James Bree
Encyclopedia
James Bree was a British
actor who played many supporting roles in both film
and television
.
Bree was educated at Radley College
and during World War II served in the RAF
. He later trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama
. He changed his surname to Thomson-Bree after inheriting land from his great-uncle, Archdeacon William Bree.
He was probably best known for playing Gumbold in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service
and for his role as Uncle Arthur in The Jewel in the Crown.
Bree notably played three roles in the classic Doctor Who
series. He played the Security Chief in the 1969 Patrick Troughton
story The War Games
, Nefred in the 1980 Tom Baker
story Full Circle
and Keeper of the Matrix
in the 1986 Colin Baker
story The Ultimate Foe
.
He died in December 2008, aged 85, after a long illness.
Television
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actor who played many supporting roles in both film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
.
Bree was educated at Radley College
Radley College
Radley College , founded in 1847, is a British independent school for boys on the edge of the English village of Radley, near to the market town of Abingdon in Oxfordshire, and has become a well-established boarding school...
and during World War II served in the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
. He later trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama
Central School of Speech and Drama
The Central School of Speech and Drama was founded in London in 1906 by Elsie Fogerty to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for young actors and other students...
. He changed his surname to Thomson-Bree after inheriting land from his great-uncle, Archdeacon William Bree.
He was probably best known for playing Gumbold in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (film)
On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the sixth spy film in the James Bond series, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Ian Fleming. Following the decision of Sean Connery to retire from the role after You Only Live Twice, Eon Productions selected an unknown actor and model, George Lazenby...
and for his role as Uncle Arthur in The Jewel in the Crown.
Bree notably played three roles in the classic 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...
series. He played the Security Chief in the 1969 Patrick Troughton
Patrick Troughton
Patrick George Troughton was an English actor most widely known for his roles in fantasy, science fiction and horror films, particularly in his role as the second incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running British science-fiction television series Doctor Who, which he played from 1966 to 1969,...
story The War Games
The War Games
The War Games is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which originally aired in ten weekly parts from 19 April to 21 June 1969. It was the last regular appearance of Patrick Troughton as the Second Doctor, and of Wendy Padbury and Frazer Hines as companions Zoe...
, Nefred in the 1980 Tom Baker
Tom Baker
Thomas Stewart "Tom" Baker is a British actor. He is best known for playing the fourth incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction television series Doctor Who, a role he played from 1974 to 1981.-Early life:...
story Full Circle
Full Circle (Doctor Who)
Full Circle is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 25 October to 15 November 1980...
and Keeper of the Matrix
Matrix (Doctor Who)
The Matrix, in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, is a massive computer system on the planet Gallifrey that acts as the repository of the combined knowledge of the Time Lords....
in the 1986 Colin Baker
Colin Baker
Colin Baker is a British actor who is known for playing Paul Merroney in The Brothers from 1974 to 1976 and as the sixth incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who, from 1984 to 1986.- Background:Colin Baker was born in London, but moved north to...
story The Ultimate Foe
The Ultimate Foe
The Ultimate Foe is the generally accepted title for a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts from 29 November to 6 December 1986. It is part of the larger narrative known as The Trial of a Time Lord, encompassing the whole...
.
He died in December 2008, aged 85, after a long illness.
Filmography
Film- Never Let GoNever Let GoNever Let Go is a 1960 British thriller film starring Peter Sellers and Richard Todd. It concerns a man's purchase, loss of, and attempt to recover a Ford Anglia car. Sellers played a London villain, in one of his rare straight roles.-Plot:...
(1960) - A Matter of ChoiceA Matter of ChoiceA Matter of Choice is a 1963 British drama film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Anthony Steel, Jeanne Moody and Ballard Berkeley. Two youths accidentally kill a man.-Cast:* Anthony Steel - John Crighton* Jeanne Moody - Lisa Grant...
(1963) - On Her Majesty's Secret ServiceOn Her Majesty's Secret Service (film)On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the sixth spy film in the James Bond series, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Ian Fleming. Following the decision of Sean Connery to retire from the role after You Only Live Twice, Eon Productions selected an unknown actor and model, George Lazenby...
(1969) - Satan's SlaveSatan's SlaveSatan's Slave is a horror film directed by Norman J. Warren and starring Michael Gough.-Plot:A young girl, Catherine Yorke , shares a ride with her parents to visit her uncle Alexander , that no one had met before...
(1976)
Television
- R3R3 (TV series)R3 is a British television series produced by the BBC between 1964 and 1965. Full title was Ministry of Research Centre No.3. It was a 50 minute show and the series starred John Robinson as Sir Michael Gerrard, Jeremy Young as Wilson, David Blake Kelly as Captain Rogers, and was set in a scientific...
- Z-CarsZ-CarsZ-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...
- The AvengersThe 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 PrisonerThe PrisonerThe Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in the UK from 29 September 1967 to 1 February 1968. Starring and co-created by Patrick McGoohan, it combined spy fiction with elements of science fiction, allegory and psychological drama.The series follows a British former...
- The Troubleshooters
- The First LadyThe First LadyThe First Lady received positive reviews from most music critics upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 72, based on 17 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews"...
- 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...
- Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)Randall and Hopkirk , first transmitted during 1969-70, is a British private detective television series starring Mike Pratt and Kenneth Cope as the private detectives Jeff Randall and Marty Hopkirk, respectively. The series was originally created by Dennis Spooner and produced by Monty Berman...
- CodenameCodename (TV series)Codename was a short-lived British television series produced by the BBC in 1970.An espionage thriller series, Codename was based around a secret organisation, MI17, being run from a residential hall at Cambridge University...
- Upstairs, DownstairsUpstairs, DownstairsUpstairs, Downstairs is a British drama television series originally produced by London Weekend Television and revived by the BBC. It ran on ITV in 68 episodes divided into five series from 1971 to 1975, and a sixth series shown on the BBC on three consecutive nights, 26–28 December 2010.Set in a...
- The Persuaders!The Persuaders!The Persuaders! is a 1971 action/adventure series, produced by ITC Entertainment for initial broadcast on ITV and ABC. It has been called "the last major entry in the cycle of adventure series that had begun eleven years earlier with Danger Man in 1960", as well as "the most ambitious and most...
- Ace of WandsAce of WandsAce of Wands is a fantasy-based British children's television show broadcast on ITV between 1970 and 1972, created by Trevor Preston and Pamela Lonsdale and produced by Thames Television. The title, taken from the name of a Tarot card describes the principal character, called "Tarot" who combined...
- Special BranchSpecial Branch (TV series)Special Branch is a British television series made by Thames Television for ITV and shown between 1969 and 1974. A police drama series, the action was centred on members of the Special Branch anti-espionage and anti-terrorist department of the London Metropolitan Police.The first two series were...
- HadleighHadleigh (TV series)Hadleigh was a British television series made by Yorkshire Television which originally ran from 1969 to 1976. Developed by Robert Barr, it was a sequel to the writer's earlier Gazette for the same company...
- Doctor at Large
- I, ClaudiusI, Claudius (TV series)I, Claudius is a 1976 BBC Television adaptation of Robert Graves' I, Claudius and Claudius the God. Written by Jack Pulman, it proved one of the corporation's most successful drama serials of all time...
- The Duchess of Duke StreetThe Duchess of Duke StreetThe Duchess Of Duke Street is a BBC television drama series set in London between 1900 and 1935. It was created by John Hawkesworth, the former producer of the highly successful ITV period drama Upstairs, Downstairs...
- Rising DampRising DampRising Damp is a television sitcom produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV, first broadcast from 1974 to 1978. It was adapted for television by Eric Chappell from his well-received 1971 stage play, The Banana Box The series was the highest-ranking ITV sitcom on the 100 Best Sitcoms poll run in...
- Secret Army
- The SweeneyThe SweeneyThe 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...
- The ProfessionalsThe Professionals (TV series)The Professionals was a British crime-action television drama series produced by Avengers Mk1 Productions and London Weekend Television that aired on the ITV network from 1977 to 1983. In all, 57 episodes were produced, filmed between 1977 and 1981. It starred Martin Shaw, Lewis Collins and Gordon...
- Rumpole of the BaileyRumpole of the BaileyRumpole of the Bailey is a British television series created and written by the British writer and barrister John Mortimer which starred Leo McKern as Horace Rumpole, an ageing London barrister who defends any and all clients...
- The Jewel in the Crown
- All Creatures Great and Small
- The Return of Sherlock HolmesThe Return of Sherlock HolmesThe Return of Sherlock Holmes is a collection of 13 Sherlock Holmes stories, originally published in 1903-1904, by Arthur Conan Doyle.-History:...
- Silent WitnessSilent WitnessSilent Witness is a BBC crime thriller series focusing on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. First broadcast in February 1996, the series is still airing to the present day, with a fifteenth series expected to air in January 2012. The series was...