Tommy Cannon & Bobby Ball have been hailed as Britons own Kings of Comedy. It`s easy to see why. In a career spanning more than thirty-five years they have achieved a string of honours that puts them amongst the `greats` of showbusiness.

From eleven years of their own television series to starring in several Royal Variety Performances they have become one of the best known television comedy acts. Their ability to consistently sell out in all the major theatre venues has made them the Kings of live entertainment, and their pantomime run at the world famous London Palladium broke all box office records when it took the largest amount ever taken in one week in British theatre history.

Bobby Ball

However, the glitz and glamour of showbusiness is not always what it seems and even being the highest paid double act could not bring real happiness as Bobby explains, "At the height of our career I could actually have anything I wanted. I had so much money, I couldn`t get rid of it fast enough. The problem was that nothing was ever enough. Whatever I had I wanted more of, but it never satisfied me. I became a very proud person, and I would treat people very badly and expect them to jump at my every demand. I was not a nice person to be near at all." Bobby soon got into drinking heavily, seeing as many women as he could, and getting into fights as often as possible. "It was like living with a volcano" Bobby`s wife Yvonne remembers, "You never knew when he was going to erupt".

Despite all this Bobby had been searching for the truth about God for some time. Having looked into many different religions he started to read his Bible. "I liked the Old Testament best, and was enthralled by the way they sometimes didn`t eat certain things. I even stopped eating bacon sandwiches for two years, despite the fact I really loved them. What I really felt was very dirty, and I knew I needed forgiveness.

Soon after, Bobby contacted Max Wigley, a Theatre Chaplain who had once visited him in his theatre dressing room. "He explained all about Jesus, and how his death on the cross could not only enable me to be forgiven but actually start again. I knew it was for me." Bobby asked Jesus into his life that day, and two months later his wife, Yvonne became a Christian too.

Tommy Cannon

When Bobby Ball became a Christian, Tommy noticed a change in his buddy almost immediately; "I couldn’t believe it when he stopped getting drunk, but at first I just put it down to Bobby going through another one of his `phases`" explains Tommy. Tommy remembers walking into Bobby`s dressing room one evening and finding himself in the middle of a prayer meeting! A bit embarrassed at first, he knew Bobby had something or someone that he really wanted in his own life.

"Bobby invited me to church one Sunday for a dedication service, and I felt that I couldn`t refuse" recalls Tommy. "So I told Hazel my wife, and the children to wrap up really warm because it`s always cold in churches. When we arrived we couldn’t believe how warm and welcoming it was. We had coffee to start with and even the children had sweets. The service was amazing, with a live band, and a real sense of joy. When we were praying the Pastor asked if anyone wanted to know God in their life, and my hand went up in the air because I knew that this is just what I wanted. To my surprise Hazel`s hand was in the air too!"

Since becoming committed Christians Cannon & Ball have continued to break box office records, some during their own highly successful Gospel Tours. Despite criticisms from the media and press that Tommy became a Christian because Bobby did, or that they became `religious` to give an uplift to their flagging career, Cannon & Ball are still in demand all over the country, and have just enjoyed one of the biggest pantomime box office advances of their career!

Nor have they been free from all the difficulties of being in the public eye. The newspapers often try and dig up some sort of story from the past, sometimes even trying to disprove their Christian faith. But as Bobby says "The career is not as important as our relationship with God, he pulled me out of a pit and set my feet on a rock, and I`ll love him forever for that".

Bobby`s favourite verses is:

Jesus said "I am telling you the truth; no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again." John 3 verse 3.

For me this is the most important aspect of the Christian faith. I realise it sounds very strange though , and even the priest Nicodemus who questioned what Jesus meant by this, at first took him literally. What Jesus meant however, is that when you realise your need of God, you have to stop doing it your way, hand everything over, and start again. It was a revolutionary concept in Jesus`s day because it didn`t rely on what nationality you were, or who your father was, but on whether you were willing to wholeheartedly ask God to be in control of your life.

For me the idea of being `born again` was very important. I was ashamed of my past and wanted God to bury it as deep as possible. In fact I love the bit in the Bible that says that God takes our sins and totally blots them out. God does not remember them any more. This is just what I needed. I wanted to be washed inside and out and stand before my God as if I was brand new...born again!

It`s important too, to understand that its not like deciding that you`re going to be good from now on, like some New Year`s resolution. People can be God-fearing, Church-going and yet not be born again. "Someone once said that going to Church doesn`t make you a Christian anymore than going to MacDonald`s makes you a hamburger!

Only God`s Holy Spirit can enable us to be born again and it`s still a revolutionary thing today. We are all so used to handling things ourselves, in our way and in our time. Sometimes we are also too proud to let God into our lives. We must learn to `let go and let God`. Not just once when we accept God into our lives, but every single day.

Prayer:

Bobby is actually a brilliant poet. His chosen prayer is the closing section of a poem he has written called `Power of Praise`.

Please forgive me, but I find it hard to apologise,

To be able to see the other person`s point of view.

But deep inside, behind all this sinful pride,

I want to be just like you.

Really deep in my soul, I want to be sensitive,

I want to open my eyes and see.

I no longer want this pride to be ever consuming,

I want to trade for humility.

As Jesus said, pride is a sin

And it will eventually bring about a man`s fall,

You see I`ve been to busy being proud

I didn`t listen to Jesus`s call.

If only you could forgive me Jesus

For my sins, but most of all my pride.

Forgive, for all the people my proudness hurt,

And for the way to myself I lied.

So fill me Jesus with your love,

Fill me to my innermost being.

Take away this mask from my eyes,

Give me joy like a blind man first upon seeing.

Earnestly I beg you Jesus

wash away my sin as only you can,

And turn this arrogant and ignorant thing