Donald Sinden
Encyclopedia
Sir Donald Alfred Sinden CBE
(born 9 October 1923) is an English
actor
of theatre
, film
and television
.
, Devon
, England
, on 9 October 1923. The son of Alfred Edward Sinden and his wife Mabel Agnes (née Fuller), he grew up in the Sussex
village of Ditchling
, where their home ('The Limes') doubled as the local chemist shop. He was married to actress Diana Mahony from 1948 until her death in 2004. He lives near Tenterden
, Kent
.
The couple had two sons: actor Jeremy Sinden
, who died of lung cancer
in 1996, and Marc Sinden
who is a West End theatre producer
.
and made his first stage appearance at the Brighton
Little Theatre (of which he later became President) in January 1941, playing Dudley in George and Margaret. He broke into professional acting after appearing with the Mobile Entertainments Southern Area company in modern comedies for the armed forces during the Second World War.
at Pinewood Studios
and subsequently starred in many outstanding British films of the 1950s including The Cruel Sea
, Mogambo
, Doctor in the House
, Above Us The Waves
, Doctor at Large
, The Siege of Sidney Street
, Twice Round the Daffodils
and with a very young Adam Faith
in Mix Me a Person
.
(RSC)
since the early 1960s. Among his many notable stage appearances for the RSC are in The Wars of the Roses
(as the Duke of York) opposite Dame
Peggy Ashcroft
(as Queen Margaret). For the 1976 Stratford season and then at the Aldwych in 1977, he played Benedick opposite Dame
Judi Dench
’s Beatrice in the highly-acclaimed 'British Raj' revival of Much Ado About Nothing
. He also won the Evening Standard Award for Best Actor that year for his performance in the title role of King Lear
. Other memorable RSC performances were Twelfth Night, The Relapse
and London Assurance
for which he received the 1975 Drama Desk Special Award
.
farces Not Now Darling; Two Into One
and Out of Order
. Other memorable productions have been leading performances in There's a Girl in My Soup
; An Enemy Of The People
; Major Barbara; The Scarlet Pimpernel
; That Good Night
and Quartet
.
adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes
story The Hound of the Baskervilles
. He also starred in multiple adaptations of John Dickson Carr's Dr. Gideon Fell mysteries, including The House on Gallows Lane, The Hollow Man and Black Spectacles, To Wake the Dead, The Blind Barber and The Mad Hatter Mystery.
situation comedy
Two's Company
, in which he played an English butler, Robert, to Elaine Stritch
's American character, Dorothy. Much of the humour derived from the culture clashes between Robert's very stiff-upper-lip Britishness and Dorothy's devil-may-care New York view on life. Two's Company was exceptionally well-received in Britain, despite being broadcast in the so-called 'graveyard slot' of Sunday night at 10:30pm. Stritch and Sinden also sang the theme tune to the programme. The format was sold to NBC
and remade in the US as The Two of Us starring Peter Cook
, however the remake was a failure and only lasted one season. The original British version is now available on DVD in both the UK and the US.
From 1981 he was also to star as Simon Peel in the Thames TV situation comedy
Never the Twain
, in which he played a snooty antiques dealer who had to live next door to Oliver Smallbridge (played by Windsor Davies
), who also ran an antique shop. The characters hated each other and were horrified when they discovered that their son and daughter were to be married - thus meaning they were related. Despite a lack of critical acclaim, the series proved to be popular with audiences and ran for 11 years. One episode had Sinden being literally picked up by two police officers played by his own actor sons.
Other featured television roles included guest-starring in the cult series The Prisoner
. From 2001 - 2007 he played the part of senior judge (and father-in-law of the title character) Sir Joseph Channing in Judge John Deed
and is the voice of Totally Viral.
Sinden was spoofed on Spitting Image
, the British satirical television programme in which famous people were lampooned by caricatured latex puppets. For example, when his puppet, sitting in a restaurant, summons a waiter and asks "Do you serve a ham salad?" the waiter replies "Yes, we serve salad to anyone". He (or his puppet) was also shown fawning to the Queen and requesting a knighthood from her. He did in fact receive a knighthood
in 1997.
in London's Covent Garden
in the 1980s.
He is believed to be the last person alive to have known Oscar Wilde
's lover Lord Alfred "Bosie" Douglas
and is writing his memories of their friendship.
, Ashford Road, Tenterden
, Kent
was named The Sinden Theatre
.
In 2007, Sinden embarked on a UK and European theatre tour, produced by his son Marc
, to talk about his life, work and anecdotes in An Evening with... Sir Donald Sinden
. This included, on 8 November 2007 as part of the British Theatre Season, Monaco a performance in front of HSH Prince Albert of Monaco
at the Théâtre Princesse Grace, Monte Carlo.
Charles Spencer
, the drama critic for the Daily Telegraph, reported that Sinden is currently filming a documentary series called Great West End Theatres
, which will describe the history and stories associated with each of the 40 London theatres. Produced and directed by his son Marc Sinden
, it is to be released as a DVD.
Sinden is a patron of ME Solutions, a charity dedicated to finding a breakthrough in the treatment of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis through targeted and comprehensive biomedical research, focusing on the physical causes of M.E.
In October 2010, his grandson Hal and two of his granddaughters (Kezia and Harriet) each announced their engagements and forthcoming marriages.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 9 October 1923) is an English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
of theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
, film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
.
Personal life
Sinden was born in PlymouthPlymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, on 9 October 1923. The son of Alfred Edward Sinden and his wife Mabel Agnes (née Fuller), he grew up in the Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
village of Ditchling
Ditchling
Ditchling is a village and civil parish in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. The village is contained within the boundaries of the South Downs National Park; the order confirming the establishment of the park was signed in Ditchling....
, where their home ('The Limes') doubled as the local chemist shop. He was married to actress Diana Mahony from 1948 until her death in 2004. He lives near Tenterden
Tenterden
Tenterden is a Cinque Port town in the Ashford District of Kent, England. It stands on the edge of the Weald, overlooking the valley of the River Rother....
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
.
The couple had two sons: actor Jeremy Sinden
Jeremy Sinden
Jeremy Sinden was an English actor who specialised in playing eccentric military men and overgrown schoolboys.-Early life:...
, who died of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 1996, and Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden is an English theatre producer, documentary director and actor. His father is the actor Sir Donald Sinden.-Theatre:...
who is a West End theatre producer
West End theatre producer
A West End theatre producer is a theatre producer who causes theatrical productions to be presented in one or more of the 41 West End theatres of London, as defined by the governing body of West End producers, The Society of London Theatre.Not to be confused with a Regional theatre producer who...
.
Early career
He trained as an actor at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic ArtWebber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art
The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, formerly the Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art, was a drama school, and originally a singing school, in London. It was one of the leading drama schools in Britain, and offered comprehensive training for those intending to pursue a...
and made his first stage appearance at the Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
Little Theatre (of which he later became President) in January 1941, playing Dudley in George and Margaret. He broke into professional acting after appearing with the Mobile Entertainments Southern Area company in modern comedies for the armed forces during the Second World War.
Rank Organisation
In 1953 he was contracted for seven years to the Rank OrganisationRank Organisation
The Rank Organisation was a British entertainment company formed during 1937 and absorbed in 1996 by The Rank Group Plc. It was the largest and most vertically-integrated film company in Britain, owning production, distribution and exhibition facilities....
at Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, approximately west of central London. The studios have played host to many productions over the years from huge blockbuster films to television shows to commercials to pop promos.The purchase of Shepperton...
and subsequently starred in many outstanding British films of the 1950s including The Cruel Sea
The Cruel Sea (film)
The Cruel Sea is a 1953 British film from Ealing Studios starring Jack Hawkins and Donald Sinden, with Denholm Elliott, Stanley Baker, Liam Redmond, Virginia McKenna and Moira Lister...
, Mogambo
Mogambo
Mogambo is a 1953 film directed by John Ford, featuring Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly and Donald Sinden. The film was adapted by John Lee Mahin from the play by Wilson Collison....
, Doctor in the House
Doctor in the House
Doctor in the House is a 1954 British comedy film, directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty Box. The screenplay, by Nicholas Phipps, Richard Gordon and Ronald Wilkinson, is based on the novel by Gordon, and follows a group of students through medical school.It was the most popular box office...
, Above Us The Waves
Above Us the Waves (film)
Above Us the Waves is a 1955 war film directed by Ralph Thomas. It tells the story of human torpedo and midget submarine attacks on the German battleship Tirpitz. It is based on true-life attacks on the Tirpitz, first using manned torpedoes , and then the Royal Navy's midget X-Craft submarines in...
, Doctor at Large
Doctor at Large (film)
Doctor at Large is a 1957 British comedy film, the third installment of the Doctor in the House series. It stars Dirk Bogarde, Muriel Pavlow, Donald Sinden, and James Robertson Justice.-Cast:* Dirk Bogarde as Dr. Simon Sparrow...
, The Siege of Sidney Street
The Siege of Sidney Street
The Siege of Sidney Street is a 1960 British historical drama film co-directed by Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman. It starred Donald Sinden, Nicole Berger and Kieron Moore....
, Twice Round the Daffodils
Twice Round the Daffodils
Twice Round the Daffodils is a 1962 British comedy drama film directed by Gerald Thomas and starring Juliet Mills, Donald Sinden, Donald Houston, Kenneth Williams, Ronald Lewis, Andrew Ray, Joan Sims and Jill Ireland. A new group of patients arrive at a hospital to be treated for tuberculosis where...
and with a very young Adam Faith
Adam Faith
Terence "Terry" Nelhams-Wright, known as Adam Faith was a Teen idol English singer, actor and later financial journalist. He was one of the most charted acts of the 1960s. He became the first UK artist to lodge his initial seven hits in the Top 5...
in Mix Me a Person
Mix Me a Person
Mix Me a Person is a 1962 British crime drama film directed by Leslie Norman and starring Anne Baxter, Donald Sinden, Adam Faith, Walter Brown and Carole Ann Ford. A young London criminal is faced with a hanging for murdering a policeman...
.
Royal Shakespeare Company
Sinden has been an Associate Artiste of the Royal Shakespeare CompanyRoyal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
(RSC)
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
since the early 1960s. Among his many notable stage appearances for the RSC are in The Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses (adaptation)
The Wars of the Roses was a 1964 adaptation of four of the history plays of William Shakespeare by John Barton, directed by Barton himself and Peter Hall at the Royal Shakespeare Company. It conflated Henry VI, Part 1, Henry VI, Part 2 and Henry VI, Part 3 into two new plays, Henry VI and Edward...
(as the Duke of York) opposite Dame
Dame (title)
The title of Dame is the female equivalent of the honour of knighthood in the British honours system . It is also the equivalent form address to 'Sir' for a knight...
Peggy Ashcroft
Peggy Ashcroft
Dame Peggy Ashcroft, DBE was an English actress.-Early years:Born as Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft in Croydon, Ashcroft attended the Woodford School, Croydon and the Central School of Speech and Drama...
(as Queen Margaret). For the 1976 Stratford season and then at the Aldwych in 1977, he played Benedick opposite Dame
Dame (title)
The title of Dame is the female equivalent of the honour of knighthood in the British honours system . It is also the equivalent form address to 'Sir' for a knight...
Judi Dench
Judi Dench
Dame Judith Olivia "Judi" Dench, CH, DBE, FRSA is an English film, stage and television actress.Dench made her professional debut in 1957 with the Old Vic Company. Over the following few years she played in several of William Shakespeare's plays in such roles as Ophelia in Hamlet, Juliet in Romeo...
’s Beatrice in the highly-acclaimed 'British Raj' revival of Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy written by William Shakespeare about two pairs of lovers, Benedick and Beatrice, and Claudio and Hero....
. He also won the Evening Standard Award for Best Actor that year for his performance in the title role of King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...
. Other memorable RSC performances were Twelfth Night, The Relapse
The Relapse
The Relapse, or, Virtue in Danger is a Restoration comedy from 1696 written by John Vanbrugh. The play is a sequel to Colley Cibber's Love's Last Shift, or, Virtue Rewarded....
and London Assurance
London Assurance
London Assurance is a five-act comedy by Dion Boucicault. It was the second play that he wrote, but his first to be produced. Its first production, from March 4, 1841 at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden was Boucicault's first major success...
for which he received the 1975 Drama Desk Special Award
Drama Desk Special Award
The Drama Desk Special Award is presented by the Drama Desk, a committee comprising New York City theatre critics, writers, and editors. It is a non-competitive award that honors an individual or an organization that has made a significant contribution to Broadway, off-Broadway, off-off-Broadway,...
.
Theatre
Theatre being his first 'love', he is a noted farceur and has won Best Actor awards for his appearances in Ray CooneyRay Cooney
Raymond George Alfred Cooney, OBE is an English playwright and actor. His biggest success, Run for Your Wife, lasted nine years in London's West End and is its longest-running comedy. He has had 17 of his plays performed there....
farces Not Now Darling; Two Into One
Two into One
Two Into One is a 1984 farce written by English playwright Ray Cooney.It had a long run at the Shaftesbury Theatre starring Donald Sinden and Michael Williams.Ray Cooney's Theatre of Comedy Company bought the theatre during the run....
and Out of Order
Out of Order (play)
Out of Order is a 1990 farce written by English playwright Ray Cooney. It had a long run at the Shaftesbury Theatre starring Donald Sinden and Michael Williams....
. Other memorable productions have been leading performances in There's a Girl in My Soup
There's A Girl In My Soup (comedy)
There's A Girl In My Soup is a stage comedy written by Terence Frisby.It opened in 1966 at the Globe Theatre and ran for six and half years until 1973 - over a thousand performances - to become the longest-running comedy in the history of the West End. After three and a half years at the Globe, the...
; An Enemy Of The People
An Enemy of the People
An Enemy of the People is an 1882 play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. Ibsen wrote it in response to the public outcry against his play Ghosts, which at that time was considered scandalous...
; Major Barbara; The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a play and adventure novel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. The story is a precursor to the "disguised superhero" tales such as Zorro and Batman....
; That Good Night
That Good Night
That Good Night is a play by NJ Crisp, written with the intention of it being performed by Sir Donald Sinden and his son Marc Sinden playing the central characters of the father and son...
and Quartet
Quartet (Harwood)
Quartet is a play by Ronald Harwood about aging opera singers.The play, presented by Michael Codron, was first directed by Christopher Morahan at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford prior to its West End opening at the Albery Theatre on 8 September 1999 starring Sir Donald Sinden.Following a...
.
Radio
His distinctive voice was heard frequently on radio, including as Sir Charles Baskerville in a Radio 4BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
story The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of four crime novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an...
. He also starred in multiple adaptations of John Dickson Carr's Dr. Gideon Fell mysteries, including The House on Gallows Lane, The Hollow Man and Black Spectacles, To Wake the Dead, The Blind Barber and The Mad Hatter Mystery.
Television
He achieved an early wider fame with the non-theatregoing public in 1963 through the Associated Rediffusion series Our Man at St Marks followed by Our Man from St Marks and then again in 1975 through the London Weekend TelevisionLondon Weekend Television
London Weekend Television was the name of the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties including south Suffolk, middle and east Hampshire, Oxfordshire, south Bedfordshire, south Northamptonshire, parts of Herefordshire & Worcestershire, Warwickshire, east Dorset and...
situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Two's Company
Two's Company (TV series)
Two's Company was a British television situation comedy series that ran from 1975-79. Produced by London Weekend Television for the ITV Network, the programme starred Elaine Stritch and Donald Sinden.-Premise:...
, in which he played an English butler, Robert, to Elaine Stritch
Elaine Stritch
Elaine Stritch is an American actress and vocalist. She has appeared in numerous stage plays and musicals, feature films, and many television programs...
's American character, Dorothy. Much of the humour derived from the culture clashes between Robert's very stiff-upper-lip Britishness and Dorothy's devil-may-care New York view on life. Two's Company was exceptionally well-received in Britain, despite being broadcast in the so-called 'graveyard slot' of Sunday night at 10:30pm. Stritch and Sinden also sang the theme tune to the programme. The format was sold to NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
and remade in the US as The Two of Us starring Peter Cook
Peter Cook
Peter Edward Cook was an English satirist, writer and comedian. An extremely influential figure in modern British comedy, he is regarded as the leading light of the British satire boom of the 1960s. He has been described by Stephen Fry as "the funniest man who ever drew breath," although Cook's...
, however the remake was a failure and only lasted one season. The original British version is now available on DVD in both the UK and the US.
From 1981 he was also to star as Simon Peel in the Thames TV situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Never the Twain
Never the Twain
Never the Twain is a British sitcom that ran for eleven series from 1981 to 1991. It was created by Johnnie Mortimer, and was the only sitcom he ever created without his usual writing partner, Brian Cooke...
, in which he played a snooty antiques dealer who had to live next door to Oliver Smallbridge (played by Windsor Davies
Windsor Davies
Windsor Davies is a British actor, well known for playing the part of Battery Sergeant Major Williams in the 1970s/1980s British sitcom It Ain't Half Hot Mum.-Early life and career:...
), who also ran an antique shop. The characters hated each other and were horrified when they discovered that their son and daughter were to be married - thus meaning they were related. Despite a lack of critical acclaim, the series proved to be popular with audiences and ran for 11 years. One episode had Sinden being literally picked up by two police officers played by his own actor sons.
Other featured television roles included guest-starring in the cult series The Prisoner
The Prisoner
The Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in the UK from 29 September 1967 to 1 February 1968. Starring and co-created by Patrick McGoohan, it combined spy fiction with elements of science fiction, allegory and psychological drama.The series follows a British former...
. From 2001 - 2007 he played the part of senior judge (and father-in-law of the title character) Sir Joseph Channing in Judge John Deed
Judge John Deed
Judge John Deed is a British legal drama television series produced by the BBC in association with One-Eyed Dog for BBC One. It was created by G.F. Newman and stars Martin Shaw as Sir John Deed, a High Court judge who tries to seek real justice in the cases before him. It also stars Jenny Seagrove...
and is the voice of Totally Viral.
Sinden was spoofed on Spitting Image
Spitting Image
Spitting Image is a British satirical puppet show that aired on the ITV network from 1984 to 1996. It was produced by Spitting Image Productions for Central Television. The series was nominated for 10 BAFTA Awards, winning one for editing in 1989....
, the British satirical television programme in which famous people were lampooned by caricatured latex puppets. For example, when his puppet, sitting in a restaurant, summons a waiter and asks "Do you serve a ham salad?" the waiter replies "Yes, we serve salad to anyone". He (or his puppet) was also shown fawning to the Queen and requesting a knighthood from her. He did in fact receive a knighthood
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
in 1997.
Books
Sinden has written two autobiographical volumes, A Touch of the Memoirs (1982) and Laughter in the Second Act (1985), as well as a collection of "epitaphs and final utterances," The Last Word (1994). He was also a leading figure in the fight to launch the Theatre MuseumTheatre Museum
The Theatre Museum in the Covent Garden district of London, England, was the United Kingdom's national museum of the performing arts. It was a branch of the UK's national museum of applied arts, the Victoria and Albert Museum...
in London's Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
in the 1980s.
He is believed to be the last person alive to have known Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
's lover Lord Alfred "Bosie" Douglas
Lord Alfred Douglas
Lord Alfred Bruce Douglas , nicknamed Bosie, was a British author, poet and translator, better known as the intimate friend and lover of the writer Oscar Wilde...
and is writing his memories of their friendship.
Present
In 2002, the purpose-built theatre at Homewood SchoolHomewood School
Homewood School and Sixth Form Centre is a comprehensive school in Tenterden, Kent, England. It has over 2500 students and 250+ staff. Homewood is a comprehensive school but is situated within the Kent selective system so it has a student profile that is half way between comprehensive and secondary...
, Ashford Road, Tenterden
Tenterden
Tenterden is a Cinque Port town in the Ashford District of Kent, England. It stands on the edge of the Weald, overlooking the valley of the River Rother....
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
was named The Sinden Theatre
Homewood School
Homewood School and Sixth Form Centre is a comprehensive school in Tenterden, Kent, England. It has over 2500 students and 250+ staff. Homewood is a comprehensive school but is situated within the Kent selective system so it has a student profile that is half way between comprehensive and secondary...
.
In 2007, Sinden embarked on a UK and European theatre tour, produced by his son Marc
Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden is an English theatre producer, documentary director and actor. His father is the actor Sir Donald Sinden.-Theatre:...
, to talk about his life, work and anecdotes in An Evening with... Sir Donald Sinden
An Evening with...
Established in 2003 by The One Night Booking Company for Marc Sinden Productions, An Evening with... is a series of productions that presents celebrity-led anthologies and recitals nationally and internationally on 'One Night Stands' or longer....
. This included, on 8 November 2007 as part of the British Theatre Season, Monaco a performance in front of HSH Prince Albert of Monaco
Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco is the head of the House of Grimaldi and the ruler of the Principality of Monaco. He is the son of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and the American actress Grace Kelly...
at the Théâtre Princesse Grace, Monte Carlo.
Charles Spencer
Charles Spencer (journalist)
Charles Spencer is a British journalist. He has been the drama critic of The Daily Telegraph since 1991. In 2006, Compton Miller of The Independent wrote in a profile: "This convivial ex-alcoholic is best remembered for his description of Nicole Kidman's nude scene in The Blue Room as 'pure...
, the drama critic for the Daily Telegraph, reported that Sinden is currently filming a documentary series called Great West End Theatres
Great West End Theatres
Great West End Theatres is a documentary series detailing the history, architecture and theatrical anecdotes of the 40 West End Theatres of London, as covered by the monthly Society of London Theatre list, released individually as DVDs and digital downloads.Presented by Sir Donald Sinden and...
, which will describe the history and stories associated with each of the 40 London theatres. Produced and directed by his son Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden is an English theatre producer, documentary director and actor. His father is the actor Sir Donald Sinden.-Theatre:...
, it is to be released as a DVD.
Sinden is a patron of ME Solutions, a charity dedicated to finding a breakthrough in the treatment of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis through targeted and comprehensive biomedical research, focusing on the physical causes of M.E.
In October 2010, his grandson Hal and two of his granddaughters (Kezia and Harriet) each announced their engagements and forthcoming marriages.
Filmography
- Portrait from LifePortrait from LifePortrait from Life is a 1948 British drama film directed by Terence Fisher. It stars Mai Zetterling and Robert Beatty.-Cast:* Mai Zetterling as Lidia* Robert Beatty as Campbell Reid* Guy Rolfe as Major Lawrence* Herbert Lom as Fritz Kottler Hendlemann...
(1948) - The Cruel SeaThe Cruel Sea (film)The Cruel Sea is a 1953 British film from Ealing Studios starring Jack Hawkins and Donald Sinden, with Denholm Elliott, Stanley Baker, Liam Redmond, Virginia McKenna and Moira Lister...
(1953) - MogamboMogamboMogambo is a 1953 film directed by John Ford, featuring Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly and Donald Sinden. The film was adapted by John Lee Mahin from the play by Wilson Collison....
(1953) - A Day to RememberA Day to Remember (1953 film)A Day to Remember is a 1953 British comedy drama film directed by Ralph Thomas and starring an ensemble cast including Stanley Holloway, Donald Sinden and Bill Owen. The darts team of a London public house go on a day trip to Boulogne-sur-Mer in France....
(1953) - You Know What Sailors Are (1954)
- Doctor in the HouseDoctor in the HouseDoctor in the House is a 1954 British comedy film, directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty Box. The screenplay, by Nicholas Phipps, Richard Gordon and Ronald Wilkinson, is based on the novel by Gordon, and follows a group of students through medical school.It was the most popular box office...
(1954) - The BeachcomberThe Beachcomber (film)The Beachcomber is a 1954 British comedy-drama film directed by Muriel Box starring Donald Sinden, Glynis Johns, Robert Newton, Paul Rogers, Donald Pleasence and Michael Hordern. The film is based on the story The Vessel of Wrath by W. Somerset Maugham and was adapted by Sydney Box. It was the...
(1954) - Mad About MenMad About MenMad About Men is a British comedy film, made in 1954. It was directed by Ralph Thomas and written by Peter Blackmore, who also wrote the 1948 film Miranda which preceded Mad About Men...
(1954) - SimbaSimba (film)Simba is a 1955 British drama film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Dirk Bogarde, Donald Sinden, Virginia McKenna and Basil Sydney...
(1955) - Above Us the Waves (1955)
- Josephine and MenJosephine and MenJosephine and Men is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Roy Boulting and starring Glynis Johns, Jack Buchanan, Donald Sinden and Peter Finch...
(1955) - An Alligator Named DaisyAn Alligator Named DaisyAn Alligator Named Daisy is a 1955 British comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Donald Sinden, Jeannie Carson, James Robertson Justice, Diana Dors, Roland Culver and Stanley Holloway.-Plot:...
(1955) - The Black TentThe Black TentThe Black Tent is a 1956 British war film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Donald Sinden, Anthony Steel, Anna Maria Sandri, André Morell and Donald Pleasence. It is set in North Africa, during the Second World War and was filmed on location in Libya.-Plot:During the British retreat...
(1956) - EyewitnessEyewitness (1956 film)Eyewitness is a 1956 British thriller film directed by Muriel Box and starring Donald Sinden, Muriel Pavlow, Belinda Lee, Michael Craig, Nigel Stock and Richard Wattis. It was made by the Rank Organisation.-Plot:...
(1956) - Tiger in the SmokeTiger in the SmokeTiger in the Smoke is a 1956 British crime film directed by Roy Ward Baker and starring Donald Sinden, Muriel Pavlow, Tony Wright, Bernard Miles and Christopher Rhodes. It is based on the 1952 novel The Tiger in the Smoke by Margery Allingham, although the film omits the principal character of...
(1956) - Rockets Galore! (1957)
- Doctor at LargeDoctor at Large (film)Doctor at Large is a 1957 British comedy film, the third installment of the Doctor in the House series. It stars Dirk Bogarde, Muriel Pavlow, Donald Sinden, and James Robertson Justice.-Cast:* Dirk Bogarde as Dr. Simon Sparrow...
(1957) - The Captain's TableThe Captain's TableThe Captain's Table is a 1959 British comedy film directed by Jack Lee from a novel by Richard Gordon. It starred John Gregson, Donald Sinden, Peggy Cummins, Maurice Denham, Joan Sims, John Le Mesurier and June Jago...
(1959) - Operation BullshineOperation BullshineOperation Bullshine is a 1959 British colour comedy film directed by Gilbert Gunn and starring Donald Sinden, Barbara Murray and Carole Lesley. The working title of the film was Girls in Arms that features in the film as a marching song. Gunn had filmed Girls at Sea the previous year...
(1959) - Your Money or Your WifeYour Money or Your WifeYour Money or Your Wife is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Anthony Simmons and starring Donald Sinden, Peggy Cummins and Richard Wattis.-Cast:* Donald Sinden - Pelham Butterworth* Peggy Cummins - Gay Butterworth* Richard Wattis - Hubert Fry...
(1960) - The Siege of Sidney StreetThe Siege of Sidney StreetThe Siege of Sidney Street is a 1960 British historical drama film co-directed by Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman. It starred Donald Sinden, Nicole Berger and Kieron Moore....
(1960) - Twice Round the DaffodilsTwice Round the DaffodilsTwice Round the Daffodils is a 1962 British comedy drama film directed by Gerald Thomas and starring Juliet Mills, Donald Sinden, Donald Houston, Kenneth Williams, Ronald Lewis, Andrew Ray, Joan Sims and Jill Ireland. A new group of patients arrive at a hospital to be treated for tuberculosis where...
(1962) - Mix Me a PersonMix Me a PersonMix Me a Person is a 1962 British crime drama film directed by Leslie Norman and starring Anne Baxter, Donald Sinden, Adam Faith, Walter Brown and Carole Ann Ford. A young London criminal is faced with a hanging for murdering a policeman...
(1962) - Decline and Fall... of a Birdwatcher (1968)
- VillainVillain (1971 film)Villain is a 1971 gangster film directed by Michael Tuchner and starring Richard Burton, Ian McShane, T. P. McKenna and Donald Sinden.-Plot:...
(1971) - Rentadick (1972)
- The National HealthThe National Health (film)The National Health is a 1973 British comedy film directed by Jack Gold and starring Lynn Redgrave, Colin Blakely and Eleanor Bron. It is based on the play The National Health by Peter Nichols, in which the staff struggle to cope in an underfunded NHS hospital...
(1973) - The Day of the JackalThe Day of the Jackal (film)The Day of the Jackal is a 1973 Anglo-French film, set in August 1963 and based on the novel of the same name by Frederick Forsyth. Directed by Fred Zinnemann, it stars Edward Fox as the assassin known only as "the Jackal" who is hired to assassinate Charles de Gaulle.- Synopsis :The film opens...
(1973) - Father Dear FatherFather, Dear Father (film)Father, Dear Father is a 1973 film based on the popular Thames Television sitcom of the same name Father, Dear Father and directed by William G...
(1973) - The Island at the Top of the World (1974)
- That Lucky TouchThat Lucky TouchThat Lucky Touch is a 1975 British-German comedy film directed by Christopher Miles and starring Roger Moore, Susannah York and Shelley Winters...
(1975) - The Children (1990)
- Alice in WonderlandAlice in Wonderland (1999 film)Alice in Wonderland is a television film first broadcast in 1999 on NBC and then shown on British television on Channel 4. It is based upon Lewis Carroll's books Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass....
(1999) (Voice of the Griffon) - The Accidental Detective (2003)