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Alfie Bass was born on 8 April 1916 in Bethnal Green, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967), Moonraker (1979) and The Bespoke Overcoat (1955). He was married to Margaret Beryl Bryson. He died on 15 July 1987 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest stage and screen actors both in his native Great Britain and internationally, Paul Rogers was born in Plympton, Devon, attended Newton Abbot Grammar School, and then trained as an actor at the Michael Chekhov Theatre Studio at Dartington Hall. After serving in the Royal Navy from 1940 to 1946, he returned to acting at the Bristol Old Vic. He became a long-serving member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, where he offered a wide range of memorable roles due to the uniqueness of his acting qualities. Among a very distinguished list of brilliant performances, In 1965 he originated the part of Max in Harold Pinter's "The Homecoming", for which he was honored with Broadway's 1967 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play, and recreated the role for its film version The Homecoming (1973), both directed by Peter Hall, with whom he also worked in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968). His other marvelous stage work included his 1963 nomination for a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play for Peter Ustinov's "Photo Finish". In 1981 he played the role of Sir in Ronald Harwood's "The Dresser" on Broadway.

Victor Lucas was born on 12 July 1919 in West Ham, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Doctor Who (1963), World's End (1981) and Testament of Youth (1979). He was married to Marjorie Sommerville. He died on 17 November 2000 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

George Woodbridge was born on 16 February 1907 in Exeter, Devon, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Horror of Dracula (1958), Murder in the Cathedral (1951) and The Son of Robin Hood (1958). He was married to Mary Jowitt. He died on 31 March 1973 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Annette D. Simmonds was born on 20 April 1917 in Alnwick, Northumberland, England, UK. She was an actress, known for The Frightened Man (1952), The Adventures of P.C. 49: Investigating the Case of the Guardian Angel (1949) and Soho Conspiracy (1950). She was married to Denis Arthur Wellesley, 5th Earl Cowley, Arthur Simmonds and Slavoj John Onsorge. She died on 28 October 1959 in Barnet Way, Mill Hill, London, England, UK.

Richard Mayes was born on 26 December 1922 in Luton, Bedfordshire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Top Secret! (1984), Gandhi (1982) and Doctor Who (1963). He was married to Beryl King. He died on 22 October 2006 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Shapely, scintillating, peroxide British blonde Carole Lesley wound up another sexy statistic alongside other vibrant and promising, photogenic stars and starlets who pervaded the film industry with their undeniable photogenic assets only to be left achingly unfulfilled and die unhappily by their own hand. From the larger-tiered star beauties such as Marilyn Monroe, fellow Britisher Virginia Maskell, Lupe Velez, Gia Scala, Jean Seberg, Barbara Bates, Inger Stevens, Marie McDonald, and another famous Carole, Carole Landis, down to the wannabes stars who latched onto brief notoriety (Peggy Shannon, Pina Pellicer, Peg Entwistle and Miroslava), the number of these young beauties who would take their lives became staggering and unfailingly sad.

These were women who seemed to have everything going for them -- looks, appeal, drive, a decent modicum of talent -- yet they couldn't see beyond their own goddess-like celluloid image or a fickle public's adoration in discovering their own true worth. Perhaps many believed too much in their press and spiraled into a deep depression when it was over or craved an insatiable need for attention. Fractured affairs of the heart and lack of self esteem were often the culprits for impulsive suicides like that of Carole Landis and Lupe Velez, but the suicide of Carole Lesley remains more mysterious since she was well out of the public eye and long forgotten by the time her end came. Moreover, in the following decades, precious little has been printed about her and why it happened.

In the case of Ms. Lesley, she was one of a few starlets who briefly rivaled notorious blonde bombshell Diana Dors as Britain's answer to Marilyn Monroe during the late 1950s and early 1960s. The stunning actress, whose slim face was slightly reminiscent of comedic actress Kay Kendall and the more contemporary Sean Young, willingly exploited her obvious physical endowments in an elusive attempt to drum up public attention. Like so many others before and after her, she wasn't able to sustain interest; middle age crept in and depression took over. Carole's career (which included less than a dozen films) lasted a mere half a decade.

