Kenneth Griffith (born Kenneth Reginald Griffiths, 12 October 1921 – 25 June 2006) was a Welsh actor and documentary filmmaker. His outspoken views made him a controversial figure, especially when presenting documentaries which have been called "among the most brilliant, and controversial, ever made in Britain".

Early life

He was born Kenneth Griffiths in

Tenby Tenby ( cy, Dinbych-y-pysgod, lit=fortlet of the fish) is both a walled seaside town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on the western side of Carmarthen Bay, and a local government community. Notable features include of sandy beaches and the Pembroke ...

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a county in the south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The county is home to Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. The Park oc ...

, Wales. His parents separated and left Tenby six months after his birth, leaving him with his paternal grandparents, Emily and Ernest, who adopted him. His grandparents were staunch Wesleyan Methodists who taught him to question everything; he attended the local Wesleyan Methodist chapel three times every Sunday, and became a lively

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

scrum-half. He passed the

11-plus The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardized examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools which use academi ...

and attended Greenhill Grammar School in Tenby, where he met

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

teacher Evelyn Ward, who recognised his writing and acting talent. Before Kenneth left school, his headmaster J. T. Griffith suggested that he drop the "s" from his surname so it would sound less English.

Career

Griffith left school and moved to

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

in 1937, taking a job at an ironmonger's weighing nails. This lasted only a day, and proved to be the only job he ever had outside the acting world. Also in 1937, he made his first professional acting appearance when he was cast by Peter Hoare as Cinna the Poet in a modern-dress version of ''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...

'' at the

Cambridge Festival Theatre The Theatre Royal was built in the Barnwell suburb of Cambridge, England, in 1816. It closed later that century but reopened as the Cambridge Festival Theatre from 1926 until 1935. The building, in which part of the interior of the theatre surv ...

. He became a regular jobbing repertory actor, making his

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes, "West End" in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194� ...

debut in 1938 with a small part in Thomas Dekker's ''

The Shoemaker's Holiday ''The Shoemaker's Holiday or the Gentle Craft'' is an Elizabethan play written by Thomas Dekker. The play was first performed in 1599 by the Admiral's Men, and it falls into the subgenre of city comedy. The story features three subplots: an in ...

''. Griffith was conscripted into the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

during World War II. Before training in Canada, he returned to see his grandparents in Tenby, who, at his request, gave him an English translation of Hitler's book, ''

Mein Kampf (; ''My Struggle'' or ''My Battle'') is a 1925 autobiographical manifesto by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler. The work describes the process by which Hitler became antisemitic and outlines his political ideology and future plans for Ge ...

'' so he could better understand the origins of the war. He caught

scarlet fever Scarlet fever, also known as Scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by '' Streptococcus pyogenes'' a Group A streptococcus (GAS). The infection is a type of Group A streptococcal infection (Group A strep). It most commonly affects chi ...

while on his training and was invalided out of the service in 1942, which resulted in his taking up

stamp collecting Stamp collecting is the collecting of postage stamps and related objects. It is an area of philately, which is the study (or combined study and collection) of stamps. It has been one of the world's most popular hobbies since the late nineteent ...

. The first stamp he collected was the

Siege of Ladysmith The siege of Ladysmith was a protracted engagement in the Second Boer War, taking place between 2 November 1899 and 28 February 1900 at Ladysmith, Natal. Background As war with the Boer republics appeared likely in June 1899, the War Offic ...

, South Africa. In 1941, he made his debut in the first of more than 80 films, being ''

Love on the Dole ''Love on the Dole'' is a novel by Walter Greenwood, about working-class poverty in 1930s Northern England. It has been made into both a play and a film. The novel Walter Greenwood's novel (1933) was written during the early 1930s as a respons ...

''. He joined the

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

-relocated

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England * Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...

, and in repertory. He appeared in many British films between the 1940s and 1980s, notably as Archie Fellows in '' The Shop at Sly Corner'', Jenkins in '' Only Two Can Play'' (1962), the wireless operator Jack Phillips on board the ''Titanic'' in '' A Night to Remember'' (1958), in the crime caper '' Track the Man Down'' (1955) and especially in the comedies of the Boulting brothers, including ''

Private's Progress ''Private's Progress'' is a 1956 British comedy film based on the novel by Alan Hackney. It was directed and produced by John and Roy Boulting, from a script by John Boulting and Frank Harvey. Plot During the Second World War, young underg ...

