No Ragtime Cowboy Joe!:

I first met Ian Kelsey in the early 90s, when he was a dancer at 'The American Adventure' Theme Park in South Derbyshire, which at that time was owned by Granada. His job was as an entertainer in the Saloon Shows, and also as a cowboy in the 'Shoot Out' in the arena outside 'Lazy Lil's Saloon' in Silver City.

One Big Hunk!

From the very start, it was obvious he was to be a true performer, as he threw himself into each show, and he fitted in well with all his fellow entertainers, soon to become a favourite with the girls who worked alongside him, dancing to popular country and western songs. Dressed in jeans and checked shirt, he danced to songs such as 'Ragtime Cowboy Joe','A four Legged Friend' 'The Deadwood Stage; in routines which lasted for about fifteen minutes of non - stop dancing, coming off stage breathless as you would expect. He also took part in 'The Roaring Twenties' show, the 'Mexican Fiesta' show which alternated throughout the day, and it needed a lot of stamina to keep up with this tiring routine.

Big Guy:

Ian is tall, and one of his pet hates was doing cartwheels around the stage, which was small, with a low ceiling, and many was the time he would hit his feet on the stage roof, or catch a light fitting! I recall his first appearance as the Sheriff of Silver City, as he bust through the saloon doors into the arena, branding a twelve - bore shotgun, loaded with blank cartridges, to challenge Johnny Ringo and his Gang, who had rode into town to raid the bank.

Eighteen Hope Street Days:

Not everyone realises what a very good sense of humour he has, which sometimes borders on the edge of being devilish, and many was the time he would do something that was completely un - scripted, causing all the other cast to wonder what he was about to do, or make them burst out laughing. I recall that on one of his birthdays, when he was playing a badman he got shot, and lay dead, at the end of the show, he suddenly said over his radio mike 'Hey you guys, I ain't dead yet!

During the season he lodged in a nearby town, along with several of the female dancers, and they always recalled how he hated doing housework in the building. After he left they said that in the three seasons he worked at the park, they had never once seen him pick up the ‘Hoover’ to clean the floor, because he just was not that kind of person!

Baby Face:

I got to see a side of Ian that the public never saw, having access to back stage rooms, and found that he was really a nice, friendly person to everybody there, and liked to laugh and joke when they did something wrong. At that time I used to do special video presentation for the park, and also for other entertainers there, who used the finished tapes as evidence to gain an 'Equity Card'. Over the years I accumulated almost a hundred tapes of various shows, special promotions, and also things that just happened, like dancers (including Ian), falling over, bumping into each other, as well as special end of season shows, with different costumes they would not normally wear. This was a time when 'anything' would go, and I recall on my video's as having him doing 'drag', and an opening scene where all the cast were dressed as babies, yes in napkins, while the female singer was performing the song 'Baby Face'.

Pranks:

Amusing moments happened spontaneously with Ian, and in the Summer months, they once had a 'Mexican Fiesta Show', in The Alamo Arena, and Ian, resplendently dressed as a Mexican dancer performed to the music of 'La Cuccaracha' and 'La Isla Bonita', which was popular at the time. (Incidently sung by Debbie Nunn, our Star No.1!)

I had been asked to record the show to send to head office, and so with a very large heavy video camera on my shoulder, and a battery pack strapped to my back, I proceeded to video the show. There were about five girls, and Ian doing the routine, and filming was to be done continuously rather than 'dub' the sound track, so I commenced filming, and began to focus on the feet of the dancers.

Suddenly I became aware that Ian was missing from the shot, next I became aware that he was very close to me, and with my eye still 'glued' to the eyepiece, moved slowly backwards. What I didn't know was that the area, which was in the open, was not big enough to take five dancers in a row, with legs flying everywhere!

Show Stealer:

Ian took advantage of the moment, pulled off his poncho, and began to wave it in front of me, some twenty foot away, which looked as if we were both playing the part as in bullfighting, he as the matador, and myself as the bull. This of course brought howls from the three hundred or so audience, who thought it was part of the performance, and he stole the whole show. Needless to say the video had to have the sound edited in the end, before sending it to head office. Incidents such as this occurred often , especially if it was being videoed, and there's much more I could reveal, but it would fill a whole web site, and anyway he is far too professional to do things such as this today, (or is he?). Laughter and tears are all part of the entertainment business, and a couple of the girls shed a tear on his last day, to move on to other things.

'Emmerdale' Days:

With the Glover Family as Dave Glover

Hot Love Scenes:

and an affair with Kim Tate (Played by Claire King)

My Inspiration?

Of Course his publicity doesn't say much about these early days, perhaps he would like to forget them, I don't know. I reviewed some of the video's a couple of years ago, at a time when I was recovering from major cancer surgery, and they gave me the inspiration to get well again, of this I am sure. So if Ian ever reads this, thank you for all the good times you gave us, and push on with your career, because I for one can confirm that you're certainly no 'Ragtime Cowboy Joe!'

Some other pictures of Ian kelsey:

Photo: As Danny in the stage production of 'Grease'

Filming for television series:

Just relaxing:

Search the Internet for other web sites of this popular star..........