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James Ellis (15 March 1931 – 8 March 2014) was a
Northern Irish The people of Northern Ireland are all people born in Northern Ireland and having, at the time of their birth, at least one parent who is a British Nationality Law, British citizen, an Irish nationality law, Irish citizen or is otherwis ...
actor and theatre director from
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
who had a career stretching over sixty years. Originally a stage actor and director in his native city, he moved to London in the early 1960s. After gaining recognition in Great Britain through the ''
Z-Cars ''Z-Cars'' or ''Z Cars'' (pronounced "zed cars") is a British television police procedural series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police and CID detectives in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, near Liverpool. Produced by ...
'' (1962–78) police series on
BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and Flagship (broadcasting), flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includ ...
, he appeared in many other television and film roles. He was also a translator.


Early life

Jimmy Ellis was born in
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, attended
Methodist College Belfast Methodist College Belfast (MCB), locally known as Methody, is a co-educational voluntary grammar school in Belfast, located at the foot of the Malone Road, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1865 by the Methodist Church in Ireland and is one of e ...
and later studied at
Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...
and trained at the
Bristol Old Vic Theatre School The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (BOVTS) is a drama school in Bristol, England. The institution provides training in acting and production for careers in film, television and theatre. BOVTS was an affiliate of the Conservatoire for Dance a ...
.


