Richard Attenborough

British actor (1923–2014)

Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, CBE (/ˈætənbərə/; 29 August 1923 – 24 August 2014) was an English movie producer, director and actor.


The Lord Attenborough

Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
In office
30 July 1993 – 24 August 2014
Life peerage
Personal details
Born(1923-08-29)29 August 1923
Cambridge, England
Died24 August 2014(2014-08-24) (aged 90)
London, England
NationalityBritish
Political partyLabour
Spouse(s)
Sheila Sim (m. 1945)
Children3, including Michael and Charlotte
MotherMary Clegg
FatherFrederick Attenborough
RelativesDavid Attenborough (brother)
John Attenborough (brother)
OccupationActor, director, producer, entrepreneur, politician
Military service
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Branch/serviceRoyal Air Force
Years of service1940–1945
RankSergeant
UnitRoyal Air Force Film Production Unit
Battles/warsWorld War II

Early life and education change

He was born in Cambridge, England. Attenborough left his home when he was 17 to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London. He earned his first West End theatre role, then went to national stardom in the play Brighton Rock.

Career change

Attenborough later became a producer and director. He produced and directed the movie Gandhi. Attenborough said that the movie Gandhi was his dream project and waited years to make it.[1] Gandhi won 5 British Academy Awards and 8 American Oscars. In 1983 he won the BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award, a lifetime achievement award. In his movie roles, he is mostly known for his roles in The Great Escape and in Jurassic Park. He was the older brother of naturalist David Attenborough.

After years of poor health, Attenborough died in London of heart failure on 24 August 2014, five days before his 91st birthday.[2]

His movies change

Year Title Credited as
Producer Director Actor Role
1942 In Which We Serve Yes Young Stoker
1943 Schweik's New Adventures Yes Railway worker
1944 The Hundred Pound Window Yes Tommy Draper
1946 Journey Together Yes David Wilton
A Matter of Life and Death Yes An English pilot
School for Secrets Yes Jack Arnold
1947 Brighton Rock Yes Pinkie Brown
The Man Within Yes Francis Andrews
Dancing with Crime Yes Ted Peters
1948 London Belongs to Me Yes Percy Boon
The Guinea Pig Yes Jack Read
1949 The Lost People Yes Jan
Boys in Brown Yes Jackie Knowles
1950 Morning Departure Yes Stoker Snipe
1951 The Magic Box Yes Jack Carter
Hell is Sold Out Yes Pierre Bonnet
1952 Father's Doing Fine Yes Dougall
Eight O’Clock Walk Yes Thomas "Tom" Leslie Manning
Gift Horse Yes Dripper Daniels
1955 The Ship That Died of Shame Yes George Hoskins
1956 Private's Progress Yes Pvt. Percival Henry Cox
The Baby and the Battleship Yes Knocker White
1957 The Scamp Yes Stephen Leigh
Brothers in Law Yes Henry Marshall
1958 Dunkirk Yes John Holden
The Man Upstairs Yes Peter Watson
Sea of Sand Yes Brody
1959 The League of Gentlemen Yes Lexy
I'm All Right Jack Yes Sidney De Vere Cox
Danger Within Yes Capt. "Bunter" Phillips
Jet Storm Yes Ernest Tiller
SOS Pacific Yes Whitney Mullen
1960 The Angry Silence Yes Yes Tom Curtis
1961 Whistle Down the Wind Yes
1962 Only Two Can Play Yes Probert
The L-Shaped Room Yes
Trial and Error Yes Herbert Fowle
1963 The Great Escape Yes Squadron Leader Roger Bartlett
1964 The Third Secret Yes Alfred Price-Gorham
Séance on a Wet Afternoon Yes Yes Billy Savage
Guns at Batasi Yes Regimental Sgt. Major Lauderdale
1965 The Flight of the Phoenix Yes Lew Moran
1966 The Sand Pebbles Yes Frenchy Burgoyne
1967 Doctor Dolittle Yes Albert Blossom
1968 Only When I Larf Yes Silas
The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom Yes Robert Blossom
1969 The Magic Christian Yes Oxford coach
Oh! What A Lovely War Yes Yes
1970 Loot Yes Inspector Truscott
The Last Grenade Yes Gen. Charles Whiteley
A Severed Head Yes Palmer Anderson
1971 10 Rillington Place Yes John Reginald Christie
1972 Cup Glory Yes Narrator
Young Winston Yes Yes
1974 And Then There Were None Yes Judge Arthur Cannon
1975 Rosebud Yes Edward Sloat
Brannigan Yes Cmdr. Sir Charles Swann
Conduct Unbecoming Yes Maj. Lionel E. Roach
1977 Shatranj Ke Khiladi Yes General Outram
A Bridge Too Far Yes Yes Lunatic wearing glasses
1978 Magic Yes
1979 The Human Factor Yes Col. John Daintry
1982 Gandhi Yes Yes
1985 A Chorus Line Yes
1987 Cry Freedom Yes Yes
1992 Chaplin Yes Yes
1993 Jurassic Park Yes John Hammond
Shadowlands Yes Yes
1994 Miracle on 34th Street Yes Kris Kringle
1996 Hamlet Yes English Ambassador to Denmark
In Love and War Yes Yes
1997 The Lost World: Jurassic Park Yes John Hammond
1998 Elizabeth Yes William Cecil
1999 Grey Owl Yes Yes
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Yes Jacob
2002 Puckoon Yes Narrator
2007 Closing the Ring Yes Yes

References change

  1. "Richard Attenborough's 'Gandhi': Lesser known facts about the film". Times of India.com. Retrieved August 25, 2014.
  2. Actor, director Richard Attenborough dies at 90

Other websites change

  Media related to Richard Attenborough at Wikimedia Commons