Geoffrey Toone
Encyclopedia
Geoffrey Toone was an Irish
-born character actor.
Most of Toone's film roles after the 1930s were in supporting parts, usually as authority figures, though he did play the lead character in the Hammer Films production The Terror of the Tongs
in 1961
Toone was born in Dublin, Ireland
to English
parents and was educated at Charterhouse School
.
Toone appeared:
He died from natural causes, aged 94. At the time of his death, Toone was one of the last survivors of the Old Vic
theatre company of the 1930s, having appeared alongside the likes of John Gielgud
and Laurence Olivier
in productions of Shakespeare. He was also the longest-lived actor to have appeared in Doctor Who. For many years he had shared a house with the actor Frank Middlemass.
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...
-born character actor.
Most of Toone's film roles after the 1930s were in supporting parts, usually as authority figures, though he did play the lead character in the Hammer Films production The Terror of the Tongs
The Terror of the Tongs
The Terror of the Tongs is a Hammer Film starring Geoffrey Toone, Christopher Lee and Yvonne Monlaur.The film is a quasi-remake of Hammer's Stranglers of Bombay from 1959...
in 1961
Toone was born in Dublin, Ireland
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...
to 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...
parents and was educated at Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...
.
Toone appeared:
- As Sir Edward Ramsay in the musical film The King and IThe King and I (1956 film)The King and I is a 1956 musical film made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Walter Lang and produced by Charles Brackett and Darryl F. Zanuck. The screenplay by Ernest Lehman is based on the Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II musical The King and I, based in turn on the book Anna and the King...
(he dances with Deborah KerrDeborah KerrDeborah Kerr, CBE was a Scottish film and television actress from Glasgow. She won the Sarah Siddons Award for her Chicago performance as Laura Reynolds in Tea and Sympathy, a role which she originated on Broadway, a Golden Globe Award for the motion picture The King and I, and was a three-time...
in the banquet sequence, much to the annoyance of the King). - The BBCBBCThe 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...
science fictionScience fictionScience fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
:- As Temmosus in the film of Dr. Who and the DaleksDr. Who and the DaleksDr. Who and the Daleks was the first of two Doctor Who films made in the 1960s. It was followed by Daleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D....
(1965) - As Hepesh in the televisionTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
story The Curse of PeladonThe Curse of PeladonThe Curse of Peladon is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 29 January to 19 February 1972.-Synopsis:...
in 1972.
- As Temmosus in the film of Dr. Who and the Daleks
- In Yes MinisterYes MinisterYes Minister is a satirical British sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn that was first transmitted by BBC Television between 1980–1982 and 1984, split over three seven-episode series. The sequel, Yes, Prime Minister, ran from 1986 to 1988. In total there were 38 episodes—of which all but...
. - In FreewheelersFreewheelersFreewheelers is a British television series made by Southern Television between 1968 and 1973. It was the brainchild of television producer Chris McMaster, who was aware of the popularity of adult action series such as The Avengers and Department S amongst teenagers and saw the potential of a...
as the Nazi officer Von Gelb who continually tries to avenge Germany's WWII defeat. - As Lord Ridgemere, owner of the stately homeStately homeA stately home is a "great country house". It is thus a palatial great house or in some cases an updated castle, located in the British Isles, mostly built between the mid-16th century and the early part of the 20th century, as well as converted abbeys and other church property...
where Delboy and RodneyRodney TrotterRodney Charlton Trotter is a fictional character in the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses, played by Nicholas Lyndhurst.-Personality:Rodney's personality was based on the experiences of series creator John Sullivan, who also had an older sibling and, like Rodney, claimed to have been a dreamer and...
dropped a chandelierChandelierA chandelier is a branched decorative ceiling-mounted light fixture with two or more arms bearing lights. Chandeliers are often ornate, containing dozens of lamps and complex arrays of glass or crystal prisms to illuminate a room with refracted light...
in the Only Fools and HorsesOnly Fools and HorsesOnly Fools and Horses is a British sitcom, created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom between 1981 and 1991, with sporadic Christmas specials until 2003...
episode, "A Touch of GlassA Touch of Glass"A Touch of Glass" is an episode of the BBC sit-com, Only Fools and Horses, first screened on 2 December, 1982 as the final episode of series 2...
