Warren Mitchell
Encyclopedia
Warren Mitchell is an English actor who rose to initial prominence in the role of bigoted cockney
Alf Garnett
in the BBC
television sitcom Till Death Us Do Part (1965–75), and its sequels Till Death...
(ATV
) (1981) and In Sickness and in Health
(BBC) (1985–92), all of which were written by Johnny Speight
. He holds both British and Australian citizenship and has enjoyed considerable success in stage performances in both countries.
, London. His father was a glass and china merchant. He is of Russian Jewish descent, but describes himself in interviews as an atheist who sometimes believes in God.
He was interested in acting from an early age, and attended the Gladys Gordon's Academy of Dramatic Arts in Walthamstow
from the age of seven. He did well at school and read physical chemistry at University College, Oxford
, for six months. There he met his contemporary Richard Burton
, and together they joined the RAF
in 1944. He completed his navigator training in Canada just as the war
ended.
's description of the acting profession had convinced him that it would be better than completing his chemistry degree and so Mitchell attended RADA
for two years, performing in the evening with the Unity Theatre
. After a short stint as a DJ on Radio Luxembourg
, in 1951, Mitchell became a versatile professional actor with straight and comedy roles on stage, radio, film and television. His first broadcast was as a regular on the radio show Educating Archie
, and this led to appearances on Hancock's Half Hour
. By the late fifties, he regularly appeared on television: as Sean Connery
's trainer in boxing drama Requiem for a Heavyweight
(1957), with Charlie Drake
in the sitcom Drake's Progress (BBC, 1957) and a title role in Three 'Tough' Guys (ITV, 1957), in which he played a bungling criminal. He also appeared in several episodes of Armchair Theatre
, during the first of these in 1958 (Underground
) one of the lead actors died during the live performance, and The Avengers
in addition to many ITC
drama series including: William Tell
, The Four Just Men, Sir Francis Drake, Danger Man
and as a recurrent guest in The Saint
.
His cinema début came in 1957 in Guy Hamilton
's Manuela
, and he began a career of minor roles as sinister foreign agents, assisted by his premature baldness and facility with eastern European accents. He appeared in The Roman Spring of Mrs Stone (José Quintero
, 1961), Carry On Cleo, 1964, and Help!
(Richard Lester
, 1965) and played leads in All The Way Up (James MacTaggart
, 1970), The Chain
(Jack Gold
, 1984), The Dunera Boys (Ben Lewin, 1985) and Foreign Body
(Ronald Neame
, 1986).
In 1965, he was cast as Alf Garnett
in a play for the BBC Comedy Playhouse
series, broadcast on 22 July 1965. This was the pilot edition of the long-running series Till Death Us Do Part with Gretchen Franklin
, Una Stubbs
and Anthony Booth
. The part of Mum, played by Gretchen Franklin, was taken by Dandy Nichols
when the programme was commissioned as a series. Mitchell may be best known for his role as the bigoted cockney
West Ham United F.C.
supporter, Alf Garnett, but ironically, his real life persona is quite different, being a left-winger, Jewish, and a staunch supporter of Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
The show ran from 1966 to 1975, in seven series, making a total of 53 30-minute episodes.
He has a long and distinguished career on stage and television. Other small screen roles include performances in The Sweeney
(Thames Television
for ITV
, 1978), Lovejoy
(BBC), Waking the Dead
(BBC), Kavanagh QC
(Carlton Television
for ITV
), The Merchant of Venice
(BBC, 1980) and Gormenghast. In 2001, he appeared in a Christmas Special episode of Last of the Summer Wine
, "Potts in Pole Position".
On stage he received extensive critical acclaim for his performances in Arthur Miller
's Death of a Salesman
and Harold Pinter
's The Caretaker
at the National Theatre
; and Pinter's The Homecoming
and Miller's The Price in the West End, also appearing in Visiting Mr. Green
in 2007 and 2008.
After the cancellation of the Alf Garnett sequel series In Sickness And In Health
, Mitchell returned to the role of Alf on a number of occasions. ITV aired a series of mini episodes called A Word With Alf featuring Alf and his friends. When Johnny Speight
died in 1998, the series was cancelled at Mitchell's request.
