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Morley had adapted the seaside beauty contest into fashion shows at Mecca dance halls; he developed this into a national beauty pageant and a TV concept. 'Miss
Festival of Britain' began in 1951 as a promotional tool for Mecca and once international contestants arrived in London for the event, the
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in the UK. It employed 15,000 people and covered dance halls, catering, bingo, gambling, ice-skating rinks, bowling alleys, discos and several restaurants. The company also provided catering and entertainment services for several of the biggest football clubs in London;
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in 1960 after meeting at a dance hall. In 1968, she took over the day-to-day running of Miss World and, following Morley's death in 2000, became chairman of the pageant. His family are now beneficiaries of the
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of Great
Britain and Variety Clubs International, the former as Chief Barker in 1973, and the latter as president in 1978. Prior to becoming Chief Barker, he had raised over $ 700,000 for the Variety Club.
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which was played at Mecca venues throughout the United
Kingdom. He changed the company from a small catering and dancing firm into a leading entertainment and
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contest was launched, Morley turned Miss World into an annual event held every
November, initially at the Mecca owned Lyceum Theatre and later in the
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Morley started his career in the entertainment business in 1945 when he resigned his commission to manage a travelling show in
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In 1952, he was Mecca's general manager of dancing, and was made a director in 1953. With Mecca, Morley helped to popularise
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popped out of her swimsuit during a preview of the final judging. Morley hastily adjusted her swimsuit.
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134:(26 September 1918 – 9 November 2000) was an English television host and the founder of the
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in preparation for the 2000 Miss World finals, he had a heart attack and died in the
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being represented. He left an estate valued at ÂŁ10.6 million, and was buried in
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In 1978, he left Mecca after a disagreement with the then parent company,
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On 9 November 2000, the day after the contestants first paraded at the
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programme, encouraging viewers to visit Mecca's dance halls.
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and spoke nine languages" but he died young. He attended
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in the band. During the war he became a captain in the
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548:"Eric Morley New Chief of British Variety Club".
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593:"Eric Morley, 82, 'Miss World' Promoter, Dies"
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363:Morley was a confirmed supporter of
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691:20th-century British businesspeople
518:Obituary: Eric Morley, p. 25,
638:Felperin, Leslie (10 March 2020).
624:Mr Eric Morley; Memorial Service.
491:Wynne-Jones, Ros (3 August 1997).
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731:Royal Army Service Corps officers
493:"The Women Who Gave Essex a Miss"
706:Burials at West Norwood Cemetery
591:Lewis, Paul (11 November 2000).
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640:"'Misbehaviour': Film Review"
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391:Morley had married his wife
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306:Unlisted Securities Market
736:Royal Fusiliers soldiers
331:, Venezuelan contestant
304:Miss World Group on the
190:Royal Army Service Corps
566:"Obituary: Eric Morley"
446:Morley is portrayed by
416:Princess Grace Hospital
277:When an American rival
166:Whitstable Boys’ School
399:Dancing with the Stars
343:He supported both the
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436:West Norwood Cemetery
310:London Stock Exchange
170:London County Council
87:West Norwood Cemetery
701:Beauty pageant hosts
402:franchise globally.
726:People from Holborn
666:BBC Morley Obituary
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442:Portrayal on screen
424:Wellington Barracks
317:Miss United Kingdom
228:Festival of Britain
156:Morley was born in
132:Eric Douglas Morley
35:Eric Douglas Morley
16:English businessman
661:Miss World history
644:Hollywood Reporter
628:, 4 December 2000.
597:The New York Times
572:. 10 November 2000
259:Grand Metropolitan
468:television drama
432:Duke of Edinburgh
365:Margaret Thatcher
283:Royal Albert Hall
252:Tottenham Hotspur
222:press dubbed it '
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504:13 September
502:. Retrieved
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453:Misbehaviour
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146:Julia Morley
141:Come Dancing
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111:Julia Morley
100:Organization
69:(2000-11-09)
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686:2000 deaths
681:1918 births
426:, with the
265:company in
186:french horn
25:Eric Morley
721:Miss World
675:Categories
478:References
448:Rhys Ifans
438:, London.
273:Miss World
224:Miss World
174:Royal Navy
136:Miss World
98:Miss World
93:Occupation
41:1918-09-26
626:The Times
605:0362-4331
521:The Times
460:, and by
371:twice in
168:in Kent.
77:, England
474:(2023).
430:and the
359:Politics
298:Bob Hope
267:Scotland
206:Scotland
610:28 July
576:28 July
551:Variety
464:in the
373:Dulwich
339:Charity
308:of the
302:floated
248:Chelsea
244:Arsenal
194:Dunkirk
158:Holborn
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57:England
49:Holborn
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162:Oxford
105:Spouse
75:London
53:London
406:Death
393:Julia
235:bingo
200:Mecca
178:Grays
118:(
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612:2021
601:ISSN
578:2021
506:2014
381:1979
379:and
323:and
294:1970
287:1959
250:and
64:Died
31:Born
292:In
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