William Nicholas Foskett Phipps (23 June 1913 – 11 April 1980) was a British actor and writer who appeared in stage roles between 1932 and 1967 and more than thirty films between 1940 and 1970. He wrote West End plays, songs and sketches for

revues A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during ...

, and film scripts.

Life and career

Early years

Phipps was born in London on 23 June 1913, the son of the civil servant Sir Edmund Bampfylde Phipps and his wife Margaret, née Phipps (the grand-daughter of Charles Paul Phipps). He was educated at

Winchester College Winchester College is an English Public school (United Kingdom), public school (a long-established fee-charging boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) with some provision for day school, day attendees, in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It wa ...

.Herbert, pp. 1282–1283 He made his first appearance on the stage at the

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

on 25 January 1932, walking-on ''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...

''. In 1933, he played in

Anew McMaster Andrew "Anew" McMaster (24 December 1891 – 24 August 1962) was a British stage actor who during his nearly 45 year acting career toured the UK, Ireland, Australia and the United States. For almost 35 years he toured as actor-manager of his o ...

's Shakespearian season at the

Chiswick Empire The Chiswick Empire was a theatre facing Turnham Green in Chiswick that opened in 1912 and closed and was demolished in 1959. A venue for touring artists, some of the greatest names in drama, variety and music hall performed there including Georg ...

, and at Christmas, appeared at the Embassy in ''Aladdin ''. At the St Martin's in March 1934 he played Henry in ''Love in a Mist,'' subsequently joining the Northampton repertory company. During 1934–35, he was co-director of the Imperial Institute Theatre. He toured in 1934 in

P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...

's '' Good Morning, Bill'' and was a member of the

Oxford Playhouse The Oxford Playhouse is a theatre designed by Edward Maufe and F. G. M. Chancellor. It is situated in Beaumont Street, Oxford, opposite the Ashmolean Museum. History The Playhouse was founded as ''The Red Barn'' at 12 Woodstock Road (Oxford), W ...

in 1935–36. In 1936, Phipps toured with Dame

Sybil Thorndike Dame Agnes Sybil Thorndike, Lady Casson (24 October 18829 June 1976) was an English actress whose stage career lasted from 1904 to 1969. Trained in her youth as a concert pianist, Thorndike turned to the stage when a medical problem with her h ...

's company in

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

's '' Hands Across the Sea'',

D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, literary critic, travel writer, essayist, and painter. His modernist works reflect on modernity, social alienation ...

's ''My Son's My Son'' and

Euripides Euripides () was a Greek tragedy, tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to ...

' '' Hippolytus''. He toured in South Africa in 1937, in ''The Frog'' and '' The Amazing Dr Clitterhouse'', and on his return, played at the summer theatre at

Perranporth Perranporth () is a seaside resort town on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is 2.1 miles east of the St Agnes Heritage Coastline, and around 7 miles south-west of Newquay. Perranporth and its long beach face the Atla ...

. At the

Gate Theatre The Gate Theatre is a theatre on Cavendish Row in Dublin, Ireland. It was founded in 1928. History Beginnings The Gate Theatre was founded in 1928 by Hilton Edwards and Micheál MacLiammóir with Daisy Bannard Cogley and Gearóid Ó Lochla ...

in December 1937 he appeared in ''Members Only''. His last three appearances before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

were as Tony Fox-Collier in '' Spring Meeting'' (Ambassadors, May 1938), as Roland Capel in ''First Stop North'' (King's, Hammersmith, May 1939) and in ''The Gate Revue'' at the Ambassadors (June 1939).

War and post-war

During the war Phipps served in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

from 1940 to 1943. He then appeared for

ENSA The Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA) was an organisation established in 1939 by Basil Dean and Leslie Henson to provide entertainment for British armed forces personnel during World War II. ENSA operated as part of the Navy, ...

in a concert party at Gibraltar and North Africa, and then toured as Charles Condomine in Coward's '' Blithe Spirit''. After playing Proust in ''Crisis in Heaven'' at the Lyric in May 1944, he succeeded

Cecil Parker Cecil Parker (born Cecil Schwabe; 3 September 1897 – 20 April 1971) was an English actor with a distinctively husky voice, who usually played supporting roles, often characters with a supercilious demeanour, in his 91 films made between 1 ...

as Charles Condomine in the long London run of ''Blithe Spirit'', at the

Duchess Theatre The Duchess Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster, London, located in Catherine Street near Aldwych. The theatre opened on 25 November 1929 and is one of the smallest West End theatres with a proscenium arch. It has 494 ...

