Arthur Lowe was a BAFTA Award winning English actor. He was best known for playing
Captain George MainwaringCaptain George Mainwaring is the bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during the Second World War...
in the popular
British sitcomA British sitcom tends, as it does in most other countries, to be based on a family, workplace or other institution, where the same group of contrasting characters is brought together in each episode. Unlike American sitcoms, where twenty or more episodes in a season is the norm, British sitcoms...
Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
from 1968 until 1977.
Early life
Arthur Lowe was born in
HayfieldHayfield is a village and civil parish in the Borough of High Peak, in the county of Derbyshire, England. The village lies approximately east of New Mills, south of Glossop and north of Buxton by road....
,
DerbyshireDerbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, the only child of Arthur (1888–1971) and his wife Mary Annie (Nan) née Ford (1885–1981). His father worked for a railway company, in charge of moving theatrical touring companies around
Northern EnglandNorthern England, also known as the North of England, the North or the North Country, is a cultural region of England. It is not an official government region, but rather an informal amalgamation of counties. The southern extent of the region is roughly the River Trent, while the North is bordered...
and the
MidlandsThe Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
in special trains. Young Arthur went to Chapel Street Junior School in Chapel Street, Levenshulme, Manchester. Lowe’s original intention was to join the Merchant Navy but this idea was thwarted because of his poor eyesight. Working at an
aircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
factory he joined the
British ArmyThe British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
on the eve of the Second World War, but not before experiencing his first brush with the acting world by working as a stagehand at the Manchester Palace of Varieties. Lowe served in the Middle East with the
Duke of Lancaster's Own YeomanryThe Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry has its origins in the various troops of light horse raised in the eighteenth century in the county of Lancaster, the earliest of which was the Bolton Light Horse formed in 1798....
, and began to take part in shows put on for the troops, which appears to have sparked his desire to act. He left the Army at the end of the war with the rank of
Sergeant MajorSergeants major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. In Commonwealth countries, Sergeants Major are usually appointments held by senior non-commissioned officers or warrant officers...
.
Early career
Lowe made his debut at the
Manchester Repertory TheatreThe Hulme Hippodrome, originally known as the Grand Junction Theatre and Floral Hall, opened in Hulme, Manchester, on 7 October 1901. It and the nearby Playhouse Theatre, built at the same time, were part of the theatrical empire of...
in 1945, where he was paid £5 per week for twice-nightly performances. He worked with various
repertoryRepertory or rep, also called stock in the United States, is a term used in Western theatre and opera.A repertory theatre can be a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation...
companies around the country and became known for his character roles, which included parts in the
West EndWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
musicals
Call Me MadamCall Me Madam is a musical with a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse and music and lyrics by Irving Berlin.A satire on politics and foreign affairs that spoofs America's penchant for lending billions of dollars to needy countries, it centers on Sally Adams, a well-meaning but ill-informed...
, Pal Joey and
The Pajama GameThe Pajama Game is a musical based on the novel 7½ Cents by Richard Bissell. It features a score by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story deals with labor troubles in a pajama factory, where worker demands for a seven-and-a-half cents raise are going unheeded...
; he eventually featured in at least 50 films - for example, he can be seen playing an interviewer at the end of
Kind Hearts and CoronetsKind Hearts and Coronets is a 1949 British black comedy feature film. The plot is loosely based on the 1907 novel Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal by Roy Horniman, with the screenplay written by Robert Hamer and John Dighton and the film directed by Hamer...
.
By the 1960s Lowe had successfully made the transition to television and landed a regular role as draper/lay preacher
Leonard SwindleyLeonard Swindley was a fictional character on the British television ITV soap opera Coronation Street. He was played by actor Arthur Lowe between 1960 and 1965...
in the northern drama series
Coronation StreetCoronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
(1960–65). So popular was his role with viewers that he was eventually given his own spin-off series,
Pardon the ExpressionPardon The Expression! was an ITV sitcom made by Granada Television, that was first broadcast from Wednesday 2 June 1965 to Monday 27 June 1966. The sitcom was one of only four spin-offs from the highly popular soap opera Coronation Street. Pardon the Expression itself had a spin-off: Turn out the...
