John Derek Carson-Parker (28 February 1927 – 5 November 2016), known as John Carson, was an English actor known for his appearances in film and television.

Early life and education

Born to English parents in Colombo,

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

(now Sri Lanka), where his father worked on tea and rubber plantations, he was educated in Australia and went to Britain to do national service as an artillery officer in an anti-aircraft regiment between 1944 and 1945. He then studied law at

Queen's College, Oxford The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassical architecture, ...

before leaving for New Zealand, where he worked in amateur theatre before returning to Britain to begin his professional career. His stage appearances included the original productions of '' A Man For All Seasons'' and ''

A Day in the Death of Joe Egg A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...

''.

Career

Making his film debut in 1947, Carson carved out a career appearing in low-budget British films such as '' Seven Keys'' (1961); '' Smokescreen'' (1964); and ''

Master Spy ''Master Spy'', (also known as ''Checkmate''), is a 1963 British spy film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Stephen Murray, June Thorburn and Alan Wheatley. The film was based on the short story "They Also Serve" by Gerald Anstruther a ...

'' (1964). His saturnine looks and sinister voice (sometimes compared with James Mason) led to him starring in a number of horror films including '' The Night Caller'' (1965); ''

The Plague of the Zombies ''The Plague of the Zombies'' is a 1966 British horror film directed by John Gilling and starring André Morell, John Carson, Jacqueline Pearce, Brook Williams, and Michael Ripper. The film's imagery influenced many later films in the zombie ...

'' (1966); ''

The Man Who Haunted Himself ''The Man Who Haunted Himself'' is a 1970 British psychological thriller film written and directed by Basil Dearden (his final film prior to his death by automobile accident in 1971) and starring Roger Moore. It is based on the 1957 novel ''The ...

'' (1970); ''

Taste the Blood of Dracula ''Taste the Blood of Dracula'' is a 1970 British supernatural horror film produced by Hammer Film Productions. Directed by Peter Sasdy from a script by Anthony Hinds, it is the fifth installment in Hammer's '' Dracula'' series, and the fourth ...

'' (1970); and ''

Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter ''Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter'' is a 1974 British swashbuckling action horror film, written and directed by Brian Clemens, produced by Clemens and Albert Fennell for Hammer Film Productions, and starring Horst Janson, John Carson, Shane ...

'' (1972). Beside his appearances in horror films he was also known for his many villainous turns in adventure series of the 1960s, such as ''

The Adventures of Robin Hood ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1938 American Technicolor swashbuckler film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke, directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley, and stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de H ...

''; '' The Avengers''; ''

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 ...

''; ''

Adam Adamant Lives! ''Adam Adamant Lives!'' is a British adventure television series that ran from 1966 to 1967 on BBC 1, starring Gerald Harper in the title role. The series was created and produced by several alumni from ''Doctor Who''. Proposing that an adventur ...

''; '' The Baron''; ''

Man in a Suitcase ''Man in a Suitcase'' is a British television private eye thriller series produced by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment. It originally aired in the United Kingdom on ITV from 27 September 1967 to 17 April 1968. ABC broadcast episodes of ''Man in a ...

''; ''

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 ...

'' and '' Department S''. His long and varied list of television credits include '' Emergency - Ward 10''; ''

Ivanhoe ''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' () by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. Set in England in the Middle Ages, this novel marked a shift away from Scott’s prior practice of setting st ...

''; ''

William Tell William Tell (german: Wilhelm Tell, ; french: Guillaume Tell; it, Guglielmo Tell; rm, Guglielm Tell) is a folk hero of Switzerland. According to the legend, Tell was an expert mountain climber and marksman with a crossbow who assassinated Albr ...

''; ''

Armchair Theatre ''Armchair Theatre'' is a British television drama anthology series of single plays that ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by ABC Weekend TV. Its successor Thames Television took over from mid-1968. The Canad ...

''; ''

Maigret Jules Maigret (), or simply Maigret, is a fictional French police detective, a '' commissaire'' ("commissioner") of the Paris ''Brigade Criminelle'' ('' Direction Régionale de la Police Judiciaire de Paris:36, Quai des Orfèvres''), created b ...

''; ''

Out of the Unknown ''Out of the Unknown'' is a British television science fiction anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and broadcast on BBC2 in four series between 1965 and 1971. Most episodes of the first three series were a dramatisation of a science f ...

''; '' Emma'' (as

Mr. Knightley George Knightley is a principal character depicted by Jane Austen in her novel '' Emma'', published in 1815. He is a landowner and gentleman farmer, though "having little spare money". A lifetime friend of Emma's, though nearly seventeen years ...

); ''

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 ...

''; ''

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 New Avengers''; ''

Telford's Change ''Telford's Change'' is a 1979 BBC television series by Brian Clark which stars Peter Barkworth. The theme music was composed and played by jazz composer John Dankworth. Outline Barkworth plays a bank manager, Mark Telford, who takes a backward ...

