Desmond Walter-Ellis
Desmond Walter-Ellis (16 September 1914 – 16 September 1994) was an English actor. He was active in a range of genres, from classic drama to cabaret, revue and musicals. He played a major part in the development of BBC Television when it restarted after the Second World War.
Life and career
Walter-Ellis was born in London on 16 September 1914, the son of Valentine Walter-Ellis and his wife
In the immediate post-war years, Walter-Ellis worked mainly in the fledgling television service. In 1950 a magazine dubbed him "the first actor television star", with "seventy different performances to his credit … romped to favour in television versions of the
In the 1950s Walter-Ellis was seen in cabaret, revue, pantomime as well as straight dramas. In the Australian tour of Camelot in 1963–1965 he played King Pellinore. In London in 1966 he was Teddy Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace with Sybil Thorndike and Athene Seyler.[1]
On television in the 1960s he was known for starring in the sitcom series
Walter-Ellis died in London on his eightieth birthday, 16 September 1994.[6]
References
- ^ a b c Herbert, p. 1521
- ^ Baily, Kenneth. "Britain's First Television Stars", Britannia and Eve, 1 March 1950, pp. 16–17
- ^ a b "Desmond Walter-Ellis", BBC Genome. Retrieved 6 August 2021
- ^ "Beggar My Neighbour", British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 August 2021
- ^ "Desmond Walter-Ellis", British Film Institute. Retrieved 6 August 2021
- ^ "Desmond Walter-Ellis", Ancestry UK. Retrieved 6 August 2021
Sources
- Herbert, Ian, ed. (1977). Who's Who in the Theatre (sixteenth ed.). London and Detroit: Pitman Publishing and Gale Research. ISBN 978-0-273-00163-8.
