Ian Fleming (born Ian Macfarlane; 10 September 1888 – 1 January 1969) was an Australian character actor with credits in over 100 British films. One of his best known roles was playing

Dr Watson John H. Watson, known as Dr. Watson, is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson first appeared in the novel '' A Study in Scarlet'' (1887). The last work by Doyle ...

in a series of Sherlock Holmes films of the 1930s opposite

Arthur Wontner Arthur Wontner (21 January 1875 – 10 July 1960) was a British actor best known for playing Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's master detective Sherlock Holmes in five films from 1931 to 1937. Career Wontner's acting career began on the stage where h ...

's Holmes. He also played a number of supporting roles in many classic British films of the era including ''

Q Planes ''Q Planes'' (known as ''Clouds Over Europe'' in the United States) is a 1939 British comedy spy film starring Ralph Richardson, Laurence Olivier and Valerie Hobson. Olivier and Richardson were a decade into their fifty-year friendship and were ...

'' (1939), ''

Night Train to Munich ''Night Train to Munich'' is a 1940 British-American thriller film directed by Carol Reed and starring Margaret Lockwood and Rex Harrison. Written by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder, based on the 1939 short story ''Report on a Fugitive'' by Go ...

'' (1940), ''

We Dive at Dawn ''We Dive at Dawn'' is a 1943 war film directed by Anthony Asquith and starring John Mills and Eric Portman as Royal Navy submariners in the Second World War. It was written by Val Valentine and J. B. Williams with uncredited assistance from Fr ...

'', ''

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp ''The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp'' is a 1943 British romantic drama war film written, produced and directed by the Cinema of the United Kingdom, British film making team of Powell and Pressburger, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It s ...

'' (both 1943) and '' Waterloo Road'' (1945). He also appeared regularly in the films of musical comedian

George Formby George Formby, (born George Hoy Booth; 26 May 1904 – 6 March 1961) was an English actor, singer-songwriter and comedian who became known to a worldwide audience through his films of the 1930s and 1940s. On stage, screen and record he s ...

. He also acted on stage, appearing as Robert Harley in the

Norman Ginsbury Norman Ginsbury (1902–1991) was a British writer, known for his plays. He also wrote material for film and television. His 1935 play '' Viceroy Sarah'' about Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, ran for 157 performances in the West End. Th ...

's historical work ''

Viceroy Sarah ''Viceroy Sarah'' is a 1935 historical play by the British writer Norman Ginsbury. It is based on the relationship between Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough and Queen Anne during the time of the War of the Spanish Succession. Its West End run last ...

'' in the West End. Fleming's later career included appearances in many television series of the 1950s and 1960s, such as ''

Fabian of the Yard ''Fabian of the Yard'' is a British police procedural television series based on the real-life memoirs of Scotland Yard detective Robert Fabian, made by the BBC and broadcast between November 1954 and February 1956. It is considered the earlies ...

'', ''

Hancock's Half Hour ''Hancock's Half Hour'' was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy series, broadcast from 1954 to 1961 and written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The series starred Tony Hancock, with Sidney James; the radio version also co-starred, ...

'', '' Educated Evans'', ''

Dixon of Dock Green ''Dixon of Dock Green'' was a BBC police procedural television series about daily life at a fictional London police station, with the emphasis on petty crime, successfully controlled through common sense and human understanding. It ran from 19 ...

'', ''

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 Forsyte Saga ''The Forsyte Saga'', first published under that title in 1922, is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921 by the English author John Galsworthy, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature. They chronicle the vici ...

'' and ''

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 ...

''.

Partial filmography

* ''

Second to None ''2nd to None'' (also known as ''ELVIIS: 2nd to None'') is a collection of songs by American rock and roll musician Elvis Presley. The album was released by on October 7, 2003 by RCA Records as the sequel to the previous year's highly successful ...

'' (1927) * '' The Ware Case'' (1928) * '' The Devil's Maze'' (1929) * ''

The School for Scandal ''The School for Scandal'' is a comedy of manners written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. It was first performed in London at Drury Lane Theatre on 8 May 1777. Plot Act I Scene I: Lady Sneerwell, a wealthy young widow, and her hireling Sn ...

'' (1930) * ''

The Sleeping Cardinal ''The Sleeping Cardinal'', also known as ''Sherlock Holmes' Fatal Hour'' in the United States, is a 1931 British mystery film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Arthur Wontner and Ian Fleming. The film is an adaptation of the Sherlock H ...