''; '' Secret Army''; ''

Special Branch Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security and Intelligence (information gathering), intelligence in Policing in the United Kingdom, British, Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, ...

''; '' The Professionals''; '' Tales of the Unexpected''; ''

Hammer House of Horror ''Hammer House of Horror'' is a British television series made in 1980. An anthology series created by Hammer Films in association with Cinema Arts International and ITC Entertainment, it consists of 13 hour-long episodes, originally broadca ...

''; ''

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 ...

'' (''

Snakedance ''Snakedance'' is the second serial of the 20th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts on BBC1 from 18 to 26 January 1983. The serial is set on the planet Ma ...

''); ''

Shaka Zulu Shaka kaSenzangakhona ( – 22 September 1828), also known as Shaka Zulu () and Sigidi kaSenzangakhona, was the king of the Zulu Kingdom from 1816 to 1828. One of the most influential monarchs of the Zulu, he ordered wide-reaching reforms that ...

'' and ''

Poirot Hercule Poirot (, ) is a fictional Belgian detective created by British writer Agatha Christie. Poirot is one of Christie's most famous and long-running characters, appearing in 33 novels, two plays ('' Black Coffee'' and ''Alibi''), and more ...

''. He was also the voice-over performer in

Sunsilk Sunsilk is a British hair care brand produced by the company Unilever. The brand was introduced in 1954 in the UK and available in most countries globally. It is a hair care brand in Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines, Indonesia, an ...

TV commercials.

Personal life

Carson moved with his family to South Africa in 1983 and continued to work in film and television. He died at his home in Cape Town on 5 November 2016 at the age of 89. Married twice, he was survived by his second wife, novelist Luanshya Greer, a British actress, who is best known for her roles on television during the 1960s. In 1966, she had changed her forename from Pamela to Luanshya, and become a writer for TV shows including ''

'', '' Thriller'' and ''

Triangle A triangle is a polygon with three Edge (geometry), edges and three Vertex (geometry), vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC. In Euclidean geometry, an ...

''. Carson was also survived by his six children, four from his first marriage, Richard, Chris, Katie and Harry, and two from his second marriage, Ben and Suzanna.Notice of death of John Carson
announcements.telegraph.co.uk; accessed 13 February 2019.

Selected filmography

Film

* '' Conspiracy in Teheran'' (1946) * ''

Quentin Durward ''Quentin Durward'' is a historical novel by Sir Walter Scott, first published in 1823. The story concerns a Scottish archer in the service of the French King Louis XI (1423–1483) who plays a prominent part in the narrative. Compositi ...

'' (1955) - Duke of Orléans * ''

Ramsbottom Rides Again ''Ramsbottom Rides Again'' is a 1956 British western comedy film produced and directed by John Baxter. The film features radio, film and stage star Arthur Askey in the lead role of Bill Ramsbottom, with Sid James, Shani Wallis, Betty Marsden and ...

'' (1956) - (uncredited) * '' Intent to Kill'' (1958) - Hospital Receptionist * '' The Lady Is a Square'' (1959) - Reporter (uncredited) * '' Seven Keys'' (1961) - Norman * ''

Guns of Darkness ''Guns of Darkness'' is a 1962 British drama film directed by Anthony Asquith and starring David Niven, Leslie Caron and James Robertson Justice. It is based on the 1960 novel ''Act of Mercy'' by Francis Clifford, which was retitled ''Guns of ...

'' (1962) - First Officer * ''

Edgar Wallace Mysteries The ''Edgar Wallace Mysteries'' is a British second-feature film series mainly produced at Merton Park Studios for Anglo-Amalgamated. There were 48 films in the series, which were released between 1960 and 1965. The series was screened as ''The E ...

'', ''

Locker Sixty-Nine ''Locker Sixty-Nine'' is a 1962 British film based on a story by Edgar Wallace, and an episode of the ''Edgar Wallace Mysteries''. Cast * Eddie Byrne as Simon York * Paul Daneman as Frank Griffiths * Walter Brown as Craig * Penelope Horner as Jul ...

'' (1962) - Miguel Terila * ''The Set Up'' (1963) - Insp. Jackson * ''

'' (1963) - Richard Colman * ''

Accidental Death An accidental death is an unnatural death that is caused by an accident, such as a slip and fall, traffic collision, or accidental poisoning. Accidental deaths are distinguished from death by natural causes, disease, and from intentional hom ...

'' (1963) - Paul Lanson * '' Smokescreen'' (1964) - Trevor Bayliss * ''

'', '' Act of Murder'' (1964) - Tim Ford * '' The Night Caller'' (1965) - Major * ''

'' (1966) - Squire Clive Hamilton * ''

Thunderbird 6 ''Thunderbird 6'' is a 1968 British Science fiction film, science fiction puppet film based on ''Thunderbirds (TV series), Thunderbirds'', a Supermarionation television series created by Gerry Anderson, Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by ...