, 1944-45. At the

Q Theatre The Q Theatre was a British theatre located near Kew Bridge in Brentford, west London, which operated between 1924 and 1958. It was built on the site of the former Kew Bridge Studios. The theatre, seating 490 in 25 rows with a central aisle, wa ...

in October 1947 Phipps played Clive Hamilton in his own play ''Bold Lover''. His stage roles in the 1950s were Villardieu in ''Ardele'' (

Vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

, August 1951), Alexander Marko in ''The Hungry God'' (Q Theatre, February 1952), Jaques Lambert in ''Figure of Fun'' (Aldwych, April 1952) and Charles Waterlow in ''Letter From Paris'' (Aldwych, October 1952). His last two stage roles were in the 1960s. At the St Martin's in June 1964 he played Sir William Hood in ''Past Imperfect'', and at the Vaudeville in April 1967 he played Frederick Sterroll in Coward's ''Fallen Angels''. Phipps was the author of the plays, "First Stop North", "Bold Lover", "The Burning Boat", and of numerous lyrics and sketches for revues, some written in collaboration with his cousin

Joyce Grenfell Joyce Irene Grenfell (''née'' Phipps; 10 February 1910 – 30 November 1979) was an English diseuse, singer, actress and writer. She was known for the songs and monologues she wrote and performed, at first in revues and later in her solo show ...

Film work

In addition to his stage work, Phipps was connected with the cinema throughout much of his career. In 1932 and 1933 he was engaged by the Gaumont Picture Corporation in an unspecified capacity. As well as acting in numerous films from 1940 onwards he wrote screenplays for many. Those he mentioned in his ''

Who's Who A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...

'' entry were '' Spring in Park Lane'', '' Maytime in Mayfair'', ''The Captain's Paradise'', ''

Doctor in the House Doctor in the House may refer to: * Doctor in the House (novel), ''Doctor in the House'' (novel), a 1952 novel by Richard Gordon ** Doctor in the House (film), ''Doctor in the House'' (film), a 1954 British film adaptation of the novel *** Doctor i ...

'' and three sequels, and '' No Love For Johnnie''. His script for ''Doctor in the House'' was nominated for a

BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

. As a screen actor Phipps appeared mainly in British comedy films, often specialising in playing military figures. He began his association with

Herbert Wilcox Herbert Sydney Wilcox Order of the British Empire, CBE (19 April 1890 – 15 May 1977) was a British film producer and film director, director. He was one of the most successful British filmmakers from the 1920s to the 1950s. He is best know ...

working on '' I Live in Grosvenor Square'' (1945). He wrote '' This Man Is Mine'' (1946) then had a big hit with '' Piccadilly Incident'' (1946) which he wrote for Wilcox and

Anna Neagle Dame Florence Marjorie Wilcox (''née'' Robertson; 20 October 1904 – 3 June 1986), known professionally as Anna Neagle, was an English stage and film actress, singer, and dancer. She was a successful box-office draw in British cinema for 2 ...

, Wilcox's wife. They reunited on '' The Courtneys of Curzon Street'' (1947) and ''Spring in Park Lane'' (1948), also successfully. Phipps also worked on '' The First Gentleman'' (1948) then was back with Wilcox and Neagle for ''Maytime in Mayfair'' (1948) and '' Elizabeth of Ladymead'' (1949). Phipps wrote two films for

Stewart Granger Stewart Granger (born James Lablache Stewart; 6 May 1913 – 16 August 1993) was a British film actor, mainly associated with heroic and romantic leading roles. He was a popular leading man from the 1940s to the early 1960s, rising to fame thr ...

: '' Woman Hater'' (1948) and '' Adam and Evelyne'' (1949). He then did a Wilcox movie without Neagle, '' Into the Blue'' (1950). He wrote a script for

David Lean Sir David Lean (25 March 190816 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor, widely considered one of the most important figures of Cinema of the United Kingdom, British cinema. He directed the large-scale epi ...

, '' Madeleine'' (1950) and did one for

Ralph Thomas Ralph Philip Thomas (10 August 1915 – 17 March 2001) was an English film director who directed the Doctor (film series), ''Doctor'' film series. Thomas cast the actor James Robertson Justice in many of his films. He often worked with the pr ...

