Francis Matthews (2 September 1927 – 14 June 2014) was an English actor, best known for playing Paul Temple in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

television series of the same name and for voicing Captain Scarlet in '' Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons''.

Early life

Matthews was born in

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

on 2 September 1927, to Henry and Kathleen Matthews. His father was a

shop steward A union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company who represents and defends the interests of their fellow employees as a trades/labour union member and official. Rank-and-file members of the un ...

at the Rowntree's chocolate factory near York. His parents often took him to the theatre, where he gained a love of acting. He attended St George's RC Primary School, then St Michael's Jesuit College in

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

. He found work as a stagehand at the Theatre Royal in Leeds, and made his theatrical debut in 1945 in the play '' The Corn Is Green'' before performing his national service in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. After leaving the military he returned to the stage, appearing in a 1954 touring production of the play ''No Escape'', which starred Flora Robson. He made his West End debut in 1956.

Career

In the 1950s and 1960s, Matthews's film roles for Hammer Studios included the Baron's assistant in ''

The Revenge of Frankenstein ''The Revenge of Frankenstein'' is a 1958 Technicolor British horror film directed by Terence Fisher and starring Peter Cushing, Francis Matthews (actor), Francis Matthews, Michael Gwynn, Oscar Quitak, Eunice Gayson and Michael Ripper. Made by H ...

'' (1958) and the heroes of '' Dracula: Prince of Darkness'' and '' Rasputin the Mad Monk'' (both 1966). On television, from 1969 to 1971, he played Francis Durbridge's amateur private detective Paul Temple in the

series of the same name.Wilkie, Agnes (1986)
Smoothie and the Brat
, '' Evening Times'', 15 February 1986, p. 11. Retrieved 19 November 2013 Matthews starred opposite Morecambe and Wise in the films '' The Intelligence Men'' (1965) and '' That Riviera Touch'' (1966), which led to a close friendship with Eric Morecambe. He also appeared throughout the 1960s and 1970s in a variety of television comedy roles, including '' Eric & Ernie's Christmas Show, 1977''. He appeared alongside George Cole in Charles Woods' sitcom '' Don't Forget To Write!'' (1977) as a successful writer. In 1967, Matthews provided the character voice of Captain Scarlet, in imitation of

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English and American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he ...

, for Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's

Supermarionation Supermarionation (a portmanteau of the words "super", " marionette" and "animation")La Rivière 2009, p. 67. is a style of television and film production employed by British company AP Films (later Century 21 Productions) in its puppet T ...

television series '' Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons''. (He divided his time, during the recording sessions, between his work there and his stage appearances in

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

's play ''

Private Lives ''Private Lives'' is a 1930 comedy of manners in three acts by Noël Coward. It concerns a divorced couple who, while honeymooning with their new spouses, discover that they are staying in adjacent rooms at the same hotel. Despite a perpetuall ...

''.) Also in 1967 he appeared in '' The Avengers'' episode entitled "Mission ... Highly Improbable". In the late 1970s, he served as narrator and host for '' Follow Me!'', a BBC educational programme that offered a " crash course" in the English language to foreign viewers. In 1986, Matthews and his wife, Angela Browne, appeared together in the

adaptation of the Josephine Tey novel '' Brat Farrar''. In 2000, they starred in two

Ray Cooney Raymond George Alfred Cooney Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 30 May 1932) is an English playwright, actor, and director. His biggest success, ''Run for Your Wife (play), Run for Your Wife'' (1983), ran for nine years in London's West E ...

plays on the cruise ship MS ''Marco Polo'', while she was sailing to the

Antarctic The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antar ...

: '' Run For Your Wife'' and '' Funny Money''.

Personal life

Matthews was married to actress Angela Browne from 1963 until her death in 2001; the couple had three sons. Two, Damien Matthews and Paul Rattigan, are actors; the other, Dominic, is an artist and musician. Matthews' younger brother, Paul Shelley, is also an actor; they had a sister, Maura.

Death

Matthews died at the age of 86 on 14 June 2014, following a short illness. He was survived by his three sons, seven grandchildren, and his two siblings.

Filmography

* ''At Your Service, Ltd.'' (1951) - Roger Buckett * '' BBC Sunday-Night Theatre'' (1954–1957, TV Series) - Ken Wilson, Ensign Trefusis * ''Truant in Park Lane'' (1955) - Robert * '' St. Ives'' (1957, TV Series) - Ronald Gilchrist * ''My Friend Charles'' (1956) - Ken Palmer * '' Bhowani Junction'' (1956) - Ranjit Kasel * ''The Talking Cat'' (1956) - Lancelot * ''ITV Television Playhouse'' (1956, TV Series) - Richard Hinton, Paul * ''Esmé Divided'' (1957) - Esmé Vignoles * '' The New Adventures of Charlie Chan'' (1957) - Derek Robinson * '' Small Hotel'' (1957) - Alan Pryor * '' O.S.S.'' (1957, TV Series) - Peter Fox * '' The Mark of the Hawk'' (1957) - Overholt * ''The Killing Stones'' (1958) - Desai * '' The Adventures of Robin Hood (TV series)'' (1957–1958, TV Series) - Roland, Ali ben Azra * ''