'' (1956) and ''

I'm All Right Jack ''I'm All Right Jack'' is a 1959 British comedy film directed and produced by John and Roy Boulting from a script by Frank Harvey, John Boulting and Alan Hackney based on the 1958 novel ''Private Life'' by Alan Hackney. The film is a sequel t ...

'' (1959). Other notable film roles included the murderous paedophile Seely in ''

Revenge Revenge is committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Francis Bacon described revenge as a kind of "wild justice" that "does... offend the law ndputteth the law out of office." P ...

'' (1971), the

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

medic Witty in ''

The Wild Geese ''The Wild Geese'' is a 1978 war film directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and starring Richard Burton, Roger Moore, Richard Harris, and Hardy Krüger. The screenplay concerns a group of mercenaries in Africa. It was the result of a long-held ambit ...

'' (1978) and a whimsical mechanic in ''

The Sea Wolves ''The Sea Wolves'' is a 1980 war film starring Gregory Peck, Roger Moore and David Niven. The film, which is based on the 1978 book ''Boarding Party'' by James Leasor, is a fictionalised account of Operation Creek during the Second World War. In ...

'' (1980). He appeared in the episodes "

The Girl Who Was Death "The Girl Who Was Death" is an episode of the allegorical British science fiction TV series, ''The Prisoner''. It was written by Terence Feely and directed by David Tomblin and was the sixteenth produced. It was broadcast in the UK on ITV (Sco ...

" and " Fall Out" of the 1967–68 TV series ''

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 ...

''. Subsequent TV appearances included episodes of ''

Minder A minder is the person assigned to guide or escort a visitor, or to provide protection to somebody, or to otherwise assist or take care of something, i.e. a person who " minds". Government-appointed persons to accompany foreign visitors are of ...

'' and ''

Lovejoy ''Lovejoy'' is a British television comedy-drama mystery series, based on the novels by John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. The show, which ran to 71 episodes over six series, was originally broadcast on BBC1 between 10 January 19 ...

'', and critically acclaimed performances in ''War and Peace'' (1963), ''The Perils of Pendragon'', ''

Clochemerle ''Clochemerle'', published in the United States as ''The Scandals of Clochemerle'', is a French satirical novel by Gabriel Chevallier (1895–1969) first published in 1934. It centres on personal rivalries and local politics in the fictional v ...

'' and ''The Bus to Bosworth'', where his personification of a Welsh schoolteacher out on a field trip won him many accolades back in his homeland of Wales. His later film roles included the "mad old man" in '' Four Weddings and a Funeral'' (1994), Reverend Jones in ''

The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain ''The Englishman who Went up a Hill but Came down a Mountain'' is a 1995 romantic comedy film with a story by Ifor David Monger and Ivor Monger, written and directed by Christopher Monger. It was entered into the 19th Moscow International Film ...

'' (1995) and the minister in '' Very Annie Mary'' (2001).

Documentaries and political activity

In 1965, Huw Wheldon and the director of

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream a ...

David Attenborough Sir David Frederick Attenborough (; born 8 May 1926) is an English broadcaster, biologist, natural historian and author. He is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC Natural History Unit, the nine natural histo ...

, asked Griffith if he would like to make a film for the BBC on any subject that he chose. This resulted in a series of BBC films on subjects as diverse as the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

in ''Soldiers of the Widow'' (1967), ''A Touch of Churchill'', ''A Touch of Hitler'' (1971), the controversial story of

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...

in ''The Most Valuable Englishman Ever'',

David Ben-Gurion David Ben-Gurion ( ; he, דָּוִד בֶּן-גּוּרִיּוֹן ; born David Grün; 16 October 1886 – 1 December 1973) was the primary national founder of the State of Israel and the first prime minister of Israel. Adopting the nam ...

(''The Light''),

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

(''The Man on the Rock''),

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian Anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India du ...

, Roger Casement (''Heart of Darkness'', 1992) and on one occasion a film commissioned by

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

on the story of the

Three Wise Men 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 190 ...

of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...

, ''A Famous Journey'' (1979). Griffith was expelled from Iran by the country's Foreign Minister, while making the documentary. In 1973, Griffith made a documentary film about the life and death of Irish military and political leader

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and ...

titled '' Hang Up Your Brightest Colours'' (a line taken from a letter from

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

to one of Collins' sisters after Collins' assassination) for ATV, but the

Independent Broadcasting Authority The Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) was the regulatory body in the United Kingdom for commercial television ( ITV and Channel 4 and limited satellite television regulation – cable television was the responsibility of the Cable Author ...

did not permit it to be screened (it was not shown until the BBC broadcast it in 1993). In 1974, for a programme titled ''Curious Journey'', he interviewed nine surviving IRA members from the 1916–23 period, i.e. the

Easter Rebellion The Easter Rising ( ga, Éirí Amach na Cásca), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the a ...

Anglo-Irish War The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mi ...

and

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...

; they were Maire Comerford, Joseph Sweeney, Sean Kavanagh, John O'Sullivan, Brigid Thornton, Sean Harling, Martin Walton, David Nelligan (or Neligan) and Tom Barry. He was allowed to buy this last film back, as long as he did not mention who had commissioned it (the Welsh TV company HTV). At one point in his career, Griffith accused the anti-censorship group,

Index Index (or its plural form indices) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Index (''A Certain Magical Index''), a character in the light novel series ''A Certain Magical Index'' * The Index, an item on a Halo megastru ...

, of censoring him by delaying the publication of two book reviews he had written for its magazine. His sympathetic portrayal caused some concern, given

The Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...

and ATV boss Sir

Lew Grade Lew Grade, Baron Grade, (born Lev Winogradsky; 25 December 1906 – 13 December 1998) was a British media proprietor and impresario. Originally a dancer, and later a talent agent, Grade's interest in television production began in 19 ...

decided to withdraw the film, which was not shown publicly until 1994. In response Griffith made a documentary, ''The Public's Right to Know'', for

Thames TV Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

. The political troubles left him "a frustrated and bemused figure".

Screenonline Screenonline is a website about the history of British film, television and social history as documented by film and television. The project has been developed by the British Film Institute and funded by a £1.2 million grant from the National Lo ...

described Griffith as "a world class documentary film-maker" who knew that "refusing to compromise his views has damaged his career". His autobiography, ''The Fool's Pardon'', was published in 1994 by

Little, Brown Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown (publisher), James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Ear ...

BBC Wales BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcasting, public broadcaster in Wales. It is one of the four BBC national regions, alongside the BBC English Regions, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Scotland. Established in 1964, ...

presented a retrospective season of five of his documentaries in 1993, including the suppressed Michael Collins work, opening the season with a biographical study of Griffith called ''The Tenby Poisoner'' in which

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 ...

, Martin McGuinness and

Jeremy Isaacs Sir Jeremy Israel Isaacs (born 28 September 1932) is a Scottish television producer and executive, opera manager, and a recipient of many British Academy Television Awards and International Emmy Awards. He won the British Film Institute Fellow ...

paid tribute. BBC Wales screened a film on Griffith's life in the "Welsh Greats" Series Two, shown in 2008. In 1994, Griffith was given a Cymru lifetime achievement award by BAFTA. A

historian, Griffith was sympathetic to the

Afrikaner Afrikaners () are a South African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers first arriving at the Cape of Good Hope in the 17th and 18th centuries.Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: Brain to Cast ...

s in South Africa. His opinion, in a South African television-funded documentary, released in 1984, was "provokingly sympathetic" towards the Afrikaners; South African television eventually withdrew its funding. He made a

documentary on runner

Zola Budd Zola Budd (also known as Zola Pieterse; born 26 May 1966) is a South African middle-distance and long-distance runner. She competed at the 1984 Olympic Games for Great Britain and the 1992 Olympic Games for South Africa, both times in the 30 ...