'' (1968) - Captain Foster (II) (voice) * ''

'' (1970) - Jonathon Secker * ''

'' (1970) - Ashton * ''Male Bait'' (1971) * ''

'' (1974) - Dr. Marcus * ''Skating on Thin Uys'' (1985) - BBC Man * ''Survivor'' (1987) - Engineer Councillor * ''Tenth of a Second'' (1987) - Man from Organization * ''City of Blood'' (1987) - Prime Minister * ''An African Dream'' (1987) - Harry Endicott * ''Diamonds High'' (1988) - Heinrich * '' The Last Warrior'' (1989) - Priest * ''

Schweitzer Schweitzer is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Albert Schweitzer, German theologian, musician, physician, and medical missionary, winner of the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize * Anton Schweitzer, opera composer * Brian Schweitzer, forme ...

'' (1990) - Horton Herschel * ''

The Sheltering Desert ''The Sheltering Desert'' is a 1992 drama film directed by Regardt van den Bergh and starring Jason Connery, Rupert Graves and Joss Ackland. The film was a co-production between Ireland, South Africa and the United Kingdom. It is listed in the ...

'' (1991) - Harding * ''The Last Hero'' (1991) - Fred Zimmerman * ''My Daughter's Keeper'' (1991) - Bernard Eton * ''

Woman of Desire ''Woman of Desire'' is a 1994 erotic thriller film directed by Robert Ginty and starring Bo Derek and Robert Mitchum. Plot Jack Lynch (Jeff Fahey) washes up on a beach after a storm, telling a story of one of the Ashby brothers having fallen off ...

'' (1994) - Judge Parker * ''

Mandela and de Klerk ''Mandela and de Klerk'' is a 1997 made-for-television drama film written by Richard Wesley and directed by Joseph Sargent. The film stars Sidney Poitier and Michael Caine. The film documents the negotiations between F.W. de Klerk and Nelson ...

'' (1997, TV Movie) - Willem de Klerk * ''Operation Delta Force 3: Clear Target'' (1998) - President Farrington * ''

I Dreamed of Africa ''I Dreamed of Africa'' is a 2000 American biographical drama film directed by Hugh Hudson, starring Kim Basinger. It also stars Vincent Perez, Eva Marie Saint, Garrett Strommen, Liam Aiken and Daniel Craig. It is based on the autobiographical ...

'' (2000) - Pembroke Headmaster * '' The Deal'' (2008) - Nigel Bland * ''

Doomsday Doomsday may refer to: * Eschatology, a time period described in the eschatological writings in Abrahamic religions and in doomsday scenarios of non-Abrahamic religions. * Global catastrophic risk, a hypothetical event explored in science and fict ...

'' (2008) - George Dutton

TV

* '' Story Parade - The Caves of Steel'' (1964) - R. Daneel Olivaw * ''

'' * ''

'' (1958-1959) - Sir Robert / Sir Roderick / Sir Morten / Guard Captain * ''

'' (1958-1959) - Aengus MacOgue / Tom Brook / Borghem * '' Emergency - Ward 10'' (1959) - Donald Latimer * ''

The Adventures of William Tell ''The Adventures of William Tell'' is a British swashbuckler adventure series, first broadcast on the ITV network in 1958, and produced by ITC Entertainment. In the United States, the episodes aired on the syndicated NTA Film Network in 1958 ...

'' (1959) - Fritz * '' Oliver Twist'' (1962) -

Monks A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedicat ...

* '' The Avengers'' (1963-1965) - Fitch / Marten Halvarssen / Ariston * ''

Hereward the Wake Hereward the Wake (Traditional pronunciation /ˈhɛ.rɛ.ward/, modern pronunciation /ˈhɛ.rɪ.wəd/) (1035 – 1072) (also known as Hereward the Outlaw or Hereward the Exile) was an Anglo-Saxon nobleman and a leader of local resista ...

'' (1965) -

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

* ''

Dombey and Son ''Dombey and Son'' is a novel by English author Charles Dickens. It follows the fortunes of a shipping firm owner, who is frustrated at the lack of a son to follow him in his footsteps; he initially rejects his daughter's love before eventual ...

'' (1969) * ''

'' (1971) - Allen Meredith * '' Emma'' (1972) -

* ''

'' (1976) - Joe Conway / Francis Spurling * '' The New Avengers'' (1976) - Freddy * '' Secret Army'' (1977) - Hans Van Reijn * ' (1978) - James More * '' The Professionals'' (1978) - Brian Forrest * ''

'' (1979) - Jean Dieber * '' Tales of the Unexpected'' (1980) - Arthur * ''

'' (1980) - Charles Randolph * ''

'' (1983, Serial: ''

'') - Ambril * '' Strangers and Brothers'' (1984) - Jago * ''

'' (1986) - Lord Kimberley * ''

'' (1989-2005) - Richard Abernethie / Sir George Carrington * ''

'' (1997) - Docteur

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carson, John 1927 births 2016 deaths People from Colombo Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford English male stage actors English male film actors English male television actors English expatriates in South Africa 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors