4 August 1947: Paul Layton born
Paul Layton was born as Paul Martin Layton on 4 August 1947. He studied acting, leaving school at fourteen to train at the Aida Foster Stage School. As a teenager he had parts in the films 'I Could Go on Singing' (with Judy Garland), and 'Beckett'; and television appearances in 'Dixon of Dock Green' and 'Emergency Ward 10' amongst the three hundred in which he had acted in by the age of seventeen. In 1969 he secured a recording contract. After some solo releases, Layton joined the New Seekers as a bassist. Despite some line-up changes, he has remained in the band to this day. In 1972, the New Seekers represented the United Kingdom with 'Beg steal or borrow', which ended in second place in a field of 18 competitors. The single went on to become a chart success throughout Europe. The band even recorded a German version of the song for the German market.