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- 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. - Vas Blackwood was born on 19 October 1962 in St Pancras, London, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998), Creep (2004) and Mean Machine (2001).
- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Barnaby Kay was born into a theatrical family. His younger brother Adam is in the business, his grandfather, Arthur Kay, who died in 1970, was a leading light in community theatre in Northumbria, and his father was the actor Richard Kay, who was killed in a road accident in 1985 before he was able to see Barnaby follow in the family tradition. Barnaby went to drama school but left before completing his course as his father's agent - following the funeral - secured him an audition with the Royal Shakespeare Company, which he successfully passed, debuting with them in the play 'A Jovial Crew', and returning to work with them on several occasions. He has since worked in all media, including television roles in 'Holby City', 'Midsomer Murders' and 'New Tricks'.- 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
- Soundtrack
Murray Melvin was born on 10 August 1932 in St. Pancras, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Phantom of the Opera (2004), A Taste of Honey (1961) and Barry Lyndon (1975). He died on 14 April 2023 in Westminster, London, England, UK.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Sarah Greene was born on 24 October 1957 in St Pancras, London, England, UK. She is an actress, known for The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997), Doctor Who (1963) and Aladdin and the Forty Thieves (1984). She was previously married to Mike Smith.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Perry Benson was born on 9 April 1961 in St Pancras, London, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Sid and Nancy (1986), This Is England (2006) and You Rang, M'Lord? (1988).- Daniel Caltagirone was born on 18 June 1972 in St Pancras, London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - The Cradle of Life (2003), The Pianist (2002) and The Beach (2000). He was previously married to Melanie Sykes.
- Hettie Macdonald was born on 22 June 1962 in Pancras, London, England, UK. She is a director, known for Beautiful Thing (1996), Doctor Who (2005) and Howards End (2017).
- Actor
- Stunts
Terence Plummer was born on 31 August 1936 in Pancras, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Batman (1989), Willow (1988) and The Long Good Friday (1980). He died on 15 July 2011 in Surrey, England, UK.- Ross Boatman was born on 3 March 1964 in St. Pancras, London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Cassandra's Dream (2007), Penelope (2006) and Paddington (2014).
- Known for her small yet earthy Brit portrayals on film, Eleanor Summerfield was born in London on March 7, 1921, initially trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (1937). The hard-looking, blue-eyed blonde began in films in 1947 but created some waves first on stage opposite Cicely Courtneidge in "Her Excellency" at the London Hippodrome in 1949. She followed that with a top role in a rather mediocre musical entitled "Golden City." Musicals would be a strong suit for her in the ensuing years, including a more glamorous role in "When in Rome" (1959) alongside June Laverick. Summerfield made her last West End musical in 1974 in a show based on the cartoon characters of Osbert Lancaster. A popular radio actress and a regular on BBC Radio Four panel show "Many a Slip," she positively shone on TV in a number of comedy series as she entered her matronly years. She had the difficult task of replacing Dora Bryan in the established program "Our Dora" when Bryan abruptly left the series after the sudden death of her first child. Soon retitled My Wife's Sister (1956), the show, and Summerfield, succeeded quite well. During her five-decade career, she added bite to a number of films, often raucous comedies, including Laughter in Paradise (1951), Uncle Willie's Bicycle Shop (1953), Dentist in the Chair (1960), On the Fiddle (1961) and Some Will, Some Won't (1970), which was a remake of the earlier film Laughter in Paradise (1951). Wed to actor Leonard Sachs in 1947, they produced two sons; one son, Robin Sachs, became an actor in his own right. Her husband died in 1990, and Summerfield followed him a decade later on July 13, 2001, in London. She was 80.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Attended Christ Church C of E school, Finchley, North London, leaving in 1992. Graduated from the University of Kent, Canterbury, UK, with a degree in Radio, Film and Television. Worked briefly as a care assistant in Dover, Kent. Worked for the BBC in Outside Broadcasts, based in Acton. Lived in a village in North Hertfordshire between 1998 and 2001. Got married in 1999. Since August 2001, has lived in a village on the shore of Grafham Water, Cambridgeshire, UK. Works as a Video Tape Operator. His job has taken him to Greece, Canada and Germany, and involves recording and replaying things, and doing slow motion replays on sporting events such as Athletics and Wimbledon. Has a strange and erratic lifestyle, governed by his job's long and unpredictable hours.- Actress
Martha Cope was born in 1970 in St Pancras, London, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Alfie (2004), Mile High (2003) and Emmerdale Farm (1972).- Leo Dolan was born on 31 July 1943 in Pancras, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Long Good Friday (1980), Keeping Up Appearances (1990) and Stand Up, Virgin Soldiers (1977). He was married to Sheila McIntosh. He died on 19 August 2003 in London, England, UK.
