‘WAKEY WAKA-A-A-Y!’ Delivered at full pelt in a cockney accent by bandleader Billy Cotton, for more than two decades this was the opening cry that announced the most popular show on British radio, and later on television. Cotton led an eventful life: an underage boy soldier in World War One, RFC pilot, bus conductor, boxer, talented footballer, motorbike racer, powerboat racer and, for more than 40 years, a hugely successful bandleader. He was also a top-flight amateur racing driver.
Bill – variously ‘Billie’ or ‘Billy’ but never ‘William’ –