Bill Fraser | |
|---|---|
 Fraser in 1966 | |
| Born | William Simpson Fraser (1908-06-05)5 June 1908 Perth, Scotland |
| Died | 9 September 1987(1987-09-09) (aged 79) Bushey,Hertfordshire, England |
| Resting place | St Paul's Churchyard,London, England |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1938–1987 |
| Spouse | |
William Simpson Fraser (5 June 1908 – 9 September 1987) was a Scottish actor who appeared on stage, screen and television for many years.[1] In 1986 he won theLaurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performance for his stage role in the playWhen We Are Married.[1]
Fraser was born inPerth and educated atStrathallan School.[1] He began his career as a clerk in a bank before beginning to act.[2] In the early days when acting work was scarce, Fraser was often penniless, frequently sleeping rough on the Embankment in London.[1] Before theSecond World War, he ran theConnaught Theatre inWorthing; when called up he served in aRoyal Air ForceSpecial Liaison Unit, reaching the rank offlight lieutenant, where he met and became friends withEric Sykes.[1] Just after the war a chance meeting in a London street led to Fraser's giving Sykes his first work as a writer for radio comedy[3] and the two friends worked together many times over the following years. Fraser is also credited with givingPeter Cushing his first acting job.
Fraser often played irascible or belligerent characters on screen and had many roles as a policeman, soldier or judge.[1] His first television appearance was onThe Tony Hancock Show in 1956, after which he briefly became a regular actor onHancock's Half Hour.[1] He then joinedThe Army Game as Sgt Claude Snudge, followed by a sequel calledBootsie and Snudge.[1] He also played Snudge in the 1964 seriesForeign Affairs. Later comedic roles included parts in the TV dramatisation ofThe Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾ as well asRipping Yarns,The Train Now Standing,The Corn is Green andFather, Dear Father.[1]
He also appeared in the comedy filmsThe Amorous Milkman andDoctor at Large; the big-screen version ofLove Thy Neighbour; and theFrankie Howerd trilogyUp Pompeii!,Up the Front andUp the Chastity Belt.[1]
He had a recurring role onRumpole of the Bailey as Judge Roger Bullingham, an unsympathetic, usually apoplectic judge privately nicknamed "the Mad Bull" by defencebarristerHorace Rumpole.[1]
Fraser's straight parts included Boanerges inThe Apple Cart and Eddie Waters inComedians, both for theBBC. He made appearances onThe Professionals andThe Avengers (as yet another eccentric, a blustery colonel).[1] He also featured in theDoctor Who storyMeglos in 1980, and appeared in the spin-off showK-9 and Company the following year.[1] In the early 1980s, he was in two series of a straight drama on BBC1,Flesh and Blood; his performance in its first episode of an industrialist sitting at the bedside of his dying wife was regarded by many as atour de force.[1]
He appeared asMr Micawber in the TV dramatisation ofDavid Copperfield in 1966. He played Serjeant Buzzfuzz in theTV musicalPickwick for theBBC in 1969; and his last role was as Mr Casby in the film version ofLittle Dorrit (1988).[1]
He was the subject ofThis Is Your Life in 1981 when he was surprised byEamonn Andrews at the Royalty Theatre in London.[citation needed]
Fraser also appeared in an early advertisement for theAustin Metro.[1] In 1985 he was cast as Bert Baxter inThe Secret Diary of Adrian Mole.[1]
During those periods when Fraser was not acting, he ran a small sweetshop and tobacconists at Ilford Lane inIlford,Essex.[1]
Bill Fraser played husband toGoogie Withers in the Chichester Theatre production ofMaugham'sThe Circle. It transferred to the West End and played at the Haymarket, and then toured Britain. Also in the cast wereSusan Hampshire andJohn McCallum, who was married to Googie Withers.
In 1986 he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performance for his stage role in the playWhen We Are Married.[1]
He died fromemphysema inBushey,Hertfordshire, aged 79, leaving a widow, the actressPamela Cundell, whom he had married in 1981.[1]
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