Peter Haddon (31 March 1898 – 7 September 1962) was an English

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

Personal life

Haddon was born Peter Haddon Tildsley in

Rawtenstall Rawtenstall () is a town in the borough of Borough of Rossendale, Rossendale, Lancashire, England. The town lies 15 miles (24 km) north of Manchester, 22 miles (35 km) east of Preston, Lancashire, Preston and 45 miles (70 km) south east of Lanca ...

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 ...

. He was the son of Alfred and Mary Tildsley; he had a brother, Vincent Harvey (born 1894), and two sisters, Edna and Mary. His father was a clergyman. In 1925, he married Rosaline Jane Courtneidge (1903–1926), a daughter of Robert Courtneidge; her eldest sister was

Cicely Courtneidge Dame Esmerelda Cicely Courtneidge (1 April 1893 – 26 April 1980) was an Australian-born British actress, comedian and singer. The daughter of the producer and playwright Robert Courtneidge, she was appearing in his productions in the West End ...

. Peter and Rosaline Tildsley had a daughter, Rosaline (1926–2011). In 1932, as a widower, he married divorcee Edith Ralston Hicks Lyon, née Huxtable. By 1945 she had remarried.

Career

He first became associated with the theatre as a member of the Footlights Dramatic Society while reading medicine at

Caius College Gonville and Caius College, commonly known as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348 by Edmund Gonville, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and ...

, Cambridge. His first professional appearance was at the

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiv ...

, London in 1920, and he went on to appear at almost every London theatre. Among his stage credits in the 1920s were ''Charlot's Revue'' (1925 and 1927, with

Beatrice Lillie Beatrice Gladys Lillie, Lady Peel (29 May 1894 – 20 January 1989) was a Canadian-born British actress, singer and comedy performer. She began to perform as a child with her mother and sister. She made her West End debut in 1914 and soon gain ...

and

Gertrude Lawrence Gertrude Lawrence (4 July 1898 – 6 September 1952) was an English actress, singer, dancer and musical comedy performer known for her stage appearances in the West End of London and on Broadway in New York. Early life Lawrence was born in 1 ...

) and ''Good Morning, Bill'' (1928), in which his understudy was

William Hartnell William Henry Hartnell (; 8 January 1908 – 23 April 1975) was an English actor, who is best known for portraying the first incarnation of the Doctor, in the long-running British science-fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' from 1963 t ...

. His 1930s credits included ''Paulette'', ''Tell Her the Truth'' (with

Bobby Howes Charles Robert William Howes (4 August 1895 – 27 April 1972) was a British entertainer who was a leading musical comedy performer in London's West End theatres in the 1930s and 1940s. Biography Born in Chelsea and raised in Battersea, Su ...

and

Alfred Drayton Alfred Drayton (1 November 1881 – 26 April 1949) was a British stage and film actor. Drayton worked in a brewery when he was 18 but having a good deal of amateur dramatics experience decided to go on stage. His first appearance on stage was '' ...

), ''That's a Pretty Thing'', ''Who's Who'', ''

Anything Goes ''Anything Goes'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, revised considerably by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madc ...

'' (Palace Theatre, London, 1935), ''Love and Let Love'' (with

Claire Luce Claire Luce (October 15, 1903 – August 31, 1989) was an American stage and screen actress, dancer and singer. Among her few films were '' Up the River'' (1930), directed by John Ford and starring Spencer Tracy and Humphrey Bogart in the ...

), ''No Sleep for the Wicked'' and ''Under Your Hat'' (with

Jack Hulbert John Norman Hulbert (24 April 189225 March 1978) was a British actor, director, screenwriter and singer, specializing primarily in comedy productions, and often working alongside his wife (Dame) Cicely Courtneidge. Biography Born in Ely, C ...

and

). He entered films in the mid-1920s, wrote several plays, and in 1935 became the first actor to portray

Dorothy L. Sayers Dorothy Leigh Sayers ( ; 13 June 1893 – 17 December 1957) was an English crime novelist, playwright, translator and critic. Born in Oxford, Sayers was brought up in rural East Anglia and educated at Godolphin School in Salisbury and Somerv ...

