John Shuttleworth (character)

John Shuttleworth is a fictional singer-songwriter and radio presenter, created in 1986 and performed by English comedy actor and musician Graham Fellows. Shuttleworth is in his late 50s and is from Walkley in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. He has a quiet manner and slightly nerdish tendencies. His musical talents are usually expressed through his PSS portable keyboard and include "Pigeons in Flight", a song that Shuttleworth attempted to have selected for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Character portrait.
Shuttleworth is a pathetic character, essentially decent and benevolent, but with a painful lack of self-awareness. The unfortunate gap between his actual musical talent and his steadfast belief in the possibility of his eventual pop super-stardom is the main source of the character's tragi-comedy. His "next-door neighbour and sole agent", Ken Worthington is more of a hindrance than a help in John's life.
The character was inspired by some demo tapes sent in to Chappell Music, where Fellows – who had previously had UK chart success as the character Jilted John – worked as a songwriter in the 1980s, and takes some of his mannerisms from Graham's father and from mouse breeders he knew as a young man in Sheffield. A character prototypical of John Shuttleworth appeared on the single "Men of Oats And Creosote", issued under Fellows' own name in 1979.
Appearing on BBC Radio 4's "Midweek" programme, on 3 June 2015, Fellows suggested that Shuttleworth was an amalgamation of the "very steady types" he had served beer to in a working men's club in Sheffield and the more eccentric characters he had met while showing fancy mice.
Supporting characters.
Shuttleworth has fronted several radio and television series, usually supported by other characters, also voiced by Fellows, including agent / manager, Ken Worthington ("TV's Mr. Clarinet Man"), who came last on the TV talent show "New Faces" in 1973, as well as John's wife Mary Shuttleworth, their two teenage children Darren and Karen, and Mary's friend Joan Chitty. Other characters included Janet Le Row (formerly Rowbotham - John came up with the idea for a name change, which has brought Janet relative success), a fellow singer-songwriter who shares John's agent; Plonker, a friend of Darren; Maxime, a friend of Karen; and Peter Cornelius, a salesman and friend of Ken who is always keen to sell his products.
Broadcasting.
The Shuttleworths' various adventures have featured on several radio shows, including "The Shuttleworths", "Shuttleworth's Showtime" and "Radio Shuttleworth", with Fellows supplying all the voices and performing on his organ. He also made a four-part TV series supposedly filmed by Worthington, "500 Bus Stops" (the title being a parodying reference to Frank Zappa's "200 Motels"), about a UK national tour thwarted very early when his beloved Y-reg Austin Ambassador broke down, but then continued by public transport. The venues visited were invariably mundane and uninspiring, and situations experienced usually demoralising, but were optimistically dealt with as if they were defining moments in his career. There followed a television special, "Europigeon", following the success (or otherwise) of "Pigeons in Flight".
In May 2008 Fellows appeared in the BBC's "Comedy Map of Britain" in which he discussed the origin of his Shuttleworth character.
In February 2019, "The Shuttleworths" was placed at number 26 in the Radio Times 'Top 30 From Plomley To Peel' poll of BBC radio shows (Radio Times print edition, 16-22 February 2019).
Radio.
Shuttleworth has also guested on Mark and Lard's "Graveyard Shift" on Radio 1 and on Radio 4's "Loose Ends".
Television series.
"It's Nice Up North" and "Southern Softies".
In 2006, Fellows (as Shuttleworth) made a film with photographer Martin Parr, entitled "It's Nice Up North", in which Shuttleworth tests his theory that British people are nicer the further north one ventures by visiting the Shetland Islands, the most northerly part of the United Kingdom. In summer 2007 he travelled to the Channel Islands to shoot another film, "Southern Softies". Again featuring an appearance from Parr, Shuttleworth aims to discover whether people are softer the further south you go.
Other media.
In December 2015, Fellows recorded a satellite navigation voice for TomTom devices as Ken Worthington, made available as a free download. A John Shuttleworth voice was also planned.
Stage show.
In April 2007 Shuttleworth started touring with a new stage show "With My Condiments". It was inspired by Jamie Oliver's promotion of healthy food for school children. Fellows thought "what would happen if Shuttleworth did the same for a slightly older age group". In June, Shuttleworth's "4 Rather Tasty Tracks" was released as a download or CD, reaching the appropriately modest number 96 in the UK charts and number 29 in the Indie Charts in July 2007.
In November 2008 Shuttleworth began his "Minor Tour – and other Mythological Creatures" tour.
In October 2010 Shuttleworth began a five-month "A Man With No More Rolls" tour, claiming that it was a misprint and should have been called "A Man With No Morals".
In Spring 2015 it was announced that Shuttleworth was to appear in a one-night concert "John Shuttleworth & Friends", on 28 June 2015, at the London Palladium. The concert, celebrating 30 years of the character, and in aid of multiple sclerosis charities, would include appearances by Chas & Dave, Toyah, Martyn Ware of Heaven 17, John Otway, Leee John of Imagination, Gordon Giltrap, Jon McClure of Reverend and The Makers and Sooty and Sweep. Shuttleworth suggested there would also be a rare appearance by Jilted John.
In Spring 2017, Shuttleworth embarked on a 53-date "farewell" tour, titled "My Last Will And Tasty Mint".
Television advertising.
In 2009 Shuttleworth appeared in a UK television advertising campaign for Yorkshire Tea.