Albert Moses,
KStJ
The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of c ...
(19 December 1937 – 15 September 2017) was a Sri Lankan actor based in the United Kingdom. He is best known for playing the role of Ranjeet Singh, a student in Jeremy Brown's
EFL class in the popular
British sitcom
A British sitcom or a Britcom is a situational comedy programme produced for British television.
Most British sitcoms are recorded on studio sets, while some have an element of location filming. A handful are made almost exclusively on location ...
''
Mind Your Language
''Mind Your Language'' is a British sitcom that premiered on ITV in 1977. It was produced by London Weekend Television and directed by Stuart Allen. Three series were made by the London Weekend Television between 1977 and 1979 and briefly reviv ...
'' and one of four students (along with Giovanni Capello, Juan Cervantes, and Anna Schmidt) to appear in all four series.
Personal life
He was born on 19 December 1937 in
Gampola
Gampola ( si, ගම්පොල, ta, கம்பளை) is a town located in Kandy District, Central Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. Gampola was made the capital of the island by King Buwanekabahu IV, who ruled for four yea ...
,
Kandy
Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a major city in Sri Lanka located in the Central Province. It was the last capital of the ancient kings' era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills ...
. He started to work at the
University of Ceylon
The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Univer ...
,
Peradeniya
Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය, translit=Pēradeniya; ta, பேராதனை, translit=Pērātaṉai) is a suburb of the city of Kandy
Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a m ...
. Then he moved to Africa for employment and finally to London to learn drama and theatre. He was fluent in English, Arabic, Tamil, Sinhalese, moderate German and Sanskrit and excellent in fencing, dancing, singing, motor-cycle stunts, karate and judo.
Moses died in September 2017 in London at the age of 79. He was buried at St. Andrew's Church in his native
Gampola
Gampola ( si, ගම්පොල, ta, கம்பளை) is a town located in Kandy District, Central Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. Gampola was made the capital of the island by King Buwanekabahu IV, who ruled for four yea ...
,
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
.
Career
He had begun to act by the 1960s in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
where he appeared in several
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
films, then produced and directed his first. From India, he moved to Africa, where he undertook work on documentaries. From the early 1970s, in Britain, Moses played small parts in several television series before being cast as Ranjeet Singh, a Sikh from Punjab, India, in the
ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
sitcom ''
Mind Your Language
''Mind Your Language'' is a British sitcom that premiered on ITV in 1977. It was produced by London Weekend Television and directed by Stuart Allen. Three series were made by the London Weekend Television between 1977 and 1979 and briefly reviv ...
'' (1977–79, 1986). He acted in prominent roles in many theater productions such as ''Freeway'' at National Theatre, ''Phædra Britannica'' with
Dame Diana Rigg and ''Long March to Jerusalem'' at Watford Theater. He also produced 13 episodes of ''Mind Your Language''.
His final film was ''The Snarling'' (2018), in which he played tribute to his role in ''
An American Werewolf in London'' (1981). ''The Snarling'' is dedicated to his memory.
Selected credits
Theatre
* ''Freeway'' -
National Theatre;
* ''Phædra Britannica'' -
National Theatre (with
Diana Rigg
Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 193810 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series '' The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in '' On H ...
);
* ''Long March to Jerusalem'' -
Watford Palace Theatre
Watford Palace Theatre, opened in 1908, is an Edwardian Grade II listed building in Watford, Hertfordshire. The 600-seat theatre on Clarendon Road was refurbished in 2004. It houses its own rehearsal room, wardrobe, cafe and bar.
History
The ...
Film
* ''
White Cargo
''White Cargo'' is a 1942 film drama starring Hedy Lamarr and Walter Pidgeon, and directed by Richard Thorpe. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it is based on the 1923 London and Broadway hit play by Leon Gordon, which was in turn adapted from ...
'' (1973) - Arab (uncredited)
* ''
The Man Who Would Be King
"The Man Who Would Be King" (1888) is a story by Rudyard Kipling about two British adventurers in British India who become kings of Kafiristan, a remote part of Afghanistan. The story was first published in '' The Phantom Rickshaw and other Ee ...
'' (1975, A
John Huston
John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...
film with
Sean Connery
Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...
,
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...
and
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage, and television. He received multiple accolades, inc ...
) - Ghulam
* ''
Stand Up, Virgin Soldiers
''Stand Up, Virgin Soldiers'' is a 1977 British film directed by Norman Cohen and starring Robin Askwith and Nigel Davenport. It is a sequel to '' The Virgin Soldiers'' (1969).EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
) - Indian shopkeeper
* ''
The Spy Who Loved Me'' (1977,
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
film) - Barman
* ''
What's Up Nurse!
''What's Up Nurse!'' is a 1977 British sex comedy film directed by Derek Ford and starring Nicholas Field, Felicity Devonshire and John Le Mesurier. It tells the story of the adventures of a young doctor in a hospital. A sequel ''What's Up ...
