Early life

Bowles was born 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...

, 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...

, the son of Sarah Jane (née

Married and maiden names

A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....

 Harrison) and Herbert Reginald Bowles. His father was a chauffeur and butler at a stately home in Warwickshire

Warwickshire

Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...

; but, upon the outbreak of 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...

, he was seconded to work as an engineer at Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce Limited

Rolls-Royce Limited was a renowned British car and, from 1914 on, aero-engine manufacturing company founded by Charles Stewart Rolls and Henry Royce on 15 March 1906 as the result of a partnership formed in 1904....

 and moved the family to Nottingham

Nottingham

Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...

. Young Peter attended Nottingham High Pavement Grammar School and then trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art

The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art is a drama school located in London, United Kingdom. It is generally regarded as one of the most renowned drama schools in the world, and is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1904.RADA is an affiliate school of the...

), where he is still an Associate.

Career

Bowles had a long apprenticeship, beginning in the era of live television, including an episode of Armchair Theatre

Armchair Theatre

Armchair Theatre is a British television drama anthology series, which ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by Associated British Corporation, and later by Thames Television after 1968....

(Underground

Underground (1958 TV play)

Underground was a science fiction television play presented as part of the British anthology series Armchair Theatre which was broadcast live by the ITV commercial network on 30 November 1958...

, 1958) during which another actor suffered a fatal heart attack. Having appeared in three episodes of The Avengers

The Avengers (TV series)

The Avengers is a spy-fi British television series set in the 1960s Britain. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed . Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants...

in the 1960s, he eventually became well known for portraying upper class

Upper class

In social science, the "upper class" is the group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. Members of an upper class may have great power over the allocation of resources and governmental policy in their area.- Historical meaning :...

 characters typically caught in hilarious situations. This led to what is probably still his best known role, in To the Manor Born

To the Manor Born

To the Manor Born is a British sitcom that first aired on BBC1 from 1979 to 1981. A special edition appeared in 2007. Starring Penelope Keith and Peter Bowles, the first 20 episodes and the 2007 special were written by Peter Spence, the creator, while the 1981 finale was written by Christopher...

, in which he co-starred with Penelope Keith

Penelope Keith

Penelope Anne Constance Keith, CBE, DL is an English actress.Having started her television career in the 1950s, Penelope Keith became a household name in the United Kingdom in the 1970s when she played Margo Leadbetter in the sitcom The Good Life...

 (1979–81, 2007), playing the apparently aristocratic (but in fact self-made immigrant) businessman Richard DeVere.

His career now took off and he starred in television comedies including Only When I Laugh

Only When I Laugh (TV series)

Only When I Laugh is a British television sitcom made by Yorkshire Television for ITV between 29 October 1979 and 16 December 1982. It was set in the ward of an NHS hospital. The title is the answer to the question, "Does it hurt?"...

, The Irish R.M.

The Irish R.M.

The Irish R.M. refers to a series of books by the Anglo-Irish novelists Somerville and Ross, and the television comedy-drama series based on them...

, The Bounder

The Bounder

The Bounder is a British sitcom ran from 16 April 1982 to 28 October 1983 made by Yorkshire Television. The series starred Peter Bowles as Howard Booth, an ex-convict who served two years in jail. He lives with Trevor Mountjoy who's his brother in law, and his wife Mary Rosalind Ayres. The latter...

, and Perfect Scoundrels

Perfect Scoundrels (TV series)

Perfect Scoundrels is a 1990's drama following two con-mens' travels while ripping off the public. Running for three series between 1990 and 1992, it is a popular series but has failed to be granted, as of October 2011, a DVD release...

. Bowles also appeared as a regular in the first few series of Rumpole of the Bailey

Rumpole of the Bailey

Rumpole of the Bailey is a British television series created and written by the British writer and barrister John Mortimer which starred Leo McKern as Horace Rumpole, an ageing London barrister who defends any and all clients...

as Guthrie Featherstone, QC

Queen's Counsel

Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...

, MP

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

, Horace Rumpole's social-climbing head of chambers. In later seasons, Guthrie became a judge and left Rumpole's chambers; but a disgruntled Rumpole still found himself appearing occasionally before Mr Justice Featherstone, usually once per season. In 1966, he co-starred with Vivian Pickles in the BBC TV film Isadora Duncan, the Biggest Dancer in the World

Isadora Duncan, the Biggest Dancer in the World

Isadora Duncan, the Biggest Dancer in the World, was a BBC TV film based on the life of the American dancer Isadora Duncan first broadcast on 22 September 1966. The film was written by Sewell Stokes and the director Ken Russell and starred Vivian Pickles and Peter Bowles.Sewell Stokes became...

directed by Ken Russell

Ken Russell

Henry Kenneth Alfred "Ken" Russell was an English film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. He attracted criticism as being obsessed with sexuality and the church...

