Peter George Wellesley Graves, 8th Baron Graves (21 October 1911 – 6 June 1994) was an English actor. Born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, Graves was the son of Henry Algernon Claude Graves, 7th Baron Graves. Admiral

Thomas Graves, 1st Baron Graves Admiral Thomas Graves, 1st Baron Graves, KB (23 October 1725 – 9 February 1802) was a British officer of the Royal Navy and a colonial official. He served in the Seven Years' War and the American War of Independence. He was also the Commodor ...

, was his great-great-great-grandfather. He was educated at

Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...

Biography

Known during his acting career as Peter Graves, he specialised in light comedies and musicals, often cast as dapper young men about town. His career peaked in the mid-to-late 1940s, beginning with the films of director/writer

Val Guest Val Guest (born Valmond Maurice Grossman; 11 December 1911 – 10 May 2006) was an English film director and screenwriter. Beginning as a writer (and later director) of comedy films, he is best known for his work for Hammer Film Productions, ...

, including ''

Miss London Ltd. ''Miss London Ltd.'' is a 1943 British black-and-white comedy film, comedy musical film, musical directed by Val Guest and starring Arthur Askey and Evelyn Dall. It was written by Guest and Marriott Edgar and produced by Edward Black (producer), ...

'' (1943) and ''

Bees in Paradise ''Bees in Paradise'' is a 1944 British musical comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Arthur Askey, Anne Shelton and Peter Graves. It was produced by Edward Black at Gainsborough Pictures. Co-written by Guest and comic Marriott Edgar, ...

'' (1944), opposite

Arthur Askey Arthur Bowden Askey (6 June 1900 – 16 November 1982) was an English comedian and actor. Askey was known for his short stature (5' 2", 1.58 m) and distinctive horn-rimmed glasses, and his playful humour incorporating improvisation an ...

; and ''

Give Us the Moon ''Give Us the Moon'' is a 1944 British comedy film directed and written by Val Guest and starring Vic Oliver, Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves. Lockwood had just become a star with ''The Man in Grey'' and did the film because she did not wa ...

'' (1944) and ''

I'll Be Your Sweetheart ''I'll Be Your Sweetheart'' is a 1945 British historical musical film directed by Val Guest and starring Margaret Lockwood, Vic Oliver and Michael Rennie. It was the first and only musical film produced by Gainsborough Studios. Commissioned b ...

'' (1945), opposite

Margaret Lockwood Margaret Mary Day Lockwood, CBE (15 September 1916 – 15 July 1990), was a British actress. One of Britain's most popular film stars of the 1930s and 1940s, her film appearances included ''The Lady Vanishes'' (1938), '' Night Train to Munich ...

. Other roles included the lead in '' Spring Song'' (1946), and

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

in both '' The Laughing Lady'' (1946) and '' Mrs. Fitzherbert'' (1947). He also appeared in a number of films by

Herbert Wilcox Herbert Sydney Wilcox Order of the British Empire, CBE (19 April 1890 – 15 May 1977) was a British film producer and film director, director. He was one of the most successful British filmmakers from the 1920s to the 1950s. He is best know ...

, such as the popular musicals '' Spring in Park Lane'' (1948) and '' Maytime in Mayfair'' (1949), both vehicles for

Anna Neagle Dame Florence Marjorie Wilcox (''née'' Robertson; 20 October 1904 – 3 June 1986), known professionally as Anna Neagle, was an English stage and film actress, singer, and dancer. She was a successful box-office draw in British cinema for 2 ...

and

Michael Wilding Michael Charles Gauntlet Wilding (23 July 1912 – 8 July 1979) was an English stage, television, and film actor. He is best known for a series of films he made with Anna Neagle; he also made two films with Alfred Hitchcock, '' Under Capric ...

. He also portrayed another royal,

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Alb ...

, in both Wilcox's ''

The Lady with a Lamp ''The Lady with a Lamp'' is a 1951 British historical drama film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Michael Wilding and Felix Aylmer. It was written by Warren Chetham Strode based on the 1929 play ''The Lady with a Lamp'' ...

'' (1951) and ''

Lilacs in the Spring ''Lilacs in the Spring'' is a 1954 British musical film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Errol Flynn and David Farrar. The film was made at Elstree Studios with sets designed by the art director William C. Andrews. Shot in ...

'' (1954). He also appeared alongside Neagle on stage in the 1953 West End musical ''

The Glorious Days ''The Glorious Days'' is a 1952 British musical composed by Harry Parr Davis and Harold Purcell from a book by Robert Nesbitt and Miles Malleson. It was designed as a vehicle for Anna Neagle, showcasing her in several roles throughout history ...

''. He re-emerged in the 1960s as a popular comic supporting player in several films, including '' Alfie'', ''

The Wrong Box ''The Wrong Box'' is a 1966 British comedy film produced and directed by Bryan Forbes and starring John Mills, Ralph Richardson and a large ensemble cast. The screenplay was by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove, based on the 1889 novel '' The ...

'' (both 1966), ''

The Jokers ''The Jokers'' is a 1967 British comedy film directed by Michael Winner and starring Michael Crawford and Oliver Reed. It was written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. Two brothers hatch a plot to steal the Crown Jewels. Plot Michael Trema ...

'', ''

I'll Never Forget What's'isname ''I'll Never Forget What's 'Isname'', also known as ''The Takers'', is a 1967 British comedy-drama film directed and produced by Michael Winner. It stars Oliver Reed and Orson Welles. It was written by Peter Draper. The film deals with creativi ...

'' (both 1967), and '' The Magic Christian'' (1969). He continued acting until a few years before his death, mostly on television. In 1993, he appeared as George Tidy in '' The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes'' feature length episode ''The Eligible Bachelor''. In 1963 he succeeded his father as eighth Baron Graves. However, as this was an

Irish peerage The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

it did not entitle him to a seat in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

. He married Winifred Ruby Moule (better known as

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

singer Vanessa Lee, who played many leading roles, especially in several

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

musical comedies) on 28 May 1960. She died in 1992; their union had been childless. He died on 6 June 1994 in France, of a heart attack. He was succeeded in the barony by his second cousin Evelyn Paget Graves.

Selected filmography

* ''

Lily Christine ''Lily Christine'' is a 1932 British drama film directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Corinne Griffith, Colin Clive and Margaret Bannerman. It was made at British and Dominion Elstree Studios by Paramount Pictures.Wood, Linda. ''British Films ...

'' (1932) * ''

Kipps ''Kipps: The Story of a Simple Soul'' is a novel by H. G. Wells, first published in 1905. It was reportedly Wells's own favourite among his works, and it has been adapted for stage, cinema and television productions, including the musical '' ...

'' (1941) * ''

King Arthur Was a Gentleman ''King Arthur Was a Gentleman'' is a 1942 British black-and-white comedy musical film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Arthur Askey, Evelyn Dall, Peter Graves and Ronald Shiner. It was written by Marriott Edgar and Val Guest, and was produc ...

'' (1942) * ''

'' (1944) * ''

Give us the Moon ''Give Us the Moon'' is a 1944 British comedy film directed and written by Val Guest and starring Vic Oliver, Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves. Lockwood had just become a star with ''The Man in Grey'' and did the film because she did not wa ...

'' (1944) * ''

'' (1945) * '' Waltz Time'' (1945) * '' The Laughing Lady'' (1946) * ''

Gaiety George ''Gaiety George'' (also known as ''Showtime'') is a 1946 British historical musical film directed by George King and Leontine Sagan and starring Richard Greene, Ann Todd and Peter Graves.Harper p.179 It is set in the late Victorian music hall, wh ...

'' (1946) * '' Spring Song'' (1946) * ''

'' (1951) * '' Derby Day'' (1952) * ''

The Admirable Crichton ''The Admirable Crichton'' is a comic stage play written in 1902 by J. M. Barrie. Origins Barrie took the title from the sobriquet of a fellow Scotland, Scot, the polymath James Crichton, a 16th-century genius and athlete. The epigram-loving E ...

'' (1957) * '' Alfie'' (1966) * ''

'' (1966) * ''

'' (1967) * ''

How I Won the War ''How I Won the War'' is a 1967 British black comedy film directed and produced by Richard Lester and starring Michael Crawford, Jack MacGowran, Roy Kinnear, Lee Montague, and John Lennon in his only non-musical acting role. The screenplay was b ...

'' - Staff Officer (1967) * ''

The Assassination Bureau ''The Assassination Bureau Limited'' (also known ''The Assassination Bureau'' in the United States) is a 1969 British Technicolor black comedy adventure film, produced by Michael Relph, directed by Basil Dearden, and starring Oliver Reed, Dian ...

'' (1968) * '' The Magic Christian'' (1969) * '' The Adventurers'' (1970) * ''

Paul and Michelle ''Paul and Michelle'' is a 1974 drama film directed and produced by Lewis Gilbert, whose story Vernon Harris and Angela Huth dramatized. It is a sequel to the 1971 film ''Friends,'' by the same director and with the same lead actors. Gilbert says ...

'' (1974) * ''

The Slipper and the Rose ''The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of Cinderella'' is a 1976 British musical retelling the classic fairy tale of Cinderella. The film was chosen as the Royal Command Performance motion picture selection for 1976. Directed by Bryan Forbes, th ...

'' (1976) * '' I Hired a Contract Killer'' (1990)

Arms

References

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Graves, Peter Graves, 8th Baron 1911 births 1994 deaths People educated at Harrow School Barons in the Peerage of Ireland English male stage actors English male musical theatre actors English male film actors Male actors from London 20th-century English male actors 20th-century English singers 20th-century English male singers