Ernest Alfred Bourne
''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'', 20 February 2009. (1 August 1926 – 21 January 2009) was an

English Australian English Australians, also known as Anglo-Australians, are Australians whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in England. In the 2021 census, 8,385,928 people, or 33% of the Australian population, stated that they had English ancestry (wheth ...

actor, entertainer, comedian and puppeteer, whose career locally spanned 50 years, having started his career in theatre in his native England, he becamme known for his regular roles in theatre and television in Australia, particularly in character roles, Bourne was probably best known locally and internationally for his role as prison chef Mervin Pringle, in the TV series ''

Prisoner A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

'' and as mechanic Rob Lewis in ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...

Biography

Bourne was born in

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

, England and raised in

Yeovil Yeovil ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the district of South Somerset, England. The population of Yeovil at the last census (2011) was 45,784. More recent estimates show a population of 48,564. It is close to Somer ...

, Somerset where his mother ran a boarding house following the early death of his father. Leaving school and home at the age of 14, Bourne worked in a cafe before joining the

British Merchant Navy The Merchant Navy is the maritime register of the United Kingdom and comprises the seagoing commercial interests of UK-registered ships and their crews. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensign and are regulated by the Maritime and Coastguar ...

during

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 ...

, where he became interested in acting after appearing in a

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

, he would appear regularly in English pantomime and in many stage productions in

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 ...

, before migrating to Australia.Giles, Nigel
Final bravo for an old stager
''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'', 20 February 2009. He emigrated to Australia in 1952, initially settling in

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...

joining the Geelong Musical Comedy Company, he appeared in numerous stage roles starting from 1955 and later moving to Melbourne. In the 1960s, he was loved (and booed) as a series of

-style villains on Australian television such as Sir Jasper Crookley (in ''

Magic Circle Club ''The Magic Circle Club'' was an award-winning Australian children's television show, produced at ATV Channel 0 (now ATV-10) from 23 January 1965 to 1967. The program's style came from live pantomime and classic fairy tales. It often featured ...

''), and multiple similar baddies in '' Adventure Island'' including Sir Cedric Sneak, Captain Crook, Chummy Chums and Miser Meanie's sidekick Fester Fumble. Throughout the early-to-mid 1970s he was a staple of

Crawford Productions Crawford Productions is an Australian media production company, focused on radio and television production. Founded in Melbourne by Hector Crawford and his sister, actress and voice artist Dorothy Crawford, the company, also known as Crawfords ...

police dramas in a variety of character roles. In the 1980s he played prison chef Mervin Pringle in ''

'' (having earlier played two other minor roles) and garage mechanic Rob Lewis in ''

''. He also appeared in a series of television commercials for a retail sportsgear outlet (Sportsmart) as an older man (playing golf and tennis) who is perpetually laughed at by a young blonde man for spending too much money on his gear elsewhere. He has a daughter Sally Bourne who is also an actress and is best known for appearing in the musicals of

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musicals, ...

. Bourne was married to Claire Bourne (formerly Smith) and he died on 21 January 2009, aged 82, at

The Alfred Hospital The Alfred Hospital, also known as The Alfred or Alfred Hospital, is a leading tertiary teaching hospital in Melbourne, Victoria. It is the second oldest hospital in Victoria, and the oldest Melbourne hospital still operating on its original site ...

in Melbourne.

Filmography (selected)

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bourne, Ernie 1926 births 2009 deaths Australian male film actors Australian male soap opera actors English emigrants to Australia British Merchant Navy personnel of World War II Male actors from Dorset People from Yeovil 20th-century Australian male actors 21st-century Australian male actors Military personnel from Somerset