Teacher by day and avid photographer at the weekend, Andy Hollingworth told Dawlish and Teignmouth Camera Club members how he had first become interested in photographing comedians and why this led to a lifelong passion to capture the great entertainers of our time.

Sharing over 200 images, mainly in black and white, Andy first photographed Charlie Williams - the only man to make his Grandad laugh. He went on to cover the early careers of Bill Bailey, Sarah Millican and Eddie Izzard due to his persistence with their agents at being allowed backstage access at the shows. Thanks to the originality of his portraiture shots and the rapport he naturally has, he is in demand by the same big stars now, plus others including Alan Carr, Phil Jupitus and Johnny Vegas.

Andy’s interest also extends to photographing the props connected with the comedians and this has seen him travel to Los Angeles to take photos of Harpo Marx’s harp and horn and also get close to the Morecambe family, memorably taking a picture of Joan Morecambe’s hands cradling Eric’s pipe.

Andy’s work has been featured at a solo exhibition with the National Portrait Gallery and at the Media Museum, Bradford, but he still remains humble about the contribution he has made, instead he has been campaigning for a National Museum of Comedy for the country.

Andy’s warmth and enthusiasm for what he does, together with the stories behind the images made for a most enjoyable evening.

Have a look at his work on www.andyhollingworth.com. The Club will be taking a break for the summer soon, but will reconvene in September.

Anyone interested in joining can contact us here.

Andy with his portrait of Ken Dodd, © Andy Hollingworth