Terence Alexander
Encyclopedia
Terence Joseph Alexander (11 March 1923 – 28 May 2009) was an English
film and television actor
, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British
TV drama
Bergerac
.
, the son of a doctor, and grew up in Yorkshire
. He was educated at Ratcliffe College
, Leicestershire
, and Norwood College
, Harrogate
, and started acting in the theatre at the age of 16. During World War II
he served in the British Army as a lieutenant with the 27th Lancers
, and was seriously wounded by artillery fire in Italy. In 1956, Alexander appeared on stage in Ring For Catty at the Lyric Theatre in London. He is probably best remembered as Charlie Hungerford from the detective series Bergerac
, though he was also very prominent in the 1967 BBC
adaptation of The Forsyte Saga
. One of his early roles was in the children's series Garry Halliday
. He also appeared in one episode of Please Sir in 1970 as the headteacher of a rival school.
Also in 1970, Alexander played Lord Uxbridge in Sergei Bondarchuk
's war epic Waterloo.
Alexander appeared in many other film and television roles including three appearances in different roles in The Avengers
; Terry and June
(1979–1980); Behind the Screen (1981–1982); the 1985 Doctor Who
serial The Mark of the Rani
; and The New Statesman
(1987). On radio he starred as The Toff
in the BBC radio adaptation of the John Creasey
novels. He appeared in all but one episode of Bergerac
from 1981 to 1991.
He appeared on the West End in comedies and farces and his credits included Move Over Mrs Markham (1971), Two and Two Make Sex (1973), There Goes The Bride (1974/5) and Fringe Benefits (1976).
. He died on 28 May 2009.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
film and television actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British
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...
TV drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
Bergerac
Bergerac (TV series)
Bergerac was a British television show set on Jersey. Produced by the BBC in association with the Seven Network, and screened on BBC1, it starred John Nettles as the title character Detective Sergeant Jim Bergerac, a detective in "Le Bureau des Étrangers" Bergerac was a British television show...
.
Early life and career
Alexander was born in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, the son of a doctor, and grew up in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
. He was educated at Ratcliffe College
Ratcliffe College
Ratcliffe College is an independent Catholic boarding and day school in Leicestershire, England. The College, situated in of parkland on the Fosse Way about six miles north of Leicester, was founded on the instructions of Blessed Father Antonio Rosmini-Serbati in 1845 as a seminary. In 1847, the...
, 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...
, and Norwood College
Norwood College
Norwood College was started in 1936 by Gordon William George Cass, or "Charlie" to all of his pupils. The school closed in 1972 and Charlie died in 1976 at Scotton Bank Hospital, Knaresborough. The school was on a corner site with the original part in Tewit Well Avenue and the later part in Leeds...
, Harrogate
Harrogate
Harrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire, England. The town is a tourist destination and its visitor attractions include its spa waters, RHS Harlow Carr gardens, and Betty's Tea Rooms. From the town one can explore the nearby Yorkshire Dales national park. Harrogate originated in the 17th...
, and started acting in the theatre at the age of 16. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he served in the British Army as a lieutenant with the 27th Lancers
27th Lancers
The 27th Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1941 to 1945.The regiment was raised in June 1941 from a cadre of personnel taken from the 12th Royal Lancers, and was assigned to 11th Armoured Division as the divisional reconnaissance regiment...
, and was seriously wounded by artillery fire in Italy. In 1956, Alexander appeared on stage in Ring For Catty at the Lyric Theatre in London. He is probably best remembered as Charlie Hungerford from the detective series Bergerac
Bergerac (TV series)
Bergerac was a British television show set on Jersey. Produced by the BBC in association with the Seven Network, and screened on BBC1, it starred John Nettles as the title character Detective Sergeant Jim Bergerac, a detective in "Le Bureau des Étrangers" Bergerac was a British television show...
, though he was also very prominent in the 1967 BBC
BBC
The 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...
adaptation of The Forsyte Saga
The Forsyte Saga
The Forsyte Saga is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921 by John Galsworthy. They chronicle the vicissitudes of the leading members of an upper-middle-class British family, similar to Galsworthy's own...
. One of his early roles was in the children's series Garry Halliday
Garry Halliday
Garry Halliday is a British television series for children that ran on the BBC from 1959 to 1962. The show starred Terence Longdon as airman Garry Halliday...
. He also appeared in one episode of Please Sir in 1970 as the headteacher of a rival school.