She was born on May 27, 1935 and christened Maureen Lesley Carole Rippingale in Chelmsford, Essex, England. As a child she became interested in the idea of show business and made her film debut at age 12 with the British drama The Silver Darlings (1947) directed by Clarence Elder. Later the naive but very pretty and starry-eyed sixteen-year-old ran away from home in search of fame and success.

With her drop-dead good looks and curvaceous figure Carole eventually found a job as a chorine at London's Cabaret Club wherein she was able to sharpen her dancing skills. From there she trekked to Paris and worked up some notoriety as a nude glamour and pin-up model under the sexier moniker of Leslie Carol(e). Eventually she returned to England.

Following an unbilled role in The Embezzler (1954) at Kenilworth Productions, she managed to obtain a seven-year contract at Associated British Pictures wherein she reverted her marquee name to read "Carole Lesley". From 1957 on, she would appear in a mixed bag of quality drama and comedy programmers. Typical studio protocol had the lovely starlet attending premieres, parties, film festivals, beauty pageants, and various big-time social events in order to build up her name. She was more than game to doing what it took to having her face plastered all over town in such movie magazines (such as Picturegoer) and assorted newspapers.

Carole was seen to good advantage in the Associated film Woman in a Dressing Gown (1957) starring Yvonne Mitchell, Anthony Quayle and Sylvia Syms. The film, which won a Golden Globe for "Best English Language Foreign Film," has the actress playing a young neighbor and confidante to dowdy wife Mitchell whose husband (Quayle) is having an affair with his secretary (Syms). Dangerous Youth (1957), which was an early Liverpudian musical dramady built around 29-year-old "teen" pop idol Frankie Vaughan, has Carole and equally gorgeous Jocelyn Lane (billed as "Jackie Lane" here) as provocative distraction who weave in and out of Vaughan and George Baker's lives. Carole plays Vaughan's girl who, interestingly, is forced to slinging hash at a coffee shop when her own dreams of show business stardom falls apart. The star of singer Vaughan, who evolves from a gang leader to a rock-and-roll singing star in this picture, was eclipsed soon after by skyrocketing American sensation Elvis Presley.

It was not for a lack of trying, but Carole did not have the same "wow" factor as such buxom, publicity-starved starlets as Jayne Mansfield, who easily overshadowed her in the eye candy department at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival. Carole struggled to get firmly noticed despite her avid attendances in everything from toothpaste pads to charity races to the openings of bowling alley.

The 1950s ended with two more films for Carole. The well-done crime drama No Trees in the Street (1959) again had Carole supporting Sylvia Syms, while she and Barbara Murray played female members of the military (lady privates) in the romantic war comedy Operation Bullshine (1959) which co-starred Donald Sinden and Ronald Shiner. Although it kept her visible, neither helped her longing desire to become a full-fledged star. The beginning of the 1960s had Carole appearing on TV as legendary temptress Helen of Troy. She also showed up in one of British film's most popular slapstick comedy series at the time. This entry was Doctor in Love (1960) and had handsome doctor Michael Craig subbing for a vacating Dirk Bogarde while Carole and Virginia Maskell (who, in real life, died a suicide at age 31 in 1968), played standard love interests.

Playing a sexy, straight foil in light comedy seemed to be a viable platform for Carole and she went on to appear in three more light comedies during the early 1960s. Nothing out of the ordinary, however, came out of her appearances in Three on a Spree (1961), What a Whopper (1961) and The Pot Carriers (1962), and Associated decided to release her from her contract.

The devastated actress pulled a virtual disappearing act following the unhappy news, retreating completely from the limelight. In August of 1964 it was learned that she had married Michael Dalling and that she eventually bore him two sons. Very little was heard of Carole until 1974 when it was revealed that on February 28th she had died by her own hand from an acute overdose of pills at age 38 in New Barnet, England. Although relatives later insisted it was an accident, it was nevertheless a sad, seemingly inescapable fate for this incredibly beautiful woman. Carole's photography from her early days as a nude model and pin-up has more recently served as a source of inspiration for British artist Paul Harvey.

