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People who have influenced my favourite TV since 1961
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- Writer
- Actor
- Special Effects
Nigel Kneale was born on 18 April 1922 in Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, England, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for The Entertainer (1960), Look Back in Anger (1959) and Quatermass and the Pit (1967). He was married to Judith Kerr. He died on 29 October 2006 in London, England, UK.- Writer
- Producer
- Actor
Ray Galton was born on 17 July 1930 in Paddington, London, England, UK. He was a writer and producer, known for Sanford and Son (1972), Steptoe and Son (1962) and Steptoe & Son (1972). He was married to Tonia Phillips. He died on 5 October 2018.- Writer
- Actor
- Producer
Alan Simpson was born on 27 November 1929 in Brixton, London, England, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for Sanford and Son (1972), Steptoe and Son (1962) and Steptoe & Son (1972). He was married to Kathleen (Kate) Phillips and Tessa Le Bars. He died on 8 February 2017 in the UK.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Tony Hancock was born in Birmingham, England, the son of John and Lillian Hancock. He was educated at Durlston Court, Swanage, and Bradfield College, Reading. He served in the R.A.F. (ground crew) during the war. In 1942 he was in the R.A.F. Gang Show. He was de-mobbed in 1946. He appeared at the Windmill Theatre, London in 1948. His radio show "Hancock's Half Hour" ran from 1954 - 1959, written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson with co-stars Hattie Jacques, Kenneth Williams, Sidney James and Bill Kerr. This popular show was adopted by TV and the shows were re-recorded and broadcast 1956-1960.- Actor
- Soundtrack
The star of the Carry On series of films, Sid James originally came to prominence as sidekick to the ground breaking British comedy actor Tony Hancock, on both radio and then television. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa and named Solomon Joel Cohen, James arrived in England in 1946, second wife in tow, having served with the South African Army during World War 2. By now an aspiring actor, James claimed to have boxed in his youth, perhaps to explain his craggy features, but was certainly a well respected hairdresser in his native country. Known in the trade as "one take James", he became a very talented and professional actor, constantly in demand for small parts in British post-war cinema. In 1960 James debuted in the fourth of the Carry On films, taking the lead role in Carry on Constable (1960) and went on to appear in a further 18 Carry On films as well as various stage and television spin-offs. Reputed not to have got on with Carry On co-star Kenneth Williams, the two often played adversaries on-screen, notably in the historical parodies Carry on Up the Khyber (1968) and Carry on Don't Lose Your Head (1967). James however was respected and revered by almost everyone he worked with and contrary to popular myth, a true gentleman. An addiction to gambling played a large part in James' workaholic schedule and subsequent heart attack in 1967. He was soon back in action however, playing a hospital patient in Carry on Doctor (1967), able to spend most of the film in bed. He suffered a second and fatal heart attack on stage in Sunderland, England on April 26 1976, leaving behind 3 children and his third wife Valerie who had stuck by him despite his affair with Carry On co-star Barbara Windsor, saying, "He always came home to me".- Actor
- Writer
- Music Department
Hugh Lloyd was born on 22 April 1923 in Chester, Cheshire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for You Rang, M'Lord? (1988), Doctor Who (1963) and Alice in Wonderland (1999). He was married to Shän Davies, Carole Wilkinson, Anne Rodgers and José Stewart. He died on 14 July 2008 in Worthing, Sussex, England, UK.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Sydney Newman was born on 1 April 1917 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He was a writer and producer, known for The Avengers (1998), The Avengers (1961) and Space Command (1953). He was married to Elizabeth McRae. He died on 30 October 1997 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
She became an actress because her mother had been stage struck so attended RADA and won a gold medal but despite that she was out of work for a year. An early success was as Ruby in Getting Married at St Martins Theatre in 1938, Probably best remembered for her role as Edna the Inebriated Woman for which she won the Television Actress of the ~Year Award in 1972. As a small child she was sent to an acting teacher who taught her to recite The Murder of Nancy Drew by Charles Dickens and used to recite it in childrens competitions and win prizes- Writer
- Additional Crew
- Script and Continuity Department
Dennis Spooner was born on 1 December 1932 in Tottenham, London, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Department S (1969), The Champions (1968) and Champions. He was married to Pauline E. Hosking. He died on 20 September 1986 in Hertfordshire, England, UK.- Actor
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
- Producer
British actor Patrick Macnee was born on February 6, 1922 in London, England into a wealthy and eccentric family. His father, Daniel Macnee, was a race horse trainer, who drank and gambled away the family fortune, leaving young Patrick to be raised by his lesbian mother, Dorothea Mary, and her partner. Shortly after graduating from Eton (from which he was almost expelled for running a gambling ring), Macnee first appeared on stage and made his film debut as an extra in Pygmalion (1938). His career was interrupted by World War II, during which he served in the Royal Navy. After military service, Macnee attended the Webber Douglas School of Dramatic Art in London on scholarship. He also resumed his stage and film career, with bit parts such as Young Jacob Marley in A Christmas Carol (1951). Disappointed with his limited roles, Macnee left England for Canada and the United States.
In 1954, he went to Broadway with an Old Vic troupe and later moved on to Hollywood, where he made occasional television and film appearances until returning to England in 1959. Once back home, he took advantage of his producing experience in Canada to become co-producer of the British television series Winston Churchill: The Valiant Years (1960). Shortly thereafter, Macnee landed the role that brought him worldwide fame and popularity in the part of John Steed, in the classic British television series The Avengers (1961). His close identification with this character limited his career choices after the cancellation of the series in 1969, prompting him to reprise the role in The New Avengers (1976), which, though popular, failed to recapture the magic of the original series. During the 1980s and 1990s, Macnee became a familiar face on American television in such series as Gavilan (1982), Empire (1984), Thunder in Paradise (1994) and NightMan (1997). In the past decade, Macnee has also made several audio recordings of book fiction.- Born 13 January 1931 in Ipswich, England, Ian Hendry's career began rather inauspiciously, playing the fall guy for a circus clown. After attending London's Central School of Speech and Drama, things started progressing nicely when he starred as "Dr. Geoffrey Brent" in Police Surgeon (1960). This led directly to The Avengers (1961) but, after only one season, he left to pursue film. This proved a fruitful move as he found plenty of work (perhaps not surprisingly, often as doctors and police officers), although he made occasional returns to the small screen, even guest-starring in an episode of The New Avengers (1976). His career was cut short on 24 December 1984, as he died from an internal hemorrhage at age 53.
- Edwin Richfield was born on 11 September 1921 in London, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Quatermass and the Pit (1967), Interpol Calling (1959) and Harriet's Back in Town (1972). He was married to Jan Holden. He died on 2 August 1990 in Shrewsbury, England, UK.
- Producer
- Director
Duncan Wood was born on 24 March 1925 in Bristol, England, UK. He was a producer and director, known for Oh Brother! (1968), The World of Beachcomber (1968) and The Bed-Sit Girl (1965). He died on 11 January 1997 in London, England, UK.- Actress
- Soundtrack
One of four children, Blackman was born in London's East End, to Edith Eliza (Stokes), a homemaker, and Frederick Thomas Blackman, a statistician employed with the Civil Service. She received elocution lessons for her 16th birthday (at her own request), and later attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, which she paid for by working as a clerical assistant in the Civil Service. She was also a dispatch rider for the Home Office during World War II, playing an important role in the war effort.
Blackman received her first acting work on stage in London's West End as an understudy in "The Guinea Pig". She continued with roles in "The Gleam" (1946) and "The Blind Goddess" (1947), before moving into film. She debuted with Fame Is the Spur (1947), starring Michael Redgrave.
Blackman suffered a nervous breakdown following her divorce from Bill Sankey, a man 12 years her senior, who's jealousy, fraudulent business practices, and emptying of her bank accounts took it's toll. After hospitalisation Blackman began counselling, which would last for years, and began rebuilding her career.
TV series work also came her way again, most notably the highly popular The Avengers (1961), co-starring Patrick Macnee as John Steed. As the leather-clad "Catherine Gale", Blackman showcased her incredible beauty, self-confidence, and athletic abilities. Her admirable qualities made her not only a catch for the men, but also an inspirational figure for the 1960s feminist movement.
