Harold Frank Bennett (17 November 1898 – 11 September 1981) was an English actor, active in stage, television and film best remembered for being in

sitcoms A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent setting, such as a home ...

written and produced by David Croft, having played 'Young Mr. Grace' in the 1970s

British sitcom A British sitcom or a Britcom is a situational comedy programme produced for British television. British sitcoms have predominantly been recorded on studio sets, while some include an element of location filming. Live audiences and multi-camera ...

Are You Being Served? ''Are You Being Served?'' is a British television sitcom that was broadcast from 1972 to 1985. It was created and written by David Croft (TV producer), David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd. Croft also served as executive producer and television directo ...

'', as well as minor character Sidney Bluett in ''

Dad's Army ''Dad's Army'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard (United Kingdom), Home Guard during the World War II, Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft (TV producer), David Crof ...

.''

Biography

Bennett was born in

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

, Sussex. After leaving school at the age of twelve, in his early life he toured America as a clown with a circus, and later taught English at the

Working Men's College The Working Men's College (also known as the St Pancras Working Men's College, WMC, The Camden College or WM College), is among the earliest adult education institutions established in the United Kingdom, and Europe's oldest extant centre for adu ...

in London. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he served as a courier, initially on horseback, then on motorcycle. After the war he took up acting and eventually worked as stage producer in the Tower Theatre, London. He subsequently pursued a career as a draughtsman for an electric company, only taking up his acting career again following retirement. Harold Bennett died of a heart attack on 11 September 1981, aged 82. His wife predeceased him in the 1930s;Webber, Richard (1998). ''Are You Being Served: 25 Years''. London: Orion. p. 74; . he was survived by their three children. One of his children, John, was also an actor.

Acting career

He played the recurring character Mr (Sidney) Bluett in ''

'' from 1969 to 1977, but it was as Young Mr Grace, the ancient, amiably callous owner of Grace Brothers department store in British sitcom ''

'' that he achieved his greatest fame. His last appearance in ''Are You Being Served?'' aired some three months after his death, having been recorded earlier in the year. Bennett also played the role of the aged Archdeacon Pulteney in '' The Stalls of Barchester'', 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 ...

A Ghost Story for Christmas ''A Ghost Story for Christmas'' is a Anthology series, strand of annual British short television films originally broadcast on BBC One between 1971 and 1978, and revived sporadically by the BBC since 2005. With one exception, the original instal ...

'' broadcast 24 December 1971 and adapted from the

M.R. James Montague Rhodes James (1 August 1862 – 12 June 1936) was an English Medieval studies, medievalist scholar and author who served as provost (education), provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–1918), and of Eton College (1918–1936) as w ...

story of the same name. Bennett also appeared in '' Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton'' (1965), and in several films, including as a photographer in '' Games That Lovers Play'' (1971) and as the aged odd-job man Gasper in '' The Ups and Downs of a Handyman'' (1975). On the stage, he appeared in a

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

production of ''

London Assurance ''London Assurance'' (originally entitled ''Out of Town'') is a five-act comedy co-authored by Dion Boucicault and John Brougham. While the play was collaboratively written by both playwrights, after the play's initial premiere Broughman, who o ...

'', and in an

Open University The Open University (OU) is a Public university, public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by List of universities in the United Kingdom by enrolment, number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate ...

production of

Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

's '' The Three Sisters''.

Filmography

Film

* '' The Sky Bike'' (1967) – Old Man * '' Games That Lovers Play'' (1971) – Old photographer * '' Au Pair Girls'' (1972) – Lord Tryke * '' The Ups and Downs of a Handyman'' (1976) – Gasper * ''

'' (1977) – Young Mr. Grace

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Harold 1898 births 1981 deaths English male film actors English male television actors Male actors from Hastings British Army personnel of World War I 20th-century English male actors British Army soldiers