Donald Marland Hewlett (30 August 1920 – 4 June 2011) was a British actor who was best known for his sitcom roles as Colonel Charles Reynolds in ''

It Ain't Half Hot Mum ''It Ain't Half Hot, Mum'' is a BBC television sitcom about a Royal Artillery concert party based in Deolali in British India and the fictional village of Tin Min in Burma, during the last months of the Second World War. It was written by Jimm ...

'' and Lord Meldrum in '' You Rang, M'Lord?'', both written by

Jimmy Perry James Perry, (20 September 1923 – 23 October 2016)Simon Morgan-Russell, "Perry, James (Jimmy) (1923–2016)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, Jan 202available online Retrieved 25 August 2020. was an Engli ...

and David Croft. He also had other roles in British film and television productions.It Ain't Half Hot Mum's Donald Hewlett dies at 90
''BBC News'', 5 June 2011

Early life

Hewlett was born into a wealthy family; his father

Thomas Hewlett Thomas Henry Hewlett (23 November 1882 – 25 May 1956) was a British Conservative Party politician and industrialist. He unsuccessfully contested the 1935 general election in Manchester Clayton, but after the death in 1940 of Peter Eckersle ...

was Conservative MP for Manchester Exchange from 1940 to 1945 and owned the Anchor Chemical Company based in Clayton,

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

(now a subsidiary of

Air Products and Chemicals Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. is an American international corporation whose principal business is selling gases and chemicals for industrial uses. Air Products' headquarters is in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pen ...

). He was the brother of

Thomas Hewlett, Baron Hewlett Thomas Clyde Hewlett, Baron Hewlett, CBE (4 August 1923 – 2 July 1979) was a British industrialist and life peer. Hewlett was the son of Thomas Hewlett, an industrialist and Conservative Member of Parliament for Manchester Exchange. He was ...

. Hewlett was educated at

Clifton College ''The spirit nourishes within'' , established = 160 years ago , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent boarding and day school , religion = Christian , president = , head_label = Head of College , hea ...

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

followed by St John's College, Cambridge, where he studied geography and meteorology and was part of the

Footlights Cambridge University Footlights Dramatic Club, commonly referred to simply as the Footlights, is an amateur theatrical club in Cambridge, England, founded in 1883 and run by the students of Cambridge University. History Footlights' inaugural ...

Revue, but volunteered for the

RNVR The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Ro ...

early in

World War II 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 ...

. He served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

and

meteorologist A meteorologist is a scientist who studies and works in the field of meteorology aiming to understand or predict Earth's atmospheric phenomena including the weather. Those who study meteorological phenomena are meteorologists in research, while t ...

. and was stationed for several years in

Kirkwall Kirkwall ( sco, Kirkwaa, gd, Bàgh na h-Eaglaise, nrn, Kirkavå) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. The name Kirkwall comes from the Norse name (''Church Bay''), which later changed to ''Kirkv ...

in the Orkney Islands where he was a founder member of the Kirkwall Arts Club. He was later assigned to the

during North Atlantic action aboard the light cruisers Malaya and Galatea. He rose to the rank of lieutenant. He was subsequently posted to

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

,Rob Cope, Mike Fury, ''You Rang M'Lord?'', DAAS, 35-36 in charge of Japanese POWs and as entertainment officer.

Career

Following his demob, rather than return to Cambridge University, Hewlett 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 gained his first professional acting job in repertory theatre at the

Oxford Playhouse Oxford Playhouse is a theatre designed by Edward Maufe and F.G.M. Chancellor. It is situated in Beaumont Street, Oxford, opposite the Ashmolean Museum. History The Playhouse was founded as ''The Red Barn'' at 12 Woodstock Road, North Oxfo ...

where he suggested the management should cast

Ronnie Barker Ronald William George Barker (25 September 1929 – 3 October 2005) was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as '' Porridge'', ''The Two Ronnies'', and ''Open All Hours''. ...

in his first, small, role. His first film acting role was the part of Lincoln Green in '' Orders are Orders'' (1954). His television appearances included ''The Ronnie Corbett Show'', ''

The Ronnie Barker Playhouse ''The Ronnie Barker Playhouse'' was a series of six comedy half hours showcasing the talents of Ronnie Barker. All were broadcast by Associated-Rediffusion in 1968. The series was written by Brian Cooke, Hugh Leonard, Johnnie Mortimer and A ...

'', ''

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 Avengers'', ''

The Dick Emery Show ''The Dick Emery Show'' is a British sketch comedy show starring Dick Emery. It was broadcast on the BBC from 1963 to 1981. It was directed and produced by Harold Snoad. The show was broadcast over 19 series with 166 episodes. The show experienced ...

'' and the ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' story ''

The Claws of Axos ''The Claws of Axos'' is the third serial of the eighth season of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 13 March to 3 April 1971. In the serial, set in Britain ...

'' (1971). However, he gained his most prominent role in the Croft and Perry sitcom ''

'' (1974–81) as Colonel Charles Reynolds. He was cast with Michael Knowles in another David Croft sitcom, the sci-fi parody '' Come Back Mrs. Noah'' (1977–78), and later with the successful '' You Rang, M'Lord?'' (1988–93), as George, Lord Meldrum (a part written specially for him). Hewlett was cast with Knowles again for the BBC Radio series ''Anything Legal'' in 1984. Other roles included 'Winkworth' in ''Morris Minor's Marvellous Motors'' in 1989 and '' The Adventures of Brigadier Wellington-Bull''. His last TV appearance was in ''

The Upper Hand ''The Upper Hand'' is a British television sitcom broadcast by ITV from 1 May 1990 to 14 October 1996. The programme was adapted from the American sitcom '' Who's the Boss?''. As in the former series, affluent single woman Caroline Wheatley ...

'' in 1995. He appeared in several episodes of ''The Enchanting World of Hinge and Bracket'', playing the ship's captain when they embarked on a cruise. Hewlett also appeared in the episode "Hello Sailor" from the sitcom '' Happy Ever After'' in 1977 which starred

Terry Scott Owen John "Terry" Scott (4 May 1927 – 26 July 1994) was an English actor and comedian who appeared in seven of the ''Carry On films''. He is also best known for appearing in the BBC1 sitcom ''Terry and June'' with June Whitfield. Early lif ...

and

June Whitfield Dame June Rosemary Whitfield (11 November 1925 – 29 December 2018) was an English radio, television, and film actress. Her big break was a lead in the radio comedy '' Take It from Here'', which aired on the BBC Light Programme in 1953. ...

. Hewlett made a number of film appearances including

Spike Milligan Terence Alan "Spike" Milligan (16 April 1918 – 27 February 2002) was an Irish actor, comedian, writer, musician, poet, and playwright. The son of an English mother and Irish father, he was born in British Raj, British Colonial India, where h ...

's '' Adolf Hitler - My Part in His Downfall'', '' A Touch of Class'', ''

Carry On Behind ''Carry On Behind'' is a 1975 British comedy film, the 27th release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It was the first entry in the series not to be scripted by Talbot Rothwell since ''Carry On Cruising'' 13 years previousl ...

'' and ''

The First Great Train Robbery ''The First Great Train Robbery'' (known in the United States as ''The Great Train Robbery'') is a 1978 Irish heist comedy film directed by Michael Crichton, who also wrote the screenplay based on his 1975 novel '' The Great Train Robbery''. ...

''. Hewlett's previous marriages, to Christine Pollon and Diana Greenwood, ended in divorce. He had two sons and a daughter by Greenwood. Having previously lived for several years in

Whitstable Whitstable () is a town on the north coast of Kent adjoining the convergence of the Swale Estuary and the Greater Thames Estuary in southeastern England, north of Canterbury and west of Herne Bay. The 2011 Census reported a population of ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, he lived in

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

, SW London, with his third wife Thérèse McMurray-Hewlett, by whom he had a son and daughter. His younger daughter,

Siobhan Hewlett Siobhan Hewlett is a British-born Irish film, television, radio and theatre actress as well as being a producer, poet and artist. She hails from a theatrical dynasty stretching back to the 19th-century. Background and early life Her great-gr ...

, is an actress, best known for her role in ''

Irina Palm ''Irina Palm'' is a 2007 tragicomedy film directed by Sam Garbarski and starring Marianne Faithfull and Miki Manojlović. It is a co-production of five countries (Belgium, Luxembourg, Great Britain, Germany and France). The film premiered at t ...

''.

Death

Hewlett died on 4 June 2011 at the

Chelsea and Westminster Hospital Chelsea and Westminster Hospital is a 430-bed teaching hospital located in Chelsea, London. Although the hospital has been at its present site since only 1993, the hospital has a rich history in that it serves as the new site for the Westminst ...

in West London aged 90.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* 1920 births 2011 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in England English male film actors English male television actors Male actors from Manchester People from Whitstable Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge People educated at Clifton College Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Royal Navy officers of World War II Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II 20th-century English male actors Male actors from Kent {{Authority control