Blackman took on the role of Greek goddess Hera in popular movie adventure Jason and the Argonauts (1963) with Ray Harryhausen and melodrama Life at the Top (1965) with Laurence Harvey. She then played "Pussy Galore" in the classic James Bond film Goldfinger (1964). Blackman went toe to toe with Sean Connery's womanizing "007" and created major sparks on screen.
Blackman continued to work consistently in films and tv, while also appearing on stage where she earned rave reviews as the blind heroine of the thriller "Wait Until Dark" as well as for her dual roles in "Mr. and Mrs.", a production based on two of Noël Coward's plays. She also enjoyed working with her second husband, actor Maurice Kaufmann, in the play "Move Over, Mrs. Markham" and the film thriller Fright (1971). She proved a sultry-voiced sensation in various musicals productions such as "A Little Night Music", "The Sound of Music", "On Your Toes", and "Nunsense."
In the new millennium, Honor was seen in such films as Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), Color Me Kubrick (2005), Reuniting the Rubins (2010), I, Anna (2012) and Cockneys vs Zombies (2012), as well as the British TV serieses Water, Water, Everywhere (1920) The Royal (2003) Coronation Street (1960), long running series Casualty (1986) and finally You, Me & Them (2013), her last role after her retirement several years earlier.
Divorced from Kaufmann in 1975 (although they remained friends until his death, Blackman even cared for him during his 13 year battle with cancer), Blackman never remarried, revealing in an interview that she simply preferred single life, "Basically I'm a shy person and I like my own company". Unable to conceive, the couple adopted two children, Lottie and Barnaby, in '67 and '68 respectively.
The ever-lovely and eternally glamorous star continued to find regular work into her 90s, including co-starring in the long-running English hit comedy series The Upper Hand (1990) and performing her one-woman stage show, "Wayward Women"
Honor Blackman died on April 5, 2020, in Lewes, Sussex. She was 94.- Ronald Radd was born on 22 January 1929 in Ryhope, Sunderland, County Durham, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Sea Gull (1968), A Tale of Two Cities (1957) and The Saint (1962). He was married to Dorothy May Goodman. He died on 23 April 1976 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Philip Madoc was born in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, and attended Twyn School. He became interested in acting when he was a teenager. He studied at the University of Vienna and pursued a theatrical career by attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. During the 1960s, he became a familiar face on British television, often cast in sinister roles due to his dark looks and deep voice. He became particularly familiar to fans of fantasy television, playing five different roles on The Avengers (1961) and four different roles on Doctor Who (1963). Into the 1970s and the guest appearances kept coming, including comedies such as Dad's Army (1968) (as a U-Boat captain in one of the most famous scenes on British TV) and The Good Life (1975). Although widely respected as a versatile actor adept at accents, Madoc never really became a star until 1981, when he portrayed former British prime minister David Lloyd George on an acclaimed television series, The Life and Times of David Lloyd George (1981). Madoc has not been short of work for the last 40 years, a rare accomplishment for an actor, and has worked on films, radio and on the stage as well as his prolific television career. Madoc died of cancer in 2012.- Producer
- Writer
- Additional Crew
A young Verity Lambert began her career as TV producer when given the chance to produce the new BBC television sci-fi series Doctor Who (1963) in early 1963. Due to the fact this was her first job as a producer, Mervyn Pinfield was given guardian role over the series, but Lambert's talents were soon recognised, and she was given full control, remaining on the programme until 1965. Lambert later owned her own production company, "Cinema Verity", and was a well known and respected person in the UK television industry.- William Hartnell was born on 8 January 1908, just south of St. Pancras railway station in London. In press materials in the 1940s he claimed that his father was a farmer and later a stockbroker; it turns out that he had actually been born out of wedlock, as his biography "Who's There?" states.
At age 16 he was adopted by Hugh Blaker, a well-known art connoisseur, who helped him to get a job with Sir Frank Benson's Shakespearean Company. He started as a general dogsbody--call-boy, assistant stage manager, property master and assistant lighting director--but was occasionally allowed to play small walk-on parts. Two years later he left Benson's group and went off on tour, working for a number of different theatre companies about Britain. He became known as an actor of farce and understudied renowned performers such as Lawrence Grossmith, Ernest Truex, Bud Flanagan and Charles Heslop. He played repertory in Richmond, Harrogate, Leeds and Sheffield and had a successful run as the lead in a touring production of "Charley's Aunt." He also toured Canada in 1928-29, acquiring much valuable experience.
On his return to England, Hartnell married actress Heather McIntyre. He starred in such films as I'm an Explosive (1933), The Way Ahead (1944), Strawberry Roan (1944), The Agitator (1945), Query (1945) and Appointment with Crime (1946).
His memorable performance on the television series The Army Game (1957) and the movie This Sporting Life (1963) led to him being cast as the Doctor on Doctor Who (1963), for which he is best remembered. His son-in-law is agent Terry Carney. His granddaughter is Jessica Carney (real name Judith Carney), who authored a biography of her grandfather, "Who's There?", in 1996. - William Russell was born William Russell Enoch on 19 November 1924, in Sunderland, County Durham, England, to Eva Compston (Pile) and Alfred James Enoch. He became interested in acting at an early age. He was involved in organizing entertainments during his national service in the Royal Air Force and then, after university, went into repertory theatre. He appeared in "Hamlet" in London's West End and won a number of film roles, usually as a dashing hero. Notable TV work followed in The Adventures of Sir Lancelot (1956) for ITV and Nicholas Nickleby (1957) and David Copperfield in Fredric March Presents Tales from Dickens (1959) for the BBC, shortly after which he was cast as Ian Chesterton in Doctor Who (1963). He later continued a successful acting career, particularly in the theatre, and for a time held a senior post in the actor's union, Equity. In recent years he has been a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
His son is actor Alfred Enoch. - Born in 17 December 1929, Jacqueline Hill was orphaned as a toddler and raised by her grandparents. She was taken out of school at the age of 14 to enable her younger brother to continue. She then worked at Cadbury's, which had an amateur dramatics society. She was encouraged to apply for, and was awarded, a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and entered RADA at the age of 16. She made her stage debut in London's West End in "The Shrike." Many more roles followed, including, on TV, Shop Window, Patrol Car (1954) and An Enemy of the People. It was around this time that she married top director Alvin Rakoff, who cast her opposite Sean Connery in one of ABC TV's Armchair Theatre plays. She was asked to play Barbara Wright in Doctor Who (1963) after she and producer Verity Lambert, whom she knew socially, discussed the role at a party. Soon after leaving the series in 1965 she gave up acting to raise a family. However, she resumed her career in 1979 and gained further TV credits on, amongst other programmes, Romeo & Juliet (1978), Tales of the Unexpected (1979), and the 1980 Doctor Who (1963) story "Meglos" (as a character called Lexa).
- Carole Ann Ford was born in June 1940 and first appeared in a film at the age of eight. Following acting and elocution lessons, she started doing commercials and walk-on work, and her first proper role was in the play "Women of the Streets." She continued working in theatre, film (including The Day of the Triffids (1963)) and television (including Emergency-Ward 10 (1957), Moonstrike (1963), Compact (1962) and Z Cars (1962)). Aftering leaving Doctor Who (1963), Carole worked mainly in the theatre. Her second daughter, Tara, was born in 1977. The same year she hurt her back filming a commercial, and suffered an extreme reaction to the pain-killers she was given. She subsequently became very ill, and has acted only occasionally since - though she did reprise her role as Susan in the twentieth-anniversary story The Five Doctors (1983). She is currently teaching voice, presentation skills and dialogue coaching to politicians, businessmen, after dinner speakers and actors.
- Director
- Actor
- Producer
Peter Hammond was born on 15 November 1923 in Victoria, London, England, UK. He was a director and actor, known for Hereward the Wake (1965), Contract to Kill (1965) and Armchair Theatre (1956). He was married to Maureen Glynne. He died on 12 October 2011 in London, England, UK.- Writer
- Script and Continuity Department
- Producer
Before becoming a film scriptwriter, Terry Nation was a prolific writer of UK television scripts in both the action and science fiction genres. His scripts are noted for their depth, i.e. they usually have many sub-plots as well as the main plot. As a writer on the BBC's Doctor Who (1963) series, he created the Daleks, the mechanical monsters who plan universal domination. On Earth they would constantly be planning to 'exterminate' all humans. Nation also created Survivors (1975) and Blake's 7 (1978) for the BBC.- Writer
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Brian Clemens left school at the age of 14. After national service with the Royal Army Ordnance Corps, he worked his way up from messenger boy to copywriter at an advertising agency, writing in his spare time. One of his scripts was accepted by the BBC in 1955. He joined a production company, literally writing scripts to order. With tight deadlines and plots often based on the availability of sets, props or location, he churned out scripts for B-films and TV series.