, '' Appointment with Venus'' (1951) He was one of several writers on '' I Believe in You'' (1952), and did a thriller for George Raft '' Escape Route'' (1952). After an Alec Guinness comedy, '' The Captain's Paradise'' (1953), Phipps had one of the biggest hits of his career with ''Doctor in the House'' (1954) for Thomas. He did the sequels '' Doctor at Sea'' (1955) and '' Doctor at Large'' (1957), plus a similar comedy, ''

True as a Turtle ''True as a Turtle'' is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring John Gregson, Cecil Parker, June Thorburn and Keith Michell. The screenplay was by John Coates, Jack Davies and Nicholas Phipps, based on the 1955 nove ...

'' (1957). Others were''

The Captain's Table ''The Captain's Table'' is a 1959 British comedy film directed by Jack Lee and starring John Gregson, Donald Sinden, Peggy Cummins and Nadia Gray. The film is based on the 1954 novel of the same title by Richard Gordon, later adapted int ...

'' (1959); '' The Lady Is a Square'' (1959), for Wilcox'', and

Doctor in Love ''Doctor in Love'' is a 1960 British comedy film, the fourth of the seven films in the ''Doctor'' series, directed by Ralph Thomas and starring James Robertson Justice and Michael Craig. It was the first film in the series not to feature Dirk ...

'' (1960). For Thomas, Phipps wrote ''No Love for Johnnie'' (1961). More typical were '' A Pair of Briefs'' (1962), '' The Amorous Prawn'' (US: ''The Playgirl and the War Minister'', 1963) and '' Doctor in Distress'' (1963).

Last years

Phipps retired from acting in 1970. He died in Acton, London on 11 April 1980, aged 66, leaving a widow, Joyce ( Robinson.Obituary: "Mr Nicholas Phipps", ''The Times'', 15 April 1980, p. 16

Partial filmography

Actor

*''Pride o' the Green'' (1937) (TV) – Macleeves *''Two Gentlemen of Soho'' (1938) (TV ) *''Hands Across the Sea'' (1938) (TV) *''Spring Meeting'' (1938) (TV) *''First Stop North'' (1939) (TV) – Roland Capel *''The Gate Revue'' (1939) (TV) *''Blackout'' (1940) – Man in Car (uncredited) *'' You Will Remember'' (1941) – Earl of Potter *'' Old Bill and Son'' (1941) – BBC Reporter *'' The Courtneys of Curzon Street'' (1947) – Phipps *'' Spring in Park Lane'' (1948) – Marquis of Borechester *'' Elizabeth of Ladymead'' (1948) – John Beresford in 1854 *'' Maytime in Mayfair'' (1949) – Sir Henry Hazelrigg *'' Madeleine'' (1950) – Reporter (uncredited) *'' Appointment with Venus'' (1951) – Minister *'' The Captain's Paradise'' (1953) – The Major *'' The Intruder'' (1953) – Regular Officer *''

'' (1954) – Magistrate *'' Forbidden Cargo'' (1954) – Royal Navy Information Officer (uncredited) *'' Mad About Men'' (1955) – Col. Barclay Sutton *'' Out of the Clouds'' (1955) – Hilton-Davidson *'' All for Mary'' (1955) – General McLintock-White *'' Who Done It?'' (1956) – Scientist *''

The Iron Petticoat ''The Iron Petticoat'' (also known as ''Not for Money'') is a 1956 British Cold War comedy film starring Bob Hope and Katharine Hepburn, and directed by Ralph Thomas. The screenplay by Ben Hecht became the focus of a contentious history behind t ...

'' (1956) – Tony Mallard *'' Doctor at Large'' (1957) – Mr. Wayland – Solicitor *''

Orders to Kill ''Orders to Kill'' is a 1958 British wartime drama film directed by Anthony Asquith and starring Paul Massie, Eddie Albert and Irene Worth. It was written by Paul Dehn and George St. George based on a story by Donald Chase Downes, a former Amer ...

'' (1958) – Lecturer Lieutenant *'' Rockets Galore!'' (1958) – Andrew Wishart *'' The Navy Lark'' (1959) – Capt. Povey *''

'' (1959) – Reddish *'' Don't Panic Chaps!'' (1959) – Mortimer *''

Upstairs and Downstairs ''Upstairs and Downstairs'' is a 1959 British comedy film directed by Ralph Thomas and starring Michael Craig, Anne Heywood, Mylène Demongeot, Claudia Cardinale, James Robertson Justice, Joan Sims, Joan Hickson and Sid James. It features t ...

