Tony Britton

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Britton in 1972 (Photo by Allan Warren )

Anthony Edward Lowry "Tony" Britton (born June 9, 1924 in Birmingham - † December 22, 2019 ) was a British film and theater actor . Britton has appeared as a character actor in films such as Sunday, Bloody Sunday , The Jackal, and The Secret of Agatha Christie . His work includes almost 80 film and television appearances.

Life

Britton was born in 1924 to Doris Marguerite and Edward Leslie Britton. He attended Edgbaston Collegiate School in Birmingham and Thornbury Grammar School in Gloucestershire before being drafted into the British Army in World War II . After the war, Britton became a member of an amateur theater company in Weston-super-Mare , with whom he appeared at London's Old Vic Theater and the Royal Shakespeare Company .

In 1950 Britton had his first small film role in Waterfront . In the following years he starred in several dozen British productions, including several leading roles. He was also seen in the Danish production No Pardon after midnight in 1960 . Britton's most famous film appearances followed in the 1970s. In 1971 he played a bigger supporting role than George Harding in the drama Sunday, Bloody Sunday . In 1973 Britton played the role of Inspector Thomas in the thriller The Jackal , who supports his French colleague Claude Lebel ( Michael Lonsdale ) in the capture of the hit man known as the Jackal . In the same year he appeared in the psychological thriller The Night of a Thousand Eyes , where he was seen as Tony on the side of Elizabeth Taylor and Laurence Harvey .

In 1977 Britton played the role of Captain Lawton in the adventure film Caprona 2nd part . In 1979 he starred William Collins in the true-story drama The Secret of Agatha Christie, starring Dustin Hoffman , Vanessa Redgrave and Timothy Dalton .

In addition to his film career, Britton also appeared in various television series. He received the Broadcasting Press Guild Award in 1975 for his performance in the miniseries The Nearly Man . For the same role, Britton was also nominated for a BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor in 1976 . In the series, he played a member of the Labor Party as the main actor . From 1983 to 1990 Britton also starred in the British sitcom Don't Wait Up . He has also appeared as a guest star on other television series such as Simon Templar .

Even in old age, Britton still worked on theater productions. In 2007 he was seen in a performance by the Middle Ground Theater Company of The Importance of Being Earnest . In September 2013, the now 89-year-old actor played the role of the Earl of Glouchester in William Shakespeare's King Lear in a gala performance directed by Jonathan Miller at London's Old Vic Theater.

Britton was married twice. His first marriage to Ruth Hawkins (1924-2018) was divorced. The couple have two daughters, screenwriter Cherry Britton and TV presenter Fern Britton. His son Jaspar Britton, who also works as an actor, comes from his second marriage to Eva Castle Britton. Britton died in December 2019 at the age of 95.

Filmography (selection)

Tony Britton (third from left) next to Peter Finch while filming Operation Amsterdam (1958)
  • 1950: waterfront
  • 1950: Woman on the Net (Cage of Gold)
  • 1952: Salute the Toff
  • 1956: Never Marry in Monte Carlo (Loser Takes All)
  • 1957: The Birthday Present
  • 1958: Behind the Mask (Behind the Mask)
  • 1959: The Heart of a Man
  • 1959: Operation Amsterdam
  • 1959: The Bitter and the Sweet (The Rough and the Smooth)
  • 1960: No pardon after midnight (Den sidste vinter)
  • 1960: Suspect
  • 1962: Dartmoor Dangerous Hours (The Break)
  • 1968: Simon Templar ( The Saint ; TV series, one episode)
  • 1970: There's a Girl in My Soup
  • 1971: Sunday, Bloody Sunday
  • 1971: Mr. Forbush and the Penguins
  • 1973: The Jackal (The Day of the Jackal)
  • 1973: The Night of a Thousand Eyes (Night Watch)
  • 1975: The Nearly Man (mini-series, eight episodes)
  • 1977: Caprona Part 2 (The People That Time Forgot)
  • 1979: The Secret of Agatha Christie (Agatha)
  • 1983–1990: Don't Wait Up (TV series, 39 episodes)
  • 1989: Countdown to War (TV movie)
  • 2001/2005: Doctors (TV series, two episodes)
  • 2012: Run for Your Wife

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Jack Hardwick: Tony Britton dead: Fern Britton's father dies age 95. Actor Tony Britton has died aged 95, his daughter Fern Britton has confirmed. Daily Star, December 22, 2019; Archived from the original on December 23, 2019 ; accessed on December 22, 2019 (English).
  2. ↑ Tony Britton. In: Middle Ground Theater Coompany. Retrieved February 17, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Jessica Earnshaw: Fern Britton inundated with support as she reveals heartbreaking news about 'brave' mum. In: Daily Express . April 18, 2018, accessed February 17, 2019 .
personal data
SURNAME Britton, Tony
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Britton, Anthony Edward Lowry
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British actor
DATE OF BIRTH June 9, 1924
PLACE OF BIRTH Birmingham , UK
DATE OF DEATH 22nd December 2019