Leslie Samuel Phillips (20 April 1924 – 7 November 2022) was an English actor, director, producer and author. He achieved prominence in the 1950s, playing smooth, upper-class comic roles utilising his "Ding dong" and "Hello" catchphrases. He appeared in the ''
Carry On'' and ''
Doctor in the House'' film series as well as the long-running BBC radio comedy series ''
The Navy Lark''.
In his later career, Phillips took on dramatic parts including a
BAFTA-nominated role alongside
Peter O'Toole
Peter Seamus O'Toole (; 2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) was a British stage and film actor. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and began working in the theatre, gaining recognition as a Shakespearean actor at the Bristol Old V ...
in ''
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
'' (2006). He provided the voice of the
Sorting Hat
Sorting refers to ordering data in an increasing or decreasing manner according to some linear relationship among the data items.
# ordering: arranging items in a sequence ordered by some criterion;
# categorizing: grouping items with similar pr ...
in several of the
''Harry Potter'' films.
Early life
Leslie Samuel Phillips was born in
Tottenham
Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Wal ...
on 20 April 1924,
the third child of Cecelia Margaret (''née'' Newlove) and Frederick Samuel Phillips, who worked at
Glover and Main, manufacturers of cookers in
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...
.
Phillips described his street as "beyond the sonic reach of the
Bow Bells
The Church of St Mary-le-Bow is a Church of England parish church in the City of London. Located on Cheapside, one of the city's oldest and most important thoroughfares, the church was founded in 1080 by Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rebuil ...
but within the general footprint of
cockneydom."
In 1931, the family moved to
Chingford, where Phillips attended Larkswood Primary School. Consequently, Phillips has described himself as both a
cockney and an Essex boy.
In 1935, his father died at 44, having suffered from a weak heart and
oedema brought on by the "filthy, sulphurous" air of the factory.
After his father's death, Phillips was sent to the
Italia Conti Academy at his mother's insistence.
There, he attended drama, dance and notably elocution to lose his cockney accent; at the time, a regional accent was considered an impediment to an aspiring actor.
Phillips took time to refine his
Received Pronunciation
Received Pronunciation (RP) is the accent traditionally regarded as the standard and most prestigious form of spoken British English. For over a century, there has been argument over such questions as the definition of RP, whether it is geo ...
accent, and later declared that "the biggest elocution lessons came from mixing with people who sounded right, people in theatrical circles and in the
officers' mess during the war."
He left school at 14 in 1938.
Career
Early work
Phillips made his stage debut in 1937 as a wolf in ''
Peter Pan'' alongside
Anna Neagle at the
London Palladium.
In the 1938–39 season, he was promoted to the role of John Napoleon Darling, alongside
Jean Forbes-Robertson as Peter and
Seymour Hicks
Sir Edward Seymour Hicks (30 January 1871 – 6 April 1949), better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, actor-manager and producer. He became known, early in his career, for writing, starring in and p ...
as
Captain Hook.
Acting allowed Phillips to earn extra money for his family, who had struggled financially after his father's death.
Phillips made his first film appearance in the 1938 musical comedy ''
Lassie from Lancashire''.
He made further uncredited appearances in ''
Climbing High'' (1938) and ''
The Mikado
''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, where it ran at the ...
'' (1939), among the earliest films made at
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London.
The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to t ...
.
Upon the 70th anniversary of the studios in 2006, Phillips considered himself one of the earliest actors to have worked there still alive and working.
A minor part in
Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever ...
' ''
The Proud Valley'' (1940) afforded Phillips the chance to work alongside
Paul Robeson, whom he greatly admired.
In the early years of 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 opposi ...
, Phillips worked in the
West End for
Binkie Beaumont
Hugh "Binkie" Beaumont (27 March 190822 March 1973) was a British theatre manager and producer, sometimes referred to as the "éminence grise" of the West End theatre. Though he shunned the spotlight so that his name was not known widely among ...
and
H. M. Tennent.
The shows were frequently interrupted by
air-raid sirens and Phillips later recalled that "audiences would evaporate and head for cellars or
Underground stations".