Jon Rumney was born in 1928 in Berlin, Germany. He was an actor, known for Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004), The Way We Live Now (2001) and Beau Geste (1982). He died on 6 June 2023 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Aubrey Richards was born on 6 June 1920 in Swansea, Wales, UK. He was an actor, known for Endless Night (1972), Doctor Who (1963) and Under Milk Wood (1971). He was married to Diana Boddington. He died on 29 May 2000 in Chipping Barnet, Hertfordshire, England, UK.

Carl Koch was born on 30 July 1892 in Nümbrecht, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He was a writer and cinematographer, known for The Rules of the Game (1939), The Grand Illusion (1937) and Tosca (1941). He was married to Lotte Reiniger. He died on 1 December 1963 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Kilian McKenna was born on 21 July 1959 in Dublin, Ireland. He was an actor, known for The Magic Toyshop (1987), Joyce in June (1982) and Harry's Game (1982). He died on 19 February 2014 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Norrie Paramor was born on 15 May 1914 in London, England, UK. He was a composer and actor, known for Cruella (2021), Maroc 7 (1967) and Beach of the Secrets (1958). He was married to Joan Margaret Jean Gerrard and Gloria Brent. He died on 9 September 1979 in Barnet, England, UK.

John Baker was born on 8 August 1917 in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales, UK. He was an actor, known for Uncle Silas (1989), Doctor Who (1963) and The Avengers (1961). He died on 2 December 2002 in Barnet, Hertfordshire, England, UK.

Patricia 'Paddy' Ridgeway was born on 27 April 1934. She was an actress, known for Milligan in... (1972). She was married to Spike Milligan. She died on 8 February 1978 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Graduating from Oxford, Colin George started a touring Shakespeare Company. Before you could say "To be or not to be" he had played Romeo, Petruchio, Bassanio, Cassius, and Henry V - the latter on BBC television. Having added Hamlet and Brutus to his Shakespeare roles, in his forties he turned to directing. He established the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, with international designer Tanya Moiseiwitsch, at the instigation of Sir Tyrone Guthrie, and inspired by their theatres in North America at Minneapolis and Stratford, Ontario. After six years in Australia as Artistic Director at The State Theatre of South Australia Adelaide, and eleven as Head of Acting at the prestigious Academy for Performing Arts in Hong Kong, he returned to his first love -- acting, and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1993, leaving them in 1999. He then toured his one man show - 'My Son - Will !', which premiered at Stratford. His forty five years experience as a performer ranges from the classics - Shaw, Ibsen, Chekhov and Moliere to musical comedy ; his television appearances include a spell in the world's longest running soap opera Coronation Street; and on film - a Kung Fu movie. He has directed internationally in Ottawa, and Stratford, Canada; in Belgrade, Jugoslavia, in Warsaw, at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, and his Chinese production of "The Bacchae" toured to Beijing and Shanghai. Having taught for eleven years Colin is an experienced director of workshops and has lectured on the Greek and Elizabethan theatre. Colin's editor and director of My Son - Will! for the Royal Shakespeare Company's Fringe Festival was Anthony Naylor. He was a member of the RSC in the seventies, began directing in the eighties in London, moved to the United States, where his credits include twenty five off, and off-off Broadway productions and several nationwide classical tours.

Ronald Biggs was born on 8 August 1929 in Stockwell, Lambeth, London, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Prisoner of Rio (1988), The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle (1980) and Die Toten Hosen & Ronnie Biggs: Carnival in Rio (Punk Was) (1991). He was married to Raimunda de Castro and Charmian Brent. He died on 18 December 2013 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Barbara Ogilvie was born on 8 April 1918 in Lewisham, London, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Fredric March Presents Tales from Dickens (1959), Conflict (1966) and Armchair Theatre (1956). She died on 16 November 1992 in Friern Barnet, London, England, UK.

