Arthur Lowe
Born	22 September 1915(1915-09-22) Hayfield, Derbyshire, England [1]
Died	15 April 1982 (aged 66) Birmingham, England [2]
Spouse(s)	Joan Cooper (1948-1982) [3]
Awards won BAFTA Awards Best Supporting Actor 1973 O Lucky Man!

Arthur Lowe (22 September 1915 — 15 April 1982) was a BAFTA Award winning English actor. He was best known for playing Captain George Mainwaring in the popular British sitcom Dad's Army from 1968 until 1977. is the 265th day of the year (266th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Hayfield from the northwest Hayfield (SK037870) is a village and civil parish in the borough of High Peak, in the county of Derbyshire, England. ... Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... is the 105th day of the year (106th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... This article is about the British city. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... BAFTA Award The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organisation that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... In the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role actors of all nationalities are eligible to receive the award. ... O Lucky Man! (1973) is a surreal British film directed by Lindsay Anderson. ... is the 265th day of the year (266th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 105th day of the year (106th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organization that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Actor (disambiguation). ... Captain George Mainwaring (pronounced Mannering) is a fictional bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dads Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during World War II. He has become widely accepted and regarded as a... A British sitcom is a situation comedy (sitcom) produced in the United Kingdom. ... Dad’s Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ...

Early life

Arthur Lowe was born in Hayfield, Derbyshire, the only child of Arthur and Mary Annie (Nan) Lowe. His father worked for a railway company, in charge of shunting theatrical touring companies around Northern England and the Midlands in special trains.^[4] Lowe’s original intention was to join the Merchant Navy but this idea was thwarted due to his poor eyesight. Working at an aircraft factory he joined the army on the eve of World War II, but not before experiencing his first brush with the acting world by working as a stagehand at the Manchester Palace of Varieties. Hayfield from the northwest Hayfield (SK037870) is a village and civil parish in the borough of High Peak, in the county of Derbyshire, England. ... Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. ... Northern England, The North or North of England is a rather ill-defined term, with no universally accepted definition. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For the steam locomotives, see SR Merchant Navy Class. ... Flying machine redirects here. ... For other uses, see Army (disambiguation). ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

He married his wife Joan Cooper in 1948 and their son Stephen was born in 1953. Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

World War II

Lowe served in the Middle East, and began to take part in shows put on for the troops, which appears to have sparked his desire to act. He left the Army at the end of the war with the rank of Sergeant-Major. A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... It has been suggested that Company Sergeant Major be merged into this article or section. ...

Early career

Lowe made his debut at the Hulme Hippodrome repertory theatre, Manchester in 1945,^[4] where he was paid £5 per week for twice-nightly performances.^[5] He became known for his character roles including parts in Call Me Madam, Pal Joey and The Pajama Game and eventually featured in at least fifty films. He briefly appeared as a reporter at the end of the Ealing comedy film Kind Hearts and Coronets(1949). This article or section seems not to be written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia entry. ... Repertory or rep, called stock in the U.S., is a term from Western theatre. ... This article is about the City of Manchester in England. ... Call Me Madam is one of Irving Berlins last musical comedies. ... Pal Joey Studio cast album 1950 Pal Joey is a 1940 Broadway musical by American writer John OHara, with music and lyrics by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. ... The Pajama Game is a musical based on the novel 7-1/2 Cents by Richard Bissell. ... Kind Hearts and Coronets is a 1949 British black comedy film produced by Ealing Studios. ...

By the 1960s Lowe had successfully made the transition to television and landed a regular role as draper/lay preacher Leonard Swindley in the Northern drama series Coronation Street (1960-65). So popular was his role with viewers that he was eventually given his own spin off series Pardon the Expression (1966) and its sequel Turn out the Lights (1967). Leonard Swindley was a fictional character in the UK soap opera Coronation Street, played by Arthur Lowe. ... For other uses, see Drama (disambiguation). ... Coronation Street is an award-winning British soap opera. ... Pardon The Expression! was an ITV sitcom that ran from 2 June 1965 to 27 June 1966. ...

