John Slater (22 August 1916 – 9 January 1975) was an English

character actor A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...

who usually portrayed lugubrious, amiable

cockney Cockney is a dialect of the English language, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by Londoners with working-class and lower middle class roots. The term ''Cockney'' is also used as a demonym for a person from the East End, ...

types.

Biography

Slater's father was an antiques dealer. After attending St Clement Danes Grammar School in Hammersmith, Slater began acting in

farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical comedy, physical humor; the use of delibe ...

at the Whitehall Theatre. He first appeared on film in 1938, remaining active in the industry up to his death. He was a familiar face in British films of the 1940s and appeared in many classic films of the period, including ''

The Day Will Dawn ''The Day Will Dawn'', released in the USA as ''The Avengers'', is a 1942 British war film set in Norway during World War II. It stars Ralph Richardson, Deborah Kerr, Hugh Williams and Griffith Jones, and was directed by Harold French from a ...

'' (1942, US title ''The Avengers''), '' Went the Day Well?'' (1942), '' We Dive at Dawn'' (1943), '' A Canterbury Tale'' (1944), '' The Seventh Veil'' (1945), '' It Always Rains on Sunday'' (1947) and ''

Passport to Pimlico ''Passport to Pimlico'' is a 1949 British comedy film made by Ealing Studios and starring Stanley Holloway, Margaret Rutherford and Hermione Baddeley. It was directed by Henry Cornelius and written by T. E. B. Clarke. The story concerns the unea ...

'' (1949). He was also a singer, and made three solo 78rpm records for Columbia in 1953 and 1954. The first of these was a cover of " (How Much is) That Doggie in the Window?", followed by "Travelling Alone", his own composition. The latter was released in 1953, and subsequently used in the 1956 film '' Johnny, You're Wanted'', which starred Slater in the lead role. In 1954, Columbia released a single of excerpts from ''Dry Rot'', a farce from London's Whitehall Theatre by John Chapman (which later became a film of the same name). The record featured Slater alongside Brian Rix, Basil Lord, Cicely Paget-Bowman, Diana Caderwood and Chapman, with Jackie Brown on the

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...

. In 1959, Slater participated on a studio cast recording of ''

My Fair Lady ''My Fair Lady'' is a musical theatre, musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story, based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play ''Pygmalion (play), Pygmalion'' and on the Pygmalion (1938 film), 1938 film ...

'', singing "

With a Little Bit of Luck "With a Little Bit of Luck" is a popular song by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe, written for the 1956 Broadway play ''My Fair Lady''. It was sung by Stanley Holloway as Alfred P. Doolittle in both the original stage and film versions. I ...

" and " Get Me to the Church on Time" as

Eliza Doolittle Eliza Doolittle is a fictional character and the protagonist in George Bernard Shaw's play '' Pygmalion'' (1913) and its 1956 musical adaptation, ''My Fair Lady''. Eliza (from Lisson Grove, London) is a Cockney flower seller, who comes to Prof ...

's father Alfred. Slater narrated the

National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...

's ''Mining Review'' documentary series, and was known on television for his presenter role opposite popular children's puppets Pinky and Perky during the 1960s, as a story-teller on ''

Jackanory ''Jackanory'' was a BBC children's television series which was originally broadcast between 1965 and 1996. It was designed to stimulate an interest in Reading (activity), reading. The programme was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, and the ...

'' and as Det. Sgt. Stone 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 ...

'' from 1967 to 1974 where his episode count was beaten only by that of James Ellis. He also appeared in the notorious 1958 stage production of

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

's '' The Birthday Party'', as Nat Goldberg. He narrated the 1963 film ''Giants of Steam'' made by the

British Broadcasting Corporation The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public broadcasting, public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved in ...

and British Transport Films. Slater sustained life-threatening injuries as a result of an air crash in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in 1946 and sporadic bouts of ill health hampered his career. He died on 9 January 1975 from a heart attack, aged 58.