, which purported to reveal injustices done to her by left-wing demonstrators and organisations during a tour of England in 1988. He named his home (110 Englefield Road,

Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

) as Michael Collins' House. In later life, Griffith said: "In my time I've been accused of being a Marxist, a fascist, a traitor and, probably worst in most people's eyes, inconsistent. I was a radical Socialist. I'm now a radical Tory. It has been a very painful journey".

Personal life

Griffith was married and divorced three times, and had five children: * Joan Stock (two sons) * Doria Noar (one daughter, actress/theatre historian

Eva Griffith Eva Griffith, also credited as Eva Griffiths (born ), is a British actress, and a historian of the English Renaissance theatre. She began her career as child actress. Early life Eva Griffith was born in Knightsbridge, London, the daughter of ...

) * Carole Hagar (one daughter, one son)

Death and burial

Griffith died in London on 25 June 2006, aged 84. His coffin was decorated with the flags of Wales, Israel and the Irish tricolour. Griffith was interred beside his grandparents, Emily and Ernest in the churchyard adjoining St Nicholas and St Teilo Church in Penally.

Legacy

Tenby Museum and Art Gallery in Pembrokeshire houses an archive of Griffith's papers and documentaries, and a cabinet containing a collection of personal memorabilia.

Filmography

* ''

Channel Incident ''Channel Incident'' is a 1940 British short (15 minute) drama film directed by Anthony Asquith and starring Peggy Ashcroft, Gordon Harker, Robert Newton and Kenneth Griffith. It combines documentary footage with acting. It is placed on the shi ...

'' (1940) as Johnnie * ''

The Farmer's Wife ''The Farmer's Wife'' is a 1928 British silent romantic comedy film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Jameson Thomas, Lillian Hall-Davis and Gordon Harker. It is adapted from a 1916 play of the same name by British novelist, poet an ...

'' (1941) as George Smerdon * ''

'' (1941) as Harry's Pal in Billiard Hall (uncredited) * '' The Black Sheep of Whitehall'' (1942) as Butcher's Boy (uncredited) * ''

Hard Steel ''Hard Steel'' is a 1942 British drama film directed by Norman Walker and starring Wilfrid Lawson, Betty Stockfeld and John Stuart. It was based on the novel ''Steel Saraband'' by Roger Dataller. The film was one of four made by G.H.W. Produ ...

'' (1942) as Dixon * '' The Forest Rangers'' (1942) as Ranger * ''

The Great Mr. Handel ''The Great Mr. Handel'' is a 1942 British Technicolor historical film directed by Norman Walker and starring Wilfrid Lawson, Elizabeth Allan and Malcolm Keen. The film is a biopic of the 18th-century German-British composer Georg Friedrich H� ...

'' (1942) as Minor role (uncredited) * '' Young and Willing'' (1943) as Older Actor (uncredited) * '' The Shop at Sly Corner'' (1947) as Archie Fellows * '' Fame Is the Spur'' (1947) as Wartime Miners' Representative (uncredited) * ''

Bond Street Bond Street in the West End of London links Piccadilly in the south to Oxford Street in the north. Since the 18th century the street has housed many prestigious and upmarket fashion retailers. The southern section is Old Bond Street and the ...

'' (1948) as Len Phillips * '' Forbidden'' (1949) as Johnny * '' Helter Skelter'' (1949) as Nick Martin's BBC Colleague (uncredited) * ''

Blue Scar ''Blue Scar'' is a 1949 British drama film directed by documentary filmmaker Jill Craigie. Set in a Welsh village where the mine has recently been nationalised, it focuses on the relationship between Olwen Williams, a miner's daughter who leaves ...

'' (1949) as Thomas Williams * '' Waterfront'' (1950) as Maurice Bruno * ''

High Treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

'' (1951) as Jimmy Ellis * '' 36 Hours'' (1953) as Henry Slosson * '' The Green Carnation'' (1954) as Nobby * ''

'' (1955) as the Secretary * '' Track the Man Down'' (1955) as Ken Orwell * ''

'' (1956) as Private Dai Jones * ''

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

'' (1956) as Prisoner * ''

The Baby and the Battleship ''The Baby and the Battleship'' is a colour 1956 British comedy film directed by Jay Lewis and starring John Mills, Richard Attenborough and André Morell. It is based on the 1956 novel by Anthony Thorne with a screenplay by Richard De Roy, ...

'' (1956) as Sub-Lieutenant * '' Tiger in the Smoke'' (1956) as Crutches * '' Brothers in Law'' (1957) as Hearse Driver * ''

Lucky Jim ''Lucky Jim'' is a novel by Kingsley Amis, first published in 1954 by Victor Gollancz. It was Amis's first novel and won the 1955 Somerset Maugham Award for fiction. The novel follows the exploits of the eponymous James (Jim) Dixon, a reluctan ...

'' (1957) as Cyril Johns * ''

The Naked Truth The Naked Truth may refer to: Literature * ''The Naked Truth'' (novel), a 1993 fictional memoir by Leslie Nielsen * ''The Naked Truth'' (book), a 2007 commentary on film ratings Film * ''The Naked Truth'' (1914 film), a silent Italian film * ...

'' (1957) as Porter * ''

Blue Murder at St Trinian's ''Blue Murder at St Trinian's'' is a 1957 British comedy film, directed by Frank Launder, co-written by Launder and Sidney Gilliat, and starring Terry-Thomas, George Cole, Joyce Grenfell, Lionel Jeffries and Richard Wattis; the film also i ...

'' (1957) as Charlie Bull * '' A Night to Remember'' (1958) as Wireless Operator John 'Jack' Phillips * ''

Chain of Events A chain of events is a number of actions and their effects that are contiguous and linked together that results in a particular outcome. In the physical sciences, chain reactions are a primary example. Determinism ''Determinism'' is the philo ...

'' (1958) as Clarke * '' The Man Upstairs'' (1958) as Mr. Pollen * '' The Two-Headed Spy'' (1958) as

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

* '' Tiger Bay'' (1959) as Choirmaster * ''

Carlton-Browne of the F.O. ''Carlton-Browne of the F.O.'' (U.S. title: ''Man in a Cocked Hat'') is a 1959 British comedy film made by the Boulting Brothers and starring Terry-Thomas, Peter Sellers, and Luciana Paluzzi. It centres on an inept Foreign Office (F.O.) diplom ...

'' (1959) as Sir John's Assistant, Griffths (uncredited) * ''

'' (1959) as Dai * ''

Libel Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defi ...

'' (1959) as Fitch * '' Expresso Bongo'' (1959) as Charlie (uncredited) * ''

Circus of Horrors ''Circus of Horrors'' is a 1960 British horror film directed by Sidney Hayers, and starring Anton Diffring, Yvonne Monlaur, Erika Remberg, Kenneth Griffith, Jane Hylton, Conrad Phillips, Yvonne Romain, and Donald Pleasence. Set in 1947, it fo ...

'' (1960) as Martin * ''

A French Mistress ''A French Mistress'' is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Roy Boulting and starring Cecil Parker, James Robertson Justice, Agnès Laurent, Ian Bannen, Raymond Huntley, Irene Handl and Thorley Walters. It is based on a stage play, '' The ...

'' (1960) as Mr. Meade * ''

Suspect In law enforcement jargon, a suspect is a known person accused or suspected of committing a crime. Police and reporters in the United States often use the word suspect as a jargon when referring to the perpetrator of the offense (perp in dated ...

'' (1960) as Dr. Shole * ''

Snowball A snowball is a spherical object made from snow, usually created by scooping snow with the hands, and pressing the snow together to compact it into a ball. Snowballs are often used in games such as snowball fights. A snowball may also be a lar ...

'' (1960) as Phil Hart * ''

Payroll A payroll is the list of employees of some company that is entitled to receive payments as well as other work benefits and the amounts that each should receive. Along with the amounts that each employee should receive for time worked or tasks pe ...

'' (1961) as Monty * '' Rag Doll'' (1961) as Wilson * ''

The Frightened City ''The Frightened City'' is a 1961 British neo-noir gangster film about extortion rackets and gang warfare in the West End of London. It stars Herbert Lom, John Gregson and a pre-Bond Sean Connery, who plays a burglar called Paddy Damion. He ...

'' (1961) as Wally Smith * '' Only Two Can Play'' (1962) as Ieuan Jenkins * ''

The Painted Smile ''The Painted Smile'' is a 1962 British thriller film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Liz Fraser, Kenneth Griffith, Peter Reynolds (actor), Peter Reynolds and Tony Wickert. The film was known in the USA as ''Murder Can Be Deadly''. Plot T ...

'' (1962) as Kleinie * ''

We Joined the Navy ''We Joined the Navy'' is a 1962 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Lloyd Nolan, Joan O'Brien, Derek Fowlds, Graham Crowden, Esma Cannon and John Le Mesurier. Produced by Daniel M. Angel, it was based on th ...

'' (1962) as Orator * ''

Heavens Above! ''Heavens Above!'' is a 1963 British satirical comedy film starring Peter Sellers, directed by John and Roy Boulting, who also co-wrote along with Frank Harvey, from an idea by Malcolm Muggeridge. It is in a similar vein to the earlier collabor ...

'' (1963) as Rev. Owen Thomas * '' Rotten to the Core'' (1965) as Lenny the Dip * '' The Whisperers'' (1967) as Mr. Weaver * ''

The Bobo ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' (1967) as Pepe Gamazo * ''

'' (1968) as The President / Schnipps / Number Two * '' Decline and Fall... of a Birdwatcher'' (1968) as Mr. Church * '' The Lion in Winter'' (1968) as Strolling Player * '' Great Catherine'' (1968) as Naryshkin * ''

The Assassination Bureau ''The Assassination Bureau Limited'' (also known as ''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, Di ...

'' (1969) as Monsieur Popescu * '' The Gamblers'' (1970) as Broadfoot * ''

'' (1971) as Seely * ''

'' (TV Series) (1972) as Ernest Tafardel * ''

The House in Nightmare Park ''The House in Nightmare Park'' (known as ''Crazy House'' in the U.S.) is a 1973 British comedy horror film directed by Peter Sykes and starring Frankie Howerd, Ray Milland and Hugh Burden. It was one of a number of British comedy films which pa ...

'' (1973) as Ernest Henderson * '' Callan'' (1974) as Waterman * ''

S*P*Y*S ''S*P*Y*S'' is a 1974 American spy comedy film directed by Irvin Kershner and starring Elliott Gould, Donald Sutherland and Zouzou. The film was screened at the 1974 Cannes Film Festival, but it was not entered into the main competition. Plo ...

'' (1974) as Lippet * '' Sky Riders'' (1976) as Wasserman * ''

Why Shoot the Teacher ''Why Shoot the Teacher?'' is a 1977 Canadian comedy-drama film directed by Silvio Narizzano and starring Bud Cort, Samantha Eggar, Kenneth Griffith, and Chris Wiggins. It is based on a book of the same name by Max Braithwaite. Plot The plot i ...

'' (1977) as Inspector Woods * ''

'' (1978) as Arthur Witty * ''

'' (1980) as Wilton * ''

Who Dares Wins ''Who Dares Wins'' (Latin: ''Qui audet adipiscitur''; el, Ο Τολμών Νικά, ''O tolmón niká''; french: Qui ose gagne; it, Chi osa vince; Portuguese: ''Quem ousa vence''; German: ''Wer wagt, gewinnt'') is a motto made popular in the ...

'' (1982) as Bishop Crick * '' Remembrance'' (1982) as Joe * ''

The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood ''The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1984 American made-for-television comedy film directed by Ray Austin and starring George Segal, Morgan Fairchild, Roddy McDowall, Janet Suzman and Tom Baker. It is a parody of the Robin Hood story. Pl ...

'' (1984) as Isaac of York * '' Emily Hobhouse: The Englishwoman'' (1985) as Presenter * '' Shaka Zulu'' (TV series) (1986) as Zacharias Abrahams * '' Four Weddings and a Funeral'' (1994) as Mad Old Man - Wedding One and Four * ''

'' (1995) as Reverend Jones * '' Very Annie Mary'' (2001) as Minister

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Griffith, Kenneth People from Tenby Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Welsh activists Welsh male film actors Welsh male stage actors Welsh male television actors Welsh television presenters Welsh Methodists Deaths from Alzheimer's disease Deaths from dementia in England 1921 births 2006 deaths British philatelists