William Lucas (actor)
| William Lucas | |
|---|---|
| Born |
William Thomas Clucas 14 April 1925 Manchester, Lancashire, England |
| Died |
8 July 2016 (aged 91) England |
| Years active | 1950–2005 |
William Thomas Clucas (14 April 1925 – 8 July 2016),[1] better known as William Lucas, was a British film, theatre, radio, and television actor.
Early years
Lucas was born in Manchester, England.[2] Before he became an actor, Lucas was a commercial traveller, laundry hand, cook, farm labourer, and long-distance lorry driver, and served in the Royal Navy during World War II.[3]
Stage
Lucas had dramatic training at the Northern Theatre School, having earned a scholarship there. He went from the school to being an assistant stage manager at the Chesterfield Civic Theatre in the late 1940s.[2] Lucas had begun his stage career by the summer of 1950 in Chesterfield[4] and was still active in the theatre in late 1990 in Run for Your Wife.[5]
Film
Lucas' first film acting role was in the film Portrait of Alison (1955), and he later appeared in many Hammer Film Productions such as The Shadow of the Cat.
Television
Lucas is probably best known for his role in The Adventures of Black Beauty (1972–74) as Dr. James Gordon, and in the BBC series Sherlock Holmes as Inspector Lestrade in the episode "A Study in Scarlet" (1968). He has also appeared in The Bill, Doctor Who, Last of the Summer Wine, and long-running ITV soap opera Coronation Street.[6][7]
Personal life
In 1954, Lucas married Doreen Moorehouse (whose stage name was Rowena Ingram), and they had two children. After they divorced, he married Camilla Idris-Jones.[2]
Death
Lucas died in England on 8 July 2016.[2]
TV shows
- The Adventures of Robin Hood - "The Betrothal" (series 1:1955) & "Knight Errant" (series 3:(1958)
- Coronation Street as Judge Parrish
- Eldorado as Stanley Webb
- On the Up as Sir Douglas Hoyle
- Doctor Who - Frontios as Mr Range (1984)
- The Adventures of Black Beauty as Dr. James Gordon, a role he later reprised in The New Adventures of Black Beauty
- The Spoils of War as George Hayward
- Dixon of Dock Green as Philip Chapman
- The Avengers
- Sherlock Holmes (1968) as Inspector Lestrade ("A Study in Scarlet")
- Doctor at Large (1971) as QC Mortimer Turnbull
- Danger Man
- The Prisoner
- The Adventures of William Tell as Kramer
- Z-Cars as Det. Insp. Carter
- The Infamous John Friend (BBC) starred as John Friend
- Sir Francis Drake as Count Julio
- Last of the Summer Wine (2003)
Feature films
- Portrait of Alison (1955)
- X the Unknown (1956)
- Up in the World (1956)
- High Flight (1957)
- Breakout (1959)
- The Professionals (1960)
- Crack in the Mirror (1960)
- Sons and Lovers (1960)
- Touch of Death (1961)
- Payroll (1961)
- The Devil's Daffodil (1961)
- The Shadow of the Cat (1961)
- The Very Edge (1963)
- Calculated Risk (1963)
- Bitter Harvest (1963)
- The Marked One (1963)
- Dateline Diamonds (1966)
- Night of the Big Heat (1967)
- Tower of Evil (1972)
- Man at the Top (1973)
- Operation Daybreak (1975)
- The Plague Dogs (voice only) (1982)
References
- ↑ Hayward, Anthony (17 July 2016). "William Lucas obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Lentz, Harris III (September 2016). "William Lucas, 91". Classic Images (495): 58.
- ↑ "TeleBriefs", The Stage, page 12, 24 November 1955
- ↑ The Stage, page 13, 3 August 1950
- ↑ "Production news", The Stage and Television Today, page 15, 29 November 1990
- ↑ Television roles
- ↑ Born: 14 April 1925, Manchester (1925-04-14). "William Lucas | BFI | BFI". Explore.bfi.org.uk. Retrieved 2014-03-25.