CINEFILER

Bill Kerr

Born
June 10, 1922
Died
August 28, 2014
​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.   William Henry Kerr (10 June 1922 – 28 August 2014) was a British and Australian film and television actor. He was born into a performing arts family in Cape Town, South Africa, but grew up in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia. He began working as a child actor in depression era Australia, taking his first major role in The Silence of Dean Maitland, one of Australia's first talking films. After serving in the Second World War, Kerr moved to England to further his acting career, and during the 1940s he was regularly featured in the BBC radio series Variety Bandbox. His trademark was his catch phrase "I'm only here for 4 minutes..." In the 1950s, he had a recurring role as an Australian lodger in the BBC radio comedy series Hancock's Half Hour. Initially sharper than Hancock's characterisation, it was developed into a more dim-witted character who became the butt of Hancock's jokes. His television appearances in Britain include a 1968 Doctor Who story called The Enemy of the World, with Patrick Troughton, and a long running part in the early 1960s BBC-TV soap, Compact. Bill Kerr had much theatrical success in Britain, playing The Devil in the original West End production of Damn Yankees, directed by Bob Fosse, and Cole. He also worked with Spike Milligan. He appeared in Milligan and John Antrobus's stage play The Bed-Sitting Room, which opened at the Mermaid Theatre on 31 January 1963. A subsequent production opened on 3 May 1967 at the Saville Theatre, and "a cast containing an unusually high proportion of Australian actors including Bill Kerr and David Nettheim." Then in 1972 he co-starred with Anthony Newley in the long running Newley/Bricusse musical, The Good Old Bad Old Days. In 1975, Kerr took the part of Bluey Notts, described as "an Australian bookie's clerk, a crude racialist", in The Melting Pot. This was a sitcom written by Spike Milligan and Neil Shand, which was cancelled by the BBC after just one episode had been broadcast. He also appeared in several British films, including The Dam Busters and The Wrong Arm of the Law, before moving back to Australia. Although probably best known as a comic actor, and especially for his appearances in Hancock's Half Hour, he has since played a number of serious roles, notably in Peter Weir's films Gallipoli (1981) and The Year of Living Dangerously (1982). He also worked on the Australian stage in the 1980s, in musicals such as My Fair Lady, where he received excellent reviews as Alfred Doolittle. In 2001, he appeared in the Australian comedy Let's Get Skase. Kerr also appeared in Glenview High and the 1998 television comedy series Minty. Kerr has also been involved in documentaries, providing the narration for No Survivor - The Mysterious Loss of HMAS Sydney Nine Network Australia (1995), Malice or Mutiny for the ABC Australia 2003 and Animal X Natural Mystery Unit series for Discovery in the US, TV2 Norway and many others. Description above from the Wikipedia article Bill Kerr, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Peter Pan
(2003)
Fairy Guide
Gallipoli
(1981)
Jack
The Year of Living Dangerously
(1982)
Colonel Henderson
The Dam Busters
(1955)
Flight Lieutenant H. B. Martin, D.S.O., D.F.C., A.F.C.
The Lighthorsemen
(1987)
Gen. Sir Harry Chauvel
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
(1966)
Gladiator-in-Training
Razorback
(1984)
Jake Cullen
The Coca-Cola Kid
(1985)
T. George McDowell
Full Filmography
Acting
Harmony Row
(1933)
Leonard
Penny Points to Paradise
(1951)
Digger Graves
My Death Is a Mockery
(1952)
Hansen
Appointment in London
(1953)
Bill Brown
The Night My Number Came Up
(1955)
Soldier
The Dam Busters
(1955)
Flight Lieutenant H. B. Martin, D.S.O., D.F.C., A.F.C.
Port of Escape
(1956)
Dinty Missouri
The Shiralee
(1957)
Shopkeeper (uncredited)
The Captain's Table
(1959)
Bill Coke
A Pair of Briefs
(1962)
Victor
The Wrong Arm of the Law
(1963)
Jack Coombes
Doctor in Distress
(1963)
Australian Sailor
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
(1966)
Gladiator-in-Training
Doctor in Clover
(1966)
Digger
Doctor Who: The Enemy of the World
(1968)
Giles Kent
Ghost in the Noonday Sun
(1973)
Giacomo
Girls Come First
(1975)
Hugh Jampton
House of Mortal Sin
(1976)
Mrs. Davey
Gallipoli
(1981)
Jack
Save the Lady
(1981)
MacDuff
The Pirate Movie
(1982)
Major General
Deadline
(1982)
Willliam Ashby
The Year of Living Dangerously
(1982)
Colonel Henderson
Dusty
(1983)
Tom Lincoln
Great Expectations
(1983)
(Voice)
Razorback
(1984)
Jake Cullen
Vigil
(1984)
Birdie
The Settlement
(1984)
Kearney
The Coca-Cola Kid
(1985)
T. George McDowell
Tony Hancock: From East Cheam to Earls Court
(1985)
Self
Double Sculls
(1986)
Curly
Platypus Cove
(1986)
Mr. Anderson
Bushfire Moon
(1987)
Trevor Watson
Rob Roy
(1987)
The Lighthorsemen
(1987)
Gen. Sir Harry Chauvel
Kokoda Crescent
(1989)
Russ
Sweet Talker
(1991)
'Uncle' Cec
Over the Hill
(1992)
Maurice
Let's Get Skase
(2001)
Mitchell Vendieks
Peter Pan
(2003)
Fairy Guide
Data provided by TMDB