Doug Sheldon

Doug Sheldon (born Bernard Bobrow, 22 June 1936 – 2023) was an English pop singer, actor and novelist.

Sheldon was born as Bernard Bobrow in Stepney, London, England on 22 June 1936, into a family of carnival businesspeople. He worked as a barker while receiving training in acting.^[1]

After completing military service, he landed a role in the 1961 film The Guns of Navarone, and worked in small theatre productions. He shared a flat in London with three other then-unknown actors, including Michael Caine and Sean Connery. Sheldon was discovered by Bunny Lewis while performing on-stage and was quickly offered a recording contract with Decca Records, even though he had no previous experience performing as a singer.^[1]

Sheldon's first single was "Book of Love", which did not chart. The follow-up single was a cover of the song "Runaround Sue", which became a hit record in the UK Singles Chart reaching number 36,^[2] although Dion's version soon overshadowed it in popularity. His next single, "Your Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night", became his highest-charting hit in the UK at number 29.^[2] Shel Talmy produced the next single, "Lollipops and Roses", which flopped, but with the song "I Saw Linda Yesterday" he managed to crack the UK Singles Chart for the last time in 1963 at number 36, thus emulating his first hit's position.^[2]

After the middle of the decade, Sheldon returned to a career in acting, where he appeared on TV in Doctor Who, The Avengers and Triangle, and in films such as The Yellow Teddy Bears (1963), the musical comedy Just for You (1964), Some Girls Do (1969), The Spy Killer (1969), Ryan's Daughter (1970), Soft Beds, Hard Battles (1974), Appointment with Death (1988) and Iron Eagle II (1988).^[3] He also published novels using the slightly fuller name of Douglas Sheldon.^[1] In 2007, his entire Decca discography was released on CD by Vocalion Records.^[1][4]

On 3 April 2026, it was announced by Toby Hadoke that Sheldon had died in 2023, aged 86.^[5]

• "Book of Love" (1961)
• "Runaround Sue" (1961) UK No. 36^[6]
• "Your Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night" (1962) UK No. 29^[6]
• "Lollipops and Roses" (1963)
• "I Saw Linda Yesterday" (1963) UK No. 36^[6]
• "Mickey's Monkey" (1964)^[2]
• "Let's Make A Habit Of This" (1964) Decca DL 25 111 (Teldec)

• Douglas Sheldon at Theatricalia