Clemens is best remembered for his work on British television in the 1960s and 1970s, especially on Danger Man (1960), The Avengers (1961) (for which he wrote many episodes, including the pilot in 1961), The Baron (1966), The Persuaders! (1971) and creating The Professionals (1977). He also wrote for the stage; his play "Strictly Murder" was performed by a cast including Brian Capron in 2017.
Clemens was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2010 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to Broadcasting and to Drama. According to his son Samuel, the last thing he did before he died was to watch an episode of The Avengers (1961) and his last words were: "I did quite a good job".- Writer
- Additional Crew
- Script and Continuity Department
David Whitaker was born on 18 April 1928 in Knebworth, Hertfordshire, England. He was a writer, known for Doctor Who (1963), Homicide (1964) and Doctor Who: The Evil of the Daleks (2021). He was married to June Barry. He died on 4 February 1980 in Fulham, London, England, UK.- Director
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Richard Martin was born on 3 January 1935 in London, England, UK. He is a director and actor, known for Late Night Horror (1968), Capstick's Law (1989) and Meeting Point (1957). He has been married to Suzanne Neve since 1965.- Bernard Kay was born on 23 February 1928 in Bolton, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Doctor Zhivago (1965), They Came from Beyond Space (1967) and The Last Days of Pompeii (1984). He was married to Patricia Haines. He died on 25 December 2014 in London, England, UK.
- Director
- Producer
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Christopher Barry was born on 20 September 1925 in London. He was a director and producer, known for The Tripods (1984), Nanny (1981) and Moonbase 3 (1973). He died on 7 February 2014 in Oxfordshire, England, UK.- Peter Butterworth's promising career in the British Navy Fleet Air Arm ended when the plane which he was flying was shot down by the Germans in WW II and he was placed in a POW camp. There he became close friends with Talbot Rothwell (later a writer on the "Carry On" series, on which Butterworth often worked) and the two began writing and performing sketches for camp shows to entertain the prisoners (and to cover up the noise of other prisoners digging escape tunnels). Never having performed in public he was petrified but gamely sang a duet with Talbot. This sparked his enthusiasm to enter show business after the war and Talbot helped and encouraged him and he soon became a familiar character actor in both films and television. He specialized in playing gentle, well-meaning but somewhat eccentric characters (which, by most accounts, is what he was in real life). He was married to impressionist Janet Brown, who he met while doing a Summer show at Scarborough and their son, Tyler Butterworth, also became an actor. Butterworth died suddenly in 1979, as he was waiting in the wings to go onstage in a pantomime show.
- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Peter Purves was born in New Longton, Lancashire on 10 February 1939. After leaving school he took a four-year teacher-training course. In 1961, after only one year as a teacher, he turned to acting, initially with the Barrow-in-Furness Repertory Company and later with the Wimbleton Theatre Company.
An early TV role was in the BBC's legendary police series Z Cars (1962) and more TV work followed, including a play called The Girl in the Picture (1964) and an episode of The Villains (1964). In 1965 he auditioned for the part of a Menoptra in the Doctor Who story "The Web Planet", but was turned down. However, the director, Richard Martin, later cast him as Morton Dill in Flight Through Eternity (1965), and this led to him playing regular character Steven Taylor.
After Doctor Who (1963), Purves became a regular presenter on the children's magazine programme Blue Peter (1958). More presenting work followed, primarily on sports-based programmes. He has also been managing director of a video production company.- Actress
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
- Costume Designer
British actress Dame Diana Rigg was born on July 20, 1938 in Doncaster, Yorkshire, England. She has had an extensive career in film and theatre, including playing the title role in "Medea", both in London and New York, for which she won the 1994 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.
Rigg made her professional stage debut in 1957 in the Caucasian Chalk Circle, and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1959. She made her Broadway debut in the 1971 production of "Abelard & Heloise". Her film roles include Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968); Lady Holiday in The Great Muppet Caper (1981); and Arlene Marshall in Evil Under the Sun (1982). She won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for the BBC miniseries Mother Love (1989), and an Emmy Award for her role as Mrs. Danvers in the adaptation of Rebecca (1997). In 2013, she appeared with her daughter Rachael Stirling on the BBC series Doctor Who (2005) in an episode titled "The Crimson Horror" and plays Olenna Tyrell on the HBO series Game of Thrones (2011).
From 1965 to 1968, Rigg appeared on the British television series The Avengers (1961) playing the secret agent Mrs. Emma Peel. She became a Bond girl in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), playing Tracy Bond, James Bond's only wife, opposite George Lazenby. She was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) at the 1988 Queen's New Years Honours for her services to drama. She was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) at the 1994 Queen's Birthday Honours for her services to drama.
Dame Diana Rigg died of lung cancer on September 10, 2020, she was 82 years old.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Gerry Anderson was born on 14 April 1929 in West Hampstead, London, England, UK. He was a writer and producer, known for Joe 90 (1968), Invasion: UFO (1974) and UFO (1970). He was married to Mary Robins, Sylvia Anderson and Betty Wrightman. He died on 26 December 2012 in Henley-on-Thames, England, UK.- André Morell was born on 20 August 1909 in St. Pancras, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Ben-Hur (1959), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and The Message (1976). He was married to Joan Greenwood. He died on 28 November 1978 in London, England, UK.
- Actor
- Writer
Character actor Thomas Patrick McKenna was born in Mullagh, County Cavan, Ireland, in 1929. A prolific theatre actor throughout his career, he made his stage debut in "Summer and Smoke" by Tennessee Williams at the Pike Theatre in Dublin in 1954.
He made his film debut in the IRA-Nazi drama The Night Fighters (1960) and from this uncredited beginning he moved up to tenth billing in The Siege of Sidney Street (1960). His next major movie was in 1964's Girl with Green Eyes (1964), by which time he had started a successful television career.
He made his TV debut in Espionage (1963) and over the next few years appeared in several more TV shows. His versatility enabled him to play three characters in The Avengers (1961). He was also featured in such well-regarded shows as Adam Adamant Lives! (1966), Dixon of Dock Green (1955) and The Saint (1962).
Meanwhile, his film career was developing along literary lines, and he was featured in Brendan Behan's The Quare Fellow (1962), the Sean O'Casey biopic Young Cassidy (1965) and James Joyce's Ulysses (1967). He took smaller parts in such epics as The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968) and Anne of the Thousand Days (1969).
British films such as Perfect Friday (1970) and Villain (1971) allowed him to showcase his suave, urbane persona before trying something different in the controversial Straw Dogs (1971). He appeared alongside a young Anthony Hopkins in All Creatures Great and Small (1975) before starring with John Gielgud for the second time, this time in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1977). Over the next few years his co-stars were as diverse as Leonard Rossiter (Britannia Hospital (1982)), Timothy Dalton (The Doctor and the Devils (1985)), Ben Kingsley (Pascali's Island (1988)) and Dolph Lundgren (Red Scorpion (1988)). Not all of these films were successes, but McKenna always gave good value for the money and developed themes of his, such as an interest in Irish issues, in The Outsider (1979). His last released film was Valmont (1989), which was unfortunately completely overshadowed by Dangerous Liaisons (1988), which was based on the same novel.
Over the years he made numerous guest appearances in TV series such as Minder (1979), Casualty (1986), Lovejoy (1986), Inspector Morse (1987), Heartbeat (1992) and Ballykissangel (1996). McKenna has also been prominent in TV movies and series, featuring in Charles Dickens' Masterpiece Theatre: Bleak House (1985), Stendhal's Scarlet and Black (1993) and most recently an adaptation of Henry James' The American (1998).
McKenna is up there with the greats of character acting such as Lionel Jeffries, Dennis Price, Richard Wattis, Wilfrid Hyde-White and John Le Mesurier.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Julian Wyatt Glover was born on March 27, 1935 in Hampstead, London, England, to Honor Ellen Morgan (Wyatt), a BBC journalist, and Claude Gordon Glover, a BBC radio producer. He is of English, Scottish and Welsh ancestry. Primarily a classical stage actor, Glover trained at the National Youth Theatre, performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company and became a familiar face to British television viewers by appearing in many popular series during the 1960s and 1970s. His talent for accents and cold expression made him an ideal choice for playing refined villains. Glover's guest appearances on television include series such as The Avengers (1961), Doctor Who (1963), Space: 1999 (1975), Blake's 7 (1978), Remington Steele (1982) and Merlin (2008). He also played the recurring role of Grand Master Pycelle on 31 episodes of the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones (2011).