Award for best supporting actor in the film Norman Loves Rose. He has received two Laurence Olivier Theatre Awards—for playing Willie Loman in Arthur Miller
's Death of a Salesman
(National Theatre, 1979) and as best supporting actor in a 2003 performance of The Price, also by Miller.
. He has been married since 1951 to Connie (Constance M. Wake), an actress who appeared in early 1960s television dramas such as Maigret. They have three children; Rebecca, Daniel (also an actor) and Anna (also known as Georgia Mitchell). For over twenty years, Mitchell has suffered pain from nerve damage, caused by Transverse myelitis
, and is a supporter of the Neuropathy Trust. He suffered a mild stroke in August 2004.
Cockney
The term Cockney has both geographical and linguistic associations. Geographically and culturally, it often refers to working class Londoners, particularly those in the East End...
Alf Garnett
Alf Garnett
Alf Garnett is a fictional character in the British sitcoms Till Death Us Do Part, Till Death... and In Sickness and in Health, and chat show The Thoughts of Chairman Alf. He was created by Johnny Speight and played by Warren Mitchell....
in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television sitcom Till Death Us Do Part (1965–75), and its sequels Till Death...
Till Death...
Till Death... was an ITV sitcom that aired from 22 May to 3 July 1981.-Series:In 1981, the popular TV sitcom Till Death Us Do Part was picked up by ITV company ATV and brought back for a further six episodes, this time under the title Till Death... as the title Till Death Us Do Part was controlled...
(ATV
Associated TeleVision
Associated Television, often referred to as ATV, was a British television company, holder of various licences to broadcast on the ITV network from 24 September 1955 until 00:34 on 1 January 1982...
) (1981) and In Sickness and in Health
In Sickness and in Health
In Sickness and in Health was a BBC television sitcom which ran between 1985 and 1992. It was also a sequel to both the highly successful Til Death Us Do Part which ran between 1966 and 1975 and Till Death... which ran for one series in 1981.-Series 1:This comedy series debuted in 1985 and took...
(BBC) (1985–92), all of which were written by Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight , was a British television scriptwriter of many classic British sitcoms.He emerged in the mid 1950s. He wrote for the radio comics; Frankie Howerd, Vic Oliver, Arthur Askey, and Cyril Fletcher. For television he wrote for the Arthur Haynes Show, Morecambe & Wise, and Peter Sellers...
. He holds both British and Australian citizenship and has enjoyed considerable success in stage performances in both countries.
Early life
Mitchell was born in Stoke NewingtonStoke Newington
Stoke Newington is a district in the London Borough of Hackney. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Boundaries:In modern terms, Stoke Newington can be roughly defined by the N16 postcode area . Its southern boundary with Dalston is quite ill-defined too...
, London. His father was a glass and china merchant. He is of Russian Jewish descent, but describes himself in interviews as an atheist who sometimes believes in God.
He was interested in acting from an early age, and attended the Gladys Gordon's Academy of Dramatic Arts in Walthamstow
Walthamstow
Walthamstow is a district of northeast London, England, located in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is situated north-east of Charing Cross...
from the age of seven. He did well at school and read physical chemistry at University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
, for six months. There he met his contemporary Richard Burton
Richard Burton
Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...
, and together they joined 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...
in 1944. He completed his navigator training in Canada just as the war
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...
ended.
Career
Richard BurtonRichard Burton
Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...
's description of the acting profession had convinced him that it would be better than completing his chemistry degree and so Mitchell attended 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...
for two years, performing in the evening with the Unity Theatre
Unity Theatre, London
The Unity Theatre was a theatre club formed in 1936, and initially based in St Judes Hall, Britannia Street, Kings Cross, in 1937 they moved to a former chapel in Goldington Street, near St Pancras, in the London Borough of Camden. Although the theatre was destroyed by fire in 1975 productions...
. After a short stint as a DJ on Radio Luxembourg
Radio Luxembourg (English)
Radio Luxembourg is a commercial broadcaster in many languages from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It is nowadays known in most non-English languages as RTL ....