(1966), and its sequel
Turn out the LightsTurn out the Lights was an ITV comedy-drama series made by Granada Television, that was first broadcast from Monday 2 January to Monday 6 February 1967 by Associated Rediffusion and Tyne Tees Television,...
(1967).
Leonard Swindley was not a role Lowe relished however, and he longed to move on. During the months he was not playing Swindley he was busy on stage or making guest appearances in other TV series including
Z-CarsZ-Cars is a British television drama series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby in the outskirts of Liverpool in Merseyside. Produced by the BBC, it debuted in January 1962 and ran until September 1978.-Origins:The series was developed by...
and
The AvengersThe Avengers is a spy-fi British television series set in the 1960s Britain. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed . Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants...
. He also had prominent parts in the
Lindsay AndersonLindsay Gordon Anderson was an Indian-born, British feature film, theatre and documentary director, film critic, and leading light of the Free Cinema movement and the British New Wave...
films
This Sporting LifeThis Sporting Life is a 1963 British film based on a novel of the same name by David Storey which won the 1960 Macmillan Fiction Award. It tells the story of a rugby league footballer, Frank Machin, in Wakefield, a mining area of Yorkshire, whose romantic life is not as successful as his sporting...
(1963),
if.... (1968) and multiple roles in
O Lucky Man!O Lucky Man! is a 1973 British comedy-drama fantasy film, intended as an allegory on life in a capitalist society. Directed by Lindsay Anderson, it stars Malcolm McDowell as Mick Travis, whom McDowell had first played as a disaffected public schoolboy in his first film performance in Anderson's...
(1973).
In 1968 Lowe was invited by Sir Laurence Olivier to act at the
National TheatreThe Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
at the
Old VicThe Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, it was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it was known formally as the Royal Victoria Hall. In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian...
and appeared in Somerset Maugham's
Home and Beauty in 1968 and later
The TempestThe Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...
in 1974 with
John GielgudSir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
.
Lowe married
Joan CooperJoan Cooper was a British actress.Her husband was the actor Arthur Lowe whom she met at the Manchester Repertory Theatre in 1946. They were married at Robert Adam Registry Office, the Strand, London, in January 1948...
(1922–1989) on 10 January 1948. They had met in 1945 when she was his leading lady at the Manchester Repertory Theatre, and they remained together until his death. Their son, Stephen Lowe, was born in January 1953.
Dad's Army
In 1968 Lowe was cast in his most famous role,
Captain George MainwaringCaptain George Mainwaring is the bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during the Second World War...
in the BBC sitcom
Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
. His former colleagues on the show remarked that this was the role that most resembled Lowe himself, pompous and bumbling; Lowe had a clause written into his contract specifying that he would never have to lose his trousers. He also successfully played Mainwaring's drunken brother Barry Mainwaring in the 1975 Christmas episode "My Brother and I". He went on to take the character into a radio series, a stage play and a feature length film.
When not involved in
Dad's Army Lowe appeared in plays at the
National TheatreThe Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
and the
Royal Court TheatreThe Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
. His film roles included
Spike MilliganTerence Alan Patrick Seán "Spike" Milligan Hon. KBE was a comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright, soldier and actor. His early life was spent in India, where he was born, but the majority of his working life was spent in the United Kingdom. He became an Irish citizen in 1962 after the...
's surreal
The Bed Sitting RoomThe Bed-Sitting Room is a 1969 British comedy film directed by Richard Lester and based on the play of the same name. It was entered into the 19th Berlin International Film Festival.-Plot:...
, in which he mutates into a parrot, a drunken butler in
The Ruling ClassThe Ruling Class is a 1972 British black comedy film. It is an adaptation of Peter Barnes' satirical stage play which tells the story of a paranoid schizophrenic British nobleman who inherits a peerage. The film costars Alastair Sim, William Mervyn, Coral Browne, Harry Andrews, Carolyn Seymour,...
with
Peter O'ToolePeter Seamus Lorcan O'Toole is an Irish actor of stage and screen. O'Toole achieved stardom in 1962 playing T. E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia, and then went on to become a highly-honoured film and stage actor. He has been nominated for eight Academy Awards, and holds the record for most...
