Sir Gyles Isham, 12th Baronet (31 October 1903 – 29 January 1976) was an English aristocrat,
actor (who appeared in several films in the 1930s) and
historian.
Life and career
Gyles Isham was born 31 October 1903 in
Lamport, Northamptonshire, England to Sir Vere Isham, the 11th Baronet of Lamport, and his wife Millicent Vaughan. Educated at
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...
, in 1926 he was President of the
Oxford Union and graduated as a
Bachelor of Arts (promoted to
M.A. in 1930). He became an actor, appearing from 1929 to 1938 in several
Shakespeare plays at the
Old Vic Theatre in
London, the
Stratford Shakespeare Festival
The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson (theatre producer), Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was fo ...
, and other venues. He also appeared from 1933 to 1937 in ten films, including the acclaimed
''Anna Karenina'' of 1935. Enlisting in the
British Army during the
Second World War, in 1940 he was commissioned as an officer into the
King's Royal Rifle Corps
The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United St ...
and served in
Libya in the
Western Desert Campaign, by 1943 reaching the rank of
lieutenant-colonel. He also succeeded in
1941, during his Libyan service, to the
Baronetcy of Lamport with the death of his father, thereby becoming Sir Gyles Isham. He served after the war as Defence Secretary Officer in
Palestine
__NOTOC__
Palestine may refer to:
* State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia
* Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia
* Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...
. He contested the 1950 General Election as Conservative Party candidate for
Kettering, finishing second. Returning to his family manor at
Lamport Hall, he served in 1952 as Deputy Lieutenant of
Northamptonshire, was a member from 1955 to 1964 of the
Northamptonshire County Council, and served in 1958 as
High Sheriff of Northamptonshire. He was a
trustee in 1964 of the
National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to:
*National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra
*National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred
*National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C.
*National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...
, and president between 1968 and 1976 of the Association of Genealogists, during which time he wrote several books and pamphlets on the history of Northamptonshire. He also opened
Lamport Hall, the family manor, to the public for the first time in 1974 and established the Lamport Hall Trust, to which the manor passed at his death. Sir Gyles died on 29 January 1976 at the age of 72 at St. Matthew's Nursing Home,
Northampton
Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...
, England. Isham was homosexual, and had no children; he was succeeded as baronet by Sir Ian Isham, a distant cousin of his descended from the
7th baronet.
[Lamport Hall (official guidebook).]
Filmography
* ''
Anne One Hundred
''Anne One Hundred'' is a 1933 British drama film directed by Henry Edwards and starring Betty Stockfeld, Gyles Isham and Dennis Wyndham. It was based on the play ''Anne One Hundred Percent'' by Sewell Collins. It was made at British and Domin ...
'' (1933) as Nixon
* ''
Purse Strings'' (1933) as James Willmore
* ''
The Iron Duke'' (1934) as Czar of Russia
* ''
What's in a Name?'' (1934) as Schultz
* ''
Regal Cavalcade
''Royal Cavalcade'', also known as ''Regal Cavalcade'', is a 1935 British, black-and-white, drama film directed by six separate directors: Thomas Bentley (Supervising Director), Herbert Brenon, Norman Lee, Walter Summers, W. P. Kellino and Marc ...
'' (1935) as Dining Officer
* ''
Anna Karenina'' (1935) as Levin
* ''
The Perfect Gentleman'' (1935) as Man (uncredited and unconfirmed)
* ''
The House of the Spaniard'' (1936) as John Gilchrist
* ''
Secret Lives'' (1937) as Franz Abel
* ''
Under Secret Orders'' (1937) as Lt. Hans Hoffman
Selected publications
* ''The Correspondence of Bishop Brian Duppa and Sir Justinian Isham 1650-1660,'' Northamptonshire Record Society, 1954.
* ''Sir Thomas Isham: an English collector in Rome, 1677-8,: A Selection of Pictures, Engravings, Books and Manuscripts Lent by Sir Gyles Isham, Bart., from Lamport Hall, Northampton: Exhibited at Central Art Gallery, Northampton, 12th July to August, 1969,'' County Borough of Northampton - Museums and Art Gallery, 1969.
*
* He also annotated the 1971 translation by Norman Marlow of ''The diary of Thomas Isham of Lamport (1658-81),'' Gregg Publishing, 343 p.
Notes
References
* ''Lamport Hall - Past and Present (the official guidebook)'', 1992, Lamport Hall Preservation Trust, Lamport Hall, Northamptonshire, 28 p.
* Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003), ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition,'' Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A, and London, England, 3 vol.
External links
*
Portrait of Sir Gyles Isham at Lamport Hall
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isham, Sir Gyles
1903 births
1976 deaths
Baronets in the Baronetage of England
English male film actors
English male stage actors
20th-century English male actors
Members of Northamptonshire County Council
High Sheriffs of Northamptonshire
Deputy Lieutenants of Northamptonshire
British expatriate male actors in the United States
Presidents of the Oxford Union
British Army personnel of World War II
King's Royal Rifle Corps officers