Clifford George Evans (17 February 1912 – 9 June 1985) was a
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
actor.
During the summer of 1934 Evans appeared in ''
A Midsummer Night's Dream
''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...
'' at the
Open Air Theatre
Regent's Park Open Air Theatre is an open-air theatre in Regent's Park in central London.
The theatre
Established in 1932, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is one of the largest theatres in London (1,256 seats) and is situated in Queen Mary†...
in London. He played many parts in British films of the 1930s, then during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
was a
conscientious objector
A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...
, serving in the
Non-Combatant Corps
The Non-Combatant Corps (NCC) was a corps of the British Army composed of conscientious objectors as privates, with NCOs and officers seconded from other corps or regiments. Its members fulfilled various non-combatant roles in the army during the ...
. He continued to act during the war and starred in the films ''
The Foreman Went to France
''The Foreman Went to France'' (released in the USA as ''Somewhere in France'' ) is a 1942 British Second World War war film starring Clifford Evans, Tommy Trinder, Constance Cummings and Gordon Jackson. It was based on the real-life wartime ex ...
'' (1942) and ''
The Flemish Farm
''The Flemish Farm'' is a 1943 British war film, based on an actual wartime incident. Released during the war and used as a propaganda tool to support the Allied war effort, the film begins with the caption:
:The following story is based on an ...
'' (1943).
After the war, Evans's best known film roles were for
Hammer Studios: he played Don Alfredo Carledo in ''
The Curse of the Werewolf
''The Curse of the Werewolf'' is a 1961 British horror film based on the novel ''The Werewolf of Paris'' by Guy Endore. The film was made by the British company Hammer Film Productions and was shot at Bray Studios on sets that were constructed ...
'' (1961) and Professor Zimmer, an inebriated vampire-hunter, in ''
The Kiss of the Vampire
''The Kiss of the Vampire'' (also known as ''Kiss of Evil'' on American television) is a 1963 British vampire film made by the film studio Hammer Film Productions. The film was directed by Don Sharp and was written by producer Anthony H ...
'' (1963). His last screen role was in
Granada TV
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 ...
's ''A Land of Ice Cream'' in 1985.
On television, Evans appeared with
George Woodbridge and
Tim Turner
Tim Turner (7 September 1924 – 1987) was an English people, English actor who performed during the 1950s and 1960s.
Life and career
He was born John Freeman Turner in Bexley, Kent. Before becoming a film and television actor, Turner was a ...
in the 15-episode series ''
Stryker of the Yard'' (1957). Between 1965 and 1969, he played a major role in the TV boardroom drama ''
The Power Game
''The Plane Makers'' is a British television series created by Wilfred Greatorex and produced by Rex Firkin. ATV made three series for ITV between 1963 and 1965. It was succeeded by ''The Power Game'', which ran for an additional three se ...
'', playing building tycoon Caswell Bligh. He is also among several British actors to play the character of
Number Two in ''
The Prisoner
''The Prisoner'' is a 1967 British television series about an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village, where his captors designate him as Number Six and try to find out why he abruptl ...
'' ("
Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling
"Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling" is an episode of the allegorical British science fiction TV series, ''The Prisoner''. It was written by Vincent Tilsley and directed by Pat Jackson and was the fourteenth produced. It was the thirteenth episode ...
", 1967). He also appeared in three episodes of ''
The Avengers'', in ''
The Champions
''The Champions'' is a British espionage thriller/science fiction/occult detective fiction adventure television series. It was produced by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment production company, and consists of 30 episodes broadcast in the UK on ITV ...
'', ''
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 ...
'', and ''
Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)
''Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)'' is a British private detective television series, starring Mike Pratt and Kenneth Cope respectively as the private detectives Jeff Randall and Marty Hopkirk. The series was created by Dennis Spooner and p ...
'' ("
When did You Start to Stop Seeing Things?", 1969). The following year, he played Sir Iain Dalzell, a leading character in the BBC TV series ''
Codename
A code name, call sign or cryptonym is a Code word (figure of speech), code word or name used, sometimes clandestinely, to refer to another name, word, project, or person. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage. They may ...
'' (1970).
He married
Hermione Hannen
Hermione Hannen (26 January 1913 – 1 October 1983) was an English theatre and film actress. She was born in London, the daughter of Nicholas "Beau" Hannen, who was also an actor on the stage and in film.
Biography
Hermione Hannen was born on ...
, who was an actress.
Partial filmography
* ''
The River House Mystery
''The River House Mystery'' is a 1935 British film directed by Fraser Foulsham. The second film of Bernard Lee
John Bernard Lee (10 January 190816 January 1981) was an English actor, best known for his role as M in the first eleven Eon- ...