, and a jokey
Vincent PriceVincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
horror movie
Theatre of BloodTheatre of Blood is a horror film starring Vincent Price as vengeful actor Edward Lionheart and Diana Rigg as his daughter Edwina Lionheart. The cast includes such distinguished actors as Harry Andrews, Coral Browne, Robert Coote, Jack Hawkins, Michael Hordern, Arthur Lowe, Joan Hickson, Robert...
, as one of the unfortunate critics.
On television he appeared as a guest performer on
The Morecambe and Wise Show, alongside
Richard BriersRichard David Briers, CBE is an English actor whose career has encompassed theatre, television, film and radio.He first came to prominence as George Starling in Marriage Lines in the 1960s, but it was in the following decade when he played Tom Good in the BBC sitcom The Good Life that he became a...
in a series of
Ben TraversBen Travers AFC CBE in London) was a British playwright best remembered for his farces.Born in the London borough of Hendon, Travers was educated at Charterhouse, where today there is a theatre named for him...
farces for the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, as the pompous Dr Maxwell in the ITV comedy
Doctor at Large, and as Redvers Bodkin, a snooty, old-fashioned butler in the short-lived sitcom
The Last of the Baskets (1971–72).
Between 1971 and 1973 Lowe joined
Dad's Army colleague
Ian LavenderArthur Ian Lavender , better known as Ian Lavender, is an English stage, film and television actor, best known for his role as Private Frank Pike in the BBC comedy series Dad's Army.-Early life and career:...
on the BBC radio comedy
Parsley SidingsParsley Sidings was a BBC Radio sitcom created by Jim Eldridge. It starred Arthur Lowe and Ian Lavender , together with Kenneth Connor from the Carry On films....
. In 1974 he played
Mr MicawberWilkins Micawber is a fictional character from Charles Dickens's 1850 novel, David Copperfield. He was modelled on Dickens's father, John Dickens, who like Micawber was incarcerated in debtors' prison after failing to meet his creditors' demands.Micawber's long-suffering wife, Emma, stands by him...
in the BBC serial
David CopperfieldDavid Copperfield was a six-part television serial version of the Charles Dickens novel first shown on BBC1 in 1974, a co-production with Time-Life Television Productions. It starred David Yelland as David Copperfield, Martin Jarvis as Uriah Heep, and Arthur Lowe as Wilkins Micawber...
. He employed a multitude of voices on the 1975 BBC animated television series
Mr. MenMr. Men is a series of 49 children's books by Roger Hargreaves commencing in 1971. Two of these books were not published in English. The series features characters with names such as Mr. Tickle and Mr. Happy who have personalities based on their names...
, where he voiced all the characters as well as narrated.
Later career
When
Dad's Army ended in 1977, Lowe was still very much in demand with starring roles in television programmes such as
Bless Me FatherBless me, Father was a British situation comedy starring Arthur Lowe, Daniel Abineri, Gabrielle Daye, Patrick McAlinney, David Ryall, Derek Francis and Sheila Keith. It was aired on ITV from 1978 until 1981 and described the adventures of an Irish Catholic priest, Father Charles Duddleswell and...
with
Daniel AbineriDaniel Abineri is an English actor, songwriter and playwright, famous for writing the book, music and lyrics for the controversial musical Bad Boy Johnny and the Prophets of Doom....
(1978–81) as the mischievous Irish priest Father Charles Clement Duddleswell – quite a departure from the pompous characters that Lowe usually portrayed – and
PotterPotter was a 1979 BBC sitcom written by Roy Clarke. Running for three series, it originally starred Arthur Lowe as Redvers Potter, a busybody former sweet manufacturer with time on his hands following retirement...
(1979–80), as busybody Redvers Potter.
He made many television commercials, but his later stage career mainly involved touring the provinces, appearing in plays and pantomimes with his wife, Joan. In 1981 he reprised his role as Captain Mainwaring for the pilot episode of
It Sticks Out Half a MileIt Sticks Out Half a Mile was a BBC Radio sitcom created by Harold Snoad and Michael Knowles as a sequel to the television war sitcom Dad's Army, for which Snoad and Knowles had written radio adaptations.-The pilot:...
, a radio sequel to
Dad's Army. His last film role was in Lindsay Anderson's
Britannia HospitalBritannia Hospital is a 1982 black comedy film by British director Lindsay Anderson which targets the National Health Service and contemporary British society...
.
In his final years Lowe was reduced to acting in pantomimes and touring theatre productions.
