Jack Watling | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Jack Watling, in 1967 | |
| Born | Jack Stanley Watling (1923-01-13)13 January 1923 |
| Died | 22 May 2001(2001-05-22) (aged 78) Chelmsford, Essex, England |
| Alma mater | Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4, includingDeborah andGiles |
| Relatives | Dilys Watling (stepdaughter) |
Jack Stanley Watling (13 January 1923 – 22 May 2001) was an English actor.[1][2]
Watling was born 13 January 1923 inChingford,Essex,England.[3] The son of a travelling scrap metal dealer, Watling trained at theItalia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts as a child; and made his stage debut inWhere the Rainbow Ends at theHolborn Empire in 1936.[4] He made his first film appearances (all uncredited) inSixty Glorious Years,Housemaster (both 1938) andGoodbye, Mr Chips (1939).[5]
In 1941, Watling played Bill Hopkins inOnce a Crook in hisWest End debut.[6] He starred asFlight Lieutenant Teddy Graham in the original 1942 production ofTerence Rattigan'sFlare Path.[5]
Watling had a long career in low-key British films, originally in easy-going boyish roles.[7] His early appearances were inCottage to Let (1941).We Dive at Dawn (1943),The Demi-Paradise (1943) oppositeLaurence Olivier,The Way Ahead (1944) withDavid Niven,The Winslow Boy (1948),Meet Mr. Lucifer (1953) and inOrson Welles'Mr. Arkadin (aka,Confidential Report, 1955).[1] In the account of thesinking of the Titanic, the filmA Night To Remember (1958), he playedFourth Officer Joseph Boxhall and inSink the Bismarck! (1960) as the Signals officer who reports "HMSHood...has blown up!"[8]
Watling's reputation as an effective and reliable television actor took root in the early 1960s. He appeared inDanger Man (1960) in the episode "The Traitor" as Rollo Waters. Between 1964 and 1969 he was Don Henderson, the troubled conscience to tough businessman John Wilder (Patrick Wymark) inThe Plane Makers and its sequelThe Power Game.[9] Watling also appeared as Doc Saxon in the 1970s seriesPathfinders.[7] He playedProfessor Edward Travers in theBBCscience-fiction television seriesDoctor Who in the serialsThe Abominable Snowmen (1967) andThe Web of Fear (1968), both of which also featuring his daughterDeborah Watling as theSecond Doctor's companionVictoria Waterfield.[10] He reprised the role decades later in the independentDoctor Who spin-off videoDowntime (1995).[11] He also took over the role of Arthur Bourne in the final series ofThe Cedar Tree in 1979.
Watling's final roles were all on television, in series includingBergerac, four episodes 1989–1991, as Frank Blakemore andHeartbeat as The Colonel 1994 in "Lost and Found".[12]
Watling was married to former actress Patricia Hicks. He was the father of actressDeborah Watling, actor/politicianGiles Watling, sculptor Nicky Matthews, and a fourth child, Adam, who died in infancy. Watling was also the stepfather of actressDilys Watling, Hicks's daughter from a previous marriage. The Watlings were long-term residents at Alderton Hall,Loughton.[13][14]
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