Daly for the BBC, alongside Peter Jones, Lockwood West and Bernard Bresslaw. These were Burglar's Bargains (1979), A Right Royal Rip-off (1982) and The Bigger They Are (1985). Personal life Little is known about Hawtrey's early years or later private life. He guarded his relationships very carefully in an era (lasting until 1967 in England) when male homosexual sex was illegal and punishable by a prison sentence. His outrageous drunken promiscuity did not attract sympathy, nor did his general peevish demeanour and increasing eccentricity earn him many close friends. If fans asked him for an autograph, Hawtrey would often swear at them and rip their paper in half. Kenneth Williams recounted a visit to Deal in Kent where Hawtrey owned a house full of old brass bedsteads that the eccentric actor had hoarded, believing that "one day he would make a great deal of money from them". Hawtrey spent most of his life living with his mother, who suffered Alzheimer's disease in later years. Another anecdote recounted by Williams describes how during the filming of Carry On Teacher, Joan Sims cried out to Hawtrey that his mother's handbag had caught fire after her cigarette ash fell into it. Without batting an eyelid, Hawtrey poured a cup of tea into the bag to put out the flames, snapped the handbag shut and continued with his conversation. He would often bring his mother onto the set and then lock her in his dressing room when he was required to film a scene. Williams also recounted his gathering up of the sandwiches left over from a buffet for the "Carry On" cast. Williams was envious of Hawtrey's acceptance of his sexuality: "He can sit in a bar and pick up sailors and have a wonderful time. I couldn't do it." In the spring of 1984, Hawtrey suffered a heart-attack. Hawtrey hit the headlines after his house caught fire on 5 August 1984. He had gone to bed with a 15-year-old rent boy and had left a cigarette burning on his sofa. Newspaper photographs from the time show a fireman leading an ill-looking, emotional, partially clothed and toupeeless Hawtrey to safety. Hawtrey told the press that "The smell of smoke woke me up and there were flames coming up the stairway. I've lost a lot of valuable antiques and sentimental keepsakes but I am all right. It was all very frightening". Death On 24