Actor Tony Audenshaw, better known to Emmerdale fans as Bob Hope, is lending his support – and soap show colleagues – to York Rocks Against Cancer, as Steve Pratt reports

WHEN you play a soap character called Bob Hope the chances are that you’re going to be a happy-go-luck chap, funny rather than dramatic.

And so it has proved since actor Tony Audenshaw debuted in ITV’s Yorkshire-based soap Emmerdale 12 years ago.

There has been the odd tragedy – wife Viv dies in a fire leaving him with two children to raise, that sort of thing – but in the main Bob is a well, hopeful bloke who has a smile and a joke to raise the spirits.

Sure enough there was much laughter when Audenshaw made a recent public appearance in York. There he was clasping a small plastic toy guitar in rock star mode in the middle of a charity shop in Huntington.

The pose was humorous but the purpose of this publicity stunt was serious. He was promoting the York Rocks Against Cancer event at the Grand Opera House next month.

He comperes the evening, which features York’s finest cover bands, The Supermodels, The York Turnpike Trust and The Guv’nors.

The actor is lead singer with covers band White Van Man, but its members couldn’t make the date of the charity show. Instead he’ll stand by as some of his TV co-stars perform as Edna’s Hat, a folk rock band made up of current and ex-Emmerdale cast members.

Audenshaw became involved in the York stage show after meeting Ian Surgenor, who’s organised the event with Graham Bradbury and Julie Russell, at a gig by American singer Josh Rouse in Sheffield.

“We are both fans, got talking, had a really good night. Then Ian came to see me in White Van Man at Harrogate Beer Festival where we’ve played for the last few years,” he explains.

He kept in touch and asked if he could do anything to help with the event. White Van Man were unavailable but the actor offered to compere the show.

“I mentioned it to a couple of people at work at Emmerdale and they’re in this fantastic band called Edna’s Hat. They’ve agreed to play, which is a great bonus because they don’t play in public often. They play some corporate and work events.”

The line-up has Sian Reese-Williams (Gennie) on lead vocals with Dominic Brunt (Paddy Kirk) on mandolin and Tom Lister (recently murdered Carl King) on vocals.

Completing the line-up are programme scheduler Nader Mabadi (formerly with Take That’s Mark Owen and London-based band Milehigh) on guitar and drum and Steve Mosby from Strangers In Paradise on electric guitar.

“It’s nice to be able to support the charity,”

says Audenshaw. “I lost my mum to cancer a few years ago and she was a member of a smaller committee than this over in Marple. My dad’s still a member so I know how hard fundraising is and what a difference it makes to people and how effective local fundraising can be. It can make quite a difference.”

He also runs marathons – often in fancy dress – for the charity Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. In 2010, for instance, he broke the Guinness World Record for the fastest time set by a runner dressed as a baby, completing the London Marathon in three hours 13 minutes.

He’s run about 30 marathons. “I still enjoy running them. It keeps you fit and keeps you off the streets. Well, on the streets.”

He was promoting the gig at the York Against Cancer shop in Huntington during a few hours off from filming Emmerdale in Leeds.

TV is very different to his early days as an actor. After leaving drama school, he worked at Thorpe Park theme park near London. “I compered shows and I dressed up – they had these characters like Mickey Mouse which I voiced as well. I ended up writing the shows and producing them. Then in the winter I worked for a theatre company that toured nationally doing plays for local road safety authorities. We did a lot of work in Yorkshire.

“After that I did TV series, such as Heartbeat, Peak Practice, Prime Suspect and I was on Brookside for a while.”

He’s also been on Celebrity Mastermind (winning with special subject British Birds) and Stars In Their Eyes (winning with Kenny Rogers, losing with Roy Wood).

Surgenor and Bradbury have also been busy organising the York Rocks Against Cancer “Down with the Kidz” event at the Grand Opera House tomorrow. This will include the best of York’s youth rock’n’roll talent, where the winners of the night will get to play at the main event.

  • York Rocks Against Cancer: York Grand Opera House, June 15. Box office 0844- 8713024 and online atgtickets.com/york