'' (1935) – Ivan
* ''
Ourselves Alone'' (1936) – Commandant Connolly
* ''
Calling the Tune
''Calling the Tune'' was a 1936 British musical drama film directed by Reginald Denham and Thorold Dickinson and starring Adele Dixon, Sally Gray and Sam Livesey. It was based on a play written by the Irish MP and novelist, Justin Huntly McCarth ...
'' (1936) – Peter Mallory
* ''
The Tenth Man'' (1936) – Ford
* ''
The Mutiny of the Elsinore'' (1937) – Bert Rhyne
* ''
Under Secret Orders
''Under Secret Orders'', also known as ''Mademoiselle Doctor'', is a 1937 British spy film directed by Edmond T. Gréville and starring Erich von Stroheim, John Loder, Dita Parlo and Claire Luce. It is an English-language version of the Frenc ...
'' (1937) – Rene Condoyan
* ''
13 Men and a Gun'' (1938) – Jorg
* ''
Luck of the Navy
''Luck of the Navy'' is a 1938 British comedy thriller film directed by Norman Lee and starring Geoffrey Toone, Judy Kelly and Clifford Evans. Shot at Elstree StudiosWood p.98 it was based on the play '' The Luck of the Navy'' by Mrs Clifford ...
'' (1938) – Lieut. Peel
* ''
His Brother's Keeper'' (1940) – Jack Cornell
* ''
At the Villa Rose'' (1940) – Tace
* ''
The Proud Valley
''The Proud Valley'' is a 1940 Ealing Studios film starring Paul Robeson. Filmed in the South Wales coalfield, the principal Welsh coal mining area, the film is about a seaman who joins a mining community. It includes their passion for singing ...
'' (1940) – Seth Jones
* ''
The House of the Arrow'' (1940) – Maurice Thevenet
* ''
Freedom Radio
''Freedom Radio'' (a.k.a. ''A Voice in the Night'') is a 1941 British propaganda film directed by Anthony Asquith and starring Clive Brook, Diana Wynyard, Raymond Huntley and Derek Farr. It is set in Nazi Germany during the Second World War a ...
'' (1941) – Dressler
* ''
Fingers
A finger is a limb of the body and a type of digit, an organ of manipulation and sensation found in the hands of most of the Tetrapods, so also with humans and other primates. Most land vertebrates have five fingers (Pentadactyly). Chambers 1 ...
'' (1941) – Fingers
* ''
Love on the Dole
''Love on the Dole'' is a novel by Walter Greenwood, about working-class poverty in 1930s Northern England. It has been made into both a play and a film.
The novel
Walter Greenwood's novel (1933) was written during the early 1930s as a respons ...
'' (1941)
– Larry Meath
* ''
Penn of Pennsylvania
''Penn of Pennsylvania'' is a 1941 British historical drama film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Deborah Kerr, Clifford Evans, Dennis Arundell, Henry Oscar, Herbet Lomas and Edward Rigby. The film depicts the life of the Quaker found ...
'' (1942) – William Penn
* ''
The Foreman Went to France
''The Foreman Went to France'' (released in the USA as ''Somewhere in France'' ) is a 1942 British Second World War war film starring Clifford Evans, Tommy Trinder, Constance Cummings and Gordon Jackson. It was based on the real-life wartime ex ...
'' (1942) – Fred Carrick, the foreman
* ''
Suspected Person
''Suspected Person'' is a 1942 British drama film directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring Clifford Evans, Patricia Roc and David Farrar. The film was made at Welwyn Studios by Associated British, one of the two leading British studios of ...
'' (1942) – Jim Raynor
* ''
The Saint Meets the Tiger
''The Saint Meets the Tiger'' is the title of a crime thriller produced by the British unit of RKO Pictures, produced in 1941, but not released until 1943. This was to be the last of the eight films in RKO's film series about the crimefighter ...
'' (1943) – Tidemarsh / The Tiger
* ''
The Flemish Farm
''The Flemish Farm'' is a 1943 British war film, based on an actual wartime incident. Released during the war and used as a propaganda tool to support the Allied war effort, the film begins with the caption:
:The following story is based on an ...
'' (1943) – Jean Duclos
* ''
The Silver Darlings
''The Silver Darlings'' is a 1947 British film about Scottish fishermen, based on a 1941 novel by Neil M. Gunn.
The film is set in the early 19th century and after the highland clearances. Catrine and her family, like many other dispossessed Sco ...
'' (1947) – Roddie
* ''
While I Live
''While I Live'' is a 1947 British drama film directed and co-written by John Harlow and starring Sonia Dresdel, Tom Walls and Carol Raye. ''While I Live'' is best remembered for its musical theme "The Dream of Olwen" composed by Charles Willi ...
'' (1947) – Peter
* ''
The Twenty Questions Murder Mystery
''The Twenty Questions Murder Mystery'' is a 1950 British crime film directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Robert Beatty, Rona Anderson, and Clifford Evans.
