Lloyd Lamble
Encyclopedia
Lloyd Nelson Lamble was an Australian actor who worked in theatre, television, radio and film. He lived and worked two-thirds of his life in the United Kingdom (UK).
player in the Sisserman String Quartet, and in symphony orchestras in Melbourne; secretary of the Musicians Union of Australia; a music teacher, pianist, organist, choirmaster, and composer. His grandfather was a music professor.
Lloyd was married three times in Australia. His first marriage to Marjorie ended in divorce. His second marriage to Barbara Smith also ended in divorce, though they had two children together. His third marriage was in his early thirties to actor Lesley Jackson. Lloyd and Lesley adopted two children, and remained together for over 60 years.
Lamble was president of Actors Equity from 1942 to 1948.
In the early 1950s, Lloyd could not get acting work. After a year of selling clothing door-to-door to survive, he left Australia to live the rest of his life in England.
He donated a copy of his 1994 unpublished autobiography to the National Library of Australia
. The book reveals that he was not satisfied with his personal or professional achievements, despite his obvious talents and successes.
of All Saints church St Kilda, Melbourne, and that gained him a scholarship for Wesley College, Melbourne
. His academic record was not outstanding, though he was a keen swimmer and gymnast.
At the age of 17, Lamble became a junior radio announcer for Melbourne commercial radio station 3DB – a post he describes as ‘little more than an office boy’. Senior announcing jobs followed at 3KZ and 3AW. At this time he also did some dance-hall crooning.
His professional stage career started in 1934 when he was chosen for the lead juvenile role in J.C. Williamson’s production of Fresh Fields. Two years later he played the role of Danny, a psychotic murderous Welsh pageboy, in Night Must Fall.
While he was still at 3AW, he began acting with the Lee Murray Radio Players, and that established him as a radio actor. In lighter vein, he was straight man to Roy Rene
(‘Mo’), and a compere and fall guy to Bob Dyer.
Lamble opened a successful school of radio and theatre acting in 1937: the ‘Radio-Theatre Guild’.
Lloyd’s stage career developed fast in 1940 at Sydney’s Minerva Theatre, where he played parts that included: Malvolio in Twelfth Night, Lennie in Of Mice and Men
and Shylock in The Merchant of Venice
. He played 12 stage parts in that year, and 35 in the 16 years between 1934 and 1950.
From 1936 to 1950 Lamble toured Australia and New Zealand
as an actor and director. In 1944 he was leading man and producer in a six-play tour for J.C. Williamson’s in New Zealand. In 1945 he formed his own short-lived performing company – ‘L.L. Enterprises’ – and took plays on tour in Queensland, Australia.
Lloyd Lamble was well known in both the Australian Lux Radio Theatre and the Australian Macquarie Radio Theatre. His first play for Lux was in 1939. Soon he was highly sought-after by other radio stations including the Australian Broadcasting Commission, and later the British Broadcasting Corporation.
In spite of Lloyd’s political left-leanings, he was enlisted by the Australian government to read war propaganda on radio, probably for his strong voice that easily commanded authority.
Lloyd Lamble wrote several radio dramas, one of which is in the National Archives of Australia
. In 1947, he won a Macquarie Award.
and Robert Morley
. Lamble had earlier toured with them in his native Australia. Throughout the rest of his life he played hundreds of acting roles in England: on the stage, in radio, television and film.
Twice daily at the 1977 Edinburgh Festival
, Lloyd performed two one-man plays as a double-bill, each running over an hour. He is well-remembered for his many roles as authority figures, some of which were: Joyce Grenfell’s police-superintendent-fiancée in the St. Trinian’s series; Quentin Crisp’s father in The Naked Civil Servant
; and Sir Oliver Surface in The School For Scandal.
In his seventies, Lamble appeared in a six-month season at the Scottish Dundee Repertory Theatre, where he played the leading role in four out of six repertory
plays. He then played a long season in London’s West End in the revival of Me and My Girl.
, England on 17 March 2008, aged 94. He is survived by his wife Lesley, his son Tim, his daughter Elizabeth, his adopted son Lloyd Wallis Lamble, adopted daughter Caroline, three grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
Personal life
Lloyd Lamble was born in Melbourne to William HS Lamble and Francis AS Lamble (née Potter). He was the youngest of four children, all boys. His father William Lamble was a violaViola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
player in the Sisserman String Quartet, and in symphony orchestras in Melbourne; secretary of the Musicians Union of Australia; a music teacher, pianist, organist, choirmaster, and composer. His grandfather was a music professor.
Lloyd was married three times in Australia. His first marriage to Marjorie ended in divorce. His second marriage to Barbara Smith also ended in divorce, though they had two children together. His third marriage was in his early thirties to actor Lesley Jackson. Lloyd and Lesley adopted two children, and remained together for over 60 years.
Lamble was president of Actors Equity from 1942 to 1948.
In the early 1950s, Lloyd could not get acting work. After a year of selling clothing door-to-door to survive, he left Australia to live the rest of his life in England.
He donated a copy of his 1994 unpublished autobiography to the National Library of Australia
National Library of Australia
The National Library of Australia is the largest reference library of Australia, responsible under the terms of the National Library Act for "maintaining and developing a national collection of library material, including a comprehensive collection of library material relating to Australia and the...
. The book reveals that he was not satisfied with his personal or professional achievements, despite his obvious talents and successes.
Early career in Australia
Before his voice broke, Lloyd Lamble became ‘head boy’ in the choirChoir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
of All Saints church St Kilda, Melbourne, and that gained him a scholarship for Wesley College, Melbourne
Wesley College, Melbourne
Wesley College, Melbourne is an independent, co-educational, Christian day school in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1866, the college is a school of the Uniting Church in Australia. Wesley is the largest school in Australia by enrolment, with 3,511 students and 564 full-time staff...
. His academic record was not outstanding, though he was a keen swimmer and gymnast.
At the age of 17, Lamble became a junior radio announcer for Melbourne commercial radio station 3DB – a post he describes as ‘little more than an office boy’. Senior announcing jobs followed at 3KZ and 3AW. At this time he also did some dance-hall crooning.
His professional stage career started in 1934 when he was chosen for the lead juvenile role in J.C. Williamson’s production of Fresh Fields. Two years later he played the role of Danny, a psychotic murderous Welsh pageboy, in Night Must Fall.
While he was still at 3AW, he began acting with the Lee Murray Radio Players, and that established him as a radio actor. In lighter vein, he was straight man to Roy Rene
Roy Rene
Roy Rene , born Harry van der Sluys, was an Australian comedian and vaudevillian. As the bawdy character Mo McCackie, Rene was one of the most well-known and successful Australian comedians of the 20th century. Roy Rene was born in Adelaide in the 15 of February 1892 with the name Harry van der...
(‘Mo’), and a compere and fall guy to Bob Dyer.
Lamble opened a successful school of radio and theatre acting in 1937: the ‘Radio-Theatre Guild’.
Lloyd’s stage career developed fast in 1940 at Sydney’s Minerva Theatre, where he played parts that included: Malvolio in Twelfth Night, Lennie in Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men is a novella written by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California, USA....
and Shylock in The Merchant of Venice
The Merchant of Venice
The Merchant of Venice is a tragic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. Though classified as a comedy in the First Folio and sharing certain aspects with Shakespeare's other romantic comedies, the play is perhaps most remembered for its dramatic...
. He played 12 stage parts in that year, and 35 in the 16 years between 1934 and 1950.
From 1936 to 1950 Lamble toured Australia and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
as an actor and director. In 1944 he was leading man and producer in a six-play tour for J.C. Williamson’s in New Zealand. In 1945 he formed his own short-lived performing company – ‘L.L. Enterprises’ – and took plays on tour in Queensland, Australia.
Lloyd Lamble was well known in both the Australian Lux Radio Theatre and the Australian Macquarie Radio Theatre. His first play for Lux was in 1939. Soon he was highly sought-after by other radio stations including the Australian Broadcasting Commission, and later the British Broadcasting Corporation.
In spite of Lloyd’s political left-leanings, he was enlisted by the Australian government to read war propaganda on radio, probably for his strong voice that easily commanded authority.
Lloyd Lamble wrote several radio dramas, one of which is in the National Archives of Australia
National Archives of Australia
The National Archives of Australia is a body established by the Government of Australia for the purpose of preserving Commonwealth Government records. It is an Executive Agency of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and reports to the Cabinet Secretary, Senator Joe Ludwig.The national...
. In 1947, he won a Macquarie Award.
Career in the UK
One of Lloyd Lamble’s first acting roles in England was in 1952, playing in the comedy Curtain Up, alongside Margaret RutherfordMargaret Rutherford
Dame Margaret Taylor Rutherford DBE was an English character actress, who first came to prominence following World War II in the film adaptations of Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit, and Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest...
and Robert Morley
Robert Morley
Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE was an English actor who, often in supporting roles, was usually cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment...
. Lamble had earlier toured with them in his native Australia. Throughout the rest of his life he played hundreds of acting roles in England: on the stage, in radio, television and film.
Twice daily at the 1977 Edinburgh Festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
, Lloyd performed two one-man plays as a double-bill, each running over an hour. He is well-remembered for his many roles as authority figures, some of which were: Joyce Grenfell’s police-superintendent-fiancée in the St. Trinian’s series; Quentin Crisp’s father in The Naked Civil Servant
The Naked Civil Servant (film)
The Naked Civil Servant is a 1975 TV film based on the 1968 autobiography by the gay icon Quentin Crisp, also titled The Naked Civil Servant. It stars John Hurt in the title role....
; and Sir Oliver Surface in The School For Scandal.
In his seventies, Lamble appeared in a six-month season at the Scottish Dundee Repertory Theatre, where he played the leading role in four out of six 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...
plays. He then played a long season in London’s West End in the revival of Me and My Girl.
Death
Lloyd Lamble died in FalmouthFalmouth, Cornwall
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.Falmouth is the terminus of the A39, which begins some 200 miles away in Bath, Somerset....
, England on 17 March 2008, aged 94. He is survived by his wife Lesley, his son Tim, his daughter Elizabeth, his adopted son Lloyd Wallis Lamble, adopted daughter Caroline, three grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
Filmography
- Strong Is the SeedStrong Is the SeedStrong is the Seed is a 1949 Australian drama film, about the life of William Farrer. The film is also known as The Farrer Story.- Cast :*Guy Doleman as William Farrer*Marie Marsden as Nina de Salis*Lloyd Lamble as Dr Guthrie*Queenie Ashton...
(1949) - Saturday IslandSaturday IslandSaturday Island is a 1952 British romantic war film directed by Stuart Heisler and starring Linda Darnell, Tab Hunter, Donald Gray and John Laurie, Lloyd Lamble and Peter Butterworth....
(1952) - Curtain UpCurtain UpCurtain Up is a 1952 British film directed by Ralph Smart, written by Jack Davies and Philip King. It is based on the play Sunday for Seven Days by Philip King.-Plot:...
(1952) - Lady in the FogLady in the FogLady in the Fog is a 1952 British Mystery film directed by Sam Newfield and starring Cesar Romero, Lois Maxwell, Campbell Singer and Lloyd Lamble. An English woman asks for help from a visiting American detective to London to help her find out who has killed her brother. Killing people is bad.It...
(1952) - The Story of Gilbert and SullivanThe Story of Gilbert and SullivanThe Story of Gilbert and Sullivan is a 1953 British technicolor film that dramatises the story of the collaboration between W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. Gilbert and Sullivan authored 14 comic operas, later referred to as the Savoy Operas, which became the most popular series of musical...
(1953) - MantrapMantrap (1953 film)Mantrap is a 1953 drama film directed by Terence Fisher. It stars Paul Henreid and Lois Maxwell.-Cast:*Paul Henreid as Hugo Bishop*Lois Maxwell as Thelma Speight*Kieron Moore as Speight*Hugh Sinclair as Maurice Jerrard...
(1953) - Street CornerStreet Corner (1953 film)Street Corner is a 1953 British drama film. It was written by Muriel and Sydney Box and directed by Muriel. It was marketed as Both Sides of the Law in the United States. While not quite a documentary, the film depicts the daily routine of women in the police force from three different angles...
(1953) - BackgroundBackground (1953 film)Background is a 1953 British domestic drama film dealing with the effects of divorce, directed by Daniel Birt and starring Valerie Hobson, Philip Friend and Norman Wooland...
(1953) - Three Steps to the GallowsThree Steps to the GallowsThree Steps to the Gallows is a 1953 British crime film directed by John Gilling and starring Scott Brady, Mary Castle and Gabrielle Brune. An American comes to London to attempt to save his brother from being hanged for a murder he didn't commit....
(1953) - The Silent Witness (1954, short)
- Forbidden CargoForbidden Cargo (1954 film)Forbidden Cargo is a 1954 British film starring Jack Warner, Nigel Patrick and Elizabeth Sellars. The plot involved a narcotics agent tryinng to halt illegal drug smuggling under the cover of bird-watching.-Cast:* Jack Warner as Major Alec White...
(1954) - Fatal Journey (1954)
- The Belles of St Trinian'sThe Belles of St Trinian'sThe Belles of St Trinian's is a comedy film set in the fictional St Trinian's School, released in 1954. It and its sequels were inspired by British cartoonist Ronald Searle. Directed by Frank Launder and written by him and Sidney Gilliat, it was the first of a series of five...
(1954) - Profile (1954)
- Out of the CloudsOut of the CloudsOut of the Clouds is a 1955 British drama film directed by Basil Dearden, and starring Anthony Steel, Sid James and James Robertson Justice. An Ealing Studios film, it follows the lives of the passengers and crew on a day at an airport that was filmed in Heathrow Airport.-Description:The film was...
(1955) - Track the Man DownTrack the Man DownTrack the Man Down is a 1955 British drama film written by Paul Erickson and directed by R.G. Springsteen.The melodramatic crime caper centers on a robbery at a greyhound racetrack that results in the unintentional murder of a guard...
(1955) - The Green Carnation (1955)
- The Blue Peter (1955)
- Suspended AlibiSuspended AlibiSuspended Alibi is a 1957 British crime film directed by Alfred Shaughnessy and starring Patrick Holt, Honor Blackman and Lloyd Lamble.-Cast:* Patrick Holt as Paul Pearson* Honor Blackman as Lynn Pearson* Valentine Dyall as Inspector Kayes...
(1956) - Private's ProgressPrivate's ProgressPrivate's Progress is a 1956 British comedy film based on the novel by Alan Hackney. It was directed and produced by John and Roy Boulting, from a script by John Boulting and Frank Harvey.-Plot:...
(1956) - The Gelignite GangThe Gelignite GangThe Gelignite Gang is a 1956 crime film directed by Terence Fisher. It stars Wayne Morris and Sandra Dorne.-Cast:* Wayne Morris as Jimmy Baxter* Sandra Dorne as Sally Morton* Patrick Holt as John Rutherford* Eric Pohlmann as Mr. Popoulus...
(1956) - The Man Who Never WasThe Man Who Never WasThe Man Who Never Was is a nonfiction 1953 book by Ewen Montagu and a 1956 Second World War war film, based on the book and dramatising actual events...
(1956) - The Man Who Knew Too MuchThe Man Who Knew Too Much (1956 film)The Man Who Knew Too Much is a suspense film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring James Stewart and Doris Day. The film is a remake in widescreen VistaVision and Technicolor of Hitchcock's 1934 film of the same name....
(1956) - Person Unknown (1956)
- The Girl in the Picture (1957)
- Suspended AlibiSuspended AlibiSuspended Alibi is a 1957 British crime film directed by Alfred Shaughnessy and starring Patrick Holt, Honor Blackman and Lloyd Lamble.-Cast:* Patrick Holt as Paul Pearson* Honor Blackman as Lynn Pearson* Valentine Dyall as Inspector Kayes...
(1957)
- There's Always a ThursdayThere's Always a ThursdayThere's Always a Thursday is a 1957 British crime film directed by Charles Saunders and starring Charles Victor, Jill Ireland, Lloyd Lamble and Robert Raglan...
(1957) - Quatermass 2Quatermass 2Quatermass 2 is a 1957 British science fiction horror film. Made by Hammer Film Productions, it is a sequel to an earlier Hammer film The Quatermass Xperiment. Like its predecessor, it is based on a BBC Television serial – Quatermass II – written by Nigel Kneale...
(1957) - These Dangerous YearsThese Dangerous YearsThese Dangerous Years is a 1957 British comedy musical film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring George Baker, Frankie Vaughan, Carole Lesley, Thora Hird, Kenneth Cope, David Lodge and John Le Mesurier....
(1957) - Sea WifeSea WifeSea Wife is a British film based on the 1955 James Maurice Scott novel Sea-Wyf and Biscuit. Shot in Jamaica, the film is set around events in 1942 among a group of survivors from a torpedoed British refugee ship.-Plot:...
(1957) - Night of the DemonNight of the DemonNight of the Demon is a 1957 British horror film directed by Jacques Tourneur, starring Dana Andrews, Peggy Cummins and Niall MacGinnis. An adaptation of the M. R...
(1957) - Barnacle Bill (1957)
- Blue Murder at St Trinian'sBlue Murder at St Trinian'sBlue Murder at St Trinian's is British comedy film set in the fictional St Trinian's School. Directed by Frank Launder and written by him and Sidney Gilliat, it was the second of the series of five films and stars Terry-Thomas, George Cole, Joyce Grenfell, Lionel Jeffries and Richard...