, in 1951, Mitchell became a versatile professional actor with straight and comedy roles on stage, radio, film and television. His first broadcast was as a regular on the radio show Educating Archie
Educating Archie
Educating Archie was a BBC Light Programme comedy show broadcast from June 1950 to February 1958 on Sunday lunchtimes featuring ventriloquist Peter Brough and his doll Archie Andrews. The programme was successful despite a ventriloquist on radio seeming strange, though in the United States, Edgar...
, and this led to appearances on Hancock's Half Hour
Hancock's Half Hour
Hancock's Half Hour was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy, series of the 1950s and 60s written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The series starred Tony Hancock, with Sid James; the radio version also co-starred, at various times, Moira Lister, Andrée Melly, Hattie Jacques, Bill Kerr...
. By the late fifties, he regularly appeared on television: as Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
's trainer in boxing drama Requiem for a Heavyweight
Requiem for a Heavyweight
Requiem for a Heavyweight was a teleplay written by Rod Serling and produced for the live television show Playhouse 90 on 11 October 1956. Six years later, it was adapted as a 1962 feature film starring Anthony Quinn, Jackie Gleason and Mickey Rooney....
(1957), with Charlie Drake
Charlie Drake
Charlie Drake was an English comedian, actor, writer and singer.With his small stature , curly red hair and liking for slapstick he was a popular comedian with children in his early years, becoming nationally-known for his "Hello, my darlings" catchphrase...
in the sitcom Drake's Progress (BBC, 1957) and a title role in Three 'Tough' Guys (ITV, 1957), in which he played a bungling criminal. He also appeared in several episodes 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....
, during the first of these in 1958 (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...
) one of the lead actors died during the live performance, and 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 addition to many ITC
ITC Entertainment
The Incorporated Television Company was a British television company largely involved in production and distribution. It was founded by Lew Grade.-History:...
drama series including: William Tell
William Tell
William Tell is a folk hero of Switzerland. His legend is recorded in a late 15th century Swiss chronicle....
, The Four Just Men, Sir Francis Drake, Danger Man
Danger Man
Danger Man is a British television series that was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again between 1964 and 1968. The series featured Patrick McGoohan as secret agent John Drake. Ralph Smart created the program and wrote many of the scripts...
and as a recurrent guest in The Saint
The Saint (TV series)
The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character, Simon Templar, a Robin Hood-like adventurer with a penchant for disguise. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the...
.
His cinema début came in 1957 in Guy Hamilton
Guy Hamilton
Guy Hamilton is an English film director.Hamilton was born in Paris, France where his English parents were living. Remaining in France during the Nazi occupation, he was active in the French Resistance...
's Manuela
Manuela (1957 film)
Manuela is a 1957 British drama film directed by Guy Hamilton. It was entered into the 7th Berlin International Film Festival.-Cast:* Trevor Howard - James Prothero* Elsa Martinelli - Manuela Hunt* Pedro Armendáriz - Mario Constanza...
, and he began a career of minor roles as sinister foreign agents, assisted by his premature baldness and facility with eastern European accents. He appeared in The Roman Spring of Mrs Stone (José Quintero
José Quintero
José Benjamin Quintero was a Panamanian theatre director, producer and pedagogue best known for his interpretations of the works of Eugene O'Neill.-Early years:...
, 1961), Carry On Cleo, 1964, and Help!
Help! (film)
Help! is a 1965 film directed by Richard Lester, starring The Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—and featuring Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron, Victor Spinetti, John Bluthal, Roy Kinnear and Patrick Cargill. Help! was the second feature film made by the Beatles and is a...
(Richard Lester
Richard Lester
Richard Lester is an American film director based in Britain. Lester is notable for his work with The Beatles in the 1960s and his work on the Superman film series in the 1980s.-Early years and television:...
, 1965) and played leads in All The Way Up (James MacTaggart
James MacTaggart
James MacTaggart was a Scottish born television producer, director and writer.After an initial career as an actor, MacTaggart worked for BBC Radio in Scotland before moving into television, relocating to London around 1961...