'' (1931) * ''

The Missing Rembrandt ''The Missing Rembrandt'' is a 1932 British mystery film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Arthur Wontner, Jane Welsh, Miles Mander, and Francis L. Sullivan. It is considered a lost film. The film was loosely based on the 1904 Sherloc ...

'' (1932) * '' Lucky Girl'' (1932) * '' Called Back'' (1933) * '' After Dark'' (1933) * ''

The Third Clue ''The Third Clue'' is a 1934 British crime film directed by Albert Parker and starring Basil Sydney, Molly Lamont and Raymond Lovell. The film was based on Neil Gordon's novel ''The Shakespeare Murders'', which also inspired '' The Claydon Tr ...

'' (1934) * ''

School for Stars ''School for Stars'' is a 1935 British romance film directed by Donovan Pedelty and starring Fred Conyngham, Jean Gillie and Torin Thatcher. It was made at British and Dominions Elstree Studios as a quota quickie.Chibnall p.285 Cast * Fred Co ...

'' (1935) * ''

The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes ''The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes'' is a 1935 British mystery film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Arthur Wontner. It was based on the 1915 Sherlock Holmes novel '' The Valley of Fear'' by Arthur Conan Doyle. It is the fourth film ...

'' (1935) * ''

Sexton Blake and the Mademoiselle ''Sexton Blake and the Mademoiselle'' is a 1935 British crime film directed by Alex Bryce and starring George Curzon as Sexton Blake. Premise Blake must discover who has stolen from a wealthy financier – and discovers a mysterious woman be ...

'' (1935) * ''

The Riverside Murder ''The Riverside Murder'' is a 1935 British crime film directed by Albert Parker and starring Basil Sydney, Judy Gunn and Zoe Davis. A woman reporter helps an inspector solve the deaths of four financiers on the eve of a group shareout. The f ...

'' (1935) * ''

The Crouching Beast ''The Crouching Beast'' is a 1935 British war thriller film directed by Victor Hanbury and starring Fritz Kortner, Wynne Gibson and Richard Bird. It was shot at Welwyn Studios with sets designed by the art director Duncan Sutherland.Wood p.85 B ...

'' (1935) * ''

Prison Breaker ''Prison Breaker'' is a 1936 British crime drama film directed by Adrian Brunel and starring James Mason, Wally Patch, Marguerite Allan and George Merritt. The film was based on a novel by Edgar Wallace; its plot concerns a British secret serv ...

'' (1936) * ''

Excuse My Glove ''Excuse My Glove'' is a 1936 British comedy sports film directed by Redd Davis and starring Len Harvey, Archie Pitt and Betty Ann Davies. It was produced by Alexander Film Productions. It was shot at Elstree Studios with sets designed by the ...

'' (1936) * ''

Jump for Glory ''Jump for Glory'' is a 1937 British romantic drama film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Valerie Hobson and Alan Hale. It was based on a novel by Gordon McDonnell. The film was shot at Isleworth Studios by the inde ...

'' (1937) * '' Racing Romance'' (1937) * ''

Darby and Joan Darby and Joan is a proverbial phrase for a married couple content to share a quiet life of mutual devotion. Usage ''The Nuttall Encyclopædia'' defined the phrase as "a married couple celebrated for their mutual attachment", the ''Random House ...

'' (1937) * '' Silver Blaze'' (1937), known in America as ''Murder at the Baskervilles'' * '' Dial 999'' (1938) * '' Double or Quits'' (1938) * ''

The Nursemaid Who Disappeared ''The Nursemaid Who Disappeared'' is a 1939 British, black-and-white, crime film, directed by Arthur B. Woods and starring Ronald Shiner as Detective Smith (uncredited), Ian Fleming, Arthur Margetson, Peter Coke and Edward Chapman. Based on ...

'' (1939) * '' The Good Old Days'' (1939) (lost) * ''

The Lion Has Wings ''The Lion Has Wings'' is a 1939 British, black-and-white, documentary-style, propaganda war film that was directed by Adrian Brunel, Brian Desmond Hurst, Alexander Korda and Michael Powell. The film was produced by London Film Productions and ...

'' (1939) * '' Men Without Honour'' (1939) * ''

'' (1939) * ''

Three Silent Men ''Three Silent Men'' is a 1940 British crime film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Sebastian Shaw, Derrick De Marney, Patricia Roc and Arthur Hambling. The screenplay concerns a pacifist surgeon who must operate to save the life of the i ...

'' (1940) * ''

It Happened to One Man ''It Happened to One Man'' is a 1940 British drama film directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Wilfrid Lawson, Nora Swinburne and Marta Labarr. The screenplay was scripted by Paul Merzbach and Nina Jarcis, based on the play of the same name b ...

'' (1940) * '' Jeannie'' (1941) * ''

They Flew Alone ''They Flew Alone'' (released in the US as ''Wings and the Woman'') is a 1942 British biopic about aviator Amy Johnson directed and produced by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Robert Newton and Edward Chapman. It was distributed in the ...

'' (1942) * '' Let the People Sing'' (1942) * '' I Didn't Do It'' (1945) * '' They Knew Mr. Knight'' (1946) * ''

George in Civvy Street ''George in Civvy Street'' is a 1946 British comedy film directed and produced by Marcel Varnel starring George Formby with Ronald Shiner, and Ian Fleming. It was made by the British subsidiary of Columbia Pictures. This was Formby's last big sc ...

'' (1946) * ''

Appointment with Crime ''Appointment with Crime'' is a 1946 British crime film directed by John Harlow and starring William Hartnell, Raymond Lovell, Joyce Howard and Robert Beatty. Plot Leo Martin (Hartnell) works for a criminal gang run by Gus Loman (Lovell) tha ...

'' (1946) * ''

Hammer the Toff ''Hammer the Toff'' is a 1952 British crime film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring John Bentley and Patricia Dainton. The film was based on the 1947 novel of the same name by John Creasey, the 17th in the series featuring upper-class sle ...

'' (1952) * '' Wings of Danger'' (1952) * ''

The Voice of Merrill ''The Voice of Merrill'' is a 1952 British mystery film directed by John Gilling and starring Valerie Hobson, James Robertson Justice and Edward Underdown. ''The Voice of Merrill'' was made by Tempean Films, the company owned by the film's prod ...

'' (1952) * '' Black Orchid'' (1953) * ''

Park Plaza 605 ''Park Plaza 605'', released as ''Norman Conquest'' in the United States, is a 1953 British crime film. Made as a B movie, it stars Tom Conway, Eva Bartok, and Joy Shelton, and also features Sid James and Richard Wattis. It is based on the ''No ...

'' (1953) * ''

Eight O'Clock Walk ''Eight O'Clock Walk'' is a 1954 British drama film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Richard Attenborough, Cathy O'Donnell, Derek Farr and Maurice Denham. Its plot involves a taxi driver who is tried for the murder of a young girl on a bo ...

'' (1954) * '' The Embezzler'' (1954) * '' High Flight'' (1957) * ''

Innocent Meeting ''Innocent Meeting'' is a 1958 British crime film directed by Godfrey Grayson and starring Sean Lynch, Beth Rogan and Raymond Huntley. In the film, a teenager on probation for theft bonds with the daughter of middle-class parents after meeting ...

'' (1958) * ''

Your Money or Your Wife ''Your Money or Your Wife'' is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Anthony Simmons and starring Donald Sinden, Peggy Cummins, and Richard Wattis. In this farce, a couple must divorce in order to inherit a fortune. Cast * Donald Sinden as P ...

'' (1960) * '' Bluebeard's Ten Honeymoons'' (1960) * '' Return of a Stranger'' (1961) * ''

The Lamp in Assassin Mews ''The Lamp in Assassin Mews'' is a 1962 British comedy film, comedy crime film directed by Godfrey Grayson and starring Francis Matthews (actor), Francis Matthews, Lisa Daniely and Ian Fleming (actor), Ian Fleming. The film's plot concerns a loc ...

'' (1962) * ''

Richard the Lionheart Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

'' (1962) * ''

'' (TV serial, 1967) : Lord Fontenoy

Selected stage appearances

* '' The Berg'' by

Ernest Raymond Ernest Raymond (31 December 1888 – 14 May 1974) was a British novelist, best known for his first novel, '' Tell England'' (1922), set in World War I. His next biggest success was ''We, the Accused'' (1935), generally thought to be a reworki ...

(1929) * ''

'' by

(1935) * '' The Blue Goose'' by Peter Blackmore (1941) * ''

His Excellency Excellency is an honorific style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder usually retains the righ ...

'' by Campbell Christie (1950)

References

External links

* 1888 births 1969 deaths Australian male film actors Male actors from Melbourne Australian expatriate male actors in the United Kingdom {{film-actor-stub