. He appeared in the final episode of the BBC's I, Claudius

I, Claudius

I, Claudius is a novel by English writer Robert Graves, written in the form of an autobiography of the Roman Emperor Claudius. As such, it includes history of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty and Roman Empire, from Julius Caesar's assassination in 44 BC to Caligula's assassination in AD 41...

in 1976 in the role of the British chieftain Caractacus. He later appeared in the mid-'80s BAFTA-award winning Executive Stress

Executive Stress

Executive Stress is a British sitcom that aired on ITV from 1986 to 1988. Produced by Thames Television, it first aired on 20 October 1986. After three series, the last episode aired on 27 December 1988....

on ITV.

Bowles also played the agent known as 'A' in 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...

episode "A. B. and C.

A. B. and C.

"A. B. and C." is the title of the third episode of the British science fiction-allegorical series, The Prisoner. It originally aired in the UK on ITV on 13 October 1967 and was first broadcast in the United States on CBS on 22 June 1968....

", and the alien Balor in the Space: 1999

Space: 1999

Space: 1999 is a British science-fiction television series that ran for two seasons and originally aired from 1975 to 1977. In the opening episode, nuclear waste from Earth stored on the Moon's far side explodes in a catastrophic accident on 13 September 1999, knocking the Moon out of orbit and...

episode "End of Eternity". He also appeared as Carolyn Seymour

Carolyn Seymour

Carolyn Seymour is an English actress, best associated with portraying the role of Abby Grant in the BBC series Survivors in 1975....

's husband in the first episode of Survivors

Survivors

Survivors is a British post-apocalyptic fiction television series devised by Terry Nation and produced by Terence Dudley at the BBC from 1975 to 1977...

and in four episodes of The Avengers

The Avengers (TV series)

The Avengers is a spy-fi British television series set in the 1960s Britain. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed . Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants...

.

He continues to work regularly in theatre, including London's 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...

, while appearing at the Chichester Festival Theatre

Chichester Festival Theatre

Chichester Festival Theatre, located in Chichester, England, was designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, and opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Martin in 1962. Subsequently the smaller and more intimate Minerva Theatre was built nearby in 1989....

 in The Waltz of the Toreadors

The Waltz of the Toreadors

The Waltz of the Toreadors [La Valse des toréadors] is a play by Jean Anouilh.Written in 1951, this farce is set in 1910 France and focuses on General Léon Saint-Pé and his infatuation with Ghislaine, a woman with whom he danced at a garrison ball some 17 years earlier. Because of the General's...

In October 2007, he appeared opposite Claire Bloom

Claire Bloom

Claire Bloom is an English film and stage actress.-Early life:Bloom was born in the North London suburb of Finchley, the daughter of Elizabeth and Edward Max Blume, who worked in sales...

 in Love Letters

Love Letters (play)

Love Letters is a Pulitzer Prize for Drama nominated play by A. R. Gurney. The play centers on just two characters, Melissa Gardner and Andrew Makepeace Ladd III...

at the Théâtre Princesse Grace, Monte Carlo as part of the British Theatre Season, Monaco.

Bowles appeared in The Browning Version at the Theatre Royal Bath in June 2009.

In 2008, he appeared as one of the suspects in an episode of Agatha Christie's Poirot

Agatha Christie's Poirot

Agatha Christie's Poirot is a British television drama that has aired on ITV since 1989. It stars David Suchet as Agatha Christie's fictional detective Hercule Poirot. It was originally made by LWT and is now made by ITV Studios...

.

In November 2010, he starred at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket opposite Penelope Keith

Penelope Keith

Penelope Anne Constance Keith, CBE, DL is an English actress.Having started her television career in the 1950s, Penelope Keith became a household name in the United Kingdom in the 1970s when she played Margo Leadbetter in the sitcom The Good Life...

 in Sheridan

Richard Brinsley Sheridan

Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan was an Irish-born playwright and poet and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. For thirty-two years he was also a Whig Member of the British House of Commons for Stafford , Westminster and Ilchester...

's The Rivals

The Rivals

The Rivals, a play by Richard Brinsley Sheridan, is a comedy of manners in five acts. It was first performed on 17 January 1775.- Production :...

.

In 2011, he played "Lionel Carson" in the Doctor Who Spin-Off, The Sarah Jane Adventures

The Sarah Jane Adventures

The Sarah Jane Adventures is a British science fiction television series, produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies and starring Elisabeth Sladen...

.

