise the dapper, well-dressed gentleman as the dishevelled Albert Steptoe.

Rob Halliday