'' (1978, a
Derek Ford
Derek Ford (6 September 1932, Essex – 19 May 1995) was an English film director and writer, most famous for sexploitation films such as ''The Wife Swappers'' (1970), '' Suburban Wives'' (1971), '' Commuter Husbands'' (1972), ''Keep It Up, Ja ...
sex comedy) - 1st Asian
* ''
Carry On Emmannuelle
''Carry On Emmannuelle'' is a 1978 British comedy film, the 30th release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). The film was to be the final ''Carry On'' for many regulars, including Kenneth Williams (in his 26th ''Carry On'') ...
'' (1978,
Rank
Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as:
Level or position in a hierarchical organization
* Academic rank
* Diplomatic rank
* Hierarchy
* H ...
) - Doctor
* ''
The Awakening'' (1980,
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
) - (uncredited)
* ''
An American Werewolf in London'' (1981, a
John Landis
John David Landis (born August 3, 1950) is an American comedy and fantasy filmmaker and actor. He is best known for the comedy films that he has directed – such as ''The Kentucky Fried Movie'' (1977), ''Animal House, National Lampoon's Animal ...
movie) - Hospital Porter
* ''
The Great Quest'' - with
Oliver Reed
Robert Oliver Reed (13 February 1938 – 2 May 1999) was an English actor known for his well-to-do, macho image and "hellraiser" lifestyle. After making his first significant screen appearances in Hammer Horror films in the early 1960s, his ...
;
* ''
Pink Floyd: The Wall'' (1982,
Alan Parker
Sir Alan William Parker (14 February 1944 – 31 July 2020) was an English filmmaker. His early career, beginning in his late teens, was spent as a copywriter and director of television advertisements. After about ten years of filming adverts ...
film) - Janitor
* ''
Octopussy
''Octopussy'' is a 1983 spy film and the thirteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It is the sixth to star Roger Moore as the MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by John Glen and the screenplay was written by G ...
'' (1983,
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
film) - Saddrudin - undercover British agent in India
* ''Al-mas' Ala Al-Kubra'' (1983) - Indian officer (uncredited)
* ''
Scandalous'' (1984, with
Sir John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, (; 14 April 1904 – 21 May 2000) was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the Briti ...
and
Pamela Stephenson
Pamela Helen Stephenson, Lady Connolly (born 4 December 1949) is a New Zealand-born psychologist, writer, and performer who is now a resident in both the United Kingdom and the United States. She is best known for her work as an actress and co ...
) - Vishnu
* ''
The Little Drummer Girl'' (1984,
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
, a
George Roy Hill
George Roy Hill (December 20, 1921 – December 27, 2002) was an American film director. He is most noted for directing such films as ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'' (1969) and ''The Sting'' (1973), both starring Paul Newman and Robert Re ...
film) - Green Grocer
* ''
Foreign Body
A foreign body (FB) is any object originating outside the body of an organism. In machinery, it can mean any unwanted intruding object.
Most references to foreign bodies involve propulsion through natural orifices into hollow organs.
Foreign bo ...
'' (1986) - Paramedic #2
* ''
The Second Jungle Book: Mowgli and Baloo'' (1997,
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
) - Conductor
* ''
East Is East'' (1999, a
BAFTA award
The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cere ...
-winning
Film4
Film4 is a British free-to-air television network owned by Channel Four Television Corporation launched on 1 November 1998, devoted to broadcasting films. While its standard-definition channel is available on Freeview and Freesat platforms, it ...
production) - Abdul Karim
* ''The Snarling'' (2018) - Hospital Patient
Television
* ''Queenie'' - Hollywood mini-series with
Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in ''The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. Do ...
;
* ''
On the Buses
''On the Buses'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom that was broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 1969 to 1973. It was created by Chesney and Wolfe, Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, who wrote most of the episodes. It spawned thr ...
'' -
London Weekend Television
London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 unt ...
;
* ''
Warship
A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster a ...
'' -
BBC television drama
BBC television dramas have been produced and broadcast since even before the public service company had an officially established television broadcasting network in the United Kingdom. As with any major broadcast network, drama forms an importan ...
;
* ''
Robin's Nest'' -
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 ...
sitcom;
* ''
Mind Your Language
''Mind Your Language'' is a British sitcom that premiered on ITV in 1977. It was produced by London Weekend Television and directed by Stuart Allen. Three series were made by the London Weekend Television between 1977 and 1979 and briefly reviv ...
'' - London Weekend Television sitcom (nearly 50 episodes broadcast between 1977 and 1986);
* ''
Juliet Bravo
''Juliet Bravo'' is a British television police procedural drama series, first broadcast on 30 August 1980, that ran for six series and a total of 88 episodes on BBC1. The theme of the series concerned a female police inspector who took over con ...