'' (1959) – Harry *''

'' (1960) – Dr. Clive Cardew *''

The Pure Hell of St Trinian's ''The Pure Hell of St Trinian's'' is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Frank Launder and starring Cecil Parker, George Cole, Joyce Grenfell and Eric Barker. It was written by Launder, Sidney Gilliat and Val Valentine, and set in the fict ...

'' (1960) – Major *'' A Pair of Briefs'' (1962) – Sutcliffe *''

Summer Holiday Summer holiday may refer to: * Summer vacation The term summer vacation or summer break refers to a school break in the summer between school years and the break in the school academic year. Students are off anywhere between two weeks to thre ...

'' (1963) – Wrightmore *''

Heavens Above! ''Heavens Above!'' is a 1963 British satirical comedy film directed and produced by John and Roy Boulting, and starring Peter Sellers. It was written by John Boulting and Frank Harvey, from an idea by Malcolm Muggeridge. Plot A naive but cari ...

'' (1963) – Director-General *''Foreign Affairs'' (1964) (TV series) – Ambassador *''

Charlie Bubbles ''Charlie Bubbles'' is a 1968 British comedy-drama film directed by Albert Finney (in his feature directorial debut) and starring Finney, Billie Whitelaw and Liza Minnelli. The screenplay was by Shelagh Delaney. A writer returns to his home c ...

'' (1967) – Agent *''

Some Girls Do ''Some Girls Do'' is a 1969 British comedy spy film directed by Ralph Thomas. It was the second of the revamped Bulldog Drummond films (following 1967's ''Deadlier Than the Male'') starring Richard Johnson as Drummond, made following the succes ...

'' (1969) – Lord Dunnberry *''

Monte Carlo or Bust! ''Monte Carlo or Bust!'' is a 1969 epic comedy film, also known by its American title, ''Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies''. A co-production of the United Kingdom, France and Italy, the story is based on the Monte Carlo Rally – ...

'' (1969) – Golfer *'' The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer'' (1970) – Snaggot

Screenwriter

*''More Fun and Games!'' (1939) (TV movie) *''First Stop North'' (1939) (TV movie) *''Look Here!'' (1939) (short) *'' A Yank in London'' (1945) *'' This Man Is Mine'' (1946) *'' Piccadilly Incident'' (1946) *''A Word in Your Eye'' (1947) (TV movie) *'' Kathy's Love Affair'' (1947) * '' The Courtneys of Curzon Street'' (1947) *'' Affairs of a Rogue'' (1948) *'' Spring in Park Lane'' (1948) *'' Elizabeth of Ladymead'' (1948) *'' Woman Hater'' (1948) *'' Adam and Evelyne'' (1949) *'' Maytime in Mayfair'' (1949) *'' Into the Blue'' (1950) *'' Madeleine'' (1950) *'' Man in the Display'' (1950) *'' Appointment with Venus'' (1952) aka ''Island Rescue'' *'' I Believe in You'' (1952) *''Penny Plain'' (1952) (TV movie) *'' Escape Route'' (1952) aka ''I'll Get You'' *'' The Captain's Paradise'' (1953) *''

'' (1954) *'' Doctor at Sea'' (1955) *''

'' (1957) *'' Doctor at Large'' (1957) *''

'' *'' Tommy the Toreador'' (1959) *'' The Lady Is a Square'' (1959) *''

'' (1960) *'' No Love for Johnnie'' (1962) (with

Mordecai Richler Mordecai Richler (January 27, 1931 – July 3, 2001) was a Canadian writer. His best known works are ''The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (novel), The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz'' (1959) and ''Barney's Version (novel), Barney's Versi ...

) *'' A Pair of Briefs'' (1962) *''Young and Willing'' (1962) *'' The Amorous Mr. Prawn'' (1962) *'' Doctor in Distress'' (1963)

References

Sources

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Phipps, Nicholas 1913 births 1980 deaths 20th-century British male actors British male stage actors British male film actors British male television actors British male screenwriters 20th-century British screenwriters British Army personnel of World War II Royal Artillery personnel Military personnel from London Male actors from London