During the 1980s, Glover achieved some fame in Hollywood with roles in popular films such as General Maximilian Veers in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980), the Greek villain Aristotle Kristatos in the James Bond film For Your Eyes Only (1981), Brian Harcourt-Smith in the Cold War thriller The Fourth Protocol (1987) and Walter Donovan in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). In the film version of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), he provided the voice of the giant spider Aragog. He was awarded Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2013 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to drama.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
David Graham was born on 11 July 1925 in Hackney, London, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Thunderbird 6 (1968), Stingray (1964) and Supercar (1961).- Writer
- Script and Continuity Department
Roger Marshall was born on 15 March 1934 in Leicester, Leicestershire, England, UK. He was a writer, known for The Avengers (1961), Mitch (1984) and Public Eye (1965). He was married to Jill Margaret McIntosh. He died on 1 April 2020.- John Woodnutt was a serious, gaunt-faced character actor with extensive stage experience. He made his professional acting debut at the Oxford Playhouse at the age of 18. He also performed Shakespearean roles at the Open Air Theatre at London's Regent's Park. He had a long string of television credits to his name, most often in coldly authoritarian, military or aristocratic roles. Early in his career, he appeared in adventure serials and swashbucklers for BBC television. A versatile actor who was willing to appear under monster makeup and rubber suits, he was later seen in four different installments of Doctor Who (1963) between 1970 and 1981 opposite Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
The son of a solicitor, British character actor John Le Mesurier attended public school in Dorset, England, before embarking on a career in law. However, acting was his true calling, and at age 20, with his parents' approval, he began his acting career by studying drama at the Fay Compton School of Acting, where one of his classmates was Alec Guinness.
After acting school he performed in repertory until World War II, when he served as a captain in the Northwest Indian Frontier.
After the war, he returned to the stage and made his film debut in Death in the Hand (1948). By the late 1950s Le Mesurier had made appearances in numerous films, especially those made by the Boulting Brothers, and also on television, particularly on Hancock's Half Hour (1956). In 1968 he landed arguably his most popular role, that of Sgt. Wilson in the long-running television series Dad's Army (1968). Although preferring comedy, Le Mesurier also excelled in drama, winning a BAFTA award for Best Actor of the Year in 1971 for his performance in Dennis Potter's "Traitor (1971) (TV)".
In 1977, during "Dad's Army", he had become very ill, but he recovered and continued acting until his death six years later.- Anneke Wills made her acting debut at age eleven in a film called Child's Play (1954). She then studied at a drama school, the Arts Educational, for about four years, winning many children's TV and theatre roles. Subsequently, she enrolled at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, but did not complete the course. More TV work followed, including roles in Armchair Theatre (1956), The Saint (1962) and The Avengers (1961). In 1962, she starred in Some People (1962) alongside Kenneth More, David Hemmings, Ray Brooks & Angela Douglas, a film inspired by the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme. Four years later, she became famous on TV as "Polly Wright", the Doctor's companion in Doctor Who (1963) (her then-husband, Michael Gough, having recently played the "Celestial Toymaker"). Later, she won another regular TV role in the crime drama Strange Report (1969) which also starred Anthony Quayle and Kaz Garas. After the cast turned down the opportunity to make a second series in America, she gave up acting and moved to Norfolk, where she ran a craft shop. In 1977, she left England and lived at various times in Belgium, India - where she stayed in a religious retreat and returned to the stage in some Shakespeare productions - and in the USA. She settled in Canada, where she directed a production of the play "Rashomon", but worked mainly as an interior decorator. Recently, she returned to the UK and settled in Devon.
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Michael Craze was born on 29 November 1942 in Cornwall and got into acting quite by chance as, at the age of twelve, he discovered through Boy Scout Gang Shows that he had a perfect boy soprano voice. This led him to win parts in "The King and I" and "Plain and Fancy", both at Drury Lane, and "Damn Yankees" at the Coliseum. Once he had left school, he went into repertory and got into TV through his agent. His first televison was a show called "Family Solicitor" for Granada which was followed for Granada which was followed, amongst others, by a part in ABC TV's 1960 series "Target Luna" (written by Malcolm Hulke and Eric Price and produced by Sydney Newman). When he was twenty Michael wrote, directed and acted in a film called "The Golden Head" which won an award at the Commonwealth Film Festival in Cardiff. Following Doctor Who, Michael worked on several ITV productions, including one episode (The Last Visitor) of Hammer Films' first TV series "Journey to the Unknown" in 1968. In the eighties Michael acted only occasionally and also managed a pub.- Actor
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Philip Locke was born on 29 March 1928 in St. Marylebone, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Thunderball (1965), Doing Time (1979) and Oliver Twist (1982). He died on 19 April 2004 in Dedham, Essex, England, UK.- Pamela Ann Davy was born on 7 September 1933 in Australia. She was an actress, known for Doctor Who (1963), The Avengers (1961) and Department S (1969). She was married to Geoffrey Lyndon Archer. She died on 3 June 2018 in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
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Dr. Christopher "Kit" Pedler was a doctor of medicine, specializing both in diseases of the eye and in the new branch of artificial limbs and organs. In 1966, he was approached by Doctor Who (1963)'s then story editor, Gerry Davis, to help with the scientific problems in a Who script (working title of "The Computers"). Davis was taken with Pedler's idea of having a rogue computer build mobile robots to help take over London, and invited Pedler to become "Doctor Who"'s unofficial scientific advisor.
In 1967, Pedler and Davis came up with the idea of the Doctor's 2nd most famous foe, the Cybermen, for the story "The Tenth Planet". The villians were originally thought of as "space monks", but Pedler came up with the idea of an alien race that had replaced become inhuman through total cybernetic replacement.
Pedler and Davis next developed the Doomwatch (1970) series, inspired by Pedler's growing concern over environmental issues. After the show gradually turned towards more cliched SF ideas, Pedler distanced himself from the show. He later turned one of the episodes into a novel, "Mutant 59: The Plastic Eaters" (1972), co-written with Davis.
Pedler spent his later years speaking on environmental issues. He was beginning development on a new show, "Mind Over Matter", when he died suddenly. His body was found by his girlfriend outside his home in Kent.- Actor
- Writer
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Peter Hawkins was born on 3 April 1924 in London, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for The Big Spender (1965), Doctor Who (1963) and The Storyteller (1987). He was married to Rosemary Miller. He died on 8 July 2006 in London, England, UK.- Balding (later shaven-headed), stocky-framed Australian character actor Kenneth J. Warren (the "J" stands for John) was a reliable performer on both stage and films, his imposing, beefy frame and darting, sliver-eyed presence almost a tell-tale sign of peril yet to come.
Born in New South Wales in September 25,1929 (some sources indicate 1926), he was best known for his sinister heavies yet was quite comfortable playing moral-minded men. He began his theatrical career in his native Australia during the early 1950s and also found an obscure film part to play in the Robert Newton classic of - Treasure Island (1950). Catching fire after appearing on the London stage with a superb performance in an Australian touring production of "Summer of the Seventeenth Doll," he made a major career move by settling in England. A wise choice in the end for his film career started up almost immediately with able supports in Hell, Heaven or Hoboken (1958) starring John Mills, The Concrete Jungle (1960) with Stanley Baker, Underworld Informers (1963) with Nigel Patrick, and A High Wind in Jamaica (1965) opposite Anthony Quinn and James Coburn.
Billed early in the game as Kenneth Warren (without the middle initial), the actor returned to the stage from time to time in such plays as "Luther" (1963) and "Canterbury Tales" (1968). On TV he was a worthy antagonist in a number of popular spy series such as "The Avengers," "Secret Agent" and "The Saint." An emphatic presence in horror films, his gallery of films in this genre included Doctor Blood's Coffin (1961), I, Monster (1971), Demons of the Mind (1972) and The Creeping Flesh (1973). One of Warren's final roles came in another typical form, that of a military hi-ranker, in the comedy Digby: The Biggest Dog in the World (1973).