Selected filmography

* '' Alf's Button Afloat'' (1938) - Minor Role (uncredited) * '' This Man Is Dangerous'' (1941) - (uncredited) * '' Love on the Dole'' (1941) - Agitator on Demonstration (uncredited) * '' "Pimpernel" Smith'' (1941) - Reporter (uncredited) * ''Facing the Music'' (1941) * '' The Saint Meets the Tiger'' (1941) - Eddie * '' The Common Touch'' (1941) - Joe * '' Penn of Pennsylvania'' (1942) - Newgate Prisoner with Mouse (uncredited) * '' Hatter's Castle'' (1942) - Card Player (uncredited) * '' Gert and Daisy's Weekend'' (1942) - Jack Densham * ''

'' (1942, US title ''The Avengers'') - American Reporter In Oslo Hotel (uncredited) * '' Flying Fortress'' (1942) - Air Raid Warden (uncredited) * '' They Flew Alone'' (1942) - Officer on Interview Panel * '' Unpublished Story'' (1942) - Code Soldier (uncredited) * '' Uncensored'' (1942) - Théophile * '' The Young Mr. Pitt'' (1942) - Minor Role (uncredited) * '' Went the Day Well?'' (1942) - Sergeant * '' Those Kids from Town'' (1942) - Minor Role (uncredited) * '' The Harvest Shall Come'' (1942, Short) - Tom Grimwood (uncredited) * '' We Dive at Dawn'' (1943) - Charlie (uncredited) * ''

Undercover A cover in foreign, military or police human intelligence or counterintelligence is the ostensible identity and role or position in an infiltrated organization assumed by a covert agent during a covert operation. Official cover In espionage, a ...

'' (1943) - Minor Role (uncredited) * '' Millions Like Us'' (1943) - Alec - Man at Dance Hall (uncredited) * '' The Adventures of Tartu'' (1943) - Luftwaffe Man with Coffee (uncredited) * '' Schweik's New Adventures'' (1943) - A4 * '' Deadlock'' (1943) - Fred Bamber / Allan Bamber * '' The New Lot'' (1943) - Soldier in Truck (uncredited) * '' Candlelight in Algeria'' (1944) - American Officer * '' For Those in Peril'' (1944) - A / C 1. Wilkie * ''

The Hundred Pound Window ''The Hundred Pound Window'' is a 1944 British Comedy film, comedy crime film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Anne Crawford, David Farrar (actor), David Farrar, Frederick Leister and Richard Attenborough. An accountant has to take a ...

'' (1944) - O'Neil * '' A Canterbury Tale'' (1944) - Sergt. Len * '' I Live in Grosvenor Square'' (1945) - Paratrooper * '' Murder in Reverse?'' (1945) - Fred Smith * '' The Seventh Veil'' (1945) - James * ''

Teheran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District. With a population of around 9.8 million in the city as of 2025, ...

'' (1946) - Maj. Sergei Soviesky, USSR * '' It Always Rains on Sunday'' (1947) - Lou Hyams * '' Escape'' (1948) - Salesman * '' Against the Wind'' (1948) - Emile Meyer * ''

Noose A noose is a loop at the end of a rope in which the knot tightens under load and can be loosened without untying the knot. The knot can be used to secure a rope to a post, pole, or animal but only where the end is in a position that the loop can ...

'' (1948) - Pudd'n Bason * ''

'' (1949) - Frank Huggins * '' Prelude to Fame'' (1950) - Dr. Lorenzo * '' The Third Visitor'' (1951) - James Oliver * '' The Faithful City'' (1952) - Ezra * '' The Ringer'' (1952) - Bell * ''The Promise'' (1952) * '' The Long Memory'' (1953) - Pewsey * '' The Flanagan Boy'' (1953) - Charlie Sullivan * '' Strange Stories'' (1953) - Storyteller / Narrator * ''

The Million Pound Note ''The Million Pound Note'' is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Ronald Neame and starring Gregory Peck, Ronald Squire, Wilfrid Hyde-White and Jane Griffiths (actress), Jane Griffiths. It is based on the 1893 Mark Twain short story "The Mi ...

'' (1954) - Parsons * '' Star of India'' (1954) - Emile * ''

John Wesley John Wesley ( ; 2 March 1791) was an English cleric, Christian theology, theologian, and Evangelism, evangelist who was a principal leader of a Christian revival, revival movement within the Church of England known as Methodism. The societies ...

'' (1954) - Condemned Man * '' Johnny, You're Wanted'' (1956) - Johnny * ''Raiders of the River'' (1956) - Narrator * '' The Devil's Pass'' (1957) - Bill Buckle * '' Violent Playground'' (1958) - Sgt. Walker * ''Upgreen - And at 'Em'' (1960) * '' The Night We Got the Bird'' (1961) - Wolf Mannheim (Manny) * '' Three on a Spree'' (1961) - Sid Johnson * '' Nothing Barred'' (1961) - Warder Lockitt * '' A Place to Go'' (1963) - Jack Ellerman * ''The Yellow Hat'' (1966) - Slack

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Slater, John 1916 births 1975 deaths English male film actors English male television actors Male actors from London People educated at St. Clement Danes School 20th-century English male actors