Frederick Cliffe Howchin (11 April 1885 – 22 September 1957), known professionally as Fred E. Cliffe, was an English songwriter, best known for his work co-writing songs with Harry Gifford for entertainer George Formby.
He was born in Liverpool, and by 1907 had started working in music halls as a lightning sketch artist. He moved to London, and by 1910 was working as a songwriter with Fred Godfrey and others. His greatest period of success as a writer came in the 1930s, when he teamed up with Harry Gifford to write some of George Formby's most popular songs. These include " Fanlight Fanny" (1935), " With My Little Stick of Blackpool Rock" (1936), " When I'm Cleaning Windows" (1937), "It’s Turned Out Nice Again" (1939), and "Mr. Wu’s a Window Cleaner Now" (1939), some of which also included Formby's name as a co-writer. [1] [2]
He was married three times, and died in hospital in Taplow, Buckinghamshire, in 1957, aged 72, from myocardial infarction and coronary thrombosis. [2]
References
- ^ "Fred E. Cliffe (1885–1957)", FredGodfreySongs.ca. Retrieved 24 August 2020
- ^ a b Frederick Howchin, Turle.name. Retrieved 24 August 2020
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