Warren's untimely death at age 43 on August 27, 1973, robbed the acting community of a vital character support. His film S*P*Y*S (1974), which reunited M*A*S*H cohorts Elliott Gould and Donald Sutherland, was released posthumously. In his private life, Warren belied his on-camera tough-guy image as he was a talented artist and gourmet cook. His son Damian Warren is also an actor. - Writer
- Additional Crew
- Actor
Philip Levene was born on 9 June 1926 in London, England, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for The Avengers (1961), The First Lady (1968) and The Firechasers (1971). He died on 25 March 1973 in London, England, UK.- Patrick Troughton was born in Mill Hill, London and was educated at Mill Hill School. He trained as an actor at the Embassy School of Acting in the UK and at Leighton Rollin's Studio for for Actors at Long Island, New York in the USA. During World War II he served in the Royal Navy and after the war ended he joined the Old Vic and became a Shakespearean actor. He won his most famous role as the second Doctor in Doctor Who (1963), in 1966 and played the role for three years. His hobbies included golf, sailing and fishing. He was a father of six (David, Jane, Joanna, Mark, Michael and Peter), a stepfather to Gill and Graham and a grandfather to Harry Melling, Jamie and Sam Troughton.
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Frazer Hines has a particular distinction in the world of Doctor Who (1963) as the most prolific companion in the original 26-year run of the series; only the first four Doctors, William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker, appeared in more episodes. He was born and raised in England and is of Scottish descent on his mother's side, who came from Port Glasgow. He came to prominence as a child actor, appearing in several films before he was fifteen, including X the Unknown (1956) and Charlie Chaplin's A King in New York (1957). In 1957 he played Napoleon in the six part BBC serial Huntingtower and followed this with the role of Jan in the seven part BBC serial The Silver Sword (1957-8). Other credits as a child actor include Run to Earth (1958) and William Tell (1958). Other television roles in the sixties include the characters of Tim Birch in Emergency Ward 10 (1963-4), and Roger Wain in Coronation Street (1965).
His big break came when he was cast to play the part of Jamie McCrimmon in the BBC series Doctor Who, a companion of the second Doctor, played by Patrick Troughton. Frazer appeared in the series regularly from 1966 to 1969, earning himself a place in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest running companion of the Doctor. He returned to the show twice, as a cameo in the 30th anniversary show 'The Five Doctors' (1983), and alongside Patrick Troughton (second Doctor) and Colin Baker (sixth Doctor) in 'The Two Doctors' (1985).
In 1972, Frazer was cast in the soap opera Emmerdale Farm as Joe Sugden, a role he played regularly until 1994. Since leaving the show he has concentrated on a career in the theatre, appearing in many plays, and he currently believes he holds the record for the second most consecutive pantomime appearances - the record holder being Christopher Biggins with 38 appearances. His most recent theatre tour was in John A Penzotti's Five Blue Haired Ladies Sitting On A Green Park Bench (2011).
Frazer has continued his association with Doctor Who and has appeared in and narrated several of the audio adventures published by Big Finish. He has also provided audio commentaries for several of his stories when released on DVD, and has narrated some of the soundtrack releases put out by BBC Audio and AudioGO.
In 1996 Frazer released his autobiography, Films, Farms and Fillies, but at the time of publication, the publishers were in the process of being sold, and so his book only received a rather lack-lustre paperback release. In 2010 therefore, he released a reissued hardback edition of the book, retitled Hines Sight, which corrected many of the typographical and production errors of the first release. This edition was then released in paperback in 2011, and as an audio edition in 2012. In 2013 he released a photographic book of images from his life called Fifty Shades of Frazer. Both are available from his website.- Brian Hayles was born on 7 March 1930 in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Doctor Who (1963), Warlords of the Deep (1978) and Nothing But the Night (1973). He died on 30 October 1978.
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Born in America, and raised in Ireland and England, actor Patrick McGoohan rose to become the number-one British TV star in the 1950s to 1960s era. His parents moved to Ireland when he was very young and McGoohan acquired a neutral accent that sounds at home in British or American dialogue. He was an avid stage actor and performed hundreds of times in small and large productions before landing his first TV and film roles. McGoohan is one of few actors who has successfully switched between theater, TV, and films many times during his career. He was often cast in the role of Angry Young Man. In 1959, he was named Best TV Actor of the Year in Britain. Shortly thereafter, he was chosen for the starring role in the Secret Agent (1964) TV series (AKA 'Secret Agent in the US), which proved to be an immense success for three years and allowed the British to break into the burgeoning American TV market for the first time. By the series' 3rd year, McGoohan felt the series had run its course and was beginning to repeat itself. McGoohan and Lew Grade - the president of ITC (the series' production company), had agreed that McGoohan could leave Danger Man to begin work on a new series, and turned in his resignation right after the first episode of the fourth year had been filmed ("Koroshi"). McGoohan set up his own production company and collaborated with noted author and script editor George Markstein to sell a brand new concept to ITC's Lew Grade. McGoohan starred in, directed, produced, and wrote many of the episodes, sometimes taking a pseudonym to reduce the sheer number of credits to his name. Thus, the TV series The Prisoner (1967) came to revolve around the efforts of a secret agent, who resigned early in his career, to clear his name. His aim was to escape from a fancifully beautiful but psychologically brutal prison for people who know too much. The series was as popular as it was surreal and allegorical, and its mysterious final episode caused such an uproar that McGoohan was to desert England for more than 20 years to seek relative anonymity in LA, where celebrities are "a dime a dozen."
During the 1970s, he appeared in four episodes of the TV detective series "Columbo," for which he won an Emmy Award. His film roles lapsed from prominence until his powerful performance as King Edward I (Longshanks) in Mel Gibson's production of Braveheart (1995). As such, he has solidified his casting in the role of Angry Old Man.- Actress
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Born on 2 January 1948, Deborah Watling grew up in an acting family. She attended stage school after failing her O level exams, but left after three weeks and got herself an agent. She then landed the part of Alice in a BBC play "The Life of Lewis Carroll" (aka Alice (1965)). This was followed by other roles, including film parts, with Cliff Richard in Take Me High (1973) and with David Essex in That'll Be the Day (1973). She was offered the role of Victoria in Doctor Who (1963) as Innes Lloyd had remembered the Radio Times cover for "The Life of Lewis Carroll" and asked Deborah to play the part. Following Doctor Who, Deborah opened her own boutique before landing a part in The Newcomers (1965). Since then she has appeared in numerous TV roles including Danger UXB (1979), Hello Young Lovers (1978), and Doctor in Charge (1972) and has done much work in the theatre.- Immensely talented and instantly recognizable, Peter Jeffrey was one of a great generation of British actors who were comfortable in everything from classical theatre to television comedy. He was born in Bristol, England in 1929 and went on to be educated at Harrow school. He studied at Pembroke College, Cambridge and embarked on a career as an actor. During his distinguished and diverse stage career, he worked with all of the great British theatre companies and performed with the likes of Peggy Ashcroft, Marius Goring, Paul Scofield, Eric Porter and Peter O'Toole.
His opportunities in television and film always seemed to come in the form of supporting roles but his rare talent always brightened the screen. Peter Jeffrey was still acting in the final years of his life, including a wonderful BBC adaptation of The Prince and the Pauper (1996). He was greatly respected in the industry for his quiet professionalism and the empathy he had for other actors and the support he gave to less experienced colleagues. His death from cancer at the age of 70 in 1999 robbed British acting of one of its finest and most reliable performers. - Actress
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Tall (5' 9"), svelte, adventurous young actress Linda Thorson, invariably known as the brunette dish who replaced Diana Rigg on the highly popular action series The Avengers (1961), was born Linda Robinson on June 18, 1947 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The second of four children of a math and physics teacher, she made a move to England in 1965 and initially studied dance and voice.
A teen apprentice at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, her professional career took off abruptly in another direction, away from the theatre lights, when the 20-year-old was chosen over 200 hopefuls to succeed Ms. Rigg's character Emma Peel as John Steed's (played by Patrick Macnee) new partner, female secret agent Tara King. Despite her equally luscious looks and a set of beautiful, crystal blue orbs, Linda had major boots to fill and the stay was not long or heralded. Fans and critics alike were rather unkind to Linda and the series was canceled after one season (1968-69).
