Lionel Morton
Born on 14th of August 1940
Lionel Morton was born in Blackburn in 1942 with the very Lancashire surname of Walmsley. His career has been lengthy and his portfolio diverse, largely based around his talent for music.
Morton’s first brush with fame was as a choirboy at Blackburn Cathedral, his pure soprano voice taking him to performances in St Paul’s Cathedral and recording by the BBC. In the early sixties he formed a pop group, first called the Lionel Morton Four, then The Four Pennies: Morton sang and played guitar, and wrote the group’s 1964 number one hit Juliet.
After the band split in 1966 Morton worked for Apple Corp as a producer before changing direction again: he was offered the chance to develop the children’s TV programme Playschool which he scripted and presented many times. Later in his career he did the same with Playaway, for which he also wrote the theme tune (wrinkly chorus please of playaway play playaway away play...).
Between his children’s TV jobs he returned to the stage in a series of successful musicals including Hair and Tim Rice/Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar.
Reprising his rock ’n roll days during nostalgia tours in the 80s kept Morton busy then, and thereafter he remained in the music business with work in radio, as a producer, and arranging.
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