, 1970), The Chain
The Chain (1984 film)
The Chain is a British comedy drama film first released in 1984. The film was produced and distributed by Film Four International.-Cast:* Denis Lawson as Keith* Rita Wolf as Carrie* Phyllis Logan as Alison* David Troughton as Dudley...
(Jack Gold
Jack Gold
Jack Gold is a British film and television director. He was part of the British Realist Tradition that followed Free Cinema.-Career:...
, 1984), The Dunera Boys (Ben Lewin, 1985) and Foreign Body
Foreign Body (film)
Foreign Body is a 1986 British romantic comedy film directed by Ronald Neame. It stars Victor Banerjee, Warren Mitchell, Denis Quilley, and Amanda Donohoe...
(Ronald Neame
Ronald Neame
Ronald Elwin Neame CBE, BSC was an English film cinematographer, producer, screenwriter and director.-Early career:...
, 1986).
In 1965, he was cast as Alf Garnett
Alf Garnett
Alf Garnett is a fictional character in the British sitcoms Till Death Us Do Part, Till Death... and In Sickness and in Health, and chat show The Thoughts of Chairman Alf. He was created by Johnny Speight and played by Warren Mitchell....
in a play for the BBC Comedy Playhouse
Comedy Playhouse
Comedy Playhouse was a long-running British anthology series of one-off unrelated sitcoms that aired for 120 episodes from 1961 to 1975. Many episodes later graduated to their own series, including Steptoe and Son, Till Death Us Do Part, All Gas and Gaiters, The Liver Birds, Are You Being Served?...
series, broadcast on 22 July 1965. This was the pilot edition of the long-running series Till Death Us Do Part with Gretchen Franklin
Gretchen Franklin
Gretchen Franklin was an English actress with a career in showbusiness that spanned over eighty years.She was born in Covent Garden, west London, a cousin of the actor Clive Dunn. She was best known for playing the character of Ethel Skinner in the long running BBC One, soap opera, EastEnders...
, Una Stubbs
Una Stubbs
Una Stubbs is an English actress and former dancer who has appeared extensively on British television and in the theatre, and less frequently in films. She is particularly known for her roles in the sitcom Till Death Us Do Part and Aunt Sally in the children's series Worzel Gummidge.-Film and...
and Anthony Booth
Anthony Booth
Antony George Booth is an English actor, best known for his role as Mike Rawlins in the BBC series Till Death Us Do Part. His daughter, Cherie, a prominent Queen's Counsel, is married to former Prime Minister Tony Blair...
. The part of Mum, played by Gretchen Franklin, was taken by Dandy Nichols
Dandy Nichols
-References:* Dandy Nichols at screenonline.* Dandy Nichols at The Museum of Broadcast Communications.-External links:...
when the programme was commissioned as a series. Mitchell may be best known for his role as the bigoted cockney
Cockney
The term Cockney has both geographical and linguistic associations. Geographically and culturally, it often refers to working class Londoners, particularly those in the East End...
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
supporter, Alf Garnett, but ironically, his real life persona is quite different, being a left-winger, Jewish, and a staunch supporter of Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
The show ran from 1966 to 1975, in seven series, making a total of 53 30-minute episodes.
He has a long and distinguished career on stage and television. Other small screen roles include performances in The Sweeney
The Sweeney
The Sweeney is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London...
(Thames Television
Thames Television
Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
, 1978), Lovejoy
Lovejoy
Lovejoy is a TV series about the adventures of Lovejoy, a British antiques dealer and faker based in East Anglia, a less than scrupulous yet likeable rogue. The episodes were based on a series of picaresque novels by John Grant...
(BBC), Waking the Dead
Waking the Dead (TV series)
Waking the Dead is a British television police procedural crime drama series produced by the BBC featuring a fictional Cold Case Unit comprising CID police officers, a psychological profiler and a forensic scientist. A pilot episode aired in September 2000 and there have been a total of nine series...
(BBC), Kavanagh QC
Kavanagh QC
Kavanagh QC is a British television series made by Carlton Television for ITV between 1995 and 2001. It has been shown on ITV3 as recently as August 2011; series 1–6 are available on Region 2 DVDs....
