Norman Bird
Encyclopedia
Norman Bird was a British character actor. Often sporting a moustache and an air of worried resignation, he seemed to specialise in downtrodden roles. Describing himself as "the man with the cardigan", his doleful looks ensured that he was usually cast as henpecked husbands, petty officials or interfering busybodies.
Bird was born in Coalville
, Leicestershire
, England
. A RADA
graduate, he made his West End debut in Peter Brook
's production of The Winter's Tale
at the Phoenix Theatre in 1951. His first film appearance was as the foreman in An Inspector Calls
(1954).
He was a familiar face to British cinema audiences of the 1960s, appearing in such films as The Angry Silence
(1960), The League of Gentlemen
(1960), Whistle Down the Wind
(1961), Victim (1961) and Term of Trial
(1962) with Sir Laurence Olivier
.
He went on to make nearly 70 films and over 200 television appearances, notably as Mr Braithwaite in Worzel Gummidge
(1979–81) and as Mr Arrad in the Fawlty Towers
episode "Waldorf Salad
" (1979). His long list of credits include Steptoe and Son
, Rising Damp
, Ever Decreasing Circles
, Yes Minister
, To Serve Them All My Days
, Z-Cars
, The Saint
, Department S
, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)
and Boon
. In 1990 he appeared in Stay Lucky
, with Dennis Waterman
, which marked his 200th television appearance. One of his last film appearances was as a taxi driver in Richard Attenborough
's Shadowlands
(1993).
Bird was born in Coalville
Coalville
Coalville is a town in North West Leicestershire, England, with a population estimated in 2003 to be almost 33,000. It is situated on the A511 trunk road between Leicester and Burton upon Trent, close to junction 22 of the M1 motorway where the A511 meets the A50 between Ashby-de-la-Zouch and...
, Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
, England
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...
. A 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....
graduate, he made his West End debut in Peter Brook
Peter Brook
Peter Stephen Paul Brook CH, CBE is an English theatre and film director and innovator, who has been based in France since the early 1970s.-Life:...
's production of The Winter's Tale
The Winter's Tale
The Winter's Tale is a play by William Shakespeare, originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, some modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some critics, among them W. W...
at the Phoenix Theatre in 1951. His first film appearance was as the foreman in An Inspector Calls
An Inspector Calls
An Inspector Calls is a play written by English dramatist J. B. Priestley, first performed in 1945 in the Soviet Union and 1946 in the UK. It is considered to be one of Priestley's best known works for the stage and one of the classics of mid-20th century English theatre...
(1954).
He was a familiar face to British cinema audiences of the 1960s, appearing in such films as The Angry Silence
The Angry Silence
The Angry Silence is a 1960 British drama film directed by Guy Green and starring Richard Attenborough. Screenwriter Bryan Forbes won a BAFTA Award and an Oscar nomination for his contribution...
(1960), The League of Gentlemen
The League of Gentlemen (film)
The League of Gentlemen is a 1960 British crime film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jack Hawkins, Nigel Patrick and Richard Attenborough. It was based on the 1958 novel by John Boland and adapted by Bryan Forbes, who also starred in the film...
(1960), Whistle Down the Wind
Whistle Down the Wind (film)
Whistle Down the Wind is a 1961 British film, directed by Bryan Forbes, screenplay by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall, from the novel by Mary Hayley Bell.-Plot:...
(1961), Victim (1961) and Term of Trial
Term of Trial
Term of Trial is a 1962 British drama film made by Romulus Films Ltd. and distributed by Warner-Pathé. It was written and directed by Peter Glenville and produced by James Woolf with James H. Ware as associate producer from a screenplay based on the novel of the same name by James Barlow...
(1962) with Sir 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...
.
He went on to make nearly 70 films and over 200 television appearances, notably as Mr Braithwaite in Worzel Gummidge
Worzel Gummidge
Worzel Gummidge is a British children's fictional character who originally appeared in a series of books by the novelist Barbara Euphan Todd. A walking, talking scarecrow, Gummidge has a set of interchangeable turnip, mangel worzel and swede heads, each of which suit a particular occasion or endow...
(1979–81) and as Mr Arrad in the Fawlty Towers
Fawlty Towers
Fawlty Towers is a British sitcom produced by BBC Television and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975. Twelve television program episodes were produced . The show was written by John Cleese and his then wife Connie Booth, both of whom played major characters...
episode "Waldorf Salad
Waldorf Salad (Fawlty Towers)
"Waldorf Salad" is the third episode of the second series of BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.-Synopsis:American tourist Mr. Hamilton checks in with his wife late one evening. They want a hot meal, but Terry, the cook, has finished his shift. Hamilton bribes Basil to keep the kitchen open, but Terry leaves...
" (1979). His long list of credits include Steptoe and Son
Steptoe and Son
Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about two rag and bone men living in Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherd's Bush, London. Four series were broadcast by the BBC from 1962 to 1965, followed by a second run from 1970 to 1974. Its theme tune, "Old...
, Rising Damp
Rising Damp
Rising 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...
, Ever Decreasing Circles
Ever Decreasing Circles
Ever Decreasing Circles is a British situation comedy which ran on BBC1 for four series from 1984 to 1989.It was written by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey, and reunited them with Richard Briers, the star of their previous hit show, The Good Life. It was much less brash than most situation comedies,...
, Yes Minister
Yes Minister
Yes 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...
, To Serve Them All My Days
To Serve Them All My Days
To Serve Them All My Days is a novel by British author R. F. Delderfield.First published in 1972, the book was adapted for television in 1980...
, Z-Cars
Z-Cars
Z-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 Saint
The Saint (TV series)
The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character, Simon Templar, a Robin Hood-like adventurer with a penchant for disguise. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the...
, Department S
Department S
Department S is a United Kingdom spy-fi adventure series produced by ITC Entertainment. The series consists of 28 episodes which originally aired in 1969–1970. It starred Peter Wyngarde as author Jason King , Joel Fabiani as Stewart Sullivan, and Rosemary Nicols as computer expert Annabelle Hurst...
, 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...
and Boon
Boon (TV series)
Boon is a British television drama and modern-day western series starring Michael Elphick, David Daker, and later Neil Morrissey. It was created by Jim Hill and Bill Stair and filmed by Central Television for ITV...
. In 1990 he appeared in Stay Lucky
Stay Lucky
Stay Lucky is a 1989–1993 British television comedy-drama series. Made by Yorkshire Television and screened on the ITV network, it starred Dennis Waterman and Jan Francis.-Plot:...
, with Dennis Waterman
Dennis Waterman
Dennis Waterman is a British actor and singer, best known for his tough-guy roles in television series including The Sweeney, Minder and New Tricks.-Early life:...
, which marked his 200th television appearance. One of his last film appearances was as a taxi driver in Richard Attenborough
Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough , CBE is a British actor, director, producer and entrepreneur. As director and producer he won two Academy Awards for the 1982 film Gandhi...
's Shadowlands
Shadowlands (film)
Shadowlands is a 1993 British biographical film directed by Richard Attenborough. The screenplay by William Nicholson is based on his 1985 television production and 1989 stage adaptation of the same name. The original television film began life as a script entitled I Call it Joy written for Thames...
(1993).
Filmography
- An Inspector CallsAn Inspector CallsAn Inspector Calls is a play written by English dramatist J. B. Priestley, first performed in 1945 in the Soviet Union and 1946 in the UK. It is considered to be one of Priestley's best known works for the stage and one of the classics of mid-20th century English theatre...
(1954) - The Angry SilenceThe Angry SilenceThe Angry Silence is a 1960 British drama film directed by Guy Green and starring Richard Attenborough. Screenwriter Bryan Forbes won a BAFTA Award and an Oscar nomination for his contribution...
(1960) - The League of GentlemenThe League of Gentlemen (film)The League of Gentlemen is a 1960 British crime film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jack Hawkins, Nigel Patrick and Richard Attenborough. It was based on the 1958 novel by John Boland and adapted by Bryan Forbes, who also starred in the film...
(1960) - Man in the MoonMan in the Moon (film)Man in the Moon is a 1960 comedy film directed by Basil Dearden. It stars Kenneth More and Shirley Anne Field.-Plot:William Blood is a man who appears to be immune to all known diseases, and possesses extraordinary resistance to heat and cold - a fact he puts down to his carefree, single life,...
(1960) - Very Important PersonVery Important Person (film)Very Important Person is a 1961 British comedy film, directed by Ken Annakin, and written by Henry Blyth and Jack Davies. In the United States, the film was re-titled A Coming Out Party....
(1961) - The Secret PartnerThe Secret PartnerThe Secret Partner is a 1961 British thriller film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Stewart Granger, Haya Harareet and Bernard Lee.An executive officer with a record becomes a suspect when money goes missing from the shipping company vault.-Cast:...
(1961) - Whistle Down the WindWhistle Down the Wind (film)Whistle Down the Wind is a 1961 British film, directed by Bryan Forbes, screenplay by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall, from the novel by Mary Hayley Bell.-Plot:...
(1961) - Victim (1961)
- Cash on DemandCash on DemandCash on Demand is a 1961 British thriller film directed by Quentin Lawrence and starring Peter Cushing. The film company Hammer invested the equivalent of £37,000 in 2009 currency to produce the film...
(1961) - Night of the EagleNight of the EagleNight of the Eagle is a 1962 British horror film directed by Sidney Hayers. The script by Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson and George Baxt was based upon the 1943 Fritz Leiber novel Conjure Wife. The film was retitled Burn, Witch, Burn! for the US market .-Synopsis:Norman Taylor , a...
(1962) - Term of TrialTerm of TrialTerm of Trial is a 1962 British drama film made by Romulus Films Ltd. and distributed by Warner-Pathé. It was written and directed by Peter Glenville and produced by James Woolf with James H. Ware as associate producer from a screenplay based on the novel of the same name by James Barlow...
(1962) - In Search of the CastawaysIn Search of the CastawaysIn Search of the Castaways is a novel by the French writer Jules Verne, published in 1867–1868. The original edition, published by Hetzel, contains a number of illustrations by Édouard Riou. In 1876 it was republished by George Routledge & Sons as a three volume set titled "A Voyage Round The World"...
(1962) - The CracksmanThe CracksmanThe Cracksman is a 1963 British comedy film directed by Peter Graham Scott.-Plot:Charlie Drake plays an honest locksmith whose problem is that he cannot resist the challenge of a lock. He gets smoothtalked into a safecracking scheme by a couple of ruthless gangsters. He is duped by a debonair con...
(1963) - Bitter Harvest (1963)
- Hot Enough for JuneHot Enough for JuneHot Enough for June is a 1964 British spy comedy film directed by Ralph Thomas and featuring Dirk Bogarde, Sylva Koscina, Robert Morley, Leo McKern, John Le Mesurier and Roger Delgado. It was based on the 1960 novel "The Night of Wenceslas" by Lionel Davidson and directed by Ralph Thomas. It was...
(1963) - 80,000 Suspects80,000 Suspects80,000 Suspects is a 1963 British film, directed by Val Guest which concerns an outbreak of smallpox in Bath, England.-Plot:A romantic melodrama set against the backdrop of a smallpox epidemic which features Richard Johnson as the diligent doctor in control and Claire Bloom as his outwardly serene...
(1963) - ManiacManiac (1963 film)Maniac is a British psychological thriller, which was directed by Michael Carreras and stars Kerwin Matthews, Nadia Gray and Donald Houston.-Plot:...
(1963) - The Mind BendersThe Mind Benders (film)The Mind Benders is a 1963 British thriller film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Dirk Bogarde, Mary Ure, John Clements, Michael Bryant and Wendy Craig. After a scientist dies after undergoing experiments in a secret research laboratory, one of his former colleagues investigates the tests...
