Simon Oates (6 January 1932 – 20 May 2009) was an English actor best known for his roles on television.

Early life

Arthur Charles Simon Oates was born on 6 January 1932 in

Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...

, east London. Moving to

Finchley Finchley () is a large district of north London, England, in the London Borough of Barnet. north of Charing Cross, nearby districts include: Golders Green, Muswell Hill, Friern Barnet, Whetstone, London, Whetstone, Mill Hill and Hendon. It is ...

in his teens, Oates trained as a heating engineer for his father's firm before becoming an actor. He was in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

's Intelligence Corps during his

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

Career

Working in theatrical rep during the 1950s, he was leading man at York Theatre Royal for some years before being cast as Dr. John Ridge in the

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

television series '' Doomwatch'', co-starring John Paul as Dr. Spencer Quist and

Robert Powell Robert Thomas Powell ( ; born 1 June 1944) is an English actor who is known for the title roles in '' Mahler'' (1974) and '' Jesus of Nazareth'' (1977), and for his portrayal of secret agent Richard Hannay in '' The Thirty Nine Steps'' (1978) ...

as Toby Wren. He appeared regularly as Anthony Kelly in the 1960s

espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ...

series '' The Mask of Janus'' and its spin-off series '' The Spies''. Oates's many guest appearances included '' The Avengers'', ''

Man in a Suitcase ''Man in a Suitcase'' is a British television private eye thriller series produced by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment. It originally aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV from 27 September 1967 to 17 April 1968. American Broadcast ...

'', '' Department S'', '' Jason King'', '' The New Avengers'', '' The Professionals'', '' Bergerac'', and '' The 10 Percenters''. His film appearances were few but included '' Night Train to Paris'' (1964), the British sci-fi film '' The Terrornauts'' (1967), and the film version of '' Doomwatch'' (1972). Oates appeared on the stage in a 1971 adaptation of '' The Avengers'', as John Steed, opposite

Sue Lloyd Susan Margery Jeaffreson Lloyd (7 August 1939 – 20 October 2011) was an English model and actress, with numerous film and television credits. She may be best known for her long-running role (1979 to 1985) as Barbara Hunter ( Brady) in the Br ...

and Kate O'Mara, and in the West End production of the Francis Durbridge thriller ''Suddenly at Home''. Oates worked as both an actor and director in theatre productions internationally, and founded a touring theatre company in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, where he lived for some time. Oates's son, Justin Brett, also an actor, said that his father was offered the role of

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

in '' Diamonds Are Forever'', but that

Sean Connery Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to Portrayal of James Bond in film, portray the fictional British secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in motion pic ...

changed his mind and returned to the role. Other sources suggest that Oates was in the running before

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the actor to portray Ian Fleming's fictional secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in the Eon Productions/MGM Studios film series, playing the ...

was confirmed as 007 for '' Live and Let Die''. In tandem with his straight acting career, Oates also appeared many times as a stand-up comic and compere, working with such stars as Tom Jones, Sandie Shaw, and

the Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

. He also appeared at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in Soho. The theatre was designed by Frank Matcham and opened in 1910. The auditorium holds 2,286 people. Hundreds of stars have played there, many wit ...

with Dorothy Squires. He directed '' Woman in a Dressing Gown'', starring

Brenda Bruce Brenda Bruce OBE (7 July 1919Some sources cite 17 July 1919. – 19 February 1996) was an English actress. She was focused on the theatre, radio, film, and television. Career Bruce was born in Prestwich, Lancashire, in 1919, and started ...

at the Vaudeville Theatre. He also directed many musicals and straight plays on the touring circuit.

Death

Oates died on Wednesday, 20 May 2009, following a protracted illness.

References

External links

*
Obituary in ''The Times''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oates, Simon 1932 births 2009 deaths 20th-century British Army personnel Actors from the London Borough of Newham English male stage actors English male television actors Male actors from Essex People from Canning Town