(Carlton Television
Carlton Television
Carlton Television was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties including the cities of Solihull and Coventry of the West Midlands, south Suffolk, middle and east Hampshire, Oxfordshire, south Bedfordshire, south Northamptonshire, parts of Herefordshire & Worcestershire,...
for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
), 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...
(BBC, 1980) and Gormenghast. In 2001, he appeared in a Christmas Special episode of Last of the Summer Wine
Last of the Summer Wine
Last of the Summer Wine is a British sitcom written by Roy Clarke that was broadcast on BBC One. Last of the Summer Wine premiered as an episode of Comedy Playhouse on 4 January 1973 and the first series of episodes followed on 12 November 1973. From 1983 to 2010, Alan J. W. Bell produced and...
, "Potts in Pole Position".
On stage he received extensive critical acclaim for his performances in Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller
Arthur Asher Miller was an American playwright and essayist. He was a prominent figure in American theatre, writing dramas that include plays such as All My Sons , Death of a Salesman , The Crucible , and A View from the Bridge .Miller was often in the public eye,...
's Death of a Salesman
Death of a Salesman
Death of a Salesman is a 1949 play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. It was the recipient of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. Premiered at the Morosco Theatre in February 1949, the original production ran for a total of 742 performances.-Plot :Willy Loman...
and Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE was a Nobel Prize–winning English playwright and screenwriter. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party , The Homecoming , and Betrayal , each of which he adapted to...
's The Caretaker
The Caretaker
The Caretaker is a play by Harold Pinter. It was first published by both Encore Publishing and Eyre Methuen in 1960. The sixth play that Pinter wrote for stage or television production, it was his first significant commercial success...
at the National Theatre
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
; and Pinter's The Homecoming
The Homecoming
The Homecoming is a two-act play written in 1964 by Nobel laureate Harold Pinter and first published in 1965. The original Broadway production won the 1967 Tony Award for Best Play and its 40th-anniversary Broadway production at the Cort Theatre was nominated for a 2008 Tony Award for "Best Revival...
and Miller's The Price in the West End, also appearing in Visiting Mr. Green
Visiting Mr. Green
Visiting Mr. Green is a stage play by American author Jeff Baron that has been performed and lauded around the world.- Storyline :86 year old widower Mr. Green is almost hit by a car driven by young corporate executive Ross Gardiner. Found guilty of reckless driving, Ross is ordered to spend the...
in 2007 and 2008.
After the cancellation of the Alf Garnett sequel series In Sickness And In Health
In Sickness and in Health
In Sickness and in Health was a BBC television sitcom which ran between 1985 and 1992. It was also a sequel to both the highly successful Til Death Us Do Part which ran between 1966 and 1975 and Till Death... which ran for one series in 1981.-Series 1:This comedy series debuted in 1985 and took...
, Mitchell returned to the role of Alf on a number of occasions. ITV aired a series of mini episodes called A Word With Alf featuring Alf and his friends. When Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight , was a British television scriptwriter of many classic British sitcoms.He emerged in the mid 1950s. He wrote for the radio comics; Frankie Howerd, Vic Oliver, Arthur Askey, and Cyril Fletcher. For television he wrote for the Arthur Haynes Show, Morecambe & Wise, and Peter Sellers...
died in 1998, the series was cancelled at Mitchell's request.
Awards
Mitchell was voted TV Actor of the Year in 1965 for his portrayal of Alf Garnett in Till Death Do Us Part. In 1976, his one-man show The Thoughts of Chairman Alf won the Evening Standard award for best comedy in London's West End. In 1982, he received an Australian Film InstituteAustralian Film Institute
The Australian Film Institute was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Australian film industry...
Award for best supporting actor in the film Norman Loves Rose. He has received two Laurence Olivier Theatre Awards—for playing Willie Loman in Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller
Arthur Asher Miller was an American playwright and essayist. He was a prominent figure in American theatre, writing dramas that include plays such as All My Sons , Death of a Salesman , The Crucible , and A View from the Bridge .Miller was often in the public eye,...