'' -
BBC television drama
BBC television dramas have been produced and broadcast since even before the public service company had an officially established television broadcasting network in the United Kingdom. As with any major broadcast network, drama forms an importan ...
;
* ''
The Jewel in the Crown'' -
Granada Television
ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...
(4 episodes, with
Charles Dance, OBE);
* ''
The Little and Large Show
''The Little and Large Show'' was a sketch comedy series broadcast on BBC1
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broa ...
'' -
BBC television comedy #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
;
* ''
The Benny Hill Show
''The Benny Hill Show'' is a British comedy television show starring Benny Hill that aired on the BBC and ITV (from 1969) between 15 January 1955 and 1 May 1989. The show consisted mainly of sketches that were full of slapstick, mime, parody ...
'' - Thames Television comedy;
* ''
Boon
Boon may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Boon (game), a trick-taking card game
* ''Boon'' (novel), a 1915 satirical work by H. G. Wells
* ''Boon'' (TV series), a British television series starring Michael Elphick
* The Ultimate Boo ...
'' -
ITV Central
ITV Central, previously known as Central Independent Television, Carlton Central, ITV1 for Central England and commonly referred to as simply Central, is the Independent Television franchisee for the Midlands. It was created following the rest ...
drama;
* ''
The Bill
''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983.
The programme focused on ...
'' -
talkbackTHAMES
Talkback Thames (stylised as talkbackTHAMES) was a British television production company, a division of Fremantle (part of the RTL Group, which in turn is owned by Bertelsmann). It was formed by the merger of Talkback Productions and Thames Tel ...
television drama (5 episodes);
* ''
Never the Twain
''Never the Twain'' is a British sitcom that ran for eleven series from 7 September 1981 to 9 October 1991.
It was created by Johnnie Mortimer, and was the only sitcom he ever created without his usual writing partner, Brian Cooke. Mortimer w ...
'' - Thames Television sitcom;
* ''
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
''The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' is a collection of twelve short stories by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle, first published on 14 October 1892. It contains the earliest short stories featuring the consulting detective Sherlock Holmes, w ...
: The Man With The Twisted Lip'' -
Granada Television
ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...
;
* ''
London's Burning'' -
London Weekend Television
London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 unt ...
drama;
* ''
Tandoori Nights
''Tandoori Nights'' is a television sitcom that was broadcast on Channel 4 between 1985 and 1987. It consisted of two series of six episodes each. The series was directed by Jon Amiel and written by Farrukh Dhondy. It is the story of two rival res ...
'' -
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
Other
* Produced 13 episodes of ''
Mind Your Language
''Mind Your Language'' is a British sitcom that premiered on ITV in 1977. It was produced by London Weekend Television and directed by Stuart Allen. Three series were made by the London Weekend Television between 1977 and 1979 and briefly reviv ...
'';
* Produced and directed ''Gabriella'', a television film produced on location in Malta;
* Hosted, produced and directed a talent contest variety show
* Wrote ''The Seventh Commandment'', a television drama;
* Wrote ''Side by side'', a television comedy;
* Wrote ''Don't talk to strangers'', a television thriller;
* Wrote ''The Jokers'', a television drama;
* Published children's books ''Tales from India'', ''The hawk and the turtles'', and ''Mustapha Mouse goes to the city'';
* Published a book of 87 poems
* Past chairman of the Asian, Caribbean, Oriental and Asian Artistes of
EQUITY
Equity may refer to:
Finance, accounting and ownership
* Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them
** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business
** Home equity, the dif ...
.
* Ex-governor of a St Albans school.
* Was on board of directors for a St Albans theatre company.
* Past member of the London regional committee of ITV under the chairmanship of Lord Lipsey.
* Past chairman of the ''St Albans Film Society''.
* Trustee and patron of the ''Ivy Trust'', a children's charity.
* Volunteered at a local hospital.
* Volunteered at a local school, running a film workshop for children.
* Volunteered at a local retirement home.
* Retired voluntary teacher from a local college, teaching English to foreign students. (See the ''
Mind Your Language
''Mind Your Language'' is a British sitcom that premiered on ITV in 1977. It was produced by London Weekend Television and directed by Stuart Allen. Three series were made by the London Weekend Television between 1977 and 1979 and briefly reviv ...
'' page for the irony of this!)
* Moses was a ''
Knight of the Order of St John
The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headq ...
''.
References
External links
Official website*
An interview with Albert Moses about 007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moses, Albert
1937 births
2017 deaths
People of British Ceylon
Knights of the Order of St John
Sri Lankan emigrants to the United Kingdom
Sri Lankan male film actors
Sri Lankan male television actors
20th-century Sri Lankan male actors
21st-century Sri Lankan male actors