Kenneth More
Encyclopedia
Kenneth Gilbert More CBE
(20 September 1914 – 12 July 1982) was a highly successful English film actor
during the post-World War II era and starred in many feature films, often in the role of an archetypal carefree and happy-go-lucky middle-class gentleman.
, Buckinghamshire
, the only son of Charles Gilbert More, a Royal Naval Air Service
pilot, and Edith Winifred Watkins, the daughter of a Cardiff solicitor. He was educated at Victoria College
, Jersey
. He spent part of his childhood in the Channel Islands
, where his father was general manager of the Jersey Eastern Railway
. After he left school, he followed the family tradition by training as a civil engineer
. He gave up his training and worked for a while in Sainsbury's.
When More was 17 his father died, and he applied to join the RAF
, but failed the medical test for equilibrium
. He went to Canada
, intending to work as a fur trapper, but was sent back for lacking immigration papers.
, took him on as assistant manager at the Windmill Theatre
, where his job included spotting audience members misbehaving or using opera glasses
to look at the nude players during its Revudeville variety shows. He was soon promoted to playing straight man
in the Revudeville comedy routines. This led to regular work in repertory
, including Newcastle
and Wolverhampton
, performing in plays such as Burke and Hare and Dracula's Daughter. He continued this work until World War II
, during which time he served as a lieutenant in the Royal Navy
, seeing active service aboard the cruiser HMS Aurora
and the aircraft carrier HMS Victorious
, returning to acting in 1946. After various roles in the West End
, he attracted particular attention through his performance as Freddie in Terence Rattigan
's The Deep Blue Sea.
In the 1950s, he entered into a contract with the Rank Organisation
, which led to a successful career in starring roles for a decade. He enjoyed great success in films of the 1950s after winning a BAFTA Award
as best newcomer for Doctor in the House
in 1954
. Possibly his most famous role was that of the Royal Air Force
fighter ace, Douglas Bader
, in Reach for the Sky in 1956. He played the lead role in the Titanic film A Night to Remember in 1958. He specialised in likeable, unflappable English heroes ("an air of hectoring confidence ... heroic in a cocky big-brotherly way"), a persona that could in some roles show darker aspects, as with the controlling Crichton in The Admirable Crichton
and the brash Ambrose Claverhouse in Genevieve
. In 1959, Rank's John Davis gave permission for More to work outside his contract to appear in The Guns of Navarone
. More, however, made the mistake of heckling
and swearing at Davis at a BAFTA dinner at the Dorchester
, losing both the role (which went to David Niven
) and his contract with Rank.
He later appeared in a number of all-star war films, among them Sink the Bismarck!
(1960), The Longest Day
(1962), Battle of Britain
(1969), and Oh! What a Lovely War
(1969).
His film parts got smaller in the 1960s, with some thinking his popularity declined when he left his wife to live with Angela Douglas
. His popularity recovered through West End stage performances and television
roles, especially following his success in The Forsyte Saga
, and as the title character in ATV's 1974 Father Brown
. He is also known for his role as the Ghost of Christmas Present in 1970's Scrooge.
He stood in the wings to replace Bernard Lee
as M
in the James Bond film Live and Let Die
when it wasn't known if an ill Lee would be able to appear.
, an actress 26 years his junior, causing considerable estrangement from friends and family. He was married to Douglas (whom he nicknamed "Shrimp") from 17 March 1968 until his death.
Kenneth More published two autobiographies, Happy Go Lucky in 1959 and More or Less in 1978. In the second book he related how he had had since childhood a recurrent dream of something akin to a huge wasp descending towards him. During the war he experienced a Nazi Stuka bomber descending in just such a manner. After that he claimed never to have had that dream again.
He died in London
from Parkinson's disease
on 12 July 1982, aged 67, and was cremated at Putney Vale Crematorium
.
The Kenneth More Theatre, named in his honour, is in Ilford, London. The robot Kryten in the TV series Red Dwarf was named after More's character in The Admirable Crichton
.
Journey to the Centre of the earth(1976)
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...
(20 September 1914 – 12 July 1982) was a highly successful English film 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...
during the post-World War II era and starred in many feature films, often in the role of an archetypal carefree and happy-go-lucky middle-class gentleman.
Early life
Kenneth More was born in Gerrards CrossGerrards Cross
Gerrards Cross is a village in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the south of the county, near the border with Greater London, south of Chalfont St Peter. Gerrards Cross is also a civil parish within South Bucks district, which was known as the Beaconsfield district from 1974 to 1980...
, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
, the only son of Charles Gilbert More, a Royal Naval Air Service
Royal Naval Air Service
The Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
pilot, and Edith Winifred Watkins, the daughter of a Cardiff solicitor. He was educated at Victoria College
Victoria College, Jersey
Victoria College is a fee paying States of Jersey-provided school in membership of the HMC, in St Helier, Jersey, Channel Islands. The castellated neo-gothic architecture is a landmark overlooking the town.-History:In the 1590s, Laurens Baudains - a wealthy farmer from St...
, Jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
. He spent part of his childhood in the Channel Islands
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
, where his father was general manager of the Jersey Eastern Railway
Jersey Eastern Railway
The Jersey Eastern Railway was a railway opened in 1873 in Jersey. The line closed in 1929. It is not to be confused with the Jersey Railway. It was standard gauge....
. After he left school, he followed the family tradition by training as a civil engineer
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
. He gave up his training and worked for a while in Sainsbury's.
When More was 17 his father died, and he applied to join the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, but failed the medical test for equilibrium
Equilibrioception
Equilibrioception or sense of balance is one of the physiological senses. It helps prevent humans and animals from falling over when walking or standing still. Balance is the result of a number of body systems working together: the eyes , ears and the body's sense of where it is in space ideally...
. He went to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, intending to work as a fur trapper, but was sent back for lacking immigration papers.
Acting career
On his return, a family friend, Vivian Van DammVivian Van Damm
Vivian van Damm was a prominent London theatre impresario from 1932 until 1960, managing the Windmill Theatre in London's Great Windmill Street, which was a British institution, famed for its pioneering tableaux vivants of motionless female nudity and for the myth of having 'never closed' during...
, took him on as assistant manager at the Windmill Theatre
Windmill Theatre
The Windmill Theatre, later The Windmill International, was a variety and revue theatre in Great Windmill Street, London. The theatre was famous for its nude tableaux vivants...
, where his job included spotting audience members misbehaving or using opera glasses
Opera glasses
Opera glasses, also known as theater binoculars or Galilean binoculars, are compact, low-power optical magnification devices, usually used at performance events, whose name is derived from traditional use at opera performances. Magnification power below 5x is usually desired in these circumstances...
to look at the nude players during its Revudeville variety shows. He was soon promoted to playing straight man
Double act
A double act, also known as a comedy duo, is a comic pairing in which humor is derived from the uneven relationship between two partners, usually of the same gender, age, ethnic origin and profession, but drastically different personalities or behavior...
in the Revudeville comedy routines. This led to regular work in repertory
Repertory
Repertory or rep, also called stock in the United States, is a term used in Western theatre and opera.A repertory theatre can be a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation...
, including Newcastle
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
and Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, performing in plays such as Burke and Hare and Dracula's Daughter. He continued this work until World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, during which time he served as a lieutenant in the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, seeing active service aboard the cruiser HMS Aurora
HMS Aurora (12)
HMS Aurora was an Arethusa-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was built by Portsmouth Dockyard , with the keel being laid down on the 27 July 1935. She was launched on the 20 August 1936, and commissioned 12 November 1937....
and the aircraft carrier HMS Victorious
HMS Victorious
Five ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Victorious.*The first Victorious, launched in 1785 at Blackwall Yard, London, was a third-rate ship of the line, with an armament of 74 guns....
, returning to acting in 1946. After various roles in the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
, he attracted particular attention through his performance as Freddie in Terence Rattigan
Terence Rattigan
Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan CBE was one of England's most popular 20th-century dramatists. His plays are generally set in an upper-middle-class background...
's The Deep Blue Sea.
In the 1950s, he entered into a contract with the Rank Organisation
Rank 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....
, which led to a successful career in starring roles for a decade. He enjoyed great success in films of the 1950s after winning a BAFTA Award
British Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
as best newcomer for 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...
in 1954
1954 in film
The year 1954 in film involved some significant events and memorable ones.-Events:*May 12 - The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces wife Marion Benda...
. Possibly his most famous role was that of the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
fighter ace, Douglas Bader
Douglas Bader
Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader CBE, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar, FRAeS, DL was a Royal Air Force fighter ace during the Second World War. He was credited with 20 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probables, one shared probable and 11 enemy aircraft damaged.Bader joined the...
, in Reach for the Sky in 1956. He played the lead role in the Titanic film A Night to Remember in 1958. He specialised in likeable, unflappable English heroes ("an air of hectoring confidence ... heroic in a cocky big-brotherly way"), a persona that could in some roles show darker aspects, as with the controlling Crichton in The Admirable Crichton
The Admirable Crichton (film)
The Admirable Crichton is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Kenneth More, Diane Cilento, Sally Ann Howes and Cecil Parker. The film was based on J. M...
and the brash Ambrose Claverhouse in Genevieve
Genevieve (film)
Genevieve is a 1953 British comedy film produced and directed by Henry Cornelius and written by William Rose. It starred John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, Kenneth More and Kay Kendall as two couples comedically involved in a vintage automobile rally...
. In 1959, Rank's John Davis gave permission for More to work outside his contract to appear in The Guns of Navarone
The Guns of Navarone (film)
The Guns of Navarone is a 1961 British-American Action/Adventure war film based on the 1957 novel of the same name about the Dodecanese Campaign of World War II by Scottish thriller writer Alistair MacLean. It stars Gregory Peck, David Niven and Anthony Quinn, along with Anthony Quayle and Stanley...
. More, however, made the mistake of heckling
Heckler
A heckler is a person who harass and try to disconcert others with questions, challenges, or gibes.Hecklers are often known to shout disparaging comments at a performance or event, or interrupts set-piece speeches, for example at a political meeting, with intent to disturb its performers or...
and swearing at Davis at a BAFTA dinner at the Dorchester
Dorchester Hotel
The Dorchester is a luxury hotel in London, opened on 18 April 1931. It is situated on Park Lane in Mayfair, overlooking Hyde Park.The Dorchester was created by the famous builder Sir Robert McAlpine and the managing director of Gordon Hotels Ltd, Sir Frances Towle, who shared a vision of creating...
, losing both the role (which went to David Niven
David Niven
James David Graham Niven , known as David Niven, was a British actor and novelist, best known for his roles as Phileas Fogg in Around the World in 80 Days and Sir Charles Lytton, a.k.a. "the Phantom", in The Pink Panther...
) and his contract with Rank.
He later appeared in a number of all-star war films, among them Sink the Bismarck!
Sink the Bismarck!
Sink the Bismarck! is a 1960 black-and-white British war film based on the book, the "Last Nine Days of the Bismarck" by C. S. Forester. It stars Kenneth More and Dana Wynter and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. To date, it is the only movie made that deals directly with the operations, chase, and...
(1960), The Longest Day
The Longest Day (film)
The Longest Day is a 1962 war film based on the 1959 history book The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan, about "D-Day", the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during World War II....
(1962), Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain (film)
Battle of Britain is a 1969 Technicolor film directed by Guy Hamilton, and produced by Harry Saltzman and S. Benjamin Fisz. The film broadly relates the events of the Battle of Britain...
(1969), and Oh! What a Lovely War
Oh! What a Lovely War
Oh! What a Lovely War is a musical film based on the stage musical Oh, What a Lovely War! originated by Charles Chilton as a radio play, The Long Long Trail in December 1961, and transferred to stage by Gerry Raffles in partnership with Joan Littlewood and her Theatre Workshop created in 1963,...
(1969).
His film parts got smaller in the 1960s, with some thinking his popularity declined when he left his wife to live with Angela Douglas
Angela Douglas
Angela Douglas , born Angela McDonagh, is an English actress.-Early life:She was born in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire...
. His popularity recovered through West End stage performances and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
roles, especially following his success in The Forsyte Saga
The Forsyte Saga (1967 series)
The Forsyte Saga is a 1967 BBC television adaptation of John Galsworthy's series of The Forsyte Saga novels, and its sequel trilogy A Modern Comedy...
, and as the title character in ATV's 1974 Father Brown
Father Brown
Father Brown is a fictional character created by English novelist G. K. Chesterton, who stars in 52 short stories, later compiled in five books. Chesterton based the character on Father John O'Connor , a parish priest in Bradford who was involved in Chesterton's conversion to Catholicism in 1922...
. He is also known for his role as the Ghost of Christmas Present in 1970's Scrooge.
He stood in the wings to replace Bernard Lee
Bernard Lee
John Bernard Lee was an English actor, best known for his role as M in the first eleven James Bond films.-Life and career:...
as M
M (James Bond)
M is a fictional character in Ian Fleming's James Bond series, as well as the films in the Bond franchise. The head of MI6 and Bond's superior, M has been portrayed by three actors in the official Bond film series: Bernard Lee, Robert Brown and since 1995 by Judi Dench. Background =Ian Fleming...
in the James Bond film Live and Let Die
Live and Let Die (film)
Live and Let Die is the eighth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman...
when it wasn't known if an ill Lee would be able to appear.
Personal life
More was married three times. His first marriage in 1939 to actress Beryl Johnstone (one daughter, Susan, born 1941) ended in divorce in 1946. He married Mabel Edith "Bill" Barkby in 1952 (one daughter, Sarah, born 1954) but left her in 1968 for Angela DouglasAngela Douglas
Angela Douglas , born Angela McDonagh, is an English actress.-Early life:She was born in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire...
, an actress 26 years his junior, causing considerable estrangement from friends and family. He was married to Douglas (whom he nicknamed "Shrimp") from 17 March 1968 until his death.
Kenneth More published two autobiographies, Happy Go Lucky in 1959 and More or Less in 1978. In the second book he related how he had had since childhood a recurrent dream of something akin to a huge wasp descending towards him. During the war he experienced a Nazi Stuka bomber descending in just such a manner. After that he claimed never to have had that dream again.
He died in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
from Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
on 12 July 1982, aged 67, and was cremated at Putney Vale Crematorium
Putney Vale Cemetery
Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium in London is surrounded by Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park, and is located within forty-seven acres of parkland. The cemetery was opened in 1891 and the crematorium in 1938...
.
The Kenneth More Theatre, named in his honour, is in Ilford, London. The robot Kryten in the TV series Red Dwarf was named after More's character in The Admirable Crichton
The Admirable Crichton (film)
The Admirable Crichton is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Kenneth More, Diane Cilento, Sally Ann Howes and Cecil Parker. The film was based on J. M...
.
Filmography
- Look Up and LaughLook Up and LaughLook Up and Laugh is a British comedy film directed by Basil Dean and starring Gracie Fields, Alfred Drayton, Douglas Wakefield and Vivien Leigh...
(1935) (uncredited bit part) - Windmill Revels (1937) (uncredited bit part)
- Carry On London (1937) (bit part)
- The Silence of the Sea (1946) (TV)
- School for SecretsSchool for SecretsSchool for Secrets is a 1946 British film written and directed by Peter Ustinov and starring David Tomlinson, Ralph Richardson, Raymond Huntley, Richard Attenborough, John Laurie and Michael Hordern...
(1946) - Toad of Toad HallToad of Toad HallToad of Toad Hall is the first of several dramatisations of Kenneth Grahame's 1908 novel The Wind in the Willows. It was written by A. A. Milne, with incidental music by Harold Fraser-Simson....
(1946) (TV) - Scott of the AntarcticScott of the Antarctic (1948 film)Scott of the Antarctic is a 1948 film about Robert Falcon Scott's ill-fated expedition to be the first to the South Pole in Antarctica in 1910-12...
(1948) - Man on the RunMan on the RunMan on the Run is a 1949 British drama film directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring Derek Farr, Joan Hopkins, Edward Chapman, Kenneth More and Laurence Harvey.-Synopsis:...
(1949) - Now BarabbasNow BarabbasNow Barabbas is a 1949 British drama film directed by Gordon Parry and starring Richard Greene, Cedric Hardwicke and Kathleen Harrison. It is sometimes known as Now Barabbas Was a Robber. It was based on a play by William Douglas-Home.-Cast:...
(1949) - Stop Press GirlStop Press GirlStop Press Girl is a 1949 British fantasy comedy film directed by Michael Barry and starring Sally Ann Howes, Gordon Jackson, Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne; the latter two appearing in several different roles in the film.-Plot:...
(1949) - Morning DepartureMorning DepartureMorning Departure is a 1950 British naval film directed by Roy Ward Baker, produced by Jay Lewis, and starring John Mills, Nigel Patrick, Peter Hammond, George Cole, Bernard Lee and Richard Attenborough...
(1950) - Chance of a LifetimeChance of a Lifetime (film)Chance of a Lifetime is a 1950 British film starring, produced, part-written and directed by Bernard Miles. It was nominated for the 1951 BAFTA for Best British Film, to which it was beaten by The Blue Lamp.-Plot:...
(1950) - The Clouded YellowThe Clouded YellowThe Clouded Yellow is a 1951 British mystery film directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty E. Box for Carillon Films.-Plot synopsis:...
(1951) - The Franchise AffairThe Franchise Affair (film)The Franchise Affair is a 1951 British thriller film directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring Michael Denison, Dulcie Gray, Anthony Nicholls and Marjorie Fielding...
(1951) - The Galloping MajorThe Galloping Major (film)The Galloping Major is a 1951 British comedy film starring Basil Radford, Jimmy Hanley and Janette Scott. It also featured Sid James, Charles Hawtrey and Joyce Grenfell in supporting roles. It was directed by Henry Cornelius...
(1951) - No HighwayNo Highway in the SkyNo Highway in the Sky is a 1951 British disaster film directed by Henry Koster and starring James Stewart and Marlene Dietrich...
(1951) (uncredited) - Appointment with VenusAppointment with Venus (film)Appointment with Venus is a 1951 film adaptation of the Jerrard Tickell novel of the same name. It was directed by Ralph Thomas, produced by Betty E. Box and its screenplay was written by the novelist Nicholas Phipps...
(1951) - Brandy for the ParsonBrandy for the ParsonBrandy for the Parson is a 1952 British comedy film directed by John Eldridge and starring Kenneth More, Charles Hawtrey, James Donald and Jean Lodge. A young couple get mixed up in a smuggling ring. It was based on a novel by Geoffrey Household...
(1952) - The Yellow BalloonThe Yellow Balloon (film)The Yellow Balloon is a 1953 British drama film starring Kenneth More, Bernard Lee, Andrew Ray, Kathleen Ryan and Sid James.-Plot:Playing around the ruins of a devastated bombed-out neighbourhood of London, 12 year old Frankie accidentally leads a boy into his death when he falls from a second...
(1953) - Never Let Me Go (1953)
- GenevieveGenevieve (film)Genevieve is a 1953 British comedy film produced and directed by Henry Cornelius and written by William Rose. It starred John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, Kenneth More and Kay Kendall as two couples comedically involved in a vintage automobile rally...
(1953) - Our Girl FridayOur Girl FridayOur Girl Friday is a 1953 British comedy film starring Joan Collins, George Cole, Kenneth More and Robertson Hare...
(1953) - 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 Man Who Loved RedheadsThe Man Who Loved RedheadsThe Man Who Loved Redheads is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Harold French and starring Moira Shearer, John Justin and Roland Culver. The film is based on the play Who is Sylvia? by Terence Rattigan.-Cast:...
(1955) (voice) - Raising a RiotRaising a RiotRaising a Riot is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Shelagh Fraser and Mandy Miller. A naval officer attempts to look after his three children in his wife's absence.-Cast:* Kenneth More - Peter Kent...
(1955) - The Deep Blue Sea (1955)
- Reach for the SkyReach for the SkyReach for the Sky is a 1956 British biographical film of aviator Douglas Bader, based on the 1954 biography of the same name by Paul Brickhill. The film stars Kenneth More and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. It won the BAFTA Award for Best British Film of 1956.-Plot:In 1928, Douglas Bader, a...
(1956) - The Admirable CrichtonThe Admirable Crichton (film)The Admirable Crichton is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Kenneth More, Diane Cilento, Sally Ann Howes and Cecil Parker. The film was based on J. M...
(1957)
- The Sheriff of Fractured JawThe Sheriff of Fractured JawThe Sheriff of Fractured Jaw is a 1958 British western comedy film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Kenneth More and Jayne Mansfield.-Synopsis:...
(1958) - A Night to Remember (1958)
- Next to No TimeNext to No TimeNext to No Time is a 1958 British comedy starring Kenneth More, Betsy Drake, John Laurie, Sid James and Irene Handl. It was written and directed by Henry Cornelius and was based on Paul Gallico's short story The Enchanted Hour....
(1958) - North West Frontier (1959)
- The Thirty-Nine StepsThe 39 Steps (1959 film)The 39 Steps is a 1959 British thriller film directed by Ralph Thomas, starring Kenneth More and Taina Elg. It is a remake of the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock film, based on the novel The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan....
(1959) - Sink the Bismarck!Sink the Bismarck!Sink the Bismarck! is a 1960 black-and-white British war film based on the book, the "Last Nine Days of the Bismarck" by C. S. Forester. It stars Kenneth More and Dana Wynter and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. To date, it is the only movie made that deals directly with the operations, chase, and...
(1960) - Man in the MoonMan in the Moon (film)Man in the Moon is a 1960 comedy film directed by Basil Dearden. It stars Kenneth More and Shirley Anne Field.-Plot:William Blood is a man who appears to be immune to all known diseases, and possesses extraordinary resistance to heat and cold - a fact he puts down to his carefree, single life,...
(1960) - The Greengage SummerThe Greengage SummerThe Greengage Summer is a 1961 British drama film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Kenneth More and Susannah York . It was based on the novel, Greengage Summer, by Rumer Godden...
(1961) - We Joined the NavyWe Joined the NavyWe Joined the Navy is a 1962 British CinemaScope comedy film based on the novel of the same name by John Winton, directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Lloyd Nolan, Joan O'Brien, Derek Fowlds, Graham Crowden, Esma Cannon and John Le Mesurier....
(1962) - Heart to HeartHeart to HeartHeart to Heart is Reba McEntire's fourth studio album. It was released via Mercury Records in 1981. The album includes the singles "Today All Over Again" and "Only You and You Alone," a cover of the doo-wop standard...
(1962) (TV) - Some PeopleSome PeopleSome People is a 1962 film directed by Clive Donner. It stars Kenneth More and Ray Brooks.-Cast:* Kenneth More as Mr. Smith* Ray Brooks as Johnnie* Anneke Wills as Anne* David Andrews as Bill* Angela Douglas as Terry* David Hemmings as Bert...
(1962) - The Longest DayThe Longest Day (film)The Longest Day is a 1962 war film based on the 1959 history book The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan, about "D-Day", the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during World War II....
(1962) - The Comedy ManThe Comedy ManThe Comedy Man is a 1964 British drama film directed by Alvin Rakoff and starring Kenneth More, Cecil Parker, Dennis Price and Billie Whitelaw...
(1964) - The CollectorThe CollectorThe Collector is the title of a 1963 novel by John Fowles. It was made into a movie in 1965.- Plot summary :The novel is about a lonely young man, Frederick Clegg, who works as a clerk in a city hall, and collects butterflies in his spare time...
(1965) (uncredited) - Lord Raingo (1966) (TV)
- The Forsyte SagaThe Forsyte Saga (1967 series)The Forsyte Saga is a 1967 BBC television adaptation of John Galsworthy's series of The Forsyte Saga novels, and its sequel trilogy A Modern Comedy...
(1967) (TV) - Dark of the SunDark of the SunDark of the Sun is a 1968 adventure-war film starring Rod Taylor, Yvette Mimieux, Jim Brown, and Peter Carsten...
, also known as The Mercenaries (1968) - Fräulein DoktorFräulein DoktorFräulein Doktor is a First World War drama filmed in 1968 and released in 1969. It was a European co-production, starring Suzy Kendall, Kenneth More, Capucine, James Booth, Giancarlo Giannini and Nigel Green. It was produced by Dino De Laurentiis and directed by Alberto Lattuada, with a music...
(1969) - Oh! What a Lovely WarOh! What a Lovely WarOh! What a Lovely War is a musical film based on the stage musical Oh, What a Lovely War! originated by Charles Chilton as a radio play, The Long Long Trail in December 1961, and transferred to stage by Gerry Raffles in partnership with Joan Littlewood and her Theatre Workshop created in 1963,...
(1969) - Battle of BritainBattle of Britain (film)Battle of Britain is a 1969 Technicolor film directed by Guy Hamilton, and produced by Harry Saltzman and S. Benjamin Fisz. The film broadly relates the events of the Battle of Britain...
(1969) - Scrooge (1970)
- Father BrownFather BrownFather Brown is a fictional character created by English novelist G. K. Chesterton, who stars in 52 short stories, later compiled in five books. Chesterton based the character on Father John O'Connor , a parish priest in Bradford who was involved in Chesterton's conversion to Catholicism in 1922...
(1974) (TV) - Viaje al centro de la TierraViaje al centro de la TierraViaje al centro de la Tierra adventure film based onJourney to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne.-Plot:...
(1978) - The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of CinderellaThe Slipper and the RoseThe Slipper and the Rose is a 1976 British musical film retelling the classic fairy tale of Cinderella. This film was chosen as the Royal Command Performance motion picture selection for 1976....
(1976) - Leopard in the SnowLeopard in the SnowLeopard in the Snow is a 1978 British drama film directed by Gerry O'Hara and starring Keir Dullea, Susan Penhaligon, Kenneth More and Billie Whitelaw. In the middle of a blizzard, a young woman takes shelter in a house owned by a former racing driver still recovering from an accident he has some...
(1978) - An Englishman's CastleAn Englishman's CastleAn Englishman's Castle is a BBC television serial first broadcast in 1978 which was written by Philip Mackie. The story was set in an alternate history 1970s, in which Nazi Germany has won World War II and occupied England...
(1978) (TV) - The Spaceman and King Arthur (1979)
- A Tale of Two CitiesA Tale of Two CitiesA Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. With well over 200 million copies sold, it ranks among the most famous works in the history of fictional literature....
(1980) (TV)
Journey to the Centre of the earth(1976)
See also
- Cinema of the United KingdomCinema of the United KingdomThe United Kingdom has had a major influence on modern cinema. The first moving pictures developed on celluloid film were made in Hyde Park, London in 1889 by William Friese Greene, a British inventor, who patented the process in 1890. It is generally regarded that the British film industry...
- List of British actors and actresses
- Sheridan Morley, "More, Kenneth Gilbert (1914–1982)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 12 Sept 2007