Also in 1970, Alexander played Lord Uxbridge in Sergei Bondarchuk
Sergei Bondarchuk
Sergei Fedorovich Bondarchuk was a Soviet film director, screenwriter, and actor.- Biography :Born in Belozerka, in the Kherson Governorate, Sergei Bondarchuk spent his childhood in the cities of Yeysk and Taganrog, graduating from the Taganrog School Number 4 in 1938. His first performance as an...
's war epic Waterloo.
Alexander appeared in many other film and television roles including three appearances in different roles in 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...
; Terry and June
Terry and June
Terry and June is a British sitcom that was broadcast on BBC1 from 1979 to 1987. The programme is largely a continuation of Happy Ever After, and stars Terry Scott and June Whitfield as a middle-class suburban couple, Terry and June Medford...
(1979–1980); Behind the Screen (1981–1982); the 1985 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...
serial The Mark of the Rani
The Mark of the Rani
The Mark of The Rani is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts from 2 February to 9 February 1985...
; and The New Statesman
The New Statesman
The New Statesman is an award-winning British sitcom of the late 1980s and early 1990s satirising the Conservative government of the time...
(1987). On radio he starred as The Toff
The Toff
In the series of adventure novels by John Creasey, the Toff is the nickname of the Honourable Richard Rollison, an upper-class crime sleuth. Creasey published almost 60 Toff adventures, beginning with Introducing the Toff in 1938 and continuing through The Toff and the Crooked Copper, published in...
in the BBC radio adaptation of the John Creasey
John Creasey
John Creasey MBE was an English crime and science fiction writer. The author of more than 600 novels, he published them using 28 different pseudonyms, including Anthony Morton, Michael Halliday, Kyle Hunt, J.J. Marric, Jeremy York, Richard Martin, Peter Manton, Norman Deane, Gordon Ashe, Henry St...
novels. He appeared in all but one episode of Bergerac
Bergerac (TV series)
Bergerac was a British television show set on Jersey. Produced by the BBC in association with the Seven Network, and screened on BBC1, it starred John Nettles as the title character Detective Sergeant Jim Bergerac, a detective in "Le Bureau des Étrangers" Bergerac was a British television show...
from 1981 to 1991.
He appeared on the West End in comedies and farces and his credits included Move Over Mrs Markham (1971), Two and Two Make Sex (1973), There Goes The Bride (1974/5) and Fringe Benefits (1976).
Personal life
Alexander retired from acting in 1999 and lived in London with his second wife, the actress Jane DownsJane Downs
Jane M. Downs is an English actress.-Filmography:-Theatre:-External links:...
. He died on 28 May 2009.
Filmography
- Comin' Thro the Rye (1947)
- The Woman with No NameThe Woman with No NameThe Woman with No Name is a 1950 British drama film directed by Ladislao Vajda and starring Phyllis Calvert, Edward Underdown, Helen Cherry, Richard Burton and James Hayter...
(1950) - The Elusive PimpernelThe Elusive PimpernelThe Elusive Pimpernel is a 1950 British period adventure film by the British-based director-writer team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, based on the novel The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. Despite having been shot in color, it was released in the United States in black and...
(1950) - A Tale of Five CitiesA Tale of Five CitiesA Tale of Five Cities is a 1951 British-Italian drama film directed by Romolo Marcellini and five other directors.-Cast:* Bonar Colleano - Bob Mitchell* Barbara Kelly - Lesley - American Magazine Editor* Anne Vernon - Jeannine Meunier...
(1951) - Death Is a NumberDeath Is a NumberDeath Is a Number is a 1951 British horror film directed by Robert Henryson and starring Terence Alexander, Lesley Osmond and Peter Gawthorne.-Cast:* Terence Alexander - Alan Robert* Lesley Osmond - Joan Robert* Peter Gawthorne - James Gregson...
(1951) - The Gentle GunmanThe Gentle GunmanThe Gentle Gunman is a black-and-white 1952 Ealing Studios drama film, directed by Basil Dearden and starring John Mills and Dirk Bogarde.-Plot:...
(1952) - Top SecretTop Secret (1952 film)Top Secret is a 1952 British comedy film directed by Mario Zampi and starring George Cole, Oskar Homolka and Nadia Gray. A sanitation inspector is mistaken for an international spy.-Cast:* George Cole - George Potts* Oskar Homolka - Zekov...
(1952) - Glad Tidings (1953)
- Park Plaza 605Park Plaza 605Park Plaza 605 is a 1953 British crime film. A B movie, it starred Tom Conway, Eva Bartok and Sid James. It was based on the Norman Conquest series of novels by Berkeley Gray, the film sees a private investigator summoned to room 605 of the Park Plaza Hotel to meet a mysterious foreign blonde...
(1953) - Hands of Destiny (1954)
- The Runaway BusThe Runaway BusThe Runaway Bus is a 1954 British comedy film produced, written, and directed by Val Guest. It stars Frankie Howerd and Petula Clark.-Plot summary:...
(1954) - Dangerous CargoDangerous CargoDangerous Cargo is a 1954 British crime film directed by John Harlow starring Jack Watling, Susan Stephen, Richard Pearson, Terence Alexander and John Le Mesurier.British crime reporter Percy Hoskins provided the story.-Cast:...
(1954) - The Green ScarfThe Green ScarfThe Green Scarf is a 1954 British mystery film directed by George More O'Ferrall and starring Michael Redgrave, Ann Todd, Leo Genn, Kieron Moore, Richard O'Sullivan and Michael Medwin. A man is accused of a seemingly motiveless murder...
(1954) - Portrait of AlisonPortrait of AlisonPortrait of Alison is a 1955 British crime film directed by Guy Green and starring Robert Beatty, Terry Moore, William Sylvester, Geoffrey Keen, Henry Oscar and Terence Alexander. An artist and actress join forces to solve a murder and confront a deadly diamond-smuggling ring. It was based on a BBC...
(1955) - Out of the CloudsOut of the CloudsOut of the Clouds is a 1955 British drama film directed by Basil Dearden, and starring Anthony Steel, Sid James and James Robertson Justice. An Ealing Studios film, it follows the lives of the passengers and crew on a day at an airport that was filmed in Heathrow Airport.-Description:The film was...
(1955) - The Eternal Question (1956)
- The Green ManThe Green Man (film)The Green Man is a 1956 British comedy-drama film based on the play Meet A Body by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, who produced and adapted the big-screen version.-Plot:...
(1956) - The One That Got Away (1957)
- The Doctor's DilemmaThe Doctor's Dilemma (film)The Doctor's Dilemma is a 1958 British comedy drama film directed by Anthony Asquith and starring Leslie Caron, Dirk Bogarde, Alastair Sim, Robert Morley and Terence Alexander. It is based on the 1906 play The Doctor's Dilemma by George Bernard Shaw....
(1958) - Don't Panic Chaps!Don't Panic Chaps!Don't Panic Chaps! is a 1959 British comedy film directed by George Pollock and starring Dennis Price, George Cole, Thorley Walters and Terence Alexander....
(1959) - The Square PegThe Square PegThe Square Peg is a 1958 British comedy film starring Norman Wisdom and directed by John Paddy Carstairs. Norman Wisdom plays two different characters: a man who digs and repairs roads and a Nazi General.-Cast:...
(1959) - Danger WithinDanger WithinDanger Within is a 1959 British war film set in a prisoner of war camp in northern Italy during the summer of 1943.-Plot:After a clever escape plan fails, the escape committee, led by Lieutenant Colonel David Baird suspects that there is an informer in their ranks...
(1959) - BreakoutBreakout (1959 film)Breakout is a 1959 British drama film directed by Peter Graham Scott and starring Lee Patterson, Hazel Court, Terence Alexander. A government official organises a mass breakout from a prison.-Cast:* Lee Patterson ... George Munro...
(1959) - The Price of SilenceThe Price of Silence (1959 film)The Price of Silence is a 1959 British crime film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Gordon Jackson, June Thorburn, Maya Koumani and Terence Alexander.-Cast:* Gordon Jackson - Roger Fenton* June Thorburn - Audrey Truscott...
(1959) - 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) - The Bulldog BreedThe Bulldog BreedThe Bulldog Breed is a 1960 British comedy film starring Norman Wisdom and directed by Robert Asher.-Plot:Norman Puckle , a well-meaning but clumsy grocer's assistant, can't seem to do anything right. After being rejected by Marlene, the love of his life, he attempts suicide, but can't even do that...
