John Alexander Fraser (18 March 1931 – 6 November 2020) was a Scottish actor and author.
He is best known for his performances in the films ''
The Dam Busters'' (1955),
''
The Good Companions
''The Good Companions'' is a novel by the English author J. B. Priestley.
Written in 1929, it follows the fortunes of a Concert Party (entertainment), concert party on a tour of England. It is Priestley's most famous novel and established hi ...
'' (1957), ''
The Trials of Oscar Wilde'' (1960), ''
El Cid
Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar ( – 10 July 1099) was a Castilian knight and ruler in medieval Spain. Fighting both with Christian and Muslim armies during his lifetime, he earned the Arabic honorific ("the Lord" or "the Master"), which would evolve i ...
'' (1961), ''
Repulsion'' (1965) and ''
Isadora'' (1968).
Career
One of his earliest roles was as Inigo Jollifant in
the second film version of
J.B. Priestley's ''
The Good Companions
''The Good Companions'' is a novel by the English author J. B. Priestley.
Written in 1929, it follows the fortunes of a Concert Party (entertainment), concert party on a tour of England. It is Priestley's most famous novel and established hi ...
'' (1957). Later, Fraser had leading roles in films such as ''
El Cid
Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar ( – 10 July 1099) was a Castilian knight and ruler in medieval Spain. Fighting both with Christian and Muslim armies during his lifetime, he earned the Arabic honorific ("the Lord" or "the Master"), which would evolve i ...
'', ''
Tunes of Glory'', ''
The Trials of Oscar Wilde'' (playing
Lord Alfred Douglas
Lord Alfred Bruce Douglas (22 October 1870 – 20 March 1945), also known as Bosie Douglas, was an English poet and journalist, and a lover of Oscar Wilde. At Oxford University he edited an undergraduate journal, ''The Spirit Lamp'', that carr ...
),
Roman Polanski
Raymond Roman Thierry Polański (; born 18 August 1933) is a Polish and French filmmaker and actor. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Roman Polanski, numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, three Britis ...
's ''
Repulsion'', ''
Isadora'' and ''
Schizo''.
[ He made appearances on television series including '' Danger Man'' (1964), '' Casting the Runes'' (1968), '' Randall and Hopkirk'' (1969), '' Columbo'' (1972), '']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 ...
'' (1981), and ''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 ...
'' (1995).
He released several singles in the late 1950s.
In 2004, he published his autobiography, ''Close Up'', in which he wrote frankly about his gay life and friendships. In the book, Fraser wrote that actor Laurence Harvey was gay and that his long-term lover was his manager James Woolf.[''The Guardian']
"Sexy self-image that revved up Dirk Bogarde"
2 October 2004 Of Dirk Bogarde, Fraser wrote, "Dirk's life with nthony Forwood had been so respectable, their love for each other so profound and so enduring, it would have been a glorious day for the pursuit of understanding and the promotion of tolerance if he had screwed up the courage ... to make one dignified allusion to his true nature. Self-love is no substitute for self-respect."[
]
Personal life and death
Fraser died from oesophageal cancer on 6 November 2020 at the age of 89.
Selected filmography
Selected recordings
* 1957 - Bye Bye Love / Why Don't They Understand
* 1958 - Presenting John Fraser (EP) with Tony Osborne, the Beryl Stott Group, the Kim Drake Orchestra
* 1958 - Trolley Stop / Bye Bye Love with the Beryl Stott Group
* 1959 - Bye Bye Baby Goodbye
* 1960 - Jaula Dorada / Adios Adios Muchacha / Adios Amor / Por Que No Comprenden
Footnotes
Bibliography of works
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External links
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The Guardian obituary
1931 births
2020 deaths
20th-century Scottish LGBTQ people
20th-century Scottish male actors
20th-century Scottish male writers
21st-century Scottish LGBTQ people
21st-century Scottish male actors
21st-century Scottish male writers
Deaths from esophageal cancer in the United Kingdom
Male actors from Glasgow
Scottish expatriates in Italy
Scottish gay actors
Scottish gay writers
Scottish male film actors
Scottish male stage actors
Scottish male television actors
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