When touring at coastal theatres with his wife, Lowe used his distinctive 1885 former steam yacht
AmazonAmazon is a long screw schooner ex-steam yacht built in 1885 at the private Arrow Yard of Tankerville Chamberlayne in Southampton....
as a floating base. He bought
Amazon as a houseboat in 1968, but realised her potential and took her back to sea in 1971; this unique vessel is still operating in the Mediterranean today.
Death
Lowe collapsed due to a
strokeA stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
in his dressing room at the
Alexandra TheatreThe New Alexandra Theatre, commonly known as The Alex, is a theatre on Station Street in Birmingham, England.Construction of the theatre commenced in 1900 and was completed in 1901. The architects were Owen & Ward. The theatre was opened on 27 May 1901 as the Lyceum Theatre on John Bright Street;...
,
BirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
before a performance of
Home at Seven (in which he appeared with wife Joan) on 15 April 1982, having given a live interview on the BBC 1 afternoon show
Pebble Mill at OnePebble Mill at One was a popular British lunchtime chat show broadcast live originally on BBC2 before transferring to BBC1. It was produced from the Pebble Mill facilities of BBC Birmingham, and uniquely was hosted from the centre's main reception area rather than a traditional studio...
only hours earlier. He died in hospital shortly afterwards, aged 66.
His ashes were scattered at
Sutton ColdfieldSutton Coldfield is a suburb of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. Sutton is located about from central Birmingham but has borders with Erdington and Kingstanding. Sutton is in the northeast of Birmingham, with a population of 105,000 recorded in the 2001 census...
Crematorium following a sparsely attended funeral. Joan herself did not attend as she refused to miss a performance of
Home at Seven and, as a result, was appearing in
BelfastBelfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
at the time. A memorial service was held in May 1982 at
St Martin-in-the-FieldsSt Martin-in-the-Fields is an Anglican church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. Its patron is Saint Martin of Tours.-Roman era:Excavations at the site in 2006 led to the discovery of a grave dated about 410...
, attended by his family, former colleagues, and many friends. His last sitcom, , was shown between July and August 1982.
Memorials
In December 2007 plans were unveiled for a statue of Lowe to be erected in
ThetfordThetford is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland district of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road between Norwich and London, just south of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, covering an area of , has a population of 21,588.-History:...
, where the outside scenes for
Dad's Army were filmed.
The statue was unveiled on 19 June 2010 by the writers of the series, Jimmy Perry and David Croft.
The star has also had two
blue plaqueA blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
s unveiled one at
Maida ValeMaida Vale is a residential district in West London between St John's Wood and Kilburn. It is part of the City of Westminster. The area is mostly residential, and mainly affluent, consisting of many large late Victorian and Edwardian blocks of mansion flats...
and one at his birthplace in
HayfieldHayfield is a village and civil parish in the Borough of High Peak, in the county of Derbyshire, England. The village lies approximately east of New Mills, south of Glossop and north of Buxton by road....
, Derbyshire.
Television roles
| Year |
Title |
Role |
1960 to 1965
1965 to 1966
1967 |
Coronation StreetCoronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
Pardon the ExpressionPardon The Expression! was an ITV sitcom made by Granada Television, that was first broadcast from Wednesday 2 June 1965 to Monday 27 June 1966. The sitcom was one of only four spin-offs from the highly popular soap opera Coronation Street. Pardon the Expression itself had a spin-off: Turn out the...
Turn out the LightsTurn out the Lights was an ITV comedy-drama series made by Granada Television, that was first broadcast from Monday 2 January to Monday 6 February 1967 by Associated Rediffusion and Tyne Tees Television,...
|
Leonard Swindley Leonard Swindley was a fictional character on the British television ITV soap opera Coronation Street. He was played by actor Arthur Lowe between 1960 and 1965...
|
| 1968 to 1977 |
Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
|
Captain George Mainwaring |
| 1971 |
Doctor at Large |
Dr Maxwell |
| 1971 to 1972 |
The Last of the Baskets The Last of the Baskets was a British television situation comedy produced by Granada and starring Arthur Lowe that ran for two series in the early 1970s....
|
Redvers Bodkin |
| 1972 |
It's Murder, But Is It Art? |
Phineas Drake |
| 1974 |
Microbes and Men |
Louis PasteurLouis Pasteur was a French chemist and microbiologist born in Dole. He is remembered for his remarkable breakthroughs in the causes and preventions of diseases. His discoveries reduced mortality from puerperal fever, and he created the first vaccine for rabies and anthrax. His experiments...
|
| 1978 |
A Car Across the Pass |
(Galton & Simpson Playhouse) |
| 1978 to 1981 |
Bless Me Father Bless me, Father was a British situation comedy starring Arthur Lowe, Daniel Abineri, Gabrielle Daye, Patrick McAlinney, David Ryall, Derek Francis and Sheila Keith. It was aired on ITV from 1978 until 1981 and described the adventures of an Irish Catholic priest, Father Charles Duddleswell and...
|
Father Charles Clement Duddleswell |
| 1979 to 1980 |
Potter Potter was a 1979 BBC sitcom written by Roy Clarke. Running for three series, it originally starred Arthur Lowe as Redvers Potter, a busybody former sweet manufacturer with time on his hands following retirement...
|
Redvers Potter |
| 1982 |
A J Wentworth, BA A J Wentworth, BA is a British sitcom that aired on ITV in 1982. Set in the 1940s, the programme was shown posthumously following the death of its lead actor Arthur Lowe, who died on 15 April 1982. Based on the writings of H. F. Ellis, A J Wentworth, BA was written by Basil Boothroyd...
|
Arthur James Wentworth, BA |
Filmography
| Year |
Film |
Role |
Notes |
| 1949 |
London Belongs to Me London Belongs to Me is a 1948 British film directed by Sidney Gilliat and starring Richard Attenborough and Alastair Sim. It was based on the novel of the same name by Norman Collins...
|
|
Uncredited |
| The Spider and the Fly |
Town Clerk |
|
| Floodtide Floodtide is a 1949 British romantic drama film directed by Frederick Wilson and starring Gordon Jackson, Rona Anderson, John Laurie and Jimmy Logan. A young Scotsman becomes a ship designer instead of following the family tradition and entering farming...
|
Pianist |
(Uncredited) |
| Kind Hearts and Coronets Kind Hearts and Coronets is a 1949 British black comedy feature film. The plot is loosely based on the 1907 novel Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal by Roy Horniman, with the screenplay written by Robert Hamer and John Dighton and the film directed by Hamer...
|
The Reporter |
|
| Poet's Pub Poet's Pub is a 1949 British comedy film directed by Frederick Wilson.-Plot:An Oxford poet is convinced to become manager of a country inn, after complaining about the food and service.-Cast:*Derek Bond as Saturday Keith*Rona Anderson as Joanna Benbow...
|
Coach Guide |
(Uncredited) |
| 1954 |
Final Appointment Final Appointment is a 1954 British film directed by Terence Fisher. It starred John Bentley, Eleanor Summerfield and Hubert Gregg. It also featured Arthur Lowe, later to become famous for his portrayal of Captain Mainwaring in Dad's Army, in an early role....
|
Mr. Barrett |
|
| 1955 |
Breakaway Breakaway is a 1955 British thriller film directed by Henry Cass from a script by Norman Hudis. It stars Tom Conway, Michael Balfour, Honor Blackman and Arthur Lowe. A Private eye is hot on the tail of a stolen secret formula and a kidnapped young woman....
|
Mitchell |
| The Woman for Joe The Woman for Joe is a 1955 British drama film starring Diane Cilento, George Baker, Jimmy Karoubi and David Kossoff. The owner of a circus sideshow and his prize attraction become romantically involved with the same woman.-Cast:...
|
George's Agent |
(Uncredited) |
| Windfall Windfall is a 1955 British comedy film written by John Gilling and directed by Henry Cass, starring Lionel Jeffries, Jack Watling and Gordon Jackson...
|
|
(Uncredited) |
| Reluctant Bride Reluctant Bride is a 1955 British comedy film.-Plot:Jeff Longstreet and Laura Weeks are paired together to take care of a group of wild children whose parents are lost on an African safari...
|
Mr. Fogarty |
|
| One Way Out One Way Out is a 1955 British crime drama film directed by Francis Searle and starring Jill Adams, Eddie Byrne, Lyndon Brook, John Chandos and Arthur Lowe.-Cast:* Jill Adams as Shirley Harcourt* Eddie Byrne as Superintendent Harcourt...
|
Sam |
|
| Murder Anonymous Murder Anonymous is a 1955 British crime short film directed by Ken Hughes and featuring Edgar Lustgarten, Peter Arne and Jill Bennett. It is perhaps most notable for an early appearance by Arthur Lowe, later to become famous as Captain Manwairing in Dad's Army, who plays a fingerprint expert....
|
Fingerprint Expert |
(Uncredited) |
| 1956 |
Who Done It? Who Done It? is a 1956 British comedy film starring comedian Benny Hill.-Cast:* Benny Hill as Hugo Dill* Belinda Lee as Frankie Mayne* David Kossoff as Zacco* Garry Marsh as Detective Inspector Hancock* George Margo as Barakov...
|
|
(Uncredited) |
| The Green Man The Green Man is a 1956 British comedy-drama film based on the play Meet A Body by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, who produced and adapted the big-screen version.-Plot:...
|
Radio Salesman |
|
| 1957 |
Hour of Decision Hour of Decision is a 1957 British mystery film starring Jeff Morrow, Hazel Court, Carl Bernard, Lionel Jeffries and Arthur Lowe. The British wife of an American journalist begins receiving letters blackmailing her over a love affair. Suspicion points to her when the blackmailer is found murdered....
|
|
| Stranger in Town Stranger in Town is a 1957 British crime film directed by George Pollock and starring Alex Nicol and Anne Paige. Arthur Lowe also made a brief appearance in the film...
|
|
(Uncredited) |
| 1958 |
Stormy Crossing Stormy Crossing is a 1958 British mystery film starring John Ireland, Derek Bond, Leslie Dwyer, John Schlesinger and Arthur Lowe. Two swimmers are attempting to cross the English Channel, when one of them drowns. The other convinced that it was not an accident, investigates...
|
Garage Owner |
|
| 1959 |
The Boy and the Bridge The Boy and the Bridge is a 1959 British drama film directed by Kevin McClory. It featured Ian Maclaine, Liam Redmond, James Hayter, Geoffrey Keen and Arthur Lowe...
|
Bridge Mechanic |
|
| 1960 |
Follow That Horse! Follow That Horse! is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Alan Bromly from a screenplay by William Douglas-Home. It starred David Tomlinson, Cecil Parker, Richard Wattis, Mary Peach and Dora Bryan.-Cast:* David Tomlinson as Dick Lanchester...
|
Auctioneer |
(Uncredited) |
| The Day They Robbed the Bank of England The Day They Robbed the Bank of England is a 1960 British crime film directed by John Guillermin. It was written by Howard Clewes and Richard Maibaum and based upon a novel by John Brophy....
|
Bank Official |
(Uncredited) |
| 1962 |
Go to Blazes Go to Blazes is a 1962 British comedy film directed by Michael Truman and starring Dave King, Robert Morley, Norman Rossington, Daniel Massey, Dennis Price, Maggie Smith, David Lodge. It also featured Arthur Lowe and John Le Mesurier, later to feature prominently in Dad's Army...
|
Warder |
|
| 1963 |
This Sporting Life This Sporting Life is a 1963 British film based on a novel of the same name by David Storey which won the 1960 Macmillan Fiction Award. It tells the story of a rugby league footballer, Frank Machin, in Wakefield, a mining area of Yorkshire, whose romantic life is not as successful as his sporting...
|
Charles Slomer |
|
| 1965 |
You Must Be Joking! You Must Be Joking! is a 1965 British comedy film directed by Michael Winner.-Cast:* Michael Callan - Leuitenant Tim Morton* Lionel Jeffries - Sergeant Major McGregor* Denholm Elliott - Captain Tabasco* Wilfrid Hyde-White - General Lockwood...
|
|
|
| 1967 |
The White Bus The White Bus is a 1967 short film by British director Lindsay Anderson. The screenplay was jointly adapted with Shelagh Delaney from a short story in her 1963 collection Sweetly Sings the Donkey....
|
Mayor |
|
| 1968 |
If.... |
Mr. Kemp |
|
| 1969 |
It All Goes to Show It All Goes to Show is a 1969 British short comedy film.-Plot:Councillor Henry Parker, Secretary of Brightsea Bay Entertainments Committee has to seek out talent for the summer show. He bumps into old British Army comrade Mike Sago and the two reignite their double act.-Cast:*Arthur Lowe as...
|
Councillor Henry Parker |
|
| The Bed-Sitting Room The Bed-Sitting Room is a 1969 British comedy film directed by Richard Lester and based on the play of the same name. It was entered into the 19th Berlin International Film Festival.-Plot:...
|
Father |
|
| 1970 |
Spring and Port Wine Spring and Port Wine is a stage play by Bill Naughton which was turned into a film .It began life under the title My Flesh, My Blood as a BBC Radio play, broadcast on 17 August 1957 in the Saturday Night Theatre strand...
|
Mr. Aspinall |
|
| Some Will, Some Won't Some Will, Some Won't was a 1970 British comedy film directed by Duncan Wood. It was a remake of Laughter in Paradise. It starred an ensemble British cast, including Michael Hordern, Ronnie Corbett, Dennis Price, Leslie Phillips and Arthur Lowe....
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Police Sergeant |
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| Fragment of Fear Fragment of Fear is a 1970 British thriller film starring David Hemmings, Gayle Hunnicutt, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Roland Culver, Flora Robson and Arthur Lowe. -Plot:...
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Mr. Nugent |
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| The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer is a British 1970 cult satire film written by and starring Peter Cook, John Cleese and Graham Chapman, and directed by Kevin Billington .-Synopsis:...
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Ferret |
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| The Great Inimitable Mr. Dickens The Great Inimitable Mr. Dickens is a 1970 British television film about the life of Charles Dickens directed by Ned Sherrin and starring Anthony Hopkins, Jenny Agutter and Arthur Lowe....
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| Rookery Nook Rookery Nook is a 1970 British comedy television film starring Richard Briers, Arthur Lowe and Irene Handl. It is based on the play Rookery Nook, one of the Aldwych Farces, by Ben Travers. It was first aired on the BBC on 19 September 1970.-Cast:...
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Harold Twine |
Television film |
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| 1971 |
A Hole Lot of Trouble A Hole Lot of Trouble is a 1971 British short comedy film. Lasting only twenty seven minutes, it charts the efforts of a group of workmen trying to dig a hole. It was written and directed by Francis Searle and starred Arthur Lowe, Victor Maddern and Bill Maynard....
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Whitehouse |
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| Dad's Army Dad's Army is a 1971 feature film based on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army. Directed by Norman Cohen, it was filmed between series three and four and was based upon material from the early episodes of the television series...
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Captain MainwaringCaptain George Mainwaring is the bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during the Second World War...
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| 1972 |
Adolf Hitler – My Part in His Downfall Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall is a film adaptation of the similarly titled first volume of Spike Milligan's autobiography. It starred Jim Dale as the young Terence "Spike" Milligan. Spike played the part of his father, Leo Milligan....
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Major Drysdale |
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| The Ruling Class The Ruling Class is a 1972 British black comedy film. It is an adaptation of Peter Barnes' satirical stage play which tells the story of a paranoid schizophrenic British nobleman who inherits a peerage. The film costars Alastair Sim, William Mervyn, Coral Browne, Harry Andrews, Carolyn Seymour,...
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Daniel Tucker |
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| 1973 |
No Sex Please, We're British No Sex Please, We're British is a 1973 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Ronnie Corbett, Ian Ogilvy, Susan Penhaligon and Arthur Lowe...
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Mr. Bromley |
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| Theatre of Blood Theatre of Blood is a horror film starring Vincent Price as vengeful actor Edward Lionheart and Diana Rigg as his daughter Edwina Lionheart. The cast includes such distinguished actors as Harry Andrews, Coral Browne, Robert Coote, Jack Hawkins, Michael Hordern, Arthur Lowe, Joan Hickson, Robert...
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Horace Sprout |
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| O Lucky Man! O Lucky Man! is a 1973 British comedy-drama fantasy film, intended as an allegory on life in a capitalist society. Directed by Lindsay Anderson, it stars Malcolm McDowell as Mick Travis, whom McDowell had first played as a disaffected public schoolboy in his first film performance in Anderson's...
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Mr. Duff / Charlie Johnson / Dr. Munda |
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| 1974 |
Man About the HouseMan About the House is a British sitcom starring Richard O'Sullivan, Paula Wilcox and Sally Thomsett that was broadcast for six seasons on ITV from 1973 to 1976. It was created and written by Johnnie Mortimer and Brian Cooke. The series was considered daring at the time due to its subject matter of...
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Spiros |
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| 1976 |
The Bawdy Adventures of Tom Jones The Bawdy Adventures of Tom Jones is a 1976 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Nicky Henson, Trevor Howard and Terry-Thomas. It is an adaptation of the eighteenth century novel Tom Jones by Henry Fielding, which follows the main character in a new series of...
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Dr. Thwackum |
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| 1977 |
The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It is a 1977 comedy starring John Cleese. It is a low-budget spoof of the Sherlock Holmes detective series, as well as the mystery genre in general.- Plot :...
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Dr. William Watson, M.D |
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| 1979 |
The Lady Vanishes The Lady Vanishes is a 1979 British comedy mystery film directed by Anthony Page. Its screenplay by George Axelrod was based on the novel The Wheel Spins by Ethel Lina White...
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Charters |
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| 1980 |
Sweet William Sweet William is a 1980 British drama film directed by Claude Whatham and starring Sam Waterston, Jenny Agutter, Geraldine James, Anna Massey, Arthur Lowe, Tim Pigott-Smith and Melvyn Bragg....
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Captain Walton |
| 1982 |
Britannia Hospital Britannia Hospital is a 1982 black comedy film by British director Lindsay Anderson which targets the National Health Service and contemporary British society...
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Guest Patient |
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BAFTA Awards
| Year |
Award |
Category |
Film |
Result |
| 1969 |
BAFTA TV AwardsThe British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...
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Best Actor- 1950s :*1955 Paul Rogers — *1956 Peter Cushing — *1957 Michael Gough — *1958 Michael Hordern — *1959 Donald Pleasence — - 1960s :*1960 Patrick McGoohan — *1961 Lee Montague —...
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Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
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| 1970 |
BAFTA TV AwardsThe British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...
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Best Light Entertainment Performance |
Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
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| 1972 |
BAFTA TV AwardsThe British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...
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Best Light Entertainment Performance |
Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
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| 1973 1974----Best Film: Day for Night The 27th British Film Awards, given by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in 1974, honoured the best films of 1973.- Best Film : Day for Night * The Day of the Jackal...
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BAFTA Film AwardsThe British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
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Best Supporting Actor Best Actor in a Supporting Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding supporting performance in a film...
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O Lucky Man! O Lucky Man! is a 1973 British comedy-drama fantasy film, intended as an allegory on life in a capitalist society. Directed by Lindsay Anderson, it stars Malcolm McDowell as Mick Travis, whom McDowell had first played as a disaffected public schoolboy in his first film performance in Anderson's...
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| 1974 |
BAFTA TV AwardsThe British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...
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Best Light Entertainment Performance |
Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
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| 1974 |
BAFTA TV AwardsThe British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...
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Best Actor- 1950s :*1955 Paul Rogers — *1956 Peter Cushing — *1957 Michael Gough — *1958 Michael Hordern — *1959 Donald Pleasence — - 1960s :*1960 Patrick McGoohan — *1961 Lee Montague —...
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Microbes and Men and David Copperfield David Copperfield was a six-part television serial version of the Charles Dickens novel first shown on BBC1 in 1974, a co-production with Time-Life Television Productions. It starred David Yelland as David Copperfield, Martin Jarvis as Uriah Heep, and Arthur Lowe as Wilkins Micawber...
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| 1977 |
BAFTA TV AwardsThe British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...
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Best Light Entertainment Performance |
Dad's ArmyDad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
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Further reading
Two biographies of Arthur Lowe have been published:
Arthur Lowe – Dad's Memory by his son Stephen which was issued in 1997 and more recently
Arthur Lowe by
Graham LordGraham Lord is a British biographer and novelist. His biographies include those of Jeffrey Bernard, James Herriot, Dick Francis, Arthur Lowe, David Niven, John Mortimer and Joan Collins...
in 2002. In 2000
The Unforgettable Arthur Lowe was part of
The Unforgettable… series of TV biographies of famous comedy performers.
External links