Career

He began to act with the Belfast-based Ulster Group Theatre in 1952. He first appeared in a revival of the Louis D'Alton play,Robert Welch (ed), ''The Oxford Companion to Irish Literature'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996, pp. 131-32 ''They Got What They Wanted'' (1947). Ellis became established as the company's young male lead in such plays as ''April in Assagh'', where he was cast as McFettridge (1954), ''Is the Priest at Home?'' as O'Grady (1954), and '' The Diary of Anne Frank'' as Peter van Daan (1957). While continuing as an actor in the main company, he also undertook the management of the group's summer theatre in the port town of
Larne Larne (, , the name of a Gaelic Ireland, Gaelic territory)Larne/Latharna
Placenames Database of Ireland.
is a to ...
, north of Belfast. Ellis' most important roles for the group include the lead figure of Christy Mahon in a production of J.M. Synge's '' The Playboy of the Western World'' in 1957. Ellis had a major part to play in the staging of Sam Thompson's even more controversial '' Over the Bridge'' (1960). In December 1958 Ellis had been appointed the Group Theatre's Director of Productions, but he resigned this position in July 1959 to direct the production of Thompson's play. The lattervwas to be staged by a group of actors and directors who had quit the Group Theatre in protest over its decision to withdraw ''Over the Bridge'', which had been in rehearsals, after the Group's board deemed the play too inflammatory. Ellis soon left Northern Ireland for London, where his first break came when he was cast as Dandy Jordan in the BBC TV production of Stewart Love's ''The Randy Dandy'', which aired on 14 September 1961. It was an "
Angry Anger, also known as wrath ( ; ) or rage, is an intense emotional state involving a strong, uncomfortable and non-cooperative response to a perceived provocation, hurt, or threat. A person experiencing anger will often experience physical ef ...
" play deemed so controversial and sexually charged that the BBC gave a warning before the transmission that it was "unsuitable for people of a nervous disposition". His success as Dandy made him a sought-after actor and led to subsequent roles with the BBC and ITV, including as Philip in the BBC production of Stewart Love's ''The Sugar Cube'' (transmitted 21 June 1961) and ultimately his role as Bert Lynch in ''
Z-Cars ''Z-Cars'' or ''Z Cars'' (pronounced "zed cars") is a British television police procedural series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police and CID detectives in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, near Liverpool. Produced by ...
'' (1962–78). In this police series, set in the fictional Newtown in
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
, his character rose from the rank of PC to Inspector over the series run. Ellis appeared in 629 episodes of this series, an all-time record for any actor's appearances in a TV detective/police series. The impact of ''Z-Cars'' was such that he became a household name in this era. In addition he appeared in a January 1967 episode of the ''Z-Cars'' spin-off '' Softly, Softly'' ("Barlow Was There: Part 3: Mischief"), which reunited the now DC Lynch with his former Newtown colleagues, Barlow ( Stratford Johns), Watt (
Frank Windsor Frank Windsor Higgins (12 July 1928 – 30 September 2020), known professionally as Frank Windsor, was an English actor, primarily known for his roles on television, especially policeman John Watt in ''Z-Cars'' and its spin-offs. Early life Wi ...
) and Blackitt ( Robert Keegan). From 1982, he portrayed Norman Martin, the violent and troubled father of Billy, in the "Billy" trilogy of plays by Graham Reid, all of which were broadcast as part of the ''
Play for Today ''Play for Today'' is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage ...
'' series. The first of the plays, ''Too Late to Talk to Billy'', was followed by ''A Matter of Choice for Billy'' (1983) and ''A Coming to Terms for Billy'' (1984). A postscript to the trilogy, ''Lorna'', was broadcast in 1987. In the mid-1980s Ellis was a member of the team of interviewers on "Afternoon Plus", produced by Thames Television. He appeared in '' Till Death Us Do Part'', in ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
'', '' In Sickness and in Health'', '' Ballykissangel'', '' Playing the Field'', '' One By One'' and the cult sitcom '' Nightingales'', with Robert Lindsay and David Threlfall. In
Antonia Bird Antonia Jane Bird, FRSA (27 May 1951 – 24 October 2013Kate Hardi"Antonia Bird obituary" ''The Guardian'', 28 October 2013) was an English producer and director of television drama and feature films. Career In 1968, at the age of 17, Bird beg ...
's ''
Priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
'' (1994), from a screenplay by
Jimmy McGovern James Stanley McGovern (born September 1949) is an English screenwriter and producer. He is best known for creating the drama series '' Cracker'' (1993–1995), for which he received two Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America. He als ...
, he played Father Ellerton. Ellis also contributed cameos to popular series such as ''
Boys from the Blackstuff ''Boys from the Blackstuff'' is a five episode British drama television series, originally transmitted from 10 October to 7 November 1982 on BBC2. The serial was written by Liverpudlian playwright Alan Bleasdale, as a sequel to a television pl ...
'' by Alan Bleasdale, ''
Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses'' (titled onscreen as ''Only Fools and Horses....'') is a British television sitcom that was created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Ki ...
'', ''
The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...
'', ''
Casualty Casualty may refer to: *Casualty (person), a person who is killed or rendered unfit for service in a war or natural disaster **Civilian casualty, a non-combatant killed or injured in warfare * The emergency department of a hospital, also known as ...
'', '' Boon'', '' Common as Muck'', '' Birds of a Feather'', ''
Lovejoy ''Lovejoy'' is a British television comedy-drama mystery fiction, mystery series, based on the Lovejoy (novel series), novels by John Grant (Lovejoy), John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. The show, which ran to 71 episodes over six ser ...
'' and '' Heartbeat''. He was the subject of '' This Is Your Life'' in 2001 when he was surprised by
Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television presenter and newsreader. He hosted programmes such as '' Crackerjack!'', '' Ask Aspel'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', '' This Is Your Life'', '' Strange ...
. Ellis was also a writer of poems and prose and a translator. The BBC broadcast a selection of his adaptations from French in 2007. In July 2008,
Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...
awarded Ellis an honorary doctorate as part of its centenary celebrations.


Personal life

Ellis' first marriage was to actress Beth Ellis with whom he had three children, Amanda, Adam and Hugo. They divorced in the late 1960s. In 1976 Ellis married his second wife, Robina, by whom he had another son, Toto. Adam was murdered in London in August 1988. The murderer was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1989. Hugo, who followed his father into professional acting and directing, died by suicide in January 2011, aged 49.


Death

Ellis died of a stroke on 8 March 2014 in Lincoln, aged 82. He is interred in Castlereagh Presbyterian Churchyard in Belfast.


Legacy

The James Ellis Bridge in East Belfast, on a route between CS Lewis Square and Victoria Park, was opened in March 2017 by his widow Robina, three years after Ellis' death.


References


External links

*


Further reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, James 1931 births 2014 deaths Alumni of Queen's University Belfast Alumni of Bristol Old Vic Theatre School Male television actors from Northern Ireland People educated at Methodist College Belfast 20th-century male actors from Northern Ireland 21st-century male actors from Northern Ireland Male stage actors from Northern Ireland Male actors from Belfast