' fictional detective

Lord Peter Wimsey Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey (later 17th Duke of Denver) is the fictional protagonist in a series of detective novels and short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers (and their continuation by Jill Paton Walsh). A amateur, dilettante who solves myst ...

on screen. In 1947, after war service, he co-starred with

Robertson Hare John Robertson Hare, Order of the British Empire, OBE (17 December 1891 – 25 January 1979) was an English actor, who came to fame in the Aldwych farces. He is remembered by more recent audiences for his performances as the Archdeacon in the p ...

in the West End comedy '' She Wanted a Cream Front Door''. In the 1940s and 1950s, he made numerous theatrical tours in the provinces. In 1952 he appeared in '' Lord Arthur Savile's Crime'' at the Court Theatre, and the following year he formed his own company, assuming the management of the

Hippodrome Hippodrome is a term sometimes used for public entertainment venues of various types. A modern example is the Hippodrome which opened in London in 1900 "combining circus, hippodrome, and stage performances". The term hippodroming refers to fr ...

Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...

and presenting weekly repertory. In 1955, he transferred his company to Wimbledon and continued as actor-manager of the Wimbledon Theatre until his death in 1962.

Filmography

*'' The Second Mrs. Tanqueray'' (1952) – Sir George Orreyed *''

Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Olympia (Par ...

'' (1952) (uncredited) *'' Helter Skelter'' (1949) – Major Basil Beagle *'' Over the Moon'' (1939) – Lord Petcliffe *'' Good Morning, Bill'' (1939) (TV) – Bill *'' Kate Plus Ten'' (1938) – Boltover *'' The House of the Spaniard'' (1936) – David Grey *'' The Beloved Vagabond'' (1936) – Major Walters *''

Mother, Don't Rush Me ''Mother, Don't Rush Me'' is a 1936 British comedy film directed by Norman Lee and starring Robb Wilton, Muriel Aked and Peter Haddon. It was made at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith.Wood p.85 It is based on a sketch by the celebrated music ...

'' (1936) – Adolphe *'' Public Nuisance No. 1'' (1936/I) – Richard Trelawny *''

The Secret of Stamboul ''The Secret of Stamboul'', also known as ''The Spy in White'', is a 1936 British thriller film, taken from the 1935 novel '' The Eunuch of Stamboul'' by Dennis Wheatley, directed by Andrew Marton and starring Valerie Hobson, James Mason and Fra ...

'' (1936) – Peter *''

No Monkey Business ''No Monkey Business'' is a 1935 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Gene Gerrard, June Clyde and Renée Houston. Plot After a music hall performer has his performing partner, an ape, confiscated by his financial credi ...

'' (1935) – Arthur *'' The Silent Passenger'' (1935) –

*'' Who's Your Father'' (1935) – Frank Steadley *''

Death at Broadcasting House ''Death at Broadcasting House'', also known as ''Death at a Broadcast'', is a 1934 UK, British mystery film directed by Reginald Denham and starring Ian Hunter (actor), Ian Hunter, Austin Trevor, Henry Kendall (actor), Henry Kendall, and Jack Ha ...

'' (1934) – Guy Bannister *'' Alf's Button'' (1930) – Lieutenant Allen *''

Greek Street Greek Street is a street in Soho, London, leading south from Soho Square to Shaftesbury Avenue. The street is famous for its restaurants and cosmopolitan nature. History It is thought to take its name from a Greek church that was built in ...

'' (1930) – Businessman *''

Oxford Bags Oxford bags were a loose-fitting baggy form of trousers favoured by members of the University of Oxford, especially undergraduates, in England from the mid-1920s to around the 1950s. The style had a more general influence outside the universi ...

'' (1926) – The Golfer *'' The Clicking of Cuthbert'' (1924) – Cuthbert *'' Lizzie's Last Lap'' (1924) – Fibs-Gerald

Early TV

References

External links

*
The Complete Index To World Film since 1895 – Peter Haddon filmography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haddon, Peter 1898 births 1962 deaths People from Rawtenstall 20th-century English male actors Male actors from Lancashire Actors from the Borough of Rossendale