John George Norman Bird (30 October 1924 â€" 22 April 2005) was an English character actor.
Early life
Bird was born in Coalville, Leicestershire, England. A RADA graduate, he made his West End debut in Peter Brook's production of The Winter's Tale at the Phoenix Theatre in 1951. His first film appearance was as the foreman in An Inspector Calls (1954).
Film Career
He was a familiar face to British cinema audiences of the 1960s, appearing in such films as The Angry Silence (1960), The League of Gentlemen (1960), Whistle Down the Wind (1961), Victim (1961) and Term of Trial (1962) with Laurence Olivier.
Television Appearances
He had over 200 television appearances, notably as Mr Braithwaite in Worzel Gummidge (1979â€"81) and as Mr Arrad in the Fawlty Towers episode "Waldorf Salad" (1979). His long list of credits include Steptoe and Son, Rising Damp, Ever Decreasing Circles, Yes Minister, To Serve Them All My Days, Z-Cars, The Saint, Department S, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) and Boon. In 1990 he appeared in Stay Lucky, with Dennis Waterman, which marked his 200th television appearance. One of his last film appearances was as a taxi driver in Richard Attenborough's Shadowlands (1993).
Personal life
At 16 he left school and spent six months working in an office before studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. During the Second World War, he served with Royal Air Force, being demobbed in 1947.
He had met his wife Nona Blamire (Joan Hood in radio's The Archers) in rep in Northampton. They married in 1953. In 1992 they moved to Bridgnorth, Shropshire, to be nearer to their two daughters and five grandchildren.
Filmography
References
External links
- Norman Bird at the Internet Movie Database
- Obituary in The Guardian
- Obituary in The Independent