's Death of a Salesman
Death of a Salesman
Death of a Salesman is a 1949 play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. It was the recipient of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. Premiered at the Morosco Theatre in February 1949, the original production ran for a total of 742 performances.-Plot :Willy Loman...
(National Theatre, 1979) and as best supporting actor in a 2003 performance of The Price, also by Miller.
Personal life
Mitchell is a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist AssociationBritish Humanist Association
The British Humanist Association is an organisation of the United Kingdom which promotes Humanism and represents "people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious beliefs." The BHA is committed to secularism, human rights, democracy, egalitarianism and mutual respect...
. He has been married since 1951 to Connie (Constance M. Wake), an actress who appeared in early 1960s television dramas such as Maigret. They have three children; Rebecca, Daniel (also an actor) and Anna (also known as Georgia Mitchell). For over twenty years, Mitchell has suffered pain from nerve damage, caused by Transverse myelitis
Transverse myelitis
Transverse myelitis is a neurological disorder caused by an inflammatory process of the spinal cord, and can cause axonal demyelination. The name is derived from Greek referring to the "spinal cord", and the suffix -itis, which denotes inflammation...
, and is a supporter of the Neuropathy Trust. He suffered a mild stroke in August 2004.
Selected filmography
- ManuelaManuela (1957 film)Manuela is a 1957 British drama film directed by Guy Hamilton. It was entered into the 7th Berlin International Film Festival.-Cast:* Trevor Howard - James Prothero* Elsa Martinelli - Manuela Hunt* Pedro Armendáriz - Mario Constanza...
(1957) - The Crawling Eye (1958)
- Girls at SeaGirls at Sea (1958 film)Girls At Sea is a 1958 British comedy film directed by Gilbert Gunn and starring Ronald Shiner as Marine Ogg and Warren Mitchell as Arthur. It was based on a play by Ian Hay...
(1958) - Two-Way StretchTwo-Way StretchTwo-Way Stretch, sometimes titled Nothing Barred, is a 1960 British comedy film, about a group of prisoners who plan to break out of jail, commit a robbery, and then break back into jail again, thus giving them the perfect alibi – that they were behind bars when the robbery occurred...
(1960) - Hell Is a CityHell Is a CityHell Is a City is a 1960 film based on the novel by Maurice Procter. It was made by British studio Hammer Film Productions filmed in Manchester it was also written and directed by Val Guest...
(1960) - The Boy Who Stole a MillionThe Boy Who Stole a MillionThe Boy Who Stole a Million is a 1960 British comedy thriller film directed by Charles Crichton. The film was shot on location in the Spanish city of Valencia, with an international cast list.-Plot:...
(1960) - Surprise PackageSurprise Package (film)Surprise Package is a 1960 American comedy film directed by Stanley Donen and starring Yul Bryner, Mitzi Gaynor, Noel Coward, Eric Pohlmann and Barry Foster. An American gangster living on a Greek island and a deposed King hatch a plan to steal some crown jewels....
(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) - The Curse of the WerewolfThe Curse of the WerewolfThe Curse of the Werewolf is a British film based on the novel The Werewolf of Paris by Guy Endore. The film was made by the British film studio Hammer Film Productions and was shot at Bray Studios.-Plot:...
(1961) - Postman's KnockPostman's Knock (film)Postman's Knock is a 1962 British comedy film directed by Robert Lynn and starring Spike Milligan, Barbara Shelley, John Wood and Warren Mitchell. A country postman is transferred to London, where he manages to foil a major robbery.-Cast:...
(1962) - Carry on CleoCarry On CleoCarry On Cleo is the tenth film in the Carry On film series and was released in 1964. The website ICONS.a portrait of England cites the Carry On films as iconic of British cinema, and describes Carry On Cleo as "perhaps the best". Regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Kenneth Connor, Charles...
(1964) - The Intelligence MenThe Intelligence MenThe Intelligence Men is a 1965 comedy film starring the British comic duo Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise.The film is subtitled "M.I.5 plus 2 equals 0"...
(1965) - San Ferry AnnSan Ferry AnnSan Ferry Ann is a 1966 British sound effect comedy. Wordlessly, with soundtrack and sound effects, it tells the story of a holiday crossing from Dover to Calais.-Synopsis:...