The film is a strange hybrid: with the Twenty Questions sections being a true studi ...
'' (1950) – Tom Harmon
* ''
Escape Route
''Escape Route'' is the fifth studio album by American hip hop artist Joe Budden. It released in digital format exclusively on Amalgam Digital on August 11, 2009 and physical copies were released on October 6, 2009 through E1 Music. Two bonus tr ...
'' (1952) – Michael Grand
* ''The Accused'' (1953) – Dan Anderson
* ''
Valley of Song
''Valley of Song'' is a 1953 British comedy drama film directed by Gilbert Gunn and starring Mervyn Johns, Clifford Evans, Maureen Swanson and the London Welsh Association Choral Society. It marked the film debut of actress Rachel Roberts. It ...
'' (1953) – Geraint Llewellyn
* ''
The Straw Man'' (1953) – Jeff Howard
* ''
Stryker of the Yard'' (1953) – Inspector Stryker
* ''
Solution by Phone
''Solution by Phone'' is a 1954 British crime film directed by Alfred Travers and starring Clifford Evans, Thea Gregory and Georgina Cookson. The screenplay concerns an actor who seeks help from a crime novelist in his attempts to dispose of a ...
'' (1954) – Richard Hanborough
* ''The Red Dress'' (1954) – Sam Pugh (segment "Red Dress' story)
* ''
Companions in Crime
''Companions in Crime'' (A.K.A. ''Stryker Strikes Twice'') is a 1954 British crime film directed by John Krish and starring Clifford Evans, George Woodbridge and Kenneth Haigh. The film is a spin-off from the television series '' Stryker of th ...
'' (1954) – Inspector Stryker
* ''
The Gilded Cage'' (1955) – Ken Aimes
* ''
Passport to Treason'' (1956) – Orlando Syms
* ''
Face in the Night
''Face in the Night'' is a 1957 British crime film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Griffith Jones, Lisa Gastoni and Vincent Ball. It was based on the novel ''Suspense'' by prolific crime writer Bruce Graeme. The film was released in th ...
'' (1957) – Inspector Ford
* ''
At the Stroke of Nine
''At the Stroke of Nine'' is a 1957 British crime film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Patricia Dainton, Stephen Murray, Patrick Barr and Dermot Walsh. The plot follows a high-flying female journalist who is kidnapped by a madman. He fo ...
'' (1957) – Inspector Hudgell
* ''
The Heart Within
''The Heart Within'' is a 1957 British drama film directed by David Eady and starring James Hayter, Clifford Evans and David Hemmings. Its plot involves a Jamaican dockside worker who goes on the run in London suspected of the murder of anoth ...
'' (1957) – Matthew Johnson
* ''
Violent Playground
''Violent Playground'' is a black and white 1958 British film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Stanley Baker, Peter Cushing, and David McCallum. The film, which deals with the genre of juvenile delinquent, has an explicit social agenda. It ...
'' (1958) – Heaven
* ''
SOS Pacific'' (1959) – Petersen
* ''
The Curse of the Werewolf
''The Curse of the Werewolf'' is a 1961 British horror film based on the novel ''The Werewolf of Paris'' by Guy Endore. The film was made by the British company Hammer Film Productions and was shot at Bray Studios on sets that were constructed ...
'' (1961) – Alfredo
* ''
The Kiss of the Vampire
''The Kiss of the Vampire'' (also known as ''Kiss of Evil'' on American television) is a 1963 British vampire film made by the film studio Hammer Film Productions. The film was directed by Don Sharp and was written by producer Anthony H ...
'' (1963) – Professor Zimmer
* ''
The Long Ships
''The Long Ships'' or ''Red Orm'' (original Swedish: ''Röde Orm'' meaning ''Red Serpent'' or ''Red Snake'') is an adventure novel by the Swedish writer Frans G. Bengtsson.
The narrative is set in the late 10th century and follows the advent ...
'' (1964) – King Harald
* ''
A Twist of Sand
''A Twist of Sand'' is a 1968 British adventure film directed by Don Chaffey and starring Richard Johnson, Jeremy Kemp, Honor Blackman and Peter Vaughan based on the novel by Geoffrey Jenkins.
Plot
A former British naval officer now makes hi ...
'' (1968) – Admiral Tringham
* ''
One Brief Summer
''One Brief Summer'' is a 1970 British drama film directed by John Mackenzie. It stars Felicity Gibson and Clifford Evans. It was made at Twickenham Studios.
Cast
* Felicity Gibson as Susan Long
* Clifford Evans as Mark Stevens
* Jennifer Hi ...
'' (1971) – Mark Stevens
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Clifford
1912 births
1985 deaths
People from Caerphilly
British conscientious objectors
Personnel of the Non-Combatant Corps
Welsh male film actors
Welsh male television actors
20th-century Welsh male actors
Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Welsh military personnel