'' (1958) - Doctor Hans Kleve * ''A Woman Possessed'' (1958) - John * '' I Only Arsked!'' (1958) - Mahmoud * '' Corridors of Blood'' (1958) - Jonathan Bolton * '' The Vise'' (1958–1959, TV Series) - Miles, Rex Varney, Jayo * '' Theatre Night'' (1959, TV Series) - Guy Stevens * '' Interpol Calling'' (1960) - Fawley * '' Man from Interpol'' (1960) - Richard Martin, Maharajah Of Den * ''

Biggles James Charles Bigglesworth, nicknamed "Biggles", is a fictional pilot and adventurer, the Title role#Title character, title character and Protagonist, hero of the ''Biggles'' series of adventure books, written for young readers by W. E. Johns ...

'' (1960, TV Series) * '' Sentenced for Life'' (1960) - Jim Richards * '' The Cheaters'' (1961, TV Series) - Jack * '' The Hellfire Club'' (1961) - Sir Hugh Manning * '' The Treasure of Monte Cristo'' (1961) - Louis Auclair * ''The Pursuers'' (1961) - David * '' Triton'' (1961, TV series) - Lieutenant Lamb * '' The Battleaxe'' (1962) - Tony Evers * '' The Lamp in Assassin Mews'' (1962) - Jack * ''

Nine Hours to Rama ''Nine Hours to Rama'' is a1963 British-American neo noir crime film directed by Mark Robson (film director), Mark Robson that follows a fictionalised Nathuram Godse in the hours before he Assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, assassinated the India ...

'' (1963) - Rampure * '' Hancock'' (1963, TV series) - Elmo Dent * '' A Stitch in Time'' (1963) - Benson * '' A Little Big Business'' (1964–1965, TV Series) - Simon Lieberman * '' The Beauty Jungle'' (1964) - Taylor * '' Murder Ahoy'' (1964) - Lieutenant Compton * '' The Intelligence Men'' (1965) - Thomas * '' Dracula: Prince of Darkness'' (1966) - Charles Kent * '' Rasputin the Mad Monk'' (1966) - Ivan * '' That Riviera Touch'' (1966) - Hotel manager * '' Just Like a Woman'' (1967) - Lewis McKenzie * '' Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons'' (1967–1968, TV Series) - Captain Scarlet (voice) * '' Crossplot'' (1969) - Ruddock * '' Paul Temple'' (1969–1971, TV Series) - Paul Temple * '' Taste of Excitement'' (1970) - Mr. Breese * '' Five Women for the Killer'' (1974) - Giorgio Pisani * '' Brat Farrar'' (1986) - Alec Loding * ''Bunch of Five'' (1992) - Mr. Strathclyde * ''

Taggart ''Taggart'' is a Scottish detective fiction television programme created by Glenn Chandler, who wrote many of the episodes, and made by STV Studios for the ITV network. It originally ran as the miniseries ''Killer'' from 6 until 20 Septe ...

'' (1993) - Dr. Gerald Napier * '' The Detectives'' (1995, TV Series) - Duke of Connemara * ''

Jonathan Creek ''Jonathan Creek'' is a long-running British mystery fiction, mystery crime drama series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. It stars Alan Davies as the title character, who works as a creative consultant to a stage magician whi ...

'' (1998, TV Series) - Jerry Bellinitus * '' Do Not Disturb'' (1999) - Manager * '' Heartbeat'' (2002–2003, TV Series) - Dr. James Alway * ''

The Royal ''The Royal'' is a British period medical drama, produced by Yorkshire Television (later part of ITV Studios), and broadcast on ITV from 2003 until its cancellation in 2011. The series is set in the 1960s and focuses on the lives of the st ...

'' (2003) - Dr. James Alway * ''Cary Comes Home'' (2004) - Cary Grant * '' All About George'' (2005) - Ted * '' Beautiful People'' (2009, TV Series) - Mr. Bunions * '' Run For Your Wife'' (2012) - (final film role)

Theatre

* ''Help Stamp Out Marriage!'' (1966) – Stuart Wheeler

Radio

* Cast, In Order of Disappearance – Charles Paris (BBC Radio 2, June 1984) * So Much Blood – Charles Paris (BBC Radio 2, August 1985)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Matthews, Francis 1927 births 2014 deaths 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors English male voice actors Male actors from Leeds Male actors from York 20th-century Royal Navy personnel People educated at Mount St Mary's Catholic High School, Leeds