Don Estelle, born Ronald Edwards, (22 May 1933 — 2 August 2003), was a British actor best known for playing Gunner "Lofty" Sugden in It Ain't Half Hot, Mum.
He was discovered as a boy soprano after being evacuated to Darwen during World War II. He continued singing after the war and gained experience singing twelve times a week at the Hulme Hippodrome. After meeting Windsor Davies in 1962, the two formed a double act for the next four years.
After appearing in four episodes of Dad's Army, David Croft brought Estelle back for a later series of his, It Ain't Half Hot, Mum, which also reunited him with Davies. Estelle's character, Lofty, remained a part of the series from the first episode in 1974 to the finale in 1981.
Estelle also had a small film career, with roles in Not Now, Comrade, A Private Function, and Santa Claus: The Movie, the latter of the three reuniting him with Half Hot, Mum co-star Melvyn Hayes.
In his later years, he struggled to find work and could be found in public dressed in his Lofty outfit singing to try and sell his tapes.
He died at the age of 70.
Works on TV Tropes he appeared in:
Films- Santa Claus: The Movie (1985) — Groot
- Dad's Army, 4 episodes:
- "Big Guns" (1969) — Man from Pickfords
- 3 episodesshow list (1970) — Gerald
- It Ain't Half Hot, Mum, 56 episodes (1974-81) — Gunner Harold "Lofty" Sugden
- The Benny Hill Show, 1 episode (1975) — Various
- The League of Gentlemen, 2 episodesshow list (1999) — Little Don