However, Leonard Swindley was not a role Lowe relished and he longed to move on to other parts. During the months he was not playing Swindley he was busy on stage or making guest roles in other TV series including Z-Cars and The Avengers. He also had a prominent parts in the Lindsay Anderson films This Sporting Life in 1963 and if.... in 1968. In 1978 he starred opposite Sir Laurence Olivier in the Laurence Olivier Presents television series, in the episode Daphne Laureola. Z-Cars (sometimes written as Z Cars, and always pronounced zed, never zee) was a British television drama series centred around the work of regular beat police officers in the fictional town of Newtown, near Liverpool, in the north-west of England. ... The Avengers is a British 1960s television series featuring secret agents in a fantasy 1960s Britain. ... Lindsay Gordon Anderson (April 17, 1923 - August 30, 1994), was a Scottish film critic, and a film, theatre and documentary director. ... This Sporting Life is also a radio program in Australia. ... For other uses, see If. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... Laurence Olivier, as photographed in 1939 by Carl Van Vechten Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM (May 22, 1907 – July 11, 1989) was an English actor and director, esteemed by many as the greatest actor of the 20th century. ... Laurence Olivier Presents was a British Television series made by Granada Television which ran from 1976 to 1978. ...

Lowe married Joan Cooper on 10 January 1948. They had met in 1945 when she was his leading lady at Hulme Hippodrome^[4][5] and they remained together until his death. Their son Stephen Lowe was born in January 1953. is the 10th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Dad's Army

In 1968, Lowe landed perhaps his most famous role, Captain George Mainwaring. It has often been remarked by his former colleague Bill Pertwee that this was the role Lowe played which most resembled himself: pompous and bumbling, although he also successfully played the Captain's drunken brother Barry Mainwaring in the 1975 episode My Brother and I. He went on to take the character into a radio series, stage play and feature length film. Following the success of Dad's Army, Lowe released several 45rpm 7" singles; My Little Girl, My Little Boy / How I Won The War on the Columbia label in 1972, Making Whoopee / Windows & Doorways on the Spiral label in 1974, Sonny Boy / The Autumn Years on Spiral in 1975 and the Flanagan and Allen song Hometown with John Le Mesurier in the Warner label in 1975. He also recorded the Dad's Army theme song, Who Do You Think You're Kidding, Mr. Hitler? although this was not released as a single. Captain George Mainwaring (pronounced Mannering) is a fictional bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dads Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during World War II. He has become widely accepted and regarded as a... William Desmond Anthony Pertwee (born July 21, 1926) Amersham, Buckinghamshire, is a British comedy actor. ... Barry Mainwaring is a fictional character who made a cameo appearance in the popular sit-com Dads Army. ... Flanagan and Allen were a British singing and comedy double act popular during World War II. Its members were Bud Flanagan (1896 - 1968) and Chesney Allen (1893 - 1982). ... John Le Mesurier (Bedford, 5 April 1912 – Ramsgate, 15 November 1983), born John Charles Elton Le Mesurier De Somerys Halliley, was a BAFTA Award winning English actor. ...

When not filming Dad's Army Lowe would frequently be making films such as Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall, No Sex Please, We're British and O Lucky Man!. He was in great demand for guest appearances on other TV shows such as The Morecambe and Wise Show (1971) and he played Dr. Maxwell in five episodes of the sitcom Doctor at Large (1971). He was never afraid to play oddities or surreal characters. In the film version of The Bed-Sitting Room, a surreal post-apocalyptic black comedy featuring a cross-section of British comic talent, he played a man on the verge of mutating into a parrot, while still maintaining the mannerisms of a lower middle-class British professional keen on marrying his daughter to an upper-class drone. His comic tics, squawking and scratching under his ear at just the right moment, almost stole the film. Unfortunately the script called for a real parrot to take over in the latter half, so he was unable to carry the role as far as he might have. No Sex Please, Were British is a British comedic play written by Alistair Foot and Anthony Marriott and first staged in Londons West End in 1971. ... O Lucky Man! (1973) is a surreal British film directed by Lindsay Anderson. ... Morecambe and Wise were a famous British comic double act comprising Eric Morecambe OBE and Ernie Wise OBE. The act lasted four decades until Morecambes death in 1984. ... The Bed-Sitting Room is a satirical play by Spike Milligan and John Antrobus. ...

Late career

Between 1971 and 1973 Lowe joined Dad's Army castmate Ian Lavender on the BBC radio comedy Parsley Sidings. In 1974 he played Wilkins Micawber in the BBC mini-series David Copperfield. He employed a multitude of voices on the 1975 BBC animated television series Mr. Men, where he voiced all the characters as well as narrated. Ian Lavender (born 16 February 1946) is a film and television actor best known for his role as Private Frank Pike in the BBC comedy series Dads Army. ... Parsley Sidings was a BBC Radio sitcom created by Jim Eldridge and with actors Arthur Lowe and Ian Lavender and who were starring in the television war sitcom Dads Army at the time of broadcast, as well as Kenneth Connor of Carry On fame. ... For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... David Copperfield is a quasi-autobiographical novel by Charles Dickens. ... For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... This article is about the series of childrens books. ...

When Dad's Army ended in 1977, Lowe was still very much in demand with starring roles in TV programmes such as Bless Me Father with Daniel Abineri (1978-81, as Father Charles Clement Duddleswell) and Potter (1979-80, as Redvers Potter). He also carried on working on the stage and films. An unusual role he had was in a silent film, 1979's 'The Plank', alongside Eric Sykes. He played Charters in the 1979 remake of A Lady Vanishes. He was the voice of Mr. Beaver in the 1979 animated version of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. Arthur Lowe reprised his role as George Mainwaring for the pilot episode of It Sticks Out Half a Mile, a radio sequel to Dad's Army. One of his last film roles was in 1982's Britannia Hospital. Bless me, Father was a British situation comedy starring Arthur Lowe, Daniel Abineri, Gabrielle Daye, Derek Francis and Sheila Keith. ... Daniel Abineri is an actor, writer, director and producer of musicals and television programs. ... The Plank is a popular 30-minute, 1979 British slapstick comedy, which was a remake of an earlier 1967 version of the film, which was written and directed by Eric Sykes. ... Eric Sykes in the Sykes TV series (DVD) The Plank (DVD cover) Eric Sykes, CBE (born May 4, 1923 in Oldham, Lancashire) is a British comedic writer and actor. ... It Sticks Out Half a Mile was a BBC Radio sitcom created by Harold Snoad and Michael Knowles as a sequel to the television war sitcom Dads Army, for which Snoad and Knowles had written radio adaptations. ... Britannia Hospital is a cult film by British director Lindsay Anderson, released in 1982. ...

While touring at coastal theatres, accompanied by his wife Joan, he used his distinctive 1885 former steam yacht Amazon as a floating base. He bought "Amazon" as a houseboat in 1968, but realised her potential and took her back to sea in 1971; this unique vessel is still operating in the Mediterranean today.

Death

Lowe died of a stroke in his dressing room in Birmingham before a performance of Home at Seven on 15 April 1982 aged 66, having given a live interview on the BBC 1 afternoon show Pebble Mill at One only a day earlier. His last sitcom, A J Wentworth, BA was shown posthumously from July to August 1982. His ashes were scattered at Sutton Coldfield crematorium. For other uses, see Stroke (disambiguation). ... is the 105th day of the year (106th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... BBC One (or BBC1 as it was formerly styled) is the oldest United Kingdom, and indeed, the world. ... Pebble Mill at One was a British afternoon talk show broadcast on BBC1 from the Pebble Mill studios of BBC Birmingham. ... A J Wentworth, BA was a short-lived British sitcom set in the 1940s starring Arthur Lowe that lasted for only six episodes. ... , Holy Trinity Church on Trinity Hill north of Sutton town centre. ...

Statue

In December 2007 plans were unveiled for a statue of Lowe to be erected in Thetford, where the outside scenes for Dad's Army were filmed.^[6] Thetford is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland area of Norfolk, England. ...

Further reading

Two biographies on Arthur Lowe are available, Arthur Lowe - Dad's Memory by his son Stephen which was released in 1997 and more recently Arthur Lowe by Graham Lord. In 2000 The Unforgettable Arthur Lowe was part of The Unforgettable… series of TV biographies of famous comedy performers.

Television roles

Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ... Pardon The Expression! was an ITV sitcom that ran from 2 June 1965 to 27 June 1966. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... Dad’s Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar, known as the year of cyclohexanol. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar, known as the year of cyclohexanol. ... Year 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... AUGUST 25 1981 US Marine Sean Vance is Born on the 25th of August {ear nav|1981}} Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... Bless me, Father was a British situation comedy starring Arthur Lowe, Daniel Abineri, Gabrielle Daye, Derek Francis and Sheila Keith. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... Year 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar). ... // Look up Potter in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... A J Wentworth, BA was a short-lived British sitcom set in the 1940s starring Arthur Lowe that lasted for only six episodes. ...

Filmography

London Belongs to Me (also known as Dulcimer Street) is a 1948 British film directed by Sidney Gilliat and starring Richard Attenborough and Alastair Sim. ... Kind Hearts and Coronets is a 1949 British black comedy film produced by Ealing Studios. ... The Day They Robbed the Bank of England (1960). ... This Sporting Life is also a radio program in Australia. ... BAUBLE ... The White Bus is a 1967 film by British director Lindsay Anderson. ... For other uses, see If. ... The Bed-Sitting Room is a satirical play by Spike Milligan and John Antrobus. ... Spring and Port Wine is a 1967 stage play by Bill Naughton. ... The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer is a British 1970 cult satire film staring and written by Peter Cook. ... Dads Army was a 1971 feature film based on the BBC television sitcom Dads Army. ... Captain George Mainwaring (pronounced Mannering) is a fictional bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dads Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during World War II. He has become widely accepted and regarded as a... The Ruling Class is a 1972 film adaptation of Peter Barnes satirical stage play which tells the story of a paranoid schizophrenic British nobleman (played by Peter OToole) who inherits a peerage. ... No Sex Please, Were British is a British comedic play written by Alistair Foot and Anthony Marriott and first staged in Londons West End in 1971. ... DVD cover of Theatre of Blood Theatre of Blood was a 1973 horror film starring Vincent Price as vengeful actor Edward Lionheart and Diana Rigg as his daughter Edwina Lionheart. ... O Lucky Man! (1973) is a surreal British film directed by Lindsay Anderson. ... The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know it is a 1977 comedy starring John Cleese. ... // The Lady Vanishes is a 1979 remake of a 1938 film of the same name. ... Britannia Hospital is a cult film by British director Lindsay Anderson, released in 1982. ...

Awards

Won

Nominated BAFTA Award The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organisation that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... In the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role actors of all nationalities are eligible to receive the award. ... O Lucky Man! (1973) is a surreal British film directed by Lindsay Anderson. ...

The British Academy Television Awards, also known as the BAFTAs or, to differentiate them from the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards, are the most prestigious awards given in the British television industry, analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States. ... Dad’s Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. ... Edward Albert Arthur Woodward (born June 1, 1930 Croydon, Surrey) is an English stage, film and television actor and singer. ... Template:Infobo Callan was the title of a British action-adventure television series that aired on ITV broadcasters over four seasons spread out between 1967 and 1972. ... The British Academy Television Awards, also known as the BAFTAs or, to differentiate them from the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards, are the most prestigious awards given in the British television industry, analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States. ... Dad’s Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. ... John Eric Bartholomew OBE (May 14, 1926 – May 28, 1984), better known by his stage name, Eric Morecambe was an English comedian who together with Ernie Wise, formed the double act Morecambe and Wise. ... Ernie Wise OBE (November 27, 1925 – March 21, 1999) was an English comedian, best known as one half of the comedy duo Morecambe and Wise, who became an institution on British television, especially for their Christmas specials. ... // The first series of the new Morecambe & Wise Show broadcast in colour on BBC2 in 1969 and was deemed to be a success. ... The British Academy Television Awards, also known as the BAFTAs or, to differentiate them from the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards, are the most prestigious awards given in the British television industry, analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States. ... Dad’s Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. ... John Eric Bartholomew OBE (May 14, 1926 – May 28, 1984), better known by his stage name, Eric Morecambe was an English comedian who together with Ernie Wise, formed the double act Morecambe and Wise. ... Ernie Wise OBE (November 27, 1925 – March 21, 1999) was an English comedian, best known as one half of the comedy duo Morecambe and Wise, who became an institution on British television, especially for their Christmas specials. ... // The first series of the new Morecambe & Wise Show broadcast in colour on BBC2 in 1969 and was deemed to be a success. ... The British Academy Television Awards, also known as the BAFTAs or, to differentiate them from the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards, are the most prestigious awards given in the British television industry, analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States. ... Dad’s Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. ... Stanley Baxter, (born May 24, 1926 in Glasgow, Scotland), is a comic actor and impressionist, best known for his UK TV shows. ... The British Academy Television Awards, also known as the BAFTAs or, to differentiate them from the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards, are the most prestigious awards given in the British television industry, analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States. ... David Copperfield is a quasi-autobiographical novel by Charles Dickens. ... Peter Wynn Barkworth (14 January 1929 – 21 October 2006[1]) was an English actor. ... Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; later The Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972) was King of Great Britain, Ireland, the British Dominions beyond the Seas, and Emperor of India from the death of his father, George V (1910–36), on 20... The British Academy Television Awards, also known as the BAFTAs or, to differentiate them from the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards, are the most prestigious awards given in the British television industry, analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States. ... Dad’s Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. ... Ronald William George Barker, OBE (25 September 1929 – 3 October 2005), popularly known as Ronnie Barker was an English comic actor and writer. ... The Two Ronnies was a British sketch show that aired on BBC One from 1971 to 1987. ... Porridge was a British BBC television sitcom (1974–1977), written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais and starring Ronnie Barker and Richard Beckinsale. ...

References

BBC Radio Five Live is the BBCs radio service providing live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries. ... For alternate meanings of GMT, see GMT (disambiguation). ...

External links

• Arthur Lowe at the Internet Movie Database
• Arthur Lowe British Film Institute page.
• Arthur Lowe at Find A Grave