- Stewart Bevan was born 10th March 1948 and died aged 73 after a short illness 20th February 2022.
He featured in the long-running series Doctor Who, in 1973's The Green Death, remembered fondly by viewers as "the one with the giant maggots". The departure of popular companion Jo Grant (Katy Manning) called for someone special to lure her away from third Doctor, Jon Pertwee, and to this end the charismatic Welsh eco-warrior Professor Clifford Jones was conceived.
Michael Briant, the director, was having trouble casting this part but was reluctant to interview Bevan because he was Manning's fiance at the time. He finally relented and discovered that Bevan was exactly what he was looking for: handsome and with the requisite crusading zeal and lightness of touch.
Bevan's obvious rapport with Manning also helped to make her departure one of the series' most memorably tear-jerking. Bevan himself was an empathic anti-capitalist vegetarian, guitar player and writer of poetry - all of which contributed to making Jones a believable character.
Although he and Manning had split up in 1976 he reunited with her to play Cliff in a couple of short films used as trailers for the 2019 and 2020 Blu-ray releases of Pertwee's Doctor Who episodes and for a retrospective documentary, Keeping Up With the Joneses (2019).
Stewart was born in St Pancras, central London, to a canteen manager, Gwen (nee Snow), and truck driver, Ray Bevan, who became the personal driver to the celebrity hairdresser Raymond Bessone (aka Mr Teasy Weasy), while Gwen became his housekeeper.
Raised in Southall, Middlesex, Stewart walked out of his school aged 15 after he was caned for standing up for a Sikh classmate. Working at Pierre Cardin's London fashion store he attended amateur dramatics classes and was emboldened when he won an award for playing Alec in Noël Coward's Still Life at a drama festival held at the Questors theatre in 1964, and so enrolled at the Corona theatre school.
On only his second day there he auditioned to play a schoolboy in the landmark Sidney Poitier film To Sir, With Love (1966) and in 1967 worked as a dancer with Jayne Mansfield when she toured the UK in cabaret. He was soon getting big-screen credits - including Lock Up Your Daughters! (1969), the horror films Burke & Hare and The Flesh and Blood Show (both 1972), Steptoe and Son Ride Again (1973), The Ghoul (1975), and the John Wayne vehicle Brannigan (1975).
After Doctor Who he appeared in many popular drama series - from Public Eye (1975) to Silent Witness (1997) via Shoestring (three episodes, all 1979), Blake's 7 (1980) and The House of Elliot (1994).
He had a stint in the soap opera Emmerdale (1977, then called Emmerdale Farm) as Ray Oswell, caught in a storm and seeking help with his pregnant wife, played by Virginia Moore. He and Virginia fell in love off-screen and they remained together for the rest of his life, settling in Suffolk.
He also featured in Douglas Camfield's all-star TV version of Ivanhoe (1982) and Noel's House Party (1993-94) - which required sharp improvisational skills in order to pull off elaborate pranks on unsuspecting victims. He was also a familiar face on TV adverts - in the 80s for Fairy Liquid and the 90s for Kellogg's Bran Flakes.
