John Barron (24 December 1920 – 3 July 2004) was an English actor. Although Barron was a familiar face on British television from the 1950s, he is best remembered for his role in the BBC comedy ''

The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin ''The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin'' is a British sitcom starring Leonard Rossiter in the title role. It is based on a series of novels written by David Nobbs and produced from 1976 to 1979. Nobbs adapted the screenplay for the first series ...

'' (1976–79) playing C J, Perrin's overbearing boss, later employee. The show also gave Barron the memorable catchphrase, "I didn't get where I am today by...".

Biography

Born in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An Civil parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish and latterly a ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, Barron was interested in acting from an early age. For his 18th birthday, his godfather paid his entry fee to

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 Senat ...

. After serving 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 sub ...

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 ...

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 ...

, he returned to stage acting. In the 1950s, he moved into a directorial role, during which time he came to know

Leonard Rossiter Leonard Rossiter (21 October 1926 – 5 October 1984) was an English actor. He had a long career in the theatre but achieved his highest profile for his television comedy roles starring as Rupert Rigsby in the ITV series ''Rising Damp'' from ...

. From the mid-1950s, he became more involved in television, and then film. His movies including ''

The Day the Earth Caught Fire ''The Day the Earth Caught Fire'' is a British science fiction disaster film starring Edward Judd, Leo McKern and Janet Munro. It was directed by Val Guest and released in 1961, and is one of the classic apocalyptic films of its era. The film o ...

'' (1961), ''

Jigsaw Jigsaw may refer to: * Jigsaw (tool), a tool used for cutting arbitrary curves * Jigsaw puzzle, a tiling puzzle that requires the assembly of interlocking pieces Arts and media Comics * Jigsaw (Marvel Comics), a supervillain and arch-enemy of ...

'' (1962), ''

Incense for the Damned ''Incense for the Damned'' (aka ''Bloodsuckers'', ''Freedom Seeker'' and ''Doctors Wear Scarlet'') is a 1971 British horror film.Senn, Bryan (2019). Twice the Thrills! Twice the Chills! Horror and Science Fiction Double Features 1955-1974. Jeff ...

'' (1970), '' Hitler: The Last Ten Days'' (1973), ''

Clash of Loyalties ''Clash of Loyalties'' ( ar, المسألة الكبرى, al-masʿāla al-kubrā, aka ''The Great Question'') is a 1983 Iraqi film focusing on the formation of Iraq out of Mesopotamia in the aftermath of the First World War. The film was financed ...

'' (1983), ''

To Catch a King ''To Catch a King'' is a 1984 American thriller film directed by Clive Donner and written by Roger O. Hirson. Based on the 1979 novel by Jack Higgins (writing as Harry Patterson), the film stars Robert Wagner, Teri Garr, Horst Janson, John Stand ...

'' (1984) and '' Thirteen at Dinner'' (1985). During his career, he also appeared in such popular TV series as ''

Crown Court The Crown Court is the court of first instance of England and Wales responsible for hearing all Indictable offence, indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals lied to it by the Magistrates' court, magistrates' court ...

'', '' The Avengers'', ''

Emergency – Ward 10 ''Emergency Ward 10'' is a British medical soap opera series shown on ITV between 1957 and 1967. Like ''The Grove Family'', a series shown by the BBC between 1954 and 1957, ''Emergency Ward 10'' is considered to be one of British television's fi ...

'', ''

All Gas and Gaiters ''All Gas and Gaiters'' is a British television ecclesiastical sitcom which aired on BBC1 from 1966 to 1971. It was written by Pauline Devaney and Edwin Apps, a husband-and-wife team who used the pseudonym of John Wraith when writing the pilot. ...

'', '' Undermind'', ''

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 ...

'', '' Department S'', ''

Doomwatch ''Doomwatch'' is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC, which ran on BBC1 between 1970 and 1972. The series was set in the then present day, and dealt with a scientific government agency led by Doctor Spencer Quist ( ...

'', ''

Timeslip ''Timeslip'' is a British children's science fiction television series made by ATV for the ITV network and broadcast between 1970 and 1971. It was first broadcast on Friday evenings at around 5:10-5:15pm in the ATV region with the other ITV re ...

'', ''

Potter A potter is someone who makes pottery. Potter may also refer to: Places United States *Potter, originally a section on the Alaska Railroad, currently a neighborhood of Anchorage, Alaska, US * Potter, Arkansas *Potter, Nebraska * Potters, New Je ...

'', ''

To the Manor Born ''To the Manor Born'' is a BBC television sitcom that first aired on BBC1 from 1979 to 1981. A special one-off episode was produced in 2007. Starring Penelope Keith and Peter Bowles, the first 20 episodes and the 2007 special were written by ...

'', ''

Whoops Apocalypse ''Whoops Apocalypse'' is a six-part 1982 television sitcom by Andrew Marshall and David Renwick, made by London Weekend Television for ITV. Marshall and Renwick later reworked the concept as a 1986 film of the same name from ITC Entertainment ...

'' and ''

Yes Minister ''Yes Minister'' is a British political satire sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn. Comprising three seven-episode series, it was first transmitted on BBC2 from 1980 to 1984. A sequel, ''Yes, Prime Minister'', ran for 16 episodes fro ...

''. Although he had long-running roles in popular dramas like the police series '' Softly, Softly'' (where he played the assistant chief constable between 1967 and 1969), his best known role was in the situation comedy ''The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin'', which began in 1976, and starred Leonard Rossiter as the title character. Barron's character, CJ (Charles Jefferson), was Perrin's overbearing boss with the catchphrase "I didn't get where I am today by...". He also appeared in the 1986 Christmas Special of ''

Duty Free A duty-free shop (or store) is a retail outlet whose goods are exempt from the payment of certain local or national taxes and duties, on the requirement that the goods sold will be sold to travelers who will take them out of the country, who ...

''. Barron was president of the actors' union

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 ...

from 1978 to 1982 and vice-president in 1977 and again from 1984 to 1989. His one hobby was enjoying fine wine, which he also inspired his friend Rossiter to take up. An active supporter of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

, he presented a

Party Political Broadcast A party political broadcast (also known, in pre-election campaigning periods, as a party election broadcast) is a television or radio broadcast made by a political party. In the United Kingdom the Communications Act 2003 prohibits (and previou ...

on their behalf in the 1980s and features supporting his party's policies on the BBC's ''

Newsnight ''Newsnight'' (or ''BBC Newsnight'') is BBC Two's news and current affairs programme, providing in-depth investigation and analysis of the stories behind the day's headlines. The programme is broadcast on weekdays at 22:30. and is also availa ...

'' programme. He was married three times: first to the actress

Joan Sterndale-Bennett Joan Sterndale-Bennett (5 March 191427 April 1996) was a British stage and film actress, best known as a character comedian for her work at the Players' Theatre in London. Career Born into a musical family, her father Thomas Case Sterndale Benn ...

which soon ended in divorce; then to Joan Peart, who died in 1989 after 40 years of marriage; and finally to

Helen Christie Helen Christie (22 October 1914 – 17 March 1995) was an Indian-born British stage, film and television actress. She was married to Patrick Crean. Selected filmography Film * '' Up for the Cup'' (1950) * '' Wide Boy'' (1952) * '' Castle in ...

, who died in 1995. He had two stepdaughters, one each from the second and third marriages. Barron remained active in the profession until his death at the age of 83.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barron, John 1920 births 2004 deaths Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art English male television actors People from Marylebone Royal Navy officers of World War II