Shoes

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Gender

Male

Birthday

1912-03-22

Place of Birth

Dublin, Ireland

Wilfrid Brambell

Biography

Henry Wilfrid Brambell (22 March 1912 – 18 January 1985) was an Irish actor best known for his role as Albert Steptoe in the BBC television sitcom Steptoe and Son. He began his acting career in theatre before appearing in British films and television productions, including The Quatermass Experiment (1953), Nineteen Eighty-Four (1954), In Search of the Castaways (1962), and Holiday on the Buses (1973). In 1964, he gained international recognition for his role as Paul McCartney's fictional grandfather in the Beatles' film A Hard Day's Night. Following the success of Steptoe and Son, Brambell continued to perform in theatre, film and television, including a leading role in the stage play The Banana Box (1971) and a critically acclaimed performance in Terence Davies' short film Death and Transfiguration (1983). Brambell was born in Dublin, Ireland, and began performing as a child, entertaining wounded soldiers during the First World War. Before becoming a professional actor, he worked as a reporter for The Irish Times and performed at Dublin's Abbey Theatre. During the Second World War, he served with the Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA), entertaining British military personnel. Brambell died of cancer at his home in Westminster, London, on 18 January 1985, aged 72.

Known for

All Creatures Great and Small

All Creatures Great and Small

The trials and misadventures of the staff at a country veterinary office in Yorkshire. James Herriot, a young animal surgeon, moves to a small Yorkshire town to begin his first job.

No Hiding Place

No Hiding Place

No Hiding Place is a British television series that was produced at Wembley Studios by Associated-Rediffusion for the ITV network between 16 September 1959 and 22 June 1967. It was the sequel to the series Murder Bag and Crime Sheet, all starring Raymond Francis as Detective Superintendent, later Detective Chief Superintendent Tom Lockhart.

The Adventures of Robin Hood

The Adventures of Robin Hood

The legendary character Robin Hood and his band of merry men in Sherwood Forest and the surrounding vicinity. While some episodes dramatised the traditional Robin Hood tales, most episodes were original dramas created by the show's writers and producers.

Sunday Night Theatre

Sunday Night Theatre

Sunday Night Theatre was a long-running series of televised live television plays screened by BBC Television from early 1950 until 1959. The productions for the first five years or so of the run were re-staged live the following Thursday, partly because of technical limitations in this era, and the theatrical basis of early television drama. Some of the earliest collaborations between Rudolph Cartier and Nigel Neale were produced for this series, including Arrow to the Heart and Nineteen Eighty-Four. The Sunday night drama slot was subsequently renamed The Sunday-Night Play which ran for four seasons between 1960 and 1963. ITV transmitted its own unrelated run of Sunday Night Theatre between 1971 and 1974.

Maigret

Maigret

BBC series based on the novels by Georges Simenon which starred Rupert Davies as Inspector Maigret, a French police detective who preferred to watch and listen in order to solve crimes. The series ran from 1960-63 on British television.

Steptoe and Son

Steptoe and Son

A father and son who work as rag-and-bone men live together in Shepherd's Bush, London. While Albert is content with their way of life, Harold aspires to better himself and build a life of his own, but his attempts are repeatedly thwarted by his father, leading to frequent clashes between the two.

The Buccaneers

The Buccaneers

The adventures of privateer Captain Dan Tempest and his crew of former pirates as they make their way across the seven seas in The Sultana.

Bleak House

Bleak House

The generous John Jarndyce, struggling with his own past, and his two young wards Richard and Ada, are all caught up, like Lady Dedlock, in the infamous case of Jarndyce vs Jarndyce, which will make one of them rich beyond imagination if it can ever be brought to a conclusion. As Tulkinghorn digs deeper into Lady Dedlock's past, he unearths a secret that will change their lives forever, and which is almost as astounding as the final outcome of the Jarndyce case.

The Adventures of William Tell

The Adventures of William Tell

The Adventures of William Tell is a British swashbuckler adventure series, first broadcast on the ITV network in 1958, and produced by ITC Entertainment.

The Adventures of Sir Lancelot

The Adventures of Sir Lancelot

The Adventures of Sir Lancelot is a British television series first broadcast in 1956, produced by Sapphire Films for ITC Entertainment and screened on the ITV network. The series starred William Russell as the eponymous Sir Lancelot, a Knight of the Round Table in the time of King Arthur at Camelot.

Citizen Smith

Citizen Smith

Classic BBC comedy starring Robert Lindsay as revolutionary leader Wolfie Smith of the Tooting Popular Front. Hoping to emulate his icons, Wolfie forms the Tooting Popular Front with a small group of his friends. However, he soon finds himself struggling to get his ambitious plans off the ground due to his laid back attitude and lack of organisation.

Theatre '70

Theatre '70

Anthology of 70-minute UK dramatic productions.

The Larkins

The Larkins

'The Larkins' is a British television sitcom which was produced by Associated Television and aired on ITV. It aired for four series between 1958 to 1960. An additional two series aired from 1963 to 1964.

A Hard Day's Night

A Hard Day's Night

Capturing John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr in their electrifying element, 'A Hard Day's Night' is a wildly irreverent journey through this pastiche of a day in the life of The Beatles during 1964. The band have to use all their guile and wit to avoid the pursuing fans and press to reach their scheduled television performance, in spite of Paul's troublemaking grandfather and Ringo's arrest.

Cry Wolf

Cry Wolf

A highly imaginative boy involves his friends in a series of false alarms, with the result that nobody will come to his aid when he is involved in a dangerous situation.