Called up to the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...
in 1942, Phillips rose to the rank of
lance-bombardier in the Royal Artillery. Due to his acquired upper class accent, Phillips was selected for officer training at
Catterick and duly commissioned as a
second lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank.
Australia
The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army unt ...
in the
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
in 1943.
He was transferred to the
Durham Light Infantry in 1944 but was later declared unfit for service just before
D-Day
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
after being diagnosed with a neurological condition that caused partial paralysis.
He was initially sent to a
psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociat ...
in error before moving to the correct facility for treatment.
Demobbed as a lieutenant in December 1944, Phillips' acting career initially took in "the murkiest rat-infested old
playhouses and
music hall
Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Br ...
s in the
north of England
Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...
".
He resumed his career as a film player, making uncredited appearances in ''
Anna Karenina'' and
Powell and Pressburger
The British film-making partnership of Michael Powell (1905–1990) and Emeric Pressburger (1902–1988)—together often known as The Archers, the name of their production company—made a series of influential films in the 1940s and 1950s. T ...
's ''
The Red Shoes'' (both 1948).
His first lead role in a television serial was in the sitcom ''
My Wife Jacqueline'' (1952).
His big break in the films was in the
Gene Kelly
Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, singer, filmmaker, and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...
musical ''
Les Girls
''Les Girls'' (also known as ''Cole Porter's Les Girls'') is a 1957 American CinemaScope musical comedy film directed by George Cukor and produced by Sol C. Siegel, with Saul Chaplin as associate producer. The screenplay by John Patrick was ba ...
'' (1957).
Although the film was a critical success, he decided against a move to Hollywood, in part as he considered himself primarily a theatre actor and did not want to become "the poor man's
David Niven".
He began appearing in character roles in British comedy films including ''
Brothers in Law'' and ''
The Smallest Show on Earth'' (both 1957).
In 1959, Phillips was cast in a minor role as Jack Bell in ''
Carry On Nurse
''Carry On Nurse'' is a 1959 British comedy film, the second in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). Of the regular team, it featured Joan Sims (in her ''Carry On'' film debut), Kenneth Williams, Kenneth Connor and Charles Hawtr ...
'', the second in the ''
Carry On'' film series. The character's exclamation of "Ding dong" in the film became a popular catchphrase for Phillips.
He became strongly associated with smooth-talking, libidinous roles, and his catchphrases "Ding dong", "I say" and "Hello" entered common usage in the United Kingdom.
Phillips cemented his image in two further ''Carry On'' films, ''
Carry On Teacher'' (1959) and ''
Carry On Constable'' (1960) before telling producer
Peter Rogers that he did not wish to appear in any more.
''Carry On'' director
Gerald Thomas cast Phillips in several other comedy films; ''
Please Turn Over'' (1959) features Phillips as Dr. Henry Manners, a respectable family doctor portrayed as a philanderer in a book written by 17-year-old Jo Halliday (
Julia Lockwood
Julia Lockwood (born Margaret Julia Leon; 23 August 1941 – 24 March 2019) was a British actress. Daughter of Margaret Lockwood, her career began as a child actress at the age of four and spanned 30 years in film, television and the theatre. ...
), while he plays father David Robinson opposite
Geraldine McEwan in ''
No Kidding'' (1960).
Between 1959 and 1977, Phillips became familiar on radio, as Sub-Lieutenant Phillips in the comedy ''
The Navy Lark'' alongside
Jon Pertwee
John Devon Roland "Jon" Pertwee (; 7 July 1919 – 20 May 1996) was an English actor, comedian, entertainer, cabaret performer and TV presenter. Born into a theatrical family, he served in the Royal Navy and the Naval Intelligence Division during ...
and
Ronnie Barker. He also appeared in the film version of ''
The Navy Lark'' (1959), the only cast member of the radio series to do so.
In 1960, Phillips was cast in ''
Doctor in Love
''Doctor in Love'' is a 1960 British comedy film, the fourth of the seven films in the ''Doctor'' series, starring James Robertson Justice as Sir Lancelot Spratt and Michael Craig as Dr Richard Hare. This was the first film in the series not t ...