Stanley Escane was born on 2 May 1927 in London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Frieda (1947), Hi, Gang! (1941) and Hue and Cry (1947). He died in October 1996 in Barnet, Hertfordshire, England, UK.

John Smart was born on 6 December 1906 in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. He was an actor. He died on 18 August 2003 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Arthur Melbourne Cooper was born in St. Albans, England, in 1874. He was one of the founders of the British film industry and the creator of the world's first animation films (or "trick" films, as he called them). Matches: An Appeal (1899) was made for a government advertising campaign to invite public donations of matches for soldiers fighting in the Boer War. Prior to 1900, Melbourne Cooper worked with pioneer cinematographer Birt Acres. Although specializing in animation (Dolly's Toys (1902), he also produced fiction and live action movies.

He established Alpha Trading Company in St. Albans in 1904, and wrote and directed films under contract for other organizations. From 1904-1909 he co-directed with Robert W. Paul, experimenting with movies that combined live-action footage with model animation and fantasy story lines. These included Toy Maker and Good Fairy (1904), The Fairy Godmother (1906), Dreams of Toyland (1908) and Tale of the Ark (1909). After Paul's retirement in 1910, Melbourne Cooper continued to produce and direct, such as Cinderella (1912), Wooden Athletes (1912) The Toymaker's Dream (1910). Alpha was a surprisingly early example of a vertically integrated production, distribution and exhibition company. The company's office were adjacent to the studio site which, which covered nearly two acres and included a restaurant, hairdressing salon, shops, public baths and a single-screen theater, a forerunner of the concept popularized by recent multiplex operators. Renamed the Poly, and still under the management of Cooper, it was re-opened as the Regent with a Palais de Dance in the basement in 1926. Unfortunately, the site was destroyed by fire in 1927.

Arthur Melbourne Cooper died in Barnet, Hertfordshire, in 1961.

Ina Clare was born in 1933 in Windsor, Berkshire, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Evita (1996), The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of Cinderella (1976) and Top Secret (1961). She died on 30 October 2010 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Reg Bream was born on 20 February 1920 in Lambeth, London, England, UK. He was an art director, known for Superman (1978), Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987). He was married to Yvonne McCarthy. He died in 1994 in Barnet, London, England, UK.

Humph was born on May 23, 1921 in Eton College school, where his father was a housemaster and so he later attended England's most famous public school. During the War, he was an officer in the Grenadier Guards. After discharge, studied for two years at Camberwell Art School. But his love affair with the trumpet, which began in 1936, saw him form his first band in 1948. A 1949 recording contract with EMI was followed by many recordings, including 1956's Bad Penny Blues, the first British jazz record to enter the Top 20. Today Humphrey is busier than ever. His band, one of the most versatile in the world, still tours regularly. He presents The Best of Jazz on BBC Radio 2 and has chaired the hugely popular panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue on Radio 4 for 30 years. His authoritative and exquisitely bored tones lend the half-hour of innuendo and improvised madness an air of gravity. In 1993, Humph was also the recipient of the radio industry's highest honour: The Sony Gold Award. He has also received Lifetime Achievement Awards at both the Post Office British Jazz Awards in April 2000 and at the first BBC Jazz Awards in 2001. To paraphrase Humph at the close of his radio show "all good things must come to an end," and so must this biography.

Albert Victor Bramble was born in Portsmouth, England, in 1880. He became a well-known classical stage performer, beginning in 1900. In addition, he appeared in quite a few films, first for the B&C Film Company in 1914, where he stayed until the late 1920s. He was also a producer and director, and in 1916 he gave up acting for those fields. He appeared in only one talkie, 25 years after his last film acting role, in Outcast of the Islands (1951), starring Ralph Richardson and Trevor Howard.

Susan Beresford was born on 7 August 1949 in Lambeth, London, England, UK. She was an actress, known for National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007), Flesh+Blood (1985) and First Born (1988). She died on 31 July 2013 in Barnet, London, England, UK.