Jack Woolgar
Encyclopedia
Jack Woolgar was a British character actor
working in television and film in the 1960s and 1970s.
He began acting towards the end of the Second World War and turned professional shortly afterwards, working in repertory theatre and touring around the UK. He transitioned to live TV in Granada
during the 1950s whilst at the Theatre Royal Huddersfield.
Woolgar was often cast as a dirty old tramp. Due to lifelong chest problems, he was able to produce a bubbling hacking cough at will, and appeared as the coal miner father in Stand Up, Nigel Barton
, an autobiographical play by Dennis Potter
. In addition he had parts in an episode of The Avengers
("The Living Dead"), The Lion the Witch & the Wardrobe
, The Sweeney
("Jigsaw") and Doctor Who
(The Web of Fear
). He also appeared as Sam Carne in the soap opera Crossroads.
He was married to the RADA
trained actress Elizabeth Mann (13 July 1920 – 18 Feb 1980) and had four children.
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...
working in television and film in the 1960s and 1970s.
He began acting towards the end of the Second World War and turned professional shortly afterwards, working in repertory theatre and touring around the UK. He transitioned to live TV in Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
during the 1950s whilst at the Theatre Royal Huddersfield.
Woolgar was often cast as a dirty old tramp. Due to lifelong chest problems, he was able to produce a bubbling hacking cough at will, and appeared as the coal miner father in Stand Up, Nigel Barton
The Nigel Barton Plays
The Nigel Barton Plays are two semi-autobiographical television dramas by British playwright Dennis Potter, first broadcast on BBC1 in 1965 as part of The Wednesday Play strand...
, an autobiographical play by Dennis Potter
Dennis Potter
Dennis Christopher George Potter was an English dramatist, best known for The Singing Detective. His widely acclaimed television dramas mixed fantasy and reality, the personal and the social. He was particularly fond of using themes and images from popular culture.-Biography:Dennis Potter was born...
. In addition he had parts in an episode of The Avengers
The Avengers (TV series)
The Avengers is a spy-fi British television series set in the 1960s Britain. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed . Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants...
("The Living Dead"), The Lion the Witch & the Wardrobe
The Lion The Witch & The Wardrobe (TV series)
The Lion The Witch & The Wardrobe is a ten-part serial adaptation of C. S. Lewis's fantasy novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, that aired on ITV in 1967.-Background:...
, The Sweeney
The Sweeney
The Sweeney is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London...
("Jigsaw") and Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor 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...
(The Web of Fear
The Web of Fear
The Web of Fear is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 3 February to 9 March 1968. This serial — which marks the return of the Yeti, the Great Intelligence, and Professor Travers — is the sequel to The Abominable...
). He also appeared as Sam Carne in the soap opera Crossroads.
He was married to the RADA
Rada
Rada is the term for "council" or "assembly"borrowed by Polish from the Low Franconian "Rad" and later passed into the Czech, Ukrainian, and Belarusian languages....
trained actress Elizabeth Mann (13 July 1920 – 18 Feb 1980) and had four children.