'', the fourth film in the ''
Doctor'' comedy series and the first without
Dirk Bogarde
Sir Dirk Bogarde (born Derek Jules Gaspard Ulric Niven van den Bogaerde; 28 March 1921 – 8 May 1999) was an English actor, novelist and screenwriter. Initially a matinée idol in films such as '' Doctor in the House'' (1954) for the Rank Org ...
.
He appeared in two further installments, ''
Doctor in Clover'' (1966) and ''
Doctor in Trouble'' (1970).
Phillips appeared in several comedy films directed by
Ken Annakin, often cast alongside his ''Doctor'' co-star
James Robertson Justice, including ''
Very Important Person'' (1961), ''
Raising the Wind'' (1961) and ''
Crooks Anonymous
''Crooks Anonymous'' is a British comedy film from 1962. Directed by Ken Annakin, it stars Leslie Phillips and Stanley Baxter and is notably the feature film debut of Julie Christie.
Plot
Captain "Dandy Forsdyke" (Leslie Phillips) is a habitual ...
'' (1962).
In 1962, Phillips and Justice starred with
Stanley Baxter in Annakin's ''
The Fast Lady'', one of Britain's biggest box office hits of the year. A loose sequel, ''
Father Came Too!'', followed in 1964.
During the 1960s, Phillips appeared on television in two plays penned by the comedy writing team
Galton and Simpson; "Impasse", broadcast as part of ''
Comedy Playhouse'' in 1963, and "The Suit", a 1969 episode of ''The Galton & Simpson Comedy''.
The latter was developed into a full series four years later, ''
Casanova '73
''Casanova '73'' is a British sitcom broadcast on BBC1 in September and October 1973. Written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, the series starred Leslie Phillips as wealthy womaniser Henry Newhouse (the English translation of "casa nova").
Backg ...
'', starring Phillips as compulsive philanderer Henry Newhouse.
The programme was poorly received and attracted criticism from
Mary Whitehouse
Constance Mary Whitehouse (; 13 June 1910 – 23 November 2001) was a British teacher and conservative activist. She campaigned against social liberalism and the mainstream British media, both of which she accused of encouraging a more permi ...
of the
National Viewers' and Listeners' Association
Mediawatch-UK, formerly known as the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association (National VALA or NVLA), was a pressure group in the United Kingdom, which campaigned against the publication and broadcast of media content that it viewed as harm ...
for its risque content.
Later work
By the early 1980s, Phillips considered his suave and lecherous roles to be "a bit of a rut" and looked to branch out into dramatic roles.
A relatively minor part in ''
Out of Africa'' (1985) facilitated a larger role in
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Sp ...
's ''
Empire of the Sun'' (1987).
To play an emaciated
prisoner of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of ...
in the film, Phillips lost more than two stone.
He became busy as a
character actor
A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...
in both stage and television productions including ''
Scandal'' (1989) and ''
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider'' (2001). In 1992, he returned to the ''Carry On'' series in the poorly-received ''
Carry On Columbus''.
Phillips also provided the voice for the
Sorting Hat
Sorting refers to ordering data in an increasing or decreasing manner according to some linear relationship among the data items.
# ordering: arranging items in a sequence ordered by some criterion;
# categorizing: grouping items with similar pr ...
in the
''Harry Potter'' films, appearing in ''
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' (2001), ''
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' (2002) and the final film, ''
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2'' (2011).
Phillips appeared in British television sitcoms including ''
Honey for Tea'' with
Felicity Kendal and appeared in guest roles in popular series such as ''
The Bill
''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983.
The programme focused o ...
'', ''
Holby City
''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' Casualty'', and ...
'' and ''
Midsomer Murders
''Midsomer Murders'' is a British crime drama television series, adapted by Anthony Horowitz and Douglas Watkinson from the novels in the '' Chief Inspector Barnaby'' book series (created by Caroline Graham), and broadcast on two channels of ...
''. In 2006, he played veteran actor Ian alongside
Peter O'Toole
Peter Seamus O'Toole (; 2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) was a British stage and film actor. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and began working in the theatre, gaining recognition as a Shakespearean actor at the Bristol Old V ...
in
Hanif Kureishi's film ''
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
''.
For this role, he was nominated for a
BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor in 2007. Phillips' autobiography, ''Hello'', was published by Orion in 2006.
He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the
1998 Birthday Honours and was promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the
2008 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 2008 for the Commonwealth realms were announced on 29 December 2007, to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 2008.
The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and ...
.
Phillips, in conjunction with
Jules Williams and Back Door Productions, co-produced the
Sky Arts series ''
Living The Life
''Living the Life'' is a British television talk show that features unmoderated conversations between two celebrities. It represents a divergence from the standard interviewer-subject talk show format. ''Living the Life'' airs on UK's Sky Art ...
'' which ran for three series, ending in 2013.
He continued to act until 2012
and continued to make television appearances until 2015 when he was interviewed on the
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...
programme ''VE Day: Remembering Victory''.
Personal life, illness and death
Phillips married his first wife, actress Penelope Bartley (1925–1981), on 30 May 1948.
The couple had four children.
In 1962, Phillips began a relationship with actress
Caroline Mortimer, daughter of writer
Penelope Mortimer and stepdaughter of
John Mortimer
Sir John Clifford Mortimer (21 April 1923 – 16 January 2009) was a British barrister, dramatist, screenwriter and author. He is best known for novels about a barrister named Horace Rumpole.
Early life
Mortimer was born in Hampstead, London ...
, who was an understudy in a stage play in which Phillips starred. Phillips and Bartley separated at that point and were divorced in 1965.
After his relationship with Mortimer ended, Phillips embarked on a relationship with Australian actress Vicki Luke, with whom he lived for approximately three years.
Phillips moved in with actress
Angela Scoular in 1977, at which time she was pregnant by another actor. He raised her son as his own.
While on tour in Australia in 1981, he was notified that Bartley had died in a fire. Phillips chose to continue in the production and did not attend her funeral. He later acknowledged that his family had never forgiven him for this decision.
Phillips married Scoular in 1982. In 1992 Scoular, who suffered from
bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of Depression (mood), depression and periods of abnormally elevated Mood (psychology), mood that last from days to weeks each. If the elevat ...
,
attempted suicide but was not
sectioned.
Scoular died on 11 April 2011 after drinking a
corrosive drain cleaner and suffering unsurvivable 40% burns to her throat, body and dietary tract. She had suffered from
bowel cancer and although was later declared cancer-free, she became anxious that the cancer had returned.
Phillips was too ill to attend the inquest into Scoular's death three months later. The
coroner
A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within the coroner's jur ...
ruled that Scoular's death was not suicide, but rather that she had "killed herself while the balance of her mind was disturbed".
Phillips received the
Freedom of the City of London on 16 November 2010. Phillips was a supporter of
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
, and made an appearance as part of the half-time entertainment during the team's home match against
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...
on 1 April 2012.
On 20 December 2013, at the age of 89, Phillips married his third wife, Zara Carr.
Phillips suffered two
stroke
A stroke is a disease, medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemorr ...
s six months apart at the age of 90. After a long illness, he died in his sleep at home in London on 7 November 2022, aged 98.
Filmography
Film
Selected television
Selected radio
*''
The Navy Lark'' (1959–1977)
*''
Three Men in a Boat
''Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)'',The Penguin edition punctuates the title differently: ''Three Men in a Boat: To Say Nothing of the Dog!'' published in 1889, is a humorous account by English writer Jerome K. Jerome of a two ...
'' (1962)
*''The TV Lark'' (1963)
Other voice work
*Voice of
Gex in the European release of ''
Gex: Enter the Gecko''
*Voice of cat in
Iams advertising
*Voice of the captain of the
Virgin Atlantic safety video (1996–2004)
References
External links
*
Interview at Britmovie.co.uk*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Leslie
1924 births
2022 deaths
People from Tottenham
Alumni of the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts
British Army personnel of World War II
British male comedy actors
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Durham Light Infantry officers
English male film actors
English male radio actors
English male stage actors
English male television actors
English male video game actors
English male voice actors
English writers
Male actors from London
Royal Artillery officers
20th-century English male actors
21st-century English male actors