(1963) - The Punch and Judy ManThe Punch and Judy ManThe Punch and Judy Man is a British comedy film from 1963 directed by Jeremy Summers. It was Tony Hancock's second film in a starring role, following The Rebel .-Plot:...
(1963) - Hot Enough for JuneHot Enough for JuneHot Enough for June is a 1964 British spy comedy film directed by Ralph Thomas and featuring Dirk Bogarde, Sylva Koscina, Robert Morley, Leo McKern, John Le Mesurier and Roger Delgado. It was based on the 1960 novel "The Night of Wenceslas" by Lionel Davidson and directed by Ralph Thomas. It was...
(1964) - The BargeeThe BargeeThe Bargee is a 1964 British comedy film directed by Duncan Wood, and starring Harry H. Corbett, Hugh Griffith, Eric Sykes and Ronnie Barker. The screenplay was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.-Plot:...
(1964) - First Men in the MoonFirst Men in the MoonFirst Men in the Moon, also known as H.G. Wells' First Men in the Moon, is a 1964 science fiction film directed by Nathan Juran. It is an adaptation by the noted science-fiction scriptwriter Nigel Kneale of the H. G...
(1964) - The Beauty JungleThe Beauty Jungle-Plot:While on a seaside holiday a young typist is persuaded by a local journalist to enter a beauty contest. When she wins, she decides to give up her previous career and life and take up entering the contests full-time.-Cast:*Ian Hendry as Don Mackenzie...
(1964) - The Black TormentThe Black TormentThe Black Torment is a 1964 British gothic horror film, directed by Robert Hartford-Davis and starring John Turner, Heather Sears and Ann Lynn. The film is set in 18th-century Devon and was scripted by brothers Donald and Derek Ford...
(1964)
- The HillThe Hill (film)The Hill is a 1965 film directed by Sidney Lumet, set in a British army prison in North Africa in World War II. It stars Sean Connery, Harry Andrews, Ian Bannen, Ossie Davis, Ian Hendry, Alfred Lynch, Roy Kinnear and Michael Redgrave.-Plot:...
(1965) - Sky West and CrookedSky West and CrookedSky West and Crooked is a 1966 film, starring Hayley Mills, directed by her father John Mills, and co-written by her mother Mary Hayley Bell. It was released in the US as Gypsy Girl.-Plot summary:...
(1966) - The Wrong BoxThe Wrong BoxThe Wrong Box is a British comedy film made by Salamander Film Productions and distributed by Columbia Pictures. It was produced and directed by Bryan Forbes from a screenplay by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove, based on the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne.The cast includes a...
(1966) - A Dandy in AspicA Dandy in AspicA Dandy in Aspic is a 1968 British spy film, directed by Anthony Mann, based on the novel of the same name by Derek Marlowe and starring Laurence Harvey, Tom Courtenay and Mia Farrow....
(1968) - The Limbo Line (1969)
- Run a Crooked MileRun a Crooked MileRun a Crooked Mile is a made-for-TV thriller in which Louis Jourdan stars as Richard Stuart, an ordinary schoolteacher who, whilst on holiday, is a witness to a murder in a private secluded mansion....
(1969) (TV) - Oh! What a Lovely WarOh! What a Lovely WarOh! What a Lovely War is a musical film based on the stage musical Oh, What a Lovely War! originated by Charles Chilton as a radio play, The Long Long Trail in December 1961, and transferred to stage by Gerry Raffles in partnership with Joan Littlewood and her Theatre Workshop created in 1963,...
(1969) - Barnacle Bill (All at Sea) (1970)
- The Virgin and the GypsyThe Virgin and the Gypsy (film)The Virgin and the Gypsy is a 1970 British drama film directed by Christopher Miles, based on the novel of the same name. It was screened at the 1970 Cannes Film Festival, but wasn't entered into the main competition.-Cast:* Joanna Shimkus – Yvette...
(1970) - The Rise and Rise of Michael RimmerThe Rise and Rise of Michael RimmerThe Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer is a British 1970 cult satire film written by and starring Peter Cook, John Cleese and Graham Chapman, and directed by Kevin Billington .-Synopsis:...
(1970) - The Raging MoonThe Raging MoonThe Raging Moon is a British film from 1971 based on the book by British novelist Peter Marshall and starring Malcolm McDowell and Nanette Newman...
(1971) - Hands of the RipperHands of the RipperHands of the Ripper is a 1971 British horror film directed by Peter Sasdy for Hammer Film Productions.-Plot:It is set in London in Edwardian times, and stars Angharad Rees as Anna, a vulnerable young woman who is exploited by her guardian , a medium, and haunted by the subconscious memory of her...
(1971) - Please Sir!Please Sir! (film)Please Sir! is a 1971 British comedy film starring John Alderton, spun off from the television series Please Sir!.-Cast:* John Alderton as Bernard Hedges* Deryck Guyler as Norman Potter* Noel Howlett as Maurice Cromwell...
(1971) - Young WinstonYoung WinstonYoung Winston is a 1972 British film based on the early years of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.The film was based on the book My Early Life: A Roving Commission by Winston Churchill. The first part of the film covers Churchill's unhappy schooldays, up to the death of his father...
(1972) - Ooh… You Are AwfulOoh… You Are AwfulOoh... You Are Awful is a 1972 British comedy film starring Dick Emery and directed by Cliff Owen.Before his death, Reggie Campbell Peek deposited a stolen £500,000 into a Swiss bank account...
(Get Charlie TullyOoh… You Are AwfulOoh... You Are Awful is a 1972 British comedy film starring Dick Emery and directed by Cliff Owen.Before his death, Reggie Campbell Peek deposited a stolen £500,000 into a Swiss bank account...
) (1972) - King Arthur, the Young Warlord (1975)
- The Slipper and the RoseThe Slipper and the RoseThe Slipper and the Rose is a 1976 British musical film retelling the classic fairy tale of Cinderella. This film was chosen as the Royal Command Performance motion picture selection for 1976....
(1976) - The Medusa TouchThe Medusa Touch (film)The Medusa Touch is a 1978 British supernatural thriller film directed by Jack Gold. It starred Richard Burton, Lino Ventura, Lee Remick and Harry Andrews, with cameos by Alan Badel, Derek Jacobi, Gordon Jackson, Jeremy Brett and Michael Hordern...
(1978) - The Lord of the RingsThe Lord of the Rings (1978 film)J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings is a 1978 American fantasy film directed by Ralph Bakshi. It contains both animation and live action footage which is rotoscoped to give it a more consistent look throughout the length of the movie. It is an adaptation of the first half of the high fantasy...
(1978) (Voice) - Omen III: The Final ConflictOmen III: The Final ConflictOmen III: The Final Conflict is a 1981 British/American horror film directed by Graham Baker and the third installment in The Omen series...
(1981) - If You Go Down in the Woods TodayIf You Go Down in the Woods TodayIf You Go Down in the Woods Today is the name of a British TV film comedy released in 1981, written, directed and starring Eric Sykes, also featuring Robin Bailey and Norman Bird amongst a cast of dozens. The film, produced by Thames TV, has been described by Sykes as 'a comedy thriller, an Agatha...
(1981) - A Voyage Round My FatherA Voyage Round My FatherA Voyage Round My Father is an autobiographical play by John Mortimer, later adapted for television.The first version of the play appeared as a series of three half-hour sketches for BBC radio in 1963. It then became a television play with Ian Richardson playing Mortimer, Tim Good as the young...
(1982) (TV) - ShadowlandsShadowlands (film)Shadowlands is a 1993 British biographical film directed by Richard Attenborough. The screenplay by William Nicholson is based on his 1985 television production and 1989 stage adaptation of the same name. The original television film began life as a script entitled I Call it Joy written for Thames...
(1993)