He was born in Lee, a suburb of Lewisham in South London, in 1907. Educated at Marlborough College in Wiltshire, he studied science at University College, London, but left after a year and became a geology student at the University of Bonn, where he again left after just a year. He spoke many languages (possibly up to 20) including French, Greek, Danish, Russian, German, Italian, Dutch, and Gaelic.
He returned to the UK in 1927, and became a journalist with Reuters in London, alongside the later James Bond writer Ian Fleming. After a year he emigrated to Canada, serving as an insurance salesman, taught English at a boys' school, became a lumberjack and mined for gold. He came back to England penniless, working his passage on a Dutch Freighter.
On return to Britain he served as secretary of the British Ice Hockey Association in the early 1930s and managed the national team at the 1932 European Championships in Berlin to a seventh place finish. He combined his administrative duties in 1931–32 with a season as goaltender with the London Lions
After a single trial as a racing driver at Brooklands, he left Britain again to become a policeman for the League of Nations in the Saarland area of Germany. After the Nazis came to power, he fought in the Spanish Civil War on the Republican side. On return to Britain, he joined the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, but after sustaining an injury in 1943 (thought to be shrapnel from a German shell), he was pensioned off.
He unsuccessfully contested the North Angus and Mearns (UK Parliament constituency) for the Labour Party in the 1950 general election.
He took up acting after joining the Players' Club in London. The club, under the chairmanship of Leonard Sachs who latterly created BBC's television's The Good Old Days, would stage Victorian music hall nights. Standing in for Sachs one night, he was recommended for film in 1944.
he appeared in over 81 films in the 50s, 60s and 70s
He died penniless in 1975.
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Comments
What a fascinating life...and an interesting post!
Moby Dick
The Guns of Navarone
Captain Horatio Hornblower
Those magnificent men in their flying machines
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
And yes he certainly had a busy life!!
Addick 1965, do you want to edit you post so some others can have a go.
No way. I think he's still alive and certainly wasn't born in 1907
Sir Francis Baring, founder of Baring Brothers Bank, bought the Manor House (attributed to architect Richard Jupp) in Manor Lane (now a library and its grounds a public park, Manor House Gardens) in 1796.
Henry Thomas Buckle, English historian and author of A History of Civilization was born in Lee.
Poet Ernest Dowson was also born in Lee.
Sir Gregory Page built a large mansion house (demolished in 1787) at Wricklemarsh in Lee.
Reggie Schwarz, South African cricketer, was born in Lee.
Stanley Unwin, publisher, lived in Handen Road.
Actor and comedian Max Wall
Celebrity and 'singer' Chico.
Eric Clapton lived in Lee for a while although he was born in Surrey. I think he shared a house with John Mayall
Dear old Lionel is still with us, he's 82. He was born in SE London though.
Blimous, thought he was German ?!?
There's your answer, NLA.
Was in the fantastic Whisky Galore! too.