John Slater (actor)
Encyclopedia
John Slater was a British character actor
usually seen as lugubrious, amiable cockney types.
His father was an antiques dealer. After attending St. Clement Danes School
, Slater began acting in farce
at the Whitehall Theatre. He first appeared on film in 1938, remaining active in the industry up to his death. He was a familiar face in British films of the 1940s and appeared in many classic films of the period, including Went the Day Well?
(1942), We Dive at Dawn
(1943), A Canterbury Tale
(1944), The Seventh Veil
(1945), It Always Rains on Sunday
(1947), and Passport to Pimlico
(1949).
Slater narrated the Mining Review documentary series, and was known on television for his presenter role opposite popular children's puppets Pinky and Perky
during the 1960s, as a story-teller
on Jackanory
and as Det. Sgt. Stone in Z-Cars
from 1967 to 1974. He also appeared in the notorious 1958 stage production of Harold Pinter
's The Birthday Party
, as Nat Goldberg.
Slater sustained life-threatening injuries as a result of an air crash in France in 1946 and sporadic bouts of ill health hampered his career. He died in 1975.
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
usually seen as lugubrious, amiable cockney types.
His father was an antiques dealer. After attending St. Clement Danes School
St. Clement Danes School
St. Clement Danes School is a mixed, voluntary-aided, comprehensive school in Chorleywood, Hertfordshire.-Admissions:It has specialist status for languages and science and takes students aged 11 through to 18 ....
, Slater began acting in farce
Farce
In theatre, a farce is a comedy which aims at entertaining the audience by means of unlikely, extravagant, and improbable situations, disguise and mistaken identity, verbal humour of varying degrees of sophistication, which may include word play, and a fast-paced plot whose speed usually increases,...
at the Whitehall Theatre. He first appeared on film in 1938, remaining active in the industry up to his death. He was a familiar face in British films of the 1940s and appeared in many classic films of the period, including Went the Day Well?
Went the Day Well?
"Went the Day Well?" is a British war film produced by Ealing Studios in 1942 as unofficial propaganda. It tells of how an English village is taken over by German paratroopers . Made during the war, it reflects the greatest potential nightmares of many Britons of the time, although the threat of...
(1942), We Dive at Dawn
We Dive at Dawn
We Dive at Dawn is a 1943 war film directed by Anthony Asquith, starring John Mills and Eric Portman as Royal Navy submariners in the Second World War. It was written by Val Valentine and J. B. Williams with uncredited assistance from Frank Launder...
(1943), A Canterbury Tale
A Canterbury Tale
A Canterbury Tale is a 1944 British film by the film-making team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It stars Eric Portman, Sheila Sim, Dennis Price and Sgt. John Sweet; Esmond Knight provided narration and played several small roles. For the postwar American release, Raymond Massey narrated...
(1944), The Seventh Veil
The Seventh Veil
The Seventh Veil is a 1945 British melodrama film made by Ortus Films, a company established by producer Sydney Box, who here released through General Film Distributors in the UK and Universal Pictures in the United States.-Plot:...
(1945), It Always Rains on Sunday
It Always Rains on Sunday
It Always Rains on Sunday is a film adaptation of the novel by Arthur La Bern, adapted and directed by Robert Hamer. In its gritty, unsentimental depiction of everyday life in post-war Britain, and in its exploration of the tedium, frustration and desperation wrought by grinding poverty, the film...
(1947), and Passport to Pimlico
Passport to Pimlico
Passport to Pimlico is a 1949 British comedy film made by Ealing Studios and starred Stanley Holloway, Margaret Rutherford, and Hermione Baddeley. It was directed by Henry Cornelius....
(1949).
