Michael Aldridge
Michael Aldridge | |
---|---|
Born | Glastonbury, Somerset, England | 9 September 1920
Died | 10 January 1994 | (aged 73)
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1939–1994 |
Spouse |
Kirsteen Rowntree (m. 1947) |
Children | 3 |
Michael William ffolliott Aldridge[1] (9 September 1920 – 10 January 1994) was an English actor. He was known for playing Seymour Utterthwaite in the television series Last of the Summer Wine from 1986 to 1990 and he had a long career as a character actor on stage and screen dating back to the 1930s.
Early life
The son of Dr Frederick James Aldridge and his wife Kathleen Michaela Marietta White, Aldridge was born in Glastonbury, Somerset, England, on 9 September 1920. He was educated at Gresham's School, Holt, Norfolk, where he acted in school plays.[2][3] In his last year at school he played the title role in a production of Othello, a report in The Times noting "M. W. ff. Aldridge (aged 17½ years) was masterly and dignified as Othello and well worthy of the formal designation 'a noble Moor'".[4]
Career
He started his acting career in August 1939 at the
After the war, Aldridge returned to acting, and toured with the Arts Council Midland Theatre Company from 1946 to 1948, but it was not until 1954 that his career started to gain him recognition, when he took a role in Salad Days at the Vaudeville Theatre, where he remained until 1957. He played many roles in musicals throughout his career, usually in supporting roles in which he was highly reliable and professional.
Theatre
Aldridge's first professional appearance was in the part of Kenneth in French without Tears, at the Palace Theatre, Watford, in August 1939. He was in rep until 1940. His first
Television
On television, an early significant role was as criminologist Ian Dimmock in the
In 1974, Aldridge appeared as
In 1975 Aldridge appeared in the title role of
He played the part of Rollo in the 1977 serial Love for Lydia, produced by London Weekend Television.
He played Percy Alleline in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy on BBC TV in 1979, Sir Basil in the 6th episode “Neck” of 1st series of Anglia Television's Tales of the Unexpected first aired on ITV in the same year and appeared in the sitcom Yes, Prime Minister.
In 1980 he played the role of Matthew Radlett, Lord Alconleigh, in the TV miniseries
Between 1986 and 1990, he starred as Seymour Utterthwaite in Last of the Summer Wine. The character was an ex-headmaster and inventor, designed to replace the Foggy Dewhurst character played by Brian Wilde, who had left the series. However, Aldridge wanted to retire to nurse his sick wife, and this coincided with Wilde deciding to return to the show, so Aldridge's character was written out.
One of his most memorable later roles was as the elderly professor
When Aldridge died in 1994, his obituary in The Times said of him:
If Aldridge joined the cast of a show, it invariably meant the injection of an extra dimension of dramatic interest, however modest his role in it. In everything he did, if never a big name, he was a professional to his fingertips.[2]
Private life
Aldridge married Kirsteen Rowntree, and they had three daughters: Charlotte L. Aldridge (born 1948), Harriet K. Aldridge (born 1952) and Emma R. Aldridge (born 1954). He stated his main interests as sailing, market gardening, watching cricket and playing tennis, and also liked to make his own bread and jam.[2][3] At the time of his death, he was living in Greenwich, London.[6]
He had left his role in Last of the Summer Wine to be a full-time carer for his wife.
Selected filmography
- Nothing Venture (1948) - Michael Garrod
- Murder in the Cathedral (1951) - Second Knight
- Life for Ruth (1962) - Dr. Richard Harvard
- Chimes at Midnight (1965) - Pistol
- Follow Me! (1972) - Sir Philip Crouch
- Love for Lydia (1979) - Rollo Aspen
- Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979) - Percy Alleline
- Reilly, Ace of Spies (1983) - Orlov
- Bullshot (1983) - Prof. Rupert Fenton
- A Voyage Round My Father (1984) (TV) - Headmaster
- Hallelujah! (1983) (TV)
- Charters and Caldicott (1985) (TV) - Caldicott
- Turtle Diary (1985) - Mr. Meager, Bookstore Owner
- Mussolini: The Untold Story (1985) - Matteotti
- Yes Prime Minister (1986) (TV) - Geoffrey - Director General MI5
- Clockwise (1986) - Prior
- Shanghai Surprise (1986) - Mr. Burns
- Murder by the Book (1986) - Edmond Cork
- The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe(1988) - Professor Digory Kirke
- Countdown to War (1989) - Neville Chamberlain
- Inspector Morse episode - The Last Enemy (1989) - Arthur Drysdale
- Last of the Summer Wine (1986–1990) (TV) - Seymour
- Stanley and the Women (1991) (TV) - Dr. Alfred Nash
References
- Notes
- ^ Bendick, Adam (15 January 1994). "Obituary: Michael Aldridge". Independent. Archived from the original on 12 May 2022. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ a b c Seymour: Michael Aldridge Archived 9 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine at examiner.co.uk (accessed 12 April 2008)
- ^ a b c Aldridge, Michael, actor, in Who's Who in the Theatre: a Biographical Record of the Contemporary Stage (11th edition, 1952) (text online)
- ^ The Times, Monday, 27 June 1938; p. 20; Issue 48031; col A
- ^ "Michael Aldridge". Musical Theatre.com. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2010.
- ^ Michael Aldridge, 73, Versatile British Actor in New York Times (online text) for 17 January 1994
- Bibliography
- Who's Who 1993 (A. & C. Black, London, 1993) page 19