(From this months STAGE PAPER)

Joe Longthorne, one of Britain’s biggest light entertainment stars, is in intensive care in a Manchester hospital, weeks after undergoing a successful bone marrow transplant.

The 50 year old, who lives in Blackpool, is suffering from pneumonia in Manchester Royal Infirmary. His manager Zeb White said that the Hull-born singer’s condition had deteriorated in the last week.

Longthorne has battled cancer for the last 16 years.

Best known for his take-offs of Shirley Bassey, Johnny Mathis and other vocalists, Longthorne emerged as a major star in the early seventies. He joined the Les Dennis Laughter show, before being giving his own ITV series in the late eighties.

His concert appearances throughout the UK are always sell-outs and he has several flourishing fan clubs.