Out of the limelight for much of the 1970s, with occasional film and television roles coming her way, including Valentino (1977) and The Greek Tycoon (1978), and as Vera in a television version of the Turgenev play A Month in the Country (1977) starring Susannah York. Linda eventually made the trek to America, Broadway to be exact, and went on to win a Theatre World Award for her superb performance in "Steaming" (1982). Immediately following came rave reviews for the Drama Desk Award-winning comedy farce "Noises Off". Linda was now back on her own terms. Later Broadway work would include a sexy femme fatale role in the noirish musical "City of Angels" (1989), the title role in "Zoya's Apartment" (1990) and the Circle in the Square production of "Getting Married" (1991).
As a transatlantic player working in the United States, her native Canada and in England, she went on to perform with the prestigious Royal Shakespeare and Old Vic theatre companies. By the late 1980s, she was appearing with more frequency on the big screen in such lesser-known films as Walls of Glass (1985), Sweet Liberty (1986) and The Other Sister (1999). A number of television credits also came her way, including guest work on Law & Order (1990) and St. Elsewhere (1982) and, as a regular cast member, on the daytime soap opera One Life to Live (1968) and the sitcom Marblehead Manor (1987). Although she has yet to gain the same kind of attention (and controversy) she did as a 20-year-old, her career has been consistently rewarding over the last three decades. Outstanding stage work in "Shirley Valentine" (1993), "The Sisters Rosenzweig" (1995) and "Amy's View" (2000) have added to her value as an artist.
Linda remained a vivid presence in millennium film work including Steven Seagal's crime thriller Half Past Dead (2002); the Canadian/British romance dramedy Touch of Pink (2004); the American action horror film Straight Into Darkness (2004); the American co-production action film Max Havoc: Ring of Fire (2006); and the touching Canadian romance drama The Second Time Around (2016) in which she co-starred with Stuart Margolin. On television, she was a regular in a couple of drama series (Emily of New Moon (1998) and The Hoop Life (1999)), a single season (2006-07) of the British soap opera Emmerdale Farm (1972) and, more recently, a Canadian series based on the famous teenage detective books The Hardy Boys (2020). She was also seen in a few guest roles on Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), Kung Fu: The Legend Continues (1993), F/X: The Series (1996), Law & Order (1990) and Schitt's Creek (2015).
Married four times, Linda has one son, Trevor, from her third marriage to husband actor/producer/newsman Bill Boggs). She married Canadian filmmaker Gavin Mitchell on November 20, 2005.- He was educated at Rugby where he became interested in acting. He spent a year in Canada studying agriculture then returned to England and taught at a prep school in Surrey. In 1950 he joined the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and on completing the course joined and toured with Dundee Repertory Theatre.
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- Sound Department
Kevin Stoney served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, where he trained as a pilot and was sent to the Middle East. However, he crashed so many planes that he had to be reclassified as a navigator. As an actor he did his best work for the small screen, often appearing as doctors, police officers or haughty butlers. He was equally effective as outright villains. He was considered for several decades to be one of British television's most reliable supporting actors, although he is now mostly remembered by cult television fans for his roles in series like The Avengers (1961), Doctor Who (1963), The Prisoner (1967), The Tomorrow People (1973) and Blake's 7 (1978).- Nicholas Courtney was born in Egypt, the son of a British diplomat. His early years were spent in Kenya and France and he was called up for National Service at the age of 18. After 18 months of duty in the British forces, Courtney joined the Webber Douglas drama school. He spent two years there and then did repertory theatre in Northampton. His next move was to London.
During the 1960s, he played some roles in popular TV series. In 1965, he made an appearance on Doctor Who (1963), during the tenure of William Hartnell. The director, Douglas Camfield, remembered him and, in 1967, cast him as "Captain Knight" in "Doctor Who" episode "The Web of Fear". He took the part of "Lethbridge-Stewart", which was to become his most famous role, when the actor originally cast in the part had to drop out. At this time, Patrick Troughton was the star of the series.
Shortly after this, Courtney was offered the chance to play the role regularly and accepted. This guaranteed him work until 1975, when the character was written out of the series. He became a good friend of Jon Pertwee during his time on the programme, and returned in 1983, 1988 and 1989. His other television work has included a comedy with Frankie Howerd. Courtney has maintained a close association with "Doctor Who", narrating the documentary Doctor Who: Thirty Years in the TARDIS (1993) and attending conventions and appearing in spin-offs. - Actor
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Derrick Sherwin was born on 16 April 1936 in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Doctor Who (1963), Paul Temple (1969) and Ski-Boy (1974). He was married to Sherwin, Ingsumon and Jane Sherwin. He died on 17 October 2018 in Hampton Hill, London, England, UK.- Wendy Padbury trained at the Aida Foster Stage School and made her TV debut on the BBC arts programme "Monitor" soon after starting the course. More TV work followed and, by the age of seventeen, she had landed a regular role in the ATV soap opera Crossroads (1964). Soon after this, she applied for the role of "Zoe" on Doctor Who (1963). After several rounds of auditions and a screen test at Lime Grove, she was given the job. Although the production team tried to persuade her to stay on at the end of season six and she was tempted to do so, she decided to leave at the same time as her co-stars, Patrick Troughton and Frazer Hines. She then worked in the theatre and, in the early seventies, appeared in three seasons of the Southern TV children's series Freewheelers (1968). Since the mid-seventies, she has divided her time between raising a family and continuing her acting career.
- Ronald Leigh-Hunt trained for acting at the Italia Conti School. He made his debut in regional repertory theatre. In films from 1950, he was rarely out of work, usually cast in subtle authoritarian or aristocratic roles. Cultured and dapper, latterly white-haired, he was particularly noted for his resonant voice (outside of acting, he sidelined in training business leaders in public speaking), impeccable manner and stylish attire.
Though very often only in small supporting roles, Leigh-Hunt was seen in several big budget features, ranging from Khartoum (1966) to The Omen (1976). He also played Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., opposite Barbra Streisand, in the West End production of 'Funny Girl' in 1966. On the small screen, he was a popular guest star in just about every major British television series, frequently popping up on Z Cars (1962) and Doctor Who (1963). He also had a recurring role, starring as Colonel Buchan, in the children's TV series Freewheelers (1968). Ronald was a cousin of the actress Barbara Leigh-Hunt. - Actor
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Edward Burnham was born on 25 December 1916 in Lincolnshire, England, UK. He was an actor and director, known for To Sir, with Love (1967), Quatermass and the Pit (1958) and Little Dorrit (1987). He was married to Lucille. He died on 30 June 2015 in the UK.- Patrick Newell was born on 27 March 1932 in Hadleigh, Suffolk, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Avengers (1961), Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson (1980) and Kinvig (1981). He was married to Derina House. He died on 22 July 1988 in Essex, England, UK.
- Alexandra Bastedo was born on 9 March 1946 in Hove, East Sussex, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Casino Royale (1967), Batman Begins (2005) and The Champions (1968). She was married to Patrick Garland. She died on 12 January 2014 in West Sussex, England, UK.
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William Gaunt was born on 3 April 1937 in Pudsey, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The Champions (1968), Sergeant Cork (1963) and Colonel Trumper's Private War (1961). He has been married to Carolyn Lyster since 7 September 1974. They have two children.- Actor
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- Music Department
Mike Pratt was born on 7 June 1931 in London, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Repulsion (1965), My Partner the Ghost (1969) and Sitting Target (1972). He died on 10 July 1976 in Midhurst, Sussex, England, UK.- Actor
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- Music Department
Kenneth Cope was born on 14 April 1931 in Liverpool, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Carry on at Your Convenience (1971), Truckers (1987) and My Partner the Ghost (1969). He has been married to Renny Lister since 1961. They have three children.- Annette Andre (Birth name Annette Christine Andreallo) is best-known for her work on British television throughout the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
She began as a ballet dancer, moving on to radio, theatre and TV work in Australia, before filming small roles in "Cleopatra" and "Panic Button" in Italy and then settling in London. She immediately found work in the stage musical, "Vanity Fair", at the Queen's Theatre in London's West End. Her first film in the UK was This Is My Street (1964).
Probably her most memorable role was starring as Marty Hopkirk's widow, "Jeannie Hopkirk", in the late 1960s ITV classic, My Partner the Ghost (1969).
Andre also made many guest appearances on popular shows, such as Whiplash (1960), The Avengers (1961), The Saint (1962), The Prisoner (1967), Adam Adamant Lives! (1966), Mogul (1965), The Baron (1966) and many others.