(1957) - The Man Who Wouldn't TalkThe Man Who Wouldn't TalkThe Man Who Wouldn't Talk is a 1958 British drama film directed by Herbert Wilcox. It starred Anna Neagle, Anthony Quayle, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Dora Bryan, John Le Mesurier and Lloyd Lamble.-Synopsis:...
(1958) - DunkirkDunkirk (film)Dunkirk is a 1958 British war film directed by Leslie Norman and starring John Mills, Richard Attenborough and Bernard Lee. It was based on two novels: Elleston Trevor's The Big Pick-Up and Lt. Col. Ewan Hunter and Maj. J. S...
(1958) - Print of Death (1958)
- The Bank RaidersThe Bank RaidersThe Bank Raiders is a 1958 British crime film directed by Maxwell Munden and starring Peter Reynolds, Sandra Dorne and Lloyd Lamble.-Cast:* Peter Reynolds as Terry Milligan* Sandra Dorne as Della Byrne* Sydney Tafler as Bernie Shelton...
(1958) - The Heart of a ManThe Heart of a ManThe Heart of a Man is a 1959 British drama film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Frankie Vaughan, Anne Heywood and Tony Britton. A millionaire in disguise gives a young man money to help him pursue his singing career.-Cast:...
(1959) - No Trees in the StreetNo Trees in the StreetNo Trees in the Street is a 1959 British crime thriller directed by J. Lee Thompson.-Cast:* Sylvia Syms as Hetty* Herbert Lom as Wilkie* Melvyn Hayes as Tommy* Ronald Howard as Frank* Stanley Holloway as Kipper* Joan Miller as Jess...
(1959) - Behemoth the Sea Monster (1959)
- The ChallengeThe Challenge (1960 film)The Challenge, released as It Takes a Thief in the United States, is a 1960 British crime film directed by John Gilling and starring Jayne Mansfield and Anthony Quayle.-Cast:*Jayne Mansfield ... Billy*Anthony Quayle ... Jim...
(1960) - The Trials of Oscar WildeThe Trials of Oscar WildeThe Trials of Oscar Wilde also known as The Man with the Green Carnation and The Green Carnation, is a 1960 British film based on the libel and subsequent criminal cases involving Oscar Wilde and the Marquess of Queensberry. It was produced by Irving Allen, written by Allen and Ken Hughes and...
(1960) - The SundownersThe SundownersThe Sundowners is a 1960 film that tells the story of an Australian outback family torn between the father's desires to continue his nomadic sheep-herding ways and the wife's and son's desire to settle down in one place...
(1960) - The Pure Hell of St Trinian'sThe Pure Hell of St Trinian'sThe Pure Hell of St Trinian's was a 1960 British comedy film set in the fictional St Trinian's School. Directed by Frank Launder and written by him and Sidney Gilliat, it was the third in a series of five films.-Plot:...
(1960) - Term of TrialTerm of TrialTerm of Trial is a 1962 British drama film made by Romulus Films Ltd. and distributed by Warner-Pathé. It was written and directed by Peter Glenville and produced by James Woolf with James H. Ware as associate producer from a screenplay based on the novel of the same name by James Barlow...
(1962) - The BoysThe Boys (1962 film)The Boys is a 1962 British courtroom drama film, directed by Sidney J. Furie and with a screenplay by Stuart Douglass.-Plot:A night watchman at a garage is found murdered, and four teddy boys are put on trial for the crime...
(1962) - Joey BoyJoey Boy (film)Joey Boy is a 1965 British comedy war film directed by Frank Launder and starring Harry H. Corbett, Stanley Baxter, Bill Fraser, Percy Herbert, Lance Percival, Reg Varney and Thorley Walters.-Synopsis:...
(1965) - No Sex Please, We're BritishNo Sex Please, We're British (film)No Sex Please, We're British is a 1973 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Ronnie Corbett, Ian Ogilvy, Susan Penhaligon and Arthur Lowe...
(1973) - -- And Now the Screaming Starts! (1973)
- On the Game (1974)
- Eskimo NellEskimo Nell (film)Eskimo Nell, a.k.a. The Ballad of Eskimo Nell a.k.a The Sexy Saga of Naughty Nell and Big Dick , is a 1975 British film directed by Martin Campbell and produced by Stanley Long...
(1975)
External links
- Obituary: Obituary: Guardian
- Obituary: The Times on Line