(1965) - Promise Her AnythingPromise Her AnythingPromise Her Anything is a 1965 British romantic comedy film directed by Arthur Hiller. The screenplay by William Peter Blatty is based on a story by Arne Sultan and Marvin Worth.-Plot:...
(1965) - The Spy Who Came in from the ColdThe Spy Who Came in from the Cold (film)The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is a 1965 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by John le Carré. It was adapted by Paul Dehn and Guy Trosper. The film stars Richard Burton as Alec Leamas, along with Claire Bloom, Oskar Werner, Peter van Eyck, Sam Wanamaker, Rupert Davies and Cyril Cusack...
(1965) - Night Caller from Outer SpaceNight Caller from Outer SpaceNight Caller from Outer Space, also known as simply The Night Caller or Blood Beast from Outer Space, is a British 1965 science fiction film directed by John Gilling...
(1965) - The Sandwich ManThe Sandwich ManThe Sandwich Man is a 1966 British comedy film starring Michael Bentine, Dora Bryan, Harry H. Corbett, Bernard Cribbins, Diana Dors, Norman Wisdom, Terry-Thomas and Ian Hendry. It was written by Bentine in conjunction with Robert Hartford-Davis...
(1966) - Drop Dead DarlingDrop Dead DarlingDrop Dead Darling is a 1966 British comedy crime film directed by Ken Hughes and starring Tony Curtis, Rosanna Schiaffino, Lionel Jeffries and Zsa Zsa Gabor.-Plot:...
(1966) - The Assassination BureauThe Assassination BureauThe Assassination Bureau Limited is a black comedy film made in 1969 based on an unfinished novel, The Assassination Bureau, Ltd by Jack London...
(1969) - Till Death Us Do PartTill Death Us Do Part (film)Till Death Us Do Part is a 1969 film based on the BBC television series Till Death Us Do Part which aired from 1965 until 1975. The film was directed by Norman Cohen and written by Johnny Speight, the creator of the television version.-Plot:...
(1969) - What Changed Charley Farthing?What Changed Charley Farthing?What Changed Charley Farthing? , is a 1974 British comedy film, directed by Sidney Hayers.-Cast:*Hayley Mills.....Jenny*Lionel Jeffries.....Houlihan*Doug McClure.....Charley Farthing-Release:...
(1974) - JabberwockyJabberwocky (film)Jabberwocky is a 1977 British fantasy black comedy film directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Michael Palin as a young cooper who is forced through clumsy, often slapstick misfortunes to hunt a terrible dragon after the death of his father...
(1977) - Stand Up, Virgin Soldiers (1977)
- Meetings with Remarkable MenMeetings with Remarkable Men (film)Meetings with Remarkable Men is a 1979 British film directed by Peter Brook and based on the book of the same name. Shot on location in Afghanistan , it starred Terence Stamp, and Dragan Maksimovic as the adult G. I. Gurdjieff...
(1979) - The Plague DogsThe Plague Dogs (film)The Plague Dogs is a 1982 animated film based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Richard Adams. The film was written-for-screen, directed and produced by Martin Rosen, who also directed Watership Down, the film version of another novel by Adams, produced by Nepenthe Productions and released by...
(1982) - Norman Loves Rose (1982)
- The ChainThe Chain (1984 film)The Chain is a British comedy drama film first released in 1984. The film was produced and distributed by Film Four International.-Cast:* Denis Lawson as Keith* Rita Wolf as Carrie* Phyllis Logan as Alison* David Troughton as Dudley...
(1984) - Knights and Emeralds (1985)
- Foreign BodyForeign Body (film)Foreign Body is a 1986 British romantic comedy film directed by Ronald Neame. It stars Victor Banerjee, Warren Mitchell, Denis Quilley, and Amanda Donohoe...
(1986) - CrackersCrackers (1998 film)Crackers is a Christmas-themed Australian film starring Peter Rowsthorn. It was released on 9 July 1998. It was written and directed by David Swann.- Plot :...
(1998)