Slater narrated the Mining Review documentary series, and was known on television for his presenter role opposite popular children's puppets Pinky and Perky
Pinky and Perky
Pinky and Perky is an animated children's television series first broadcast by the BBC in 1957, revived in 2008 as a CGI animation.-Original series:...
during the 1960s, as a story-teller
Storytelling
Storytelling is the conveying of events in words, images and sounds, often by improvisation or embellishment. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and in order to instill moral values...
on Jackanory
Jackanory
Jackanory is a long-running BBC children's television series that was designed to stimulate an interest in reading. The show was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, the first story being the fairy-tale Cap o' Rushes read by Lee Montague. Jackanory continued to be broadcast until 24 March 1996,...
and as Det. Sgt. Stone in Z-Cars
Z-Cars
Z-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...
from 1967 to 1974. He also appeared in the notorious 1958 stage production of Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE was a Nobel Prize–winning English playwright and screenwriter. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party , The Homecoming , and Betrayal , each of which he adapted to...
's The Birthday Party
The Birthday Party (play)
The Birthday Party is the first full-length play by Harold Pinter and one of Pinter's best-known and most-frequently performed plays...
, as Nat Goldberg.
Slater sustained life-threatening injuries as a result of an air crash in France in 1946 and sporadic bouts of ill health hampered his career. He died in 1975.
Selected filmography
- The Common TouchThe Common TouchThe Common Touch is a 1941 British drama film directed by John Baxter and starring Geoffrey Hibbert, Harry Welchman, Greta Gynt and Joyce Howard.-Cast:* Geoffrey Hibbert - Peter Henderson* Harry Welchman - 'Lincoln's Inn'* Greta Gynt - Sylvia Meadows...
(1941) - They Flew AloneThey Flew AloneThey Flew Alone is a 1942 British, black-and-white, biopic, drama, propaganda, war film, directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Robert Newton and Edward Chapman...
(1942) - UncensoredUncensored (film)Uncensored is a 1942 British World War II drama, directed by Anthony Asquith for Gainsborough Pictures and starring Eric Portman and Phyllis Calvert...
(1942) - Went the Day Well?Went the Day Well?"Went the Day Well?" is a British war film produced by Ealing Studios in 1942 as unofficial propaganda. It tells of how an English village is taken over by German paratroopers . Made during the war, it reflects the greatest potential nightmares of many Britons of the time, although the threat of...
(1942) - We Dive at DawnWe Dive at DawnWe Dive at Dawn is a 1943 war film directed by Anthony Asquith, starring John Mills and Eric Portman as Royal Navy submariners in the Second World War. It was written by Val Valentine and J. B. Williams with uncredited assistance from Frank Launder...
(1943) - The Hundred Pound WindowThe Hundred Pound WindowThe Hundred Pound Window is a 1944 British crime film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Anne Crawford, David Farrar, Frederick Leister and Richard Attenborough. An accountant has to take a second job working at a racetrack where he soon becomes mixed up with a shady crowd.-Cast:* Anne...
(1944) - For Those in PerilFor Those in PerilFor Those in Peril is a 1944 British war film produced by Ealing Studios. The film marked the directorial debut of Charles Crichton and its basic and relatively slight storyline was an end to produce a film with a documentary feel and an element of wartime propaganda...
(1944) - A Canterbury TaleA Canterbury TaleA Canterbury Tale is a 1944 British film by the film-making team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It stars Eric Portman, Sheila Sim, Dennis Price and Sgt. John Sweet; Esmond Knight provided narration and played several small roles. For the postwar American release, Raymond Massey narrated...
(1944) - The Seventh VeilThe Seventh VeilThe Seventh Veil is a 1945 British melodrama film made by Ortus Films, a company established by producer Sydney Box, who here released through General Film Distributors in the UK and Universal Pictures in the United States.-Plot:...
(1945) - It Always Rains on SundayIt Always Rains on SundayIt Always Rains on Sunday is a film adaptation of the novel by Arthur La Bern, adapted and directed by Robert Hamer. In its gritty, unsentimental depiction of everyday life in post-war Britain, and in its exploration of the tedium, frustration and desperation wrought by grinding poverty, the film...
(1947) - Against the WindAgainst the Wind (1948 film)Against the Wind is a black-and-white British film directed by Charles Crichton and produced by Michael Balcon, released through Ealing Studios in 1948...
