Sir Coles John Jeremy Child, 3rd Baronet (20 September 1944 – 7 March 2022) was a British actor.

Early life

Coles John Jeremy Child was born on 20 September 1944 in

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, son of Foreign Office diplomat Sir Coles John Child, 2nd Baronet, DL, a Major in the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarchy; due to this, it often ...

and aide-de-camp to the Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada from 1931 to 1933, and Sheila, daughter of Hugh Mathewson, of Pine Avenue,

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The Coles family were lords of the manor of

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...

, and lived at Bromley Palace. He was educated at Wellesley House School, a preparatory school in the coastal town of Broadstairs in Kent and at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

and Aiglon College, then spent a year at Poitiers University, followed by training as an actor 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

Having for a short time been a "reluctant" City broker, after appearing in

repertory theatre A repertory theatre, also called repertory, rep, true rep or stock, which are also called producing theatres, is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom ...

, Child was cast in a significant role in the 1967 film '' Privilege''. Following this appearance, he played over 90 different roles in films and television, including a small role in the film '' Quadrophenia''; as Piers Leigh in the miniseries '' Edward & Mrs. Simpson''; as one of the main villains in ''

Bird of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as (although not the same as) raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively predation, hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and smaller birds). In addition to speed ...

''; as

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

politician Charles Gurney Seymour in the television adaptation of

Jeffrey Archer Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is an English novelist and former politician. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Louth (Lincolnshire) from 1969 to 1974, but did not seek re-election after a fina ...

's '' First Among Equals'', and a cameo in ''

A Fish Called Wanda ''A Fish Called Wanda'' is a 1988 heist comedy film directed by Charles Crichton and written by Crichton and John Cleese. It stars Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, and Michael Palin. The film follows a gang of diamond thieves who double- ...

''. From 1977 to 1978, he appeared in the second series of '' Backs to the Land''. He also played a typical officer-class role in '' Fairly Secret Army'' (1984-86). Child appeared in the 2004 film ''

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

'' and television drama '' Judge John Deed''. He also appeared in '' Doctors'' for one episode, and most recently appeared as David Walsh in ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

''. Child played the British Foreign Secretary three times in his career.

Politics

In 1993, Child appeared in a party political broadcast for the Labour Party which also starred Hugh Laurie and

Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...

Personal life

Child was married three times, his first wife being the actress Deborah Grant, by whom he had a daughter. His second wife was Jan Todd, by whom he had a son and a daughter. He had a daughter and a son from his third marriage to publisher Elizabeth Morgan. He lived in Ewelme, Oxfordshire. Child died after a long illness on 7 March 2022, at the age of 77.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Child, Jeremy 1944 births 2022 deaths Alumni of Bristol Old Vic Theatre School Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom English male film actors English male soap opera actors People educated at Eton College Male actors from Woking Labour Party (UK) people Alumni of Aiglon College