Partial filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1965	Three Hats for Lisa Three Hats for Lisa Three Hats for Lisa is a 1965 British comedy film directed by Sidney Hayers and starring Joe Brown, Sophie Hardy]], Una Stubbs and Dave Nelson.-Cast:* Joe Brown - Johnny Howjego* Sophie Hardy - Lisa Milan* Una Stubbs - Flora* Sid James - Sid Marks...	Pepper
1966	Blowup Blowup Blowup is a 1966 film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, his first English-language film.It tells of a British photographer's accidental involvement with a murder, inspired by Julio Cortázar's short story, "Las babas del diablo" or "The Devil's Drool" , translated also as Blow-Up, and by the life...	Ron
1968	The Charge of the Light Brigade The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968 film) The Charge of the Light Brigade is a 1968 British war film made by Woodfall Film Productions and distributed by United Artists . It was directed by Tony Richardson and produced by Neil Hartley....	Paymaster Paymaster A paymaster often is, but is not required to be, a lawyer . When dealing with commission payments on contracts dealing with large amounts of money , most banks in the United States are very wary of handling such large amounts of money...  Capt. Captain (British Army and Royal Marines) Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...  Henry Duberly
1969	The Assassination Bureau The Assassination Bureau The Assassination Bureau Limited is a black comedy film made in 1969 based on an unfinished novel, The Assassination Bureau, Ltd by Jack London...	Jealous lover
1969	Laughter in the Dark Laughter in the Dark (film) Laughter in the Dark is a 1969 French-British drama film directed by Tony Richardson and starring Nicol Williamson and Anna Karina. It is based on the novel of the same name. Nicol Williamson was brought in as a very late replacement for Richard Burton, who had already shot several scenes...	Paul
1970	Eyewitness Eyewitness (1970 film) Eyewitness is a 1970 British drama film directed by John Hough.-Cast:* Mark Lester as Ziggy* Lionel Jeffries as Grandpa* Susan George as Pippa* Jeremy Kemp as Inspector Galleria* Peter Vaughan as Paul Grazzini* Tony Bonner as Tom Jones...	Victor Grazzini	Also known as Sudden Terror
1972	The Offence The Offence The Offence is a 1972 drama film, based upon the acclaimed 1968 stage play This Story of Yours by John Hopkins, directed by Sidney Lumet under the working title Something Like the Truth. It stars Sean Connery as police detective Johnson, who kills Kenneth Baxter , a suspected child molester, while...	Detective Inspector Cameron
1973	The Legend of Hell House The Legend of Hell House The Legend of Hell House is a 1973 British horror film directed by John Hough and starring Pamela Franklin, Roddy McDowall, Clive Revill, and Gayle Hunnicutt. The screenplay was written by Richard Matheson based on his own novel Hell House.-Plot:...	Hanley
1977	For the Love of Benji For the Love of Benji For the Love of Benji is the second film featuring Benji the dog and was released in 1977.-Plot synopsis:In this film, Benji is lost and becomes a stray animal in Athens, Greece, trying to reunite with his family while secret agents pursue him, trying to get a formula which was glued to his paw in...	Ronald
1977	The Disappearance The Disappearance The Disappearance is a 1977 British-Canadian thriller film directed by Stuart Cooper and starring Donald Sutherland, Francine Racette and David Hemmings.-Cast:* Donald Sutherland - Jay Mallory* Francine Racette - Celandine* David Hemmings - Edward...	Jefferies
1989	Try This One for Size Try This One for Size Try this One for Size is a 1989 film directed by Guy Hamilton, his last film to date. It stars Michael Brandon and David Carradine.-Cast:*Michael Brandon as Tom Lepski*David Carradine as Bradley*Arielle Dombasle as Maggie*Guy Marchand as Ottovioni...	Igor
1990-1992	Perfect Scoundrels Perfect Scoundrels (TV series) Perfect Scoundrels is a 1990's drama following two con-mens' travels while ripping off the public. Running for three series between 1990 and 1992, it is a popular series but has failed to be granted, as of October 2011, a DVD release...	Guy
1995	The Steal The Steal (film) The Steal is a 1995 British comedy thriller film directed by John Hay and starring Alfred Molina, Helen Slater and Peter Bowles. A London lawyer attempts to get even with a property development company who have cheated some poor islanders out of their land....	Lord Childwell
1999	Tumbled	Mr. Gilzean	Short film
2007	Ballet Shoes Ballet Shoes (film) Ballet Shoes is a 2007 British television film, adapted by Heidi Thomas from Noel Streatfeild's 1936 novel Ballet Shoes. It was produced by Granada Productions and premiered on BBC One on 26 December 2007...	Sir Donald Houghton	Made-for-television film
2008	Freebird Freebird (film) Freebird is a 2008 British comedy film directed by Jon Ivay and starring Gary Stretch, Geoff Bell, Phil Daniels and Peter Bowles.-Plot:Three friends, Fred , Tyg and Grouch , set out on a motorcycle trip to Wales in order to bring back a haul of cannabis for Fred's friend The Chairman...	The Chairman
2008	The Bank Job The Bank Job The Bank Job is a 2008 British crime film written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, directed by Roger Donaldson, and starring Jason Statham, based on the 1971 Baker Street robbery in central London, from which the money and valuables stolen were never recovered...	Miles Urquart
2011	No Ordinary Trifle No Ordinary Trifle Love's Kitchen is a 2011 British romantic comedy film directed by James Hacking and starring Dougray Scott, Claire Forlani, and Michelle Ryan...	Max Templeton	Also known as Love's Kitchen

External links