Ronald Stevens (2 September 1925 – 11 November 2006) was an English revue artist, character actor and voice artist credited professionally as Ronnie Stevens.

Life and career

Stevens was born in London, England, the son of Fanny Elizabeth (Carpenter) and Henry Edward Stevens. He served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

in both the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

(RAF) and the Royal Engineers of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

.Ronnie Stevens - Gifted and versatile character actor at home in theatre, films and television.
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

''. Retrieved July 24, 2021. He appeared in many television comedy series in regular roles, including '' May to December'', '' Goodnight Sweetheart'' and '' A J Wentworth, BA''. He also appeared as the "Minister of Pollution", in ''

The Goodies The Goodies were a trio of British comedians: Tim Brooke-Taylor (17 July 1940–12 April 2020), Graeme Garden (b. 18 February 1943) and Bill Oddie (b. 7 July 1941). The trio created, wrote for and performed in their The Goodies (TV series), ep ...

'' pollution episode. He played minor roles in many other sitcoms including '' Wild, Wild Women'', ''

Winning Widows ''Winning Widows'' is a British television sitcom which first aired on ITV between 1961 and 1962.Rhodes & Westwood p.200 It stars Peggy Mount and Avice Landone as Martha and Mildred, two widowed sisters who move in together. Other actors who appe ...

'', '' Only When I Laugh'', '' Ever Decreasing Circles'', ''

Hi-de-Hi! ''Hi-de-Hi!'' is a BBC television sitcom shown on BBC1 from 1 January 1980 to 30 January 1988. Set in 1959 and 1960 in Maplins, a fictional holiday camp, the show was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who also wrote '' Dad's Army'' a ...

'', ''

Yes, Prime Minister ''Yes Minister'' is a British political satire sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn. Comprising three seven-episode series, it was first transmitted on BBC2 from 1980 to 1984. A sequel, ''Yes, Prime Minister'', ran for 16 episodes f ...

'', ''

Terry and June ''Terry and June'' is a BBC television sitcom, which was broadcast on BBC1 from 1979 to 1987. The show was largely a reworking of '' Happy Ever After'', and starred Terry Scott and June Whitfield as a middle-aged, middle-class suburban couple ...

'', '' Chance in a Million'' and '' As Time Goes By''. He played roles in ''

The Avengers Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to: Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes ** Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes o ...

'', '' Dick and the Duchess'', '' Minder'', ''

Rumpole of the Bailey ''Rumpole of the Bailey'' is a British television series created and written by the British writer and barrister John Mortimer. It starred Leo McKern as Horace Rumpole, a middle-aged London barrister who defended a broad variety of clients, oft ...

'', ''

Hetty Wainthropp Investigates ''Hetty Wainthropp Investigates'' is a British crime drama television series, starring Patricia Routledge as the title character, Henrietta "Hetty" Wainthropp, that aired for four series between 3 January 1996 and 4 September 1998 on BBC One. T ...

'', and as Sir Andrew Aguecheek in the 1980

BBC Television Shakespeare The ''BBC Television Shakespeare'' is a series of British television adaptations of the plays of William Shakespeare, created by Cedric Messina and broadcast by BBC Television. Transmitted in the UK from 3 December 1978 to 27 April 1985, it ...

series presentation of ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins V ...

''. He appeared as Mr Rudge in the ''

Tales of the Unexpected (TV series) ''Tales of the Unexpected (Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected)'' is a British television series that aired between 1979 and 1988. Each episode told a story, often with sinister and wryly comedic undertones, with an unexpected twist ending. ...

'' episode (9/5) "The Facts of Life" (1988). In 1965–66 Stevens co-starred in the pioneering Australian TV satirical comedy series '' The Mavis Bramston Show'', where he replaced founding cast member

Gordon Chater Gordon Maitland Chater AM (6 April 1922 – 12 December 1999) was an English Australian comedian and actor, and recipient of the Gold Logie, he appeared in revue, theatre, radio, television and film, with a career spanning almost 50 years. B ...

. Stevens also appeared in the 1962 film ''

Carry On Cruising ''Carry On Cruising'' is a 1962 British comedy film, the sixth in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It was based on an original story by Eric Barker. P&O – Orient Lines were thanked in the credits. Regulars Sid James, K ...

'', the 1996 film ''

Brassed Off ''Brassed Off'' is a 1996 British comedy-drama film written and directed by Mark Herman and starring Pete Postlethwaite, Tara Fitzgerald and Ewan McGregor. The film is about the troubles faced by a colliery brass band, following the closure o ...

'', and the 1998 film '' The Parent Trap''. He co-narrated '' Noggin the Nog'' with

Oliver Postgate Richard Oliver Postgate (12 April 1925 – 8 December 2008), generally known as Oliver Postgate, was an English animator, puppeteer, and writer. He was the creator and writer of some of Britain's most popular children's television progr ...

. Stevens also lent his voice to the classic children's puppet series ''

Space Patrol Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consid ...

'' and '' Sara and Hoppity'' and the children's animated series ''

Captain Zed and the Zee Zone ''Captain Zed and the Zee Zone'' is a animated television series, produced by Collingwood O’Hare for Scottish Television Film Enterprises in association with DIC Entertainment and Shanghai Morning Sun Animation Co., Ltd. and distributed by ...

'' along with various British and Canadian voice actors as well as providing voices for the animated film ''Rarg''.

Personal life

His wife, Ann, predeceased him as did his older son Paul. He is survived by their younger son Guy. Ronald was 81 at the time of his death.

Filmography

References

External links

*
Obituary in The Stage
1925 births 2006 deaths English male film actors English male television actors Male actors from London English male voice actors Royal Air Force personnel of World War II British Army personnel of World War II Royal Engineers soldiers {{UK-tv-actor-1920s-stub