She starred with Zero Mostel, Phil Silvers, Michael Crawford and Buster Keaton, in the 1966 film version of the Broadway musical, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966). She played "Philia", the virgin. The 1960s also brought her several more film roles, including Up Jumped a Swagman (1965), Mister Ten Per Cent (1967) and He Who Rides a Tiger (1965).
During the 1970s, Andre guest-starred in episodes of The Persuaders! (1971), The New Avengers (1976) and Return of the Saint (1978). In the 1980s, she appeared on the soap opera, Crossroads (1964), as well as returning to Australia to play "Jennifer Brent" in Taurus Rising (1982) and "Camilla Wells" in Prisoner (1979), Cell Block H.
In 1971, she returned to the London stage to play "Miranda" in "The Collector", at the King's Head, and the same role, again, the following year, to open the Bush Theatre in Hammersmith. She continued mainly in theatre for the next two decades, starring in "Suddenly at Home", Fortune Theatre, West End, and many national tours, including "Come Blow Your Horn", "Party to Murder", "Signpost to Murder", "The Bride Makes Three", "Streetcar Named Desire", "Shock", "There Goes The Bride", among others.
In 1981, she played "Dr. Scott" in "Whose Life Is It, Anyway?" on a National tour around Australia. And, in 1984, she starred with Richard Todd in the long-running play, "The Business of Murder", at the West End Mayfair Theatre in London. In 1988, she played a cameo role in the TV film, Maigret (1988), starring Richard Harris. The film was written and produced by Arthur Weingarten, whom she married a year later.
Andre is now semi-retired from acting, and devotes her time to animal welfare issues with her husband, both having worked closely with Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna of the "Born Free Foundation". She has begun painting in oils, has sold several works and has been offered a solo show in the near future. She has made rare appearances at the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention in Aberdeen, Maryland in 2007, the Memorabilia Show in Birmingham, England in March 2011 and the New York Memorabilia Show in May 2011.
Andre is currently writing her autobiography for publication next year.
She and her husband live in upstate New York, and she loves to spend time in London with her daughter, Anouska, and her two wonderful grandchildren, Jake and Nia. - Writer
- Script and Continuity Department
- Additional Crew
Tony Williamson was born on 18 December 1932 in Manchester, Lancashire, England, UK. He was a writer, known for The Avengers (1961), Department S (1969) and Adam Adamant Lives! (1966). He died on 19 June 1991 in Cheshire, England, UK.- Actor
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William Shatner has notched up an impressive 70-plus years in front of the camera, displaying heady comedic talent and being instantly recognizable to several generations of cult television fans as the square-jawed Captain James T. Kirk, commander of the starship U.S.S. Enterprise.
Shatner was born in Côte Saint-Luc, Montréal, Québec, Canada, to Anne (Garmaise) and Joseph Shatner, a clothing manufacturer. His father was a Jewish emigrant from Bukovina in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, while his maternal grandparents were Lithuanian Jews. After graduating from university, he joined a local Summer theatre group as an assistant manager. He then performed with the National Repertory Theatre of Ottawa and at the Stratford, Ontario, Shakespeare Festival as an understudy working with such as Alec Guinness, James Mason, and Anthony Quayle. He came to the attention of New York critics and was soon playing important roles in major shows on live television.
Shatner spent many years honing his craft before debuting alongside Yul Brynner in The Brothers Karamazov (1958). He was kept busy during the 1960s in films such as Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) and The Intruder (1962) and on television guest-starring in dozens of series such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955), The Defenders (1961), The Outer Limits (1963) and The Twilight Zone (1959). In 1966, Shatner boarded the USS Enterprise for three seasons of Star Trek (1966), co-starring alongside Leonard Nimoy, with the series eventually becoming a bona-fide cult classic with a worldwide legion of fans known variously as "Trekkies" or "Trekkers".
After "Star Trek" folded, Shatner spent the rest of the decade and the 1970s making the rounds, guest-starring on many prime-time television series, including Hawaii Five-O (1968), Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969) and Ironside (1967). He has also appeared in several feature films, but they were mainly B-grade (or lower) fare, such as the embarrassingly bad Euro western White Comanche (1968) and the campy Kingdom of the Spiders (1977). However, the 1980s saw a major resurgence in Shatner's career with the renewed interest in the original Star Trek (1966) series culminating in a series of big-budget "Star Trek" feature films, including Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991). In addition, he starred in the lightweight police series T.J. Hooker (1982) from 1982 to 1986, alongside spunky Heather Locklear, and surprised many fans with his droll comedic talents in Airplane II: The Sequel (1982), Loaded Weapon 1 (1993) and Miss Congeniality (2000).
He has most recently been starring in the David E. Kelley television series The Practice (1997) and its spin-off Boston Legal (2004).
Outside of work, he jogs and follows other athletic pursuits. His interest in health and nutrition led to him becoming spokesman for the American Health Institute's 'Know Your Body' program to promote nutritional and physical health.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Leonard Simon Nimoy was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Dora (Spinner) and Max Nimoy, who owned a barbershop. His parents were Ukrainian Jewish immigrants. Raised in a tenement and acting in community theaters since age eight, Nimoy did not make his Hollywood debut until he was 20, with a bit part in Queen for a Day (1951) and another as a ballplayer in the perennial Rhubarb (1951). After two years in the United States Army, he was still getting small, often uncredited parts, like an Army telex operator in Them! (1954). His part as Narab, a Martian finally friendly to Earth, in the closing scene in the corny Republic serial Zombies of the Stratosphere (1952), somewhat foreshadowed the role which would make him a household name: Mr. Spock, the half-human/half-Vulcan science officer on Star Trek (1966) one of television's all-time most successful series. His performance won him three Emmy nominations and launched his career as a writer and director, notably of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), the story of a humpback whale rescue that proved the most successful of the Star Trek movies. Stage credits have included "Fiddler on the Roof", "Oliver", "Camelot" and "Equus". He has hosted the well-known television series In Search of... (1977) and Ancient Mysteries (1994), authored several volumes of poetry and guest-starred on two episodes of The Simpsons (1989). In the latter years of his career, he played Mustafa Mond in NBC's telling of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (1998), voiced Sentinel Prime in the blockbuster Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011), and played Spock again in two new Star Trek films, Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013).
Leonard Nimoy died on February 27, 2015 in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 83.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Jackson DeForest Kelley was born in Toccoa, Georgia, to Clora (Casey) and Ernest David Kelley.
He graduated from high school at age 16 and went on to sing at the Baptist church where his father was a minister. At age 17, he made his first trip outside the state to visit an uncle in Long Beach, California. He intended to stay for two weeks but ended up staying a year. Upon returning home, he told his parents he was moving to California to become an actor. His mother encouraged him but the idea did not go over well with his father.
In California, Kelley was spotted by a Paramount talent scout while working on a United States Navy training film. He became a reliable character actor (often in Westerns in which he often played the villain), but hit the big time when he was offered the role of the somewhat irascible Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy on the television series Star Trek (1966). He later reprised his role for a string of successful Star Trek films: Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991).
DeForest Kelley died at age 79 of stomach cancer in his home in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles on June 11, 1999.- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Nichelle Nichols was one of 10 children born to parents Lishia and Samuel Nichols in Robbins, Illinois, a Chicago suburb. She was a singer and dancer before turning to acting and finding fame in her groundbreaking role of Lt. Nyota Uhura in the Star Trek (1966) series.
As long as she could remember, she wanted to do nothing but sing, dance, act and write despite no one else in her family following any of those tracks; although her father could tap dance. He not only became mayor of their town, Robbins, IL, but also a magistrate. On stage, Nichelle was twice nominated for the Sarah Siddons Award as Best Actress of the Year; while on film she danced with Sammy Davis, Jr. in Porgy and Bess, and opposite James Garner in Mister Budwing (1965). In a complete changearound soon after the Star Trek television series came to an end, she played a blousey madam, then co-starred with Lynn Redgrave n Antony and Cleopatra. She was been married twice and had a son, Kyle Johnson, from her first marriage to a tap dancer.- Actor
- Writer
- Music Department
Jon Pertwee is best known for his portrayal of the Third Doctor on the BBC's science-fiction television series Doctor Who (1963) from 1970 to 1974. He was also the first to play the role following the transition of BBC One from black and white to colour. His 60-year entertainment career included work in radio, films and cabaret. This was despite the inauspicious beginning of having been thrown out of drama school as a young man and told he had no future as an actor.