". - As Lord Bittlesham, a recurring character in the TV adaptation of P.G. Wodehouse's Jeeves and WoosterJeeves and Wooster-External links:*—An episode guide to the series, including information about which episodes were adapted from which Wodehouse stories.*—Episode guides, screenshots and quotes from the four series....
.
He died from natural causes, aged 94. At the time of his death, Toone was one of the last survivors of the Old Vic
Old Vic
The 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...
theatre company of the 1930s, having appeared alongside the likes of John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir 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...
and Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
in productions of Shakespeare. He was also the longest-lived actor to have appeared in Doctor Who. For many years he had shared a house with the actor Frank Middlemass.
Selected filmography
- Luck of the NavyLuck of the NavyLuck of the Navy is a 1938 British comedy thriller film directed by Norman Lee and starring Geoffrey Toone, Judy Kelly and Clifford Evans. It was based on the play Luck of the Navy by Clifford Mills and is also known by the alternative title of North Sea Patrol...
(1938) - Sword of Honour (1938) ... as Bill Brown
- Queer Cargo (1938) ... as Lieutenant Stocken
- Night Journey (1938) ... as Johnny Carson
- North Sea Patrol (1939) ... as Cmdr.Clive Stanton
- Sword of HonourSword of Honour (film)Sword of Honour is a 1939 British drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Geoffrey Toone, Sally Gray, Wally Patch and Peter Gawthorne...
(1939) - Poison PenPoison Pen (film)Poison Pen is a 1939 British psychological drama, directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Flora Robson, Reginald Tate and Ann Todd. The film is an adaptation of a novel by Welsh author Richard Llewellyn...
(1940) ... as David - An Englishman's HomeAn Englishman's HomeAn Englishman's Home is a threat-of-invasion play by Guy du Maurier, first produced in 1909. The title is a reference to the expression "an Englishman's home is his castle".-Play:...
(1940) ... as Peter Templeton - The Man BetweenThe Man BetweenThe Man Between is a 1953 British thriller film directed by Carol Reed and starring James Mason, Claire Bloom, Hildegard Knef and Geoffrey Toone...
(1953) - The King and IThe King and IThe King and I is a stage musical, the fifth by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The work is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and derives from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in...
(1956) ... as Sir Edward Ramsey - Zero Hour!Zero Hour!Zero Hour! is a 1957 movie whose screenplay was written by Arthur Hailey, starring Dana Andrews, Linda Darnell, and Sterling Hayden, and released by Paramount Pictures. Zero Hour! was an adaptation of Hailey's 1956 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation play Flight into Danger...
(1957) ... as the doctor - The EntertainerThe Entertainer (film)The Entertainer is a 1960 film adaptation of the stage play of the same name by John Osborne, which told the story of a failing third-rate music hall stage performer who tried to keep his career going even as his personal life fell apart....
(1960) ... as Harold Hubbard - The Terror of the TongsThe Terror of the TongsThe Terror of the Tongs is a Hammer Film starring Geoffrey Toone, Christopher Lee and Yvonne Monlaur.The film is a quasi-remake of Hammer's Stranglers of Bombay from 1959...
(1961) ... as Captain Jackson Sale - The Scarlet PimpernelThe Scarlet Pimpernel (1982 film)The Scarlet Pimpernel is a 1982 film set during the French Revolution. It is based on the novels The Scarlet Pimpernel and Eldorado by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, and stars Anthony Andrews as Sir Percy Blakeney/The Scarlet Pimpernel, the protagonist, Jane Seymour as Marguerite St...
(1982) ... as the Marquis de St. Cyr