His theatre highlights were his West End debut in the first production of Conduct Unbecoming (Queen's theatre, 1969-70), taking the lead role when the play toured the UK in 1971, and touring with David Soul in Ira Levin's Deathtrap in 2002. His last film role came in the Jack Thorne-scripted The Scouting Book for Boys (2009).
He is survived by Virginia and their daughters, Coral Bevan and Wendy Bevan. His three sisters predeceased him. - Doreen Tracey was born on 3 April 1943 in St Pancras, London, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Westward Ho, the Wagons! (1956), Annette (1958) and The Donna Reed Show (1958). She was married to Robert A Washburn. She died on 10 January 2018 in Thousand Oaks, California, USA.
- Hilda Fenemore was born on 22 April 1914 in St. Pancras, London, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Chance of a Lifetime (1950), The Wallet (1952) and Carry on Constable (1960). She was married to Rex Edwards. She died on 13 April 2004 in Hertfordshire, England, UK.
- Special Effects
- Visual Effects
- Actor
Derek Meddings was a British film and television special effects designer, initially noted for his work on the "Supermarionation" TV puppet series produced by Gerry Anderson, and later for the 1970s and 1980s James Bond and Superman film series.
Meddings' first work with Anderson was as an uncredited art assistant on the puppet series, Torchy, the Battery Boy (1959). Later, he painted cut-out backgrounds of ranch houses and picket fences for Four Feather Falls (1960). He was credited with the special effects in Anderson's series Supercar (1961) and Fireball XL5 (1962), being elevated to special effects director for Stingray (1964) for which he and Reg Hill designed the main models. Meddings became special effects supervisor for Thunderbirds (1965), during which time he was responsible for the design of the Thunderbird machines themselves. He was visual effects supervisor for all the Anderson puppet series of the late 1960s and Anderson's first live-action series, UFO (1970). During his time working on these series, Meddings and his team developed several innovations in the filming of miniature models and landscapes which have since become standard in the industry.
In 1979, for his work on Superman (1978), Meddings was awarded a shared Special Achievement Award for special effects by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and shared the Michael Balcon Award of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).- Actress
- Make-Up Department
Kim Benson was born on 3 July 1965 in St Pancras, London, England, UK. She is an actress, known for In Fabric (2018), 2point4 Children (1991) and Big Deal (1984). She was previously married to Andrew Ian Dodge.- Nicolas Chagrin was born on 26 November 1945 in Pancras, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Suite Française (2014), Great Expectations (1959) and Doctor Who (1963). He died on 26 August 2017 in Shaftesbury, Dorset, England, UK.
- Bernard Cuffling was born in 1945 in Pancras, London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Double Jeopardy (1999), Fido (2006) and Hector and the Search for Happiness (2014).
- Aran Bell was born on 13 March 1961 in Pancras, London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The Rainbow (1988), EastEnders (1985) and Chain (1990). He is married to Rosalind 'Rossy' Georgeson. They have one child.
- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Teddy Kempner was born in 1957 in Pancras, London, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The World's End (2013), The Murder Room (2004) and The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (1982).- Writer
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Producer
Ben Aaronovitch's first work for television was the Doctor Who (1963) story, "Remembrance of the Daleks". He had been put in touch with Andrew Cartmel by a BBC script editor, Caroline Oulton, and he produced a story idea called "Nightfall" on spec before being commissioned for the Dalek story. Aaronovitch also scripted "Battlefield" for the twenty-sixth season of Doctor Who (1963). Aaronovitch has gone on to write for Casualty (1986) and also wrote, with Cartmel, an initial script for the 1989 Doctor Who (1963) stage play, "The Ultimate Adventure". More recently he scripted thirteen episodes of the BSB series Jupiter Moon (1990) and has written several novels in Virgin Publishing's "Doctor Who: The New Adventures" range.