Jon Pertwee was born John (after the apostle and disciple) Devon (after the county) Roland (after his father) Pertwee (an Anglicised version of the true family name, Perthuis de Laillevault) on 7 July 1919 in the Chelsea area of London. He was the second son of famous playwright, painter and actor Roland Pertwee, and his actress wife Avice - his writer brother Michael Pertwee being three years his senior. The Pertwee family had a long connection with show business and the performing arts, and it was at Wellington House preparatory school in Westgate-On-Sea in Kent that Jon, as a small and rebellious child, was encouraged in that direction. Later, at Frensham Heights co-educational school, Jon had his first taste of "real" theatre with real women in the school stage productions of "Twelfth Night" and "Lady Princess Stream". In 1936 he auditioned for, and was accepted by, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). He was later kicked out for refusing to play the part of the wind in a play.
Jon Pertwee died on 20 May 1996 of a heart attack. The BBC announced his death. He was survived by his wife Ingeborg Rhoesa, his son Sean Pertwee, a popular and talented actor, and his daughter Dariel Pertwee, an accomplished stage actress.- Actress
- Cinematographer
Caroline John was a classically trained actress who did some significant and prestigious stage work, but she is best remembered for one television role which she played for less than a year (and only four serials) - that of Dr. Elizabeth Shaw in Doctor Who (1963). Of the many satellites that have orbited the official incarnations of 'the Doctor' between 1963 and the present, John was arguably one of the brightest. Not only was she one of the most attractive of the companions but she also stood out for her resourcefulness and intelligence.
The daughter of an actor and a dancer, John was trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London before making her stage debut with the Royal Court Theatre. She then acted in repertory and had a three-and-a-half year stint with the National Theatre Company under the auspices of its artistic director Laurence Olivier, performing in such plays as "Othello", "The Master Builder" and (as Ophelia) in "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead". John joined Lambda in the late 1960s, touring through Italy, Yugoslavia and Romania with D.H. Lawrence's play "Daughter-in-Law".
Having submitted a glamorous modelling shot of herself to outgoing producers Peter Bryant and Derrick Sherwin, John successfully auditioned for the role of Dr. Liz Shaw and was first featured at the beginning of Season Seven in Spearhead from Space: Episode 1 (1970). Like her immediate predecessor, Zoe Heriot, who was an astrophysicist, her character was meant to be a super-intelligent character (the Brigadier famously describes her as being "an expert on meteorites, with degrees in medicine, physics and a dozen other subjects") who would help the new Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and also shared his moral principles. Her strong and independent personality contrasted markedly from the stereotype of the screaming, helpless scatter-brains the 20th century series is usually accused of having as companions. In a 1987 interview, John revealed that she was on occasion given leeway to ad lib if it helped to liven up a scene that didn't come off as originally written. However, script editor Terrance Dicks, new producer Barry Letts and Jon Pertwee all disliked the character of Liz Shaw, considering her too clever and grown-up to be relatable to the younger members of the audience. They also perceived it to be necessary to more fully explain the 'technobabble' to audiences. This required a suitably naïve character to ask the relevant questions. Consequently, John was dropped from the show at the end of the season in favour of Katy Manning's Jo Grant, a reversion to the show's earlier format. Terrance Dicks later commented that he thought John was actually too good an actress to play a companion to the Doctor. Although he'd written her out of the show, Barry Letts later cast John in his BBC version of The Hound of the Baskervilles (1982). John occasionally reprised her role of Liz Shaw for direct-to-video spin-offs, an audio series and for the seminal 1983 reunion special The Five Doctors (1983).
Post- Doctor Who (1963), she had a regular spot on Harry Enfield's Television Programme (1990) and guested in such shows as Poirot (1989), Silent Witness (1996) and Midsomer Murders (1997). She also maintained a steady flow of theatrical engagements and was latterly noted for her solo tour-de-force as Mildred Asher in "Nightingale", a play written by Lynn Redgrave, which ran at the New End Theatre in London and at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2006.- Director
- Stunts
- Producer
Prolific director of episodic television, born in London and educated at Brighton College. The athletic Austin began his career as a stunt man, his first screen credit being Martin Landau 's stunt double in the famous Mount Rushmore scene in North by Northwest (1959) (he was also said to have sidelined as Cary Grant's chauffeur). Having moved up to stunt coordinator, Austin began to direct action sequences from the early 60s. He also appeared sporadically on the screen as a small part supporting player. From 1968, he worked primarily as a full director with occasional forays into script writing and production. Due to his previous background in stunt work, Austin always maintained a predilection for action/fight scenes which featured prominently throughout much of his work on iconic series like The Avengers (1961), The Saint (1962), Department S (1969), Space: 1999 (1975) and The Professionals (1977).
Austin was the holder of a feudal hereditary Irish title as Baron DeVere-Austin of Delvin. His first two marriages having ended in divorce, Austin remarried again in 1984. His third wife was the English novelist Wendy DeVere-Knight-Wilton. In the 80s, the couple moved from Britain to settle on an estate in rural Virginia. Austin continued working as a TV director in the U.S. until 1999, in addition lecturing on film and television at UCLA, the London Film School and other institutions. He had latterly also published several mystery and espionage-themed novels.- One of the UK's most prolific television actors for 50 years, Peter Halliday was the son of an auctioneer and estate agent. He was schooled in Shropshire. Halliday failed his exam as apprentice auctioneer, worked briefly for Rolls-Royce, then served in the British Army during the Second World War, based in Iraq, Palestine and Egypt, until 1947. He graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1949. He became a member of the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, which later became the Royal Shakespeare Company. He achieved his greatest fame in the BBC's science-fiction television drama A for Andromeda (1961). He also gained further cult status for several appearances in Doctor Who (1963), which included providing monster voices for two serials and appearing under heavy makeup to play the alien Pletrac in Robert Holmes' witty parody of television and its viewers, Carnival of Monsters: Episode One (1973).
- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Harry H Corbett (he added the "H" to avoid being confused with Sooty's friend) was born in Burma in 1925. His father was an officer in the army. His mother died when he was very young and he moved to England as a child and was brought up in Manchester by an aunt.
After his war service, he joined a repertory company and during the 1950s appeared in many stage productions. At the end of this period he made the move to the big screen and appeared in about twenty movies (mostly 'B' pictures) during the years from 1959 to 1980, including the starring role of Detective Sergeant Bung in Carry on Screaming! (1966), Rattle of a Simple Man (1964) and the two "Steptoe and Son" movies in the early 1970s. He suffered a series of heart attacks between 1979 and 1982, before his premature death aged 57.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Wilfrid Brambell was born on 22 March 1912, in Dublin, Ireland. His first acting experience was when he was aged just two, entertaining wounded soldiers returning from action during the First World War. On leaving school he worked part-time as a reporter for The Irish Times and part-time as an actor at the Abbey Theatre. During World War II he joined the British military forces entertainment organisation ENSA. On his return Wilfrid began performing with various repertory companies across the UK in Swansea, Bristol and Chesterfield. It was also during this time that he began breaking into films. His television career began in the 1950s, when he was cast in small roles in the BBC Television productions: "The Quatermass Experiment", "Nineteen Eighty-Four" and "Quatermass II". These roles earned him a reputation for playing old men, though he was only in his forties at the time. Wilfrid was just 49 when he first played Albert Steptoe. The role immediately launched him to fame and notoriety and made him into a national figure. His film work continued with a role in the 1962 Walt Disney film "In Search of the Castaways" and playing Paul McCartney's granddad in The Beatles' "A Hard Day's Night". "Steptoe and Son" finished in 1974 after eight series and two hit spin-off films. Wilfrid and Co-Star Harry H. Corbett continued to revive the characters for special one off performances and events including a 1977 tour of Australia. He continued to take small roles in various television series and films during the late 1970s and 1980s before losing his battle against cancer on 18th January 1985.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Eric Morecambe was born on 14 May 1926 in Buxton Street, Morecambe, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968), Night Train to Murder (1984) and The Intelligence Men (1965). He was married to Joan Morecambe. He died on 28 May 1984 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, UK.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Ernie Wise was born on 27 November 1925 in Bramley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968), Night Train to Murder (1984) and Two of a Kind (1961). He was married to Doreen Blythe. He died on 21 March 1999 in Wexham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK.