John Gregson
Encyclopedia
- See also John Gregson, Baron GregsonJohn Gregson, Baron GregsonLord John Gregson, Baron Gregson of Stockport DL was a British politician. He was a member of the Labour Party.-Life:...
.
John Gregson (15 March 1919 – 8 January 1975) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
actor.
He was born Harold Thomas Gregson, of Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
descent, and grew up in Wavertree
Wavertree
Wavertree is an area of Liverpool, in Merseyside, England, and is a Liverpool City Council ward. It is bordered by a number of districts to the south and east of Liverpool city centre from Toxteth, Edge Hill, Fairfield, Old Swan, Childwall and Mossley Hill....
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, where he was educated at Greenbank Road primary school, later St Francis Xavier School. He left school at 16, working first for a telephone company, then for the Liverpool Corporation, as the city council was then known, before World War II started. During this time, he became interested in amateur dramatics, joining first his local Catholic Church theatre group at St. Anthony’s, Mossley Hill, and later the Liverpool Playgoers Club.
When ware broke out, he was called up and joined the Royal Navy as a sailor on minesweepers. At one point, his minesweeper was torpedoed and he was rescued from the sea with a knee injury.
After being demobbed in 1945, he joined the Liverpool Playhouse
Liverpool Playhouse
The Liverpool Playhouse is a theatre in Williamson Square in the city of Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It originated in 1866 as a music hall, and in 1911 developed into a repertory theatre. As such it nurtured the early careers of many actors and actresses, some of which went on to achieve...
for a year, before going on to Perth Theatre
Perth Theatre
Perth Theatre is a Victorian playhouse situated at 185 High Street, Perth, Scotland. It was opened in 1901 and extended in 1991.A memorial foundation stone was laid on 6 October 1889 by George Alexander, actor and manager of the St James's Theatre, London. The building is category B listed by...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. Here he met his future wife, actress Ida Reddish
Thea Gregory
Thea Gregory was an English actress.She appeared in nine British films between 1954 and 1957, such as The Weak and the Wicked with John Gregson and Laurence Harvey. She is the widow of the actor John Gregson, whom she met while performing with Perth rep in 1946. They were married in London in...
from Nottingham, who at the time was using the stage name Thea Kronberg and had recently arrived from the Birmingham Rep
Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Birmingham Repertory Theatre is a theatre and theatre company based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England...
. In 1947 they moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and married there. They eventually had three daughters and three sons.
He was credited as 'John Gregson' in 40 films between 1948 and 1971 and on television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
from 1960 until his death. He was often cast as a police inspector or as a navy or army officer, or for his comedy roles in Ealing
Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever since...
and other British films. One of his first appearances was in the film Saraband for Dead Lovers
Saraband for Dead Lovers
Saraband for Dead Lovers is a 1948 British historical drama film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Stewart Granger and Joan Greenwood. It is based on the novel by Helen Simpson...
, a tearjerking romance starring Joan Greenwood
Joan Greenwood
Joan Greenwood was an English actress. Born in Chelsea, she studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Her husky voice, coupled with her slow, precise elocution, was her trademark...
and Stewart Granger
Stewart Granger
Stewart Granger was an English-American film actor, mainly associated with heroic and romantic leading roles. He was a popular leading man from the 1940s to the early 1960s rising to fame through his appearances in the Gainsborough melodramas.-Early life:He was born James Lablache Stewart in Old...
.
His most famous comedy role was in the film chosen for the Royal Film Performance
Royal Film Performance
The Royal Film Performance is a charity performance of a British film which is attended by members of the British Royal Family. The proceeds from the evening's entertainment are donated to the Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund, a charity which offers financial support to people from the film,...
in 1953, Genevieve
Genevieve (film)
Genevieve is a 1953 British comedy film produced and directed by Henry Cornelius and written by William Rose. It starred John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, Kenneth More and Kay Kendall as two couples comedically involved in a vintage automobile rally...
, also starring Kenneth More
Kenneth More
Kenneth Gilbert More CBE was a highly successful English film actor during the post-World War II era and starred in many feature films, often in the role of an archetypal carefree and happy-go-lucky middle-class gentleman.-Early life:Kenneth More was born in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, the...
, Dinah Sheridan
Dinah Sheridan
Dinah Sheridan is an English actress who appeared in the films 29 Acacia Avenue and Genevieve .She made her film debut in 1937, and has frequently appeared on television...
and Kay Kendall
Kay Kendall
Kay Kendall was an English actress.Kendall began her film career in the 1946 musical London Town. Though the film was a financial failure, Kendall continued to work regularly until her appearance in the comedy Genevieve brought her widespread recognition...
. More was described as his "rival" in British cinema at the time, although Gregson tended to appear in fewer comedy films and more dramas. He also appeared in the Ealing comedies Whisky Galore!
Whisky Galore! (film)
Whisky Galore! was a 1949 Ealing comedy film based on the novel of the same name by Compton MacKenzie. Both the movie and the novel are based on the real-life 1941 shipwreck of the S.S. Politician near the island of Eriskay and the unauthorized taking of its cargo of whisky...
, The Lavender Hill Mob
The Lavender Hill Mob
The Lavender Hill Mob is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T.E.B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass...
, and The Titfield Thunderbolt
The Titfield Thunderbolt
The Titfield Thunderbolt is a 1953 British comedy film about a group of villagers trying to prevent British Railways from closing the fictional Titfield branch line. The film was written by T.E.B...
. His best known drama films include The Battle of the River Plate
The Battle of the River Plate (film)
The Battle of the River Plate is a 1956 British war film by director-writer team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, starring John Gregson, Anthony Quayle and Peter Finch...
, Angels One Five
Angels One Five
Angels One Five is a 1952 British film directed by George More O'Ferrall, and starring Jack Hawkins, Michael Denison, Dulcie Gray, John Gregson, Cyril Raymond, Veronica Hurst and also featuring Bill Everett. Based on the book 'What Are Your Angels Now?' by Pelham Groom Angels One Five is a 1952...
and Above Us the Waves
Above Us the Waves (film)
Above Us the Waves is a 1955 war film directed by Ralph Thomas. It tells the story of human torpedo and midget submarine attacks on the German battleship Tirpitz. It is based on true-life attacks on the Tirpitz, first using manned torpedoes , and then the Royal Navy's midget X-Craft submarines in...
. He was featured in The Treasure of Monte Cristo
The Treasure of Monte Cristo
The Treasure of Monte Cristo is a British movie released in 1961. It features Rory Calhoun as a military captain who goes off in search of the treasure of the legendary Count of Monte Cristo. It was directed by Monty Berman and also featured Patricia Bredin and John Gregson....
and had a role in Treasure Island
Treasure Island (1950 film)
Treasure Island is a 1950 Disney adventure film, adapted from the Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. It starred Bobby Driscoll as Jim Hawkins, and Robert Newton as Long John Silver...
.
Gregson also worked on TV. In Ivor Brown
Ivor Brown
Ivor John Carnegie Brown was a British journalist and man of letters.-Biography:Born in Penang, Malaya, Brown was the younger of two sons of Dr. William Carnegie Brown, a specialist in tropical diseases, and his wife Jean Carnegie. At an early age he was sent to Britain, where he attended Suffolk...
's BBC TV play William's Other Anne he played William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
revisiting his first girlfriend Anne Whateley
Anne Whateley
Anne Whateley is the name of a woman who is sometimes supposed to have been the intended wife of William Shakespeare before he married Anne Hathaway. Most scholars believe that Whateley never existed, but that her name in a document concerning Shakespeare's marriage is merely a clerical error...
. TV work became increasingly important to him from the mid-sixties. He starred as Commander George Gideon in the series Gideon's Way
Gideon's Way
Gideon's Way is a British television crime series made by ITC Entertainment in 1964/65, based on the novels by John Creasey . The series was made at Elstree in twin production with The Saint TV series...
(known as Gideon C.I.D. in America). He also appeared in The Saint
The Saint (TV series)
The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character, Simon Templar, a Robin Hood-like adventurer with a penchant for disguise. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the...
with Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
, and a popular comedy adventure series with Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in new age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career...
, Shirley's World
Shirley's World
Shirley's World was a television series aired first by American Broadcasting Company during the U.S. 1971-72 television season. The sitcom was co-produced by the British ATV Network and American producer Sheldon Leonard; it starred Shirley MacLaine as a photojournalist and John Gregson as her...
. He took over from Kenneth More in long running TV adverts for coffee on British television.
He appeared in It's The Geography That Counts, the last play at the St James's Theatre
St James's Theatre
The St James's Theatre was a 1,200-seat theatre located in King Street, at Duke Street, St James's, London. The elaborate theatre was designed with a neo-classical exterior and a Louis XIV style interior by Samuel Beazley and built by the partnership of Peto & Grissell for the tenor and theatre...
before its closure in 1957.
John Gregson died suddenly from a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in Porlock Weir
Porlock Weir
Porlock Weir lies about 1.5 miles west of Porlock, Somerset, England and is a small settlement which has grown up around the harbour. It is a popular visitor attraction....
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, aged 57, whilst on holiday. He left a widow, Thea Gregory, and six children. His final television role was in the Southern Television
Southern Television
Southern Television was the first ITV broadcasting licence holder for the south and south-east of England from 30 August 1958 until the night of 31 December 1981. The company was launched as Southern Television Limited and the title Southern Television was consistently used on-air throughout its life...
serial Dangerous Knowledge, which was broadcast posthumously in 1976. He was interred at Sunbury burial ground Sunbury on Thames section E/F
Filmography
- London Belongs to MeLondon Belongs to MeLondon 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...
(1948) (uncredited) - Saraband for Dead LoversSaraband for Dead LoversSaraband for Dead Lovers is a 1948 British historical drama film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Stewart Granger and Joan Greenwood. It is based on the novel by Helen Simpson...
(1948) (uncredited) - Scott of the AntarcticScott of the Antarctic (1948 film)Scott of the Antarctic is a 1948 film about Robert Falcon Scott's ill-fated expedition to be the first to the South Pole in Antarctica in 1910-12...
(1948) - Whisky Galore!Whisky Galore! (film)Whisky Galore! was a 1949 Ealing comedy film based on the novel of the same name by Compton MacKenzie. Both the movie and the novel are based on the real-life 1941 shipwreck of the S.S. Politician near the island of Eriskay and the unauthorized taking of its cargo of whisky...
(1949) - Train of EventsTrain of EventsTrain of Events is a 1949 British film made by Ealing Studios directed by Sidney Cole, Charles Crichton and Basil Dearden.A portmanteau work, it tells the various stories of the passengers who are on a train which crashes into a stalled petrol tanker at a level crossing.-Plot:The film opens with a...
(1949) - Treasure IslandTreasure Island (1950 film)Treasure Island is a 1950 Disney adventure film, adapted from the Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. It starred Bobby Driscoll as Jim Hawkins, and Robert Newton as Long John Silver...
(1950) - Cairo RoadCairo Road (film)Cairo Road is a 1950 British crime film directed by David MacDonald and starring Laurence Harvey, Eric Portman, Maria Mauban, Harold Lang and John Gregson. A team of Egyptian anti-narcotic agents try to prevent shipments of drugs crossing the southern Egyptian border...
(1950) - The Lavender Hill MobThe Lavender Hill MobThe Lavender Hill Mob is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T.E.B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass...
(1951) - Angels One FiveAngels One FiveAngels One Five is a 1952 British film directed by George More O'Ferrall, and starring Jack Hawkins, Michael Denison, Dulcie Gray, John Gregson, Cyril Raymond, Veronica Hurst and also featuring Bill Everett. Based on the book 'What Are Your Angels Now?' by Pelham Groom Angels One Five is a 1952...
(1952) - The Brave Don't CryThe Brave Don't CryThe Brave Don't Cry is a 1952 British drama film directed by Philip Leacock and starring John Gregson, Meg Buchanan and John Rae. The film depitcts the events of September 1950 at the Knockshinnoch Castle colliery in Scotland, where 129 men were trapped by a landslide...
(1952) - Venetian BirdVenetian BirdVenetian Bird is a 1952 British thriller film directed by Ralph Thomas and starring Richard Todd, Eva Bartok and John Gregson.-Synopsis:...
(1952) - The Holly and the IvyThe Holly and the Ivy (film)The Holly and the Ivy is a 1952 drama film about an English clergyman whose neglect of his grown offspring, in his zeal to tend to his parishioners, comes to the surface at a Christmas family gathering. It stars Ralph Richardson, Celia Johnson, and Margaret Leighton...
(1952) - The Titfield ThunderboltThe Titfield ThunderboltThe Titfield Thunderbolt is a 1953 British comedy film about a group of villagers trying to prevent British Railways from closing the fictional Titfield branch line. The film was written by T.E.B...
(1953) - GenevieveGenevieve (film)Genevieve is a 1953 British comedy film produced and directed by Henry Cornelius and written by William Rose. It starred John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, Kenneth More and Kay Kendall as two couples comedically involved in a vintage automobile rally...
(1953) - The Weak and the WickedThe Weak and the WickedThe Weak and the Wicked is a 1954 British drama film directed by J. Lee Thompson based on the book by his wife, Joan Henry, starring Glynis Johns and Diana Dors....
(1954) - Conflict of Wings (1954)
- The Crowded DayThe Crowded DayThe Crowded Day is a 1954 British drama film directed by John Guillermin and starring John Gregson, Joan Rice and Sid James. The film follows a group of shopgirls working in Bunting and Hobbs, a department store during the Christmas period.-Cast:...
(1954) - To Dorothy a SonTo Dorothy a SonTo Dorothy a Son is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Muriel Box and starring Shelley Winters, John Gregson and Peggy Cummins. It is also known as Cash on Delivery. It is based on a play by Roger MacDougall...
(1954) - Three Cases of MurderThree Cases of MurderThree Cases of Murder is a 1955 British drama film comprising three stories. Though the stories are separate and unrelated, Alan Badel appears in all three....
(1955) - Value for MoneyValue for MoneyValue for Money is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Ken Annakin and starring John Gregson, Donald Pleasence, Leslie Phillips, Joan Hickson, Derek Farr and Diana Dors.-Cast:* John Gregson as Chayley Broadbent* Diana Dors as Ruthine West...
(1955) - Above Us the WavesAbove Us the Waves (film)Above Us the Waves is a 1955 war film directed by Ralph Thomas. It tells the story of human torpedo and midget submarine attacks on the German battleship Tirpitz. It is based on true-life attacks on the Tirpitz, first using manned torpedoes , and then the Royal Navy's midget X-Craft submarines in...
(1955) - JacquelineJacqueline (film)-Cast:* John Gregson as Mike McNeil* Kathleen Ryan as Elizabeth McNeil* Jacqueline Ryan as Jacqueline McNeil* Noel Purcell as Mr. Owen* Cyril Cusack as Mr. Flannagan* Tony Wright as Jack McBride* Maureen Swanson as Maggie* Liam Redmond as Mr. Lord...
(1956)
- The Battle of the River PlateThe Battle of the River Plate (film)The Battle of the River Plate is a 1956 British war film by director-writer team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, starring John Gregson, Anthony Quayle and Peter Finch...
(1956) - True as a TurtleTrue as a TurtleTrue as a Turtle is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring John Gregson, Cecil Parker, June Thorburn and Keith Michell...
(1957) - Miracle in SohoMiracle in SohoMiracle in Soho is a 1957 British drama film directed by Julian Amyes and starring John Gregson, Belinda Lee and Cyril Cusack. The film depicts the lives of the inhabitants of a small street in Soho and the romance betweena local road-builder and the daughter of Italian immigrants.-Main cast:* John...
(1957) - RooneyRooney (film)Rooney is a 1958 British comedy film directed by George Pollock and starring John Gregson, Muriel Pavlow and Barry Fitzgerald. The film depicts the life of James Ignatius Rooney, a Gaelic sportsman at the weekends, and a Dublin rubbish collector during the week...
(1958) - Sea of Sand (1958)
- Flight from Treason (1959)
- The Captain's TableThe Captain's TableThe Captain's Table is a 1959 British comedy film directed by Jack Lee from a novel by Richard Gordon. It starred John Gregson, Donald Sinden, Peggy Cummins, Maurice Denham, Joan Sims, John Le Mesurier and June Jago...
(1959) - SOS PacificSOS PacificSOS Pacific is a 1959 British drama film directed by Guy Green and starring Richard Attenborough and Pier Angeli.-Plot synopsis:The pilot of a flying boat, along with five passengers, has to ditch his plane in a thunder storm. The plane ditches in the Pacific near an island...
(1959) - Hand in HandHand in Hand (film)Hand in Hand is a 1960 British dramatic film about the friendship between two young children, one a Catholic boy about nine, the other a 7-year-old Jewish girl....
(1960) - Faces in the DarkFaces in the DarkFaces in the Dark is a 1960 British thriller film directed by David Eady and starring John Gregson, Mai Zetterling and John Ireland. A blind inventor is convinced he is going mad, but it soon becomes apparent it is a deliberate attempt by someone else....
(1960) - The Frightened CityThe Frightened CityThe Frightened City is a 1961 British film about extortion rackets and gang warfare in the West End of London. It stars Sean Connery, who plays a burglar called Paddy Damion. He is lured into a protection racket by oily mobster Harry Foulcher , in order to support his partner in crime , who is...
(1961) - The Treasure of Monte CristoThe Treasure of Monte CristoThe Treasure of Monte Cristo is a British movie released in 1961. It features Rory Calhoun as a military captain who goes off in search of the treasure of the legendary Count of Monte Cristo. It was directed by Monty Berman and also featured Patricia Bredin and John Gregson....
(1961) - The Longest DayThe Longest Day (film)The Longest Day is a 1962 war film based on the 1959 history book The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan, about "D-Day", the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during World War II....
(1962) - Live Now - Pay Later (1962)
- Tomorrow at TenTomorrow at TenTomorrow at Ten is a 1964 British thriller film directed by Lance Comfort and starring John Gregson, Robert Shaw, Kenneth Cope and William Hartnell in his final film appearance.-Plot:...
(1964) - Person Unknown (1967) (TV)
- The Night of the GeneralsThe Night of the GeneralsThe Night of the Generals is a 1967 suspense thriller film directed by Anatole Litvak. Set during World War II, the story was adapted from the novel of the same name by Hans Hellmut Kirst. It stars Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif, Tom Courtenay, Donald Pleasence, Joanna Pettet and Philippe Noiret.The...
(1967) - Hans Brinker (1969) (TV)
- FrightFright (film)Fright is a 1971 British thriller film starring Susan George, Ian Bannen and Honor Blackman.-Plot:Young babysitter Amanda arrives at the Lloyd residence to spend the evening looking after their young son. Soon after the Lloyds leave, a series of frightening occurrences in the gloomy old house have...
(1971) - Speaking of Murder (1971) (TV)
- Dangerous Knowledge (1976) (TV)