(1960) - The Gentle Terror (1961)
- Carry On RegardlessCarry On RegardlessCarry on Regardless was the fifth in the series of Carry On films to be made. It was released in 1961. By now a fairly regular team was established with Sid James, Kenneth Connor, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims and Kenneth Williams all having appeared in previous entries. Hattie Jacques - who was...
(1961) - She Always Gets Their Man (1962)
- The Fast LadyThe Fast LadyThe Fast Lady is a 1962 British comedy film, directed by Ken Annakin. The screenplay was written by Henry Blyth and Jack Davies, based on a story by Keble Howard.It marked the film debut of Julie Christie.-Plot:...
(1962) - On the BeatOn the Beat (1962 film)On the Beat is a 1962 British comedy film starring Norman Wisdom, and directed by Robert Asher.-Plot:Norman Pitkin works at Scotland Yard as a car cleaner but dreams of becoming a policeman like his late father....
(1962) - Bitter Harvest (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 V.I.P.sThe V.I.P.sThe V.I.P.s, also known as Hotel International, is a 1963 British drama film. It was directed by Anthony Asquith, produced by Anatole de Grunwald and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer...
(1963) - The Intelligence MenThe Intelligence MenThe Intelligence Men is a 1965 comedy film starring the British comic duo Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise.The film is subtitled "M.I.5 plus 2 equals 0"...
(1965) - Judith (1966)
- The Long DuelThe Long DuelThe Long Duel is a 1967 British adventure film directed by Ken Annakin and starring Yul Brynner, Trevor Howard, Charlotte Rampling and Harry Andrews...
(1967) - The Spare TyresThe Spare TyresThe Spare Tyres is a 1967 British short comedy film directed by Michael J. Lane and featuring Terence Alexander, Judy Franklin, Pauline Yates, and Frank Finlay. Dennis and his wife move to a new house. Discovering a set of tyres in the garage, he spends the rest of the day trying to get rid of them....
(1967) - Only When I LarfOnly When I LarfOnly When I Larf is a late 1960s British comic thriller describing the activities of a team of three fictional confidence tricksters led by Silas Lowther , his girlfriend Liz Mason and wannabe apprentice and Liz-worshipper Bob...
(1968) - What's Good for the GooseWhat's Good for the GooseWhat's Good For The Goose is a 1969 British comedy film, and was Norman Wisdom's last starring role in a film. It was written and directed by Menahem Golan. In the movie he leaves his wife and kids to go off on a business trip and he has an affair with a young woman played by Sally Geeson...
(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) - The Magic ChristianThe Magic Christian (film)The Magic Christian is a 1969 British comedy film directed by Joseph McGrath and starring Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr, with noteworthy appearances by John Cleese, Raquel Welch, Christopher Lee, Richard Attenborough and Roman Polanski. It was loosely adapted from the 1959 comic novel of the same...
(1969) - All the Way UpAll the Way UpAll the Way Up is a 1970 British comedy film directed by James MacTaggart based on Semi-Detached, a 1962 play by Midlands dramatist David Turner. It stars Richard Briers, Warren Mitchell, Pat Heywood, Kenneth Cranham, Adrienne Posta and Elaine Taylor....
(1970) - Waterloo (1970)
- The Vault of HorrorThe Vault of Horror (film)The Vault of Horror is a British portmanteau horror film made in 1973 by Amicus Productions. Like its predecessor, Tales from the Crypt, it is based on stories from the EC Comics series written by Al Feldstein and Bill Gaines...
(1973) - The Day of the JackalThe Day of the Jackal (film)The Day of the Jackal is a 1973 Anglo-French film, set in August 1963 and based on the novel of the same name by Frederick Forsyth. Directed by Fred Zinnemann, it stars Edward Fox as the assassin known only as "the Jackal" who is hired to assassinate Charles de Gaulle.- Synopsis :The film opens...
(1973) - ClaudineClaudineThe Claudine books are a series of four early novels by the French author Colette published from 1900-1904. The stories are the diaries of protagonist Claudine, which outline the education and growing up of the young girl, who is aged fifteen at the beginning of the first novel Claudine à l'école...
(1974) - The Internecine ProjectThe Internecine ProjectThe Internecine Project is a 1974 British espionage thriller film written by Mort W. Elkind, Barry Levinson, and Jonathan Lynn, directed by Ken Hughes and starring James Coburn and Lee Grant. Set in London in the early 1970s, it tells the story of former secret agent Robert Elliot who is being...
(1974) - That Englishwoman (1989)