Alan MacNaughtan (4 March 1920 – 29 August 2002) was a Scottish actor, born in
Bearsden
Bearsden () is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the northwestern fringe of Greater Glasgow. Approximately from Glasgow city centre, Glasgow City Centre, the town is effectively a suburb, and its housing development coincided with t ...
,
Dunbartonshire
Dunbartonshire ( gd, Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann) or the County of Dumbarton is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the west central Lowlands of Scotland lying to the north of the River Clyde. Dunbartonshire borders P ...
, Scotland.
He was educated at
the Glasgow Academy
The Glasgow Academy is a coeducational independent day school for pupils aged 3–18 in Glasgow, Scotland. In 2016, it had the third-best Higher level exam results in Scotland. Founded in 1845, it is the oldest continuously fully independent ...
, trained at
RADA
The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Se ...
, and graduated in 1940 with the Bancroft Gold Medal.
An experienced
Old Vic
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
* Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...
,
West End and
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
actor
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...
, he became active in television and certain films between 1954 and 1999.
Television career
MacNaughtan played many guest roles in productions of the 1960s and 1970s including ''
Dr. Finlay's Casebook
''Dr. Finlay's Casebook'' is a television drama series that was produced and broadcast by the BBC from 1962 until 1971. Based on A. J. Cronin's 1935 novella ''Country Doctor'', the storylines centred on a general medical practice in the fictiona ...
'', ''
The Avengers'', ''
The Baron'', ''"The Maze"'' (ATV/ITC, 1966), ''
Department S'', ''Who Plays the Dummy?'' (ATV/ITC, 1969), ''
The Saint
The Saint may refer to:
Fiction
* Simon Templar, also known as "The Saint", the protagonist of a book series by Leslie Charteris and subsequent adaptations:
** ''The Saint'' (film series) (1938–43), starring Louis Hayward, George Sanders an ...
'', ''
The Professionals'', ''A Stirring of Dust'' (LWT/Avengers Mark 1, 1978). He also played Major Brenan, a deceptive MI5 agent in ''
The Ghost Talks (Randall and Hopkirk Deceased)'' in 1969. MacNaughtan's sharp blue eyes and features meant that he often played a villain in such ITC series.
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...
's National Theatre in roles which brought "considerable acclaim"; including in 1972, as Walter Burns in a revival of ''The Front Page
''The Front Page'' is a Broadway comedy about newspaper reporters on the police beat. Written by former Chicago reporters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, it was first produced in 1928 and has been adapted for the cinema several times.
Plot
The ...
''.[
MacNaughtan played Sir Geoffrey Wellingham in ]Yorkshire Television
ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...
's ''The Sandbaggers
''The Sandbaggers'' is a British spy drama television series about men and women on the front lines of the Cold War. Set contemporaneously with its original broadcast on ITV in 1978 and 1980, ''The Sandbaggers'' examines the effect of espionag ...
'', Dr. Crawley in Thames Television
Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a Broadcast license, franchise holder for a region of the British ITV (TV network), ITV television network serving Greater London, London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until th ...
's ''Mr Palfrey of Westminster
''Mr Palfrey of Westminster'' is a British television drama produced by Thames Television for ITV which ran between 18 April 1984 and 11 June 1985.
Plot summary
Mr Palfrey is a mild, middle-aged man—the epitome of a middle-ranking British Civ ...
'', and portrayed the acerbic teacher Howarth in the 1981 BBC serial ''To Serve Them All My Days
: ''For the 1980 television adaptation, see To Serve Them All My Days (TV series).''
''To Serve Them All My Days'' is a novel by British author R. F. Delderfield.
First published in 1972, the book was adapted for television in 1980. It has b ...
''. He played the role of Sir Percy Browne, head of MI5, in ''A Very British Coup
''A Very British Coup'' is a 1982 novel by British politician Chris Mullin. The novel has twice been adapted for television; as '' A Very British Coup'' in 1988 and as '' Secret State'' in 2012.
Plot
Harry Perkins is the left-wing Leader of th ...
'' in 1988.[
His last role was an appearance in '' Kavanagh QC'' in 1999.
]
Films
He made a few appearances in films including starring alongside Dirk Bogarde
Sir Dirk Bogarde (born Derek Jules Gaspard Ulric Niven van den Bogaerde; 28 March 1921 – 8 May 1999) was an English actor, novelist and screenwriter. Initially a matinée idol in films such as ''Doctor in the House'' (1954) for the Rank Organ ...
as his disapproving brother-in-law in the then controversial ''Victim
Victim(s) or The Victim may refer to:
People
* Crime victim
* Victim, in psychotherapy, a posited role in the Karpman drama triangle model of transactional analysis
Films and television
* ''The Victim'' (1916 film), an American silent film by ...
'' (1961). He also had roles in ''Frankenstein Created Woman
''Frankenstein Created Woman'' is a 1967 British Hammer horror film directed by Terence Fisher. It stars Peter Cushing as Baron Frankenstein and Susan Denberg as his new creation. It is the fourth film in Hammer's ''Frankenstein'' series.
Wher ...
'' (1967), ''Patton
George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II, and the Third United States Army in Franc ...
'' (1970), ''Family Life
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...
'' (1971), '' Shadowlands'' (1985), ''The Last Days of Patton
''The Last Days of Patton'' is a 1986 American made-for-television biographical drama film and sequel to the 1970 film ''Patton'', which portrays the last few months of the general's life. George C. Scott reprises the role of General George S ...
'' (1986), '' Blue Ice'' (1992), and '' The Commissioner'' (1998).
He was a friend of actor Alec McCowen
Alexander Duncan McCowen, (26 May 1925 – 6 February 2017) was an English actor. He was known for his work in numerous film and stage productions.
Early life
McCowen was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, the son of Mary (née Walkden), a dancer ...
.[
MacNaughtan died of cancer]
Filmography
References
External links
*
*
Obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macnaughtan, Alan
1920 births
2002 deaths
Deaths from cancer in England
Scottish male stage actors
Scottish male film actors
Scottish male television actors
People from Bearsden
People educated at the Glasgow Academy