Richard Beckinsale was born on 6 July 1947 in Carlton Nottingham. Before Porridge, Richard Beckinsale had starred in a highly successful sitcom over on ITV called "The Lovers".

During the same period that Beckinsale was playing Godber in the hit series, he also starred as Alan in the hit Rising Damp. Rising Damp is arguably the funniest comedy ever shown on the ITV (the BBC have always been more successful in comedy). This is why, despite his short career, that Beckinsale is still so much a part of our daily lives. He brilliantly contributed to two of the best comedies of the 1970s.

Sadly, Richard Beckinsale died of a heart attack on 19 March 1979. He was just 31 years old. It is tragic that such a wonderful talent should have met such an early death. However, we should be grateful that he gave us so much laughter, laughter that continues even today.

Beckinsale played the part of Leonard Arthur Godber in Porridge. His character was very important to the series. Fletcher takes him under his wing and explains prison life to Lennie. Therefore, prison life is explained to us, the audience.

The role grew beyond this however due to the combination of the brilliant writing of Clement and La Frenais and the undeniable genius of Beckinsale. Ronnie Barker always enjoyed working with Beckinsale and all of these factors gave us one of the finest comedies in British TV history.