(1948) - EscapeEscape (1948 film)Escape is a 1948 British-American thriller film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. It follows a RAF Second World War veteran who goes to prison and then escapes and meets a woman who persuades him to surrender...
(1948) - NooseNoose (film)Noose is a British crime film released in 1948. It was directed by Edmond T. Gréville and starred Carole Landis and Derek Farr.-Plot:Set in post Second World War Britain, Noose is the story of black market racketeers who face attempts to bring them to justice by an American fashion journalist, her...
(1948) - Passport to PimlicoPassport to PimlicoPassport to Pimlico is a 1949 British comedy film made by Ealing Studios and starred Stanley Holloway, Margaret Rutherford, and Hermione Baddeley. It was directed by Henry Cornelius....
(1949) - Prelude to FamePrelude to FamePrelude to Fame is a 1950 British drama film directed by Fergus McDonell from a story by Aldous Huxley. It starred Guy Rolfe, Kathleen Byron, Kathleen Ryan, and James Robertson Justice.-Synopsis:...
(1950) - The RingerThe Ringer (1952 film)The Ringer is a 1952 British mystery film directed by Guy Hamilton and starring Herbert Lom, Denholm Elliot, William Hartnell and Mai Zetterling.-Synopsis:An underhand solicitor receives threatening notes, and the police are called in to protect him....
(1952) - The Long MemoryThe Long MemoryThe Long Memory is a 1952 film directed by Robert Hamer and based on the 1951 novel of the same name by Howard Clewes. A crime thriller filmed on the North Kent Marshes on the Thames Estuary and the dingy backstreets of Gravesend its bleak setting and grim atmosphere have led to its acclaim as a...
(1952) - The Million Pound NoteThe Million Pound NoteThe Million Pound Note is a 1954 British comedy, directed by Ronald Neame and starring Gregory Peck...
(1954) - Star of IndiaStar of India (film)Star of India is a 1954 British adventure film directed by Arthur Lubin and starring Cornel Wilde, Jean Wallace, Herbert Lom and Walter Rilla. Its Italian title was Stella Dell'India.-Cast:* Cornel Wilde - Pierre St...
(1954) - John WesleyJohn Wesley (film)John Wesley is a 1954 British historical film directed by Norman Walker and starring Leonard Sachs, Neil Heayes and Keith Pyott. It depicts the life of the father of Methodism, John Wesley, and his life.-Cast:* Leonard Sachs ... John Wesley...
(1954) - Johnny, You're WantedJohnny, You're WantedJohnny, You're Wanted is a 1956 British crime B-movie, directed by Vernon Sewell and starring John Slater. The film features famous strongwoman Joan Rhodes performing her stage act.-Plot:...
(1956) - Violent PlaygroundViolent PlaygroundViolent Playground is a 1958 British film directed by Basil Dearden starring Stanley Baker, Peter Cushing and David McCallum.-Plot:A British take on the popular genre of J.D. films, Violent Playground centres on a Liverpool street gang led by Johnny Murphy...
(1958) - Three on a SpreeThree on a SpreeThree on a Spree is a 1961 British comedy film directed by Sidney J. Furie.-Cast:* Jack Watling as Michael Brewster* Carole Lesley as Susan* Renee Houston as Mrs. Gray* John Slater as Sid Johnson* Colin Gordon as Mitchell* John Salew as Mr...
(1961) - Nothing BarredNothing BarredNothing Barred is a 1961 British comedy film directed by Darcy Conyers and starring Brian Rix, Leo Franklyn and Naunton Wayne.-Main cast:* Brian Rix - Wilfred Sapling* Leo Franklyn - Barger* Naunton Wayne - Lord Whitebait* Charles Heslop - Spankworth...
(1961) - A Place to GoA Place to GoA Place to Go is a 1963 British crime drama film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Bernard Lee, Rita Tushingham and Michael Sarne. Set in contemporary Bethnal Green in east London it charted the dramatic changes that were happening in the lives of the British working-class at the time, fitting...
(1963)