Acting
Peter Copley
EN cinema · 65 credits
Born
20 May 1915
Died
7 October 2008 (aged 93)
Birthplace
Bushey, Hertfordshire, England, UK
Also known as Peter Francis Gabain Copley
Peter Copley (20 May 1915 – 7 October 2008) was an English television, film and stage actor. Copley was born in Bushey, Hertfordshire, son of the printmakers, John Copley and Ethel Gabain. After changing his mind about joining the Royal Navy, he studied at the Old Vic School and started out as a stage actor in 1932. He made his first film appearance in 1934, going on to play a wide variety of characters from the villainous to the meek and mild. In 1946, he appeared on stage in "Cyrano de Bergerac" at the New Theatre in London. In 1951 he appeared at the Duchess Theatre in London's West End in the comedy play The Happy Family by Michael Clayton Hutton. TV credits include: Thorndyke, Danger Man, The Saint, The Avengers, The Forsyte Saga, The Troubleshooters, The Champions, Department S, Doomwatch, Z-Cars, Fall of Eagles, Survivors, Bless Me, Father (episode "A Legend Comes to Stay"), Father Brown (episode "The Curse of the Golden Cross"), Doctor Who (in the serial "Pyramids of Mars"), Sutherland's Law, Tales of the Unexpected, Miss Marple (episode "Nemesis"), Lovejoy, The Bill, Cadfael, The Diamond Brothers: South by South East and One Foot in the Grave. Copley continued to act well into his nineties. A resident of Bristol, Copley was awarded an Honorary Degree of Master of Arts by the University of the West of England in 2001.
Known for
Filmography
Riot at the Rite
as Patron
Oliver Twist
as Dining Hall Master
Janice Beard 45 WPM
as Sean's Father
One Corpse Too Many
as Abbot Heribert
The Sanctuary Sparrow
as Abbot Heribert
The Leper of St. Giles
as Abbot Heribert
Monk's Hood
as Abbot Heribert
The Trial of Klaus Barbie
as Frossard
Empire of the Sun
as British Prisoner
Witness for the Prosecution
as Dr. Harrison
United Kingdom
as Commissioner
Little Lord Fauntleroy
as Reverend Muldaur
Rabbit Pie Day
as The Colonel
Churchill and the Generals
as Gen. Sir John Dill
Shout at the Devil
as Admiral Howe
Hennessy
as Home Secretary
Doctor Who: Pyramids of Mars
as Dr. Warlock
Beyond Our Means
as Dr. Charteris
Gawain and the Green Knight
as Pilgrim
That's Your Funeral
as 1st Funeral Director
Taste of Evil
as Mackinlay
Jane Eyre
as John
Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed
as Principal
Tower of London: The Innocent
as Archbishop
Mosquito Squadron
as Mr. Scott
All at Sea
as Mr. Gordon
The Shoes of the Fisherman
as English Cardinal #1
Quatermass and the Pit
as Howell
The Investigation
1967
The Investigation
as Counsel for the Prosecution
The Devil's Eggshell
1966
The Devil's Eggshell
as The Home Secretary
The Knack... and How to Get It
as Picture Owner
Stranger in the Family
as Charles Wilson
Help!
as Jeweller
The July Plot
as General Friedrich Olbright
King and Country
as Colonel
The Third Secret
as Dr Leo Whitset
Victim
as Paul Mandrake
Rockets Galore
as Scientist
The Government Inspector
as School Superintendent
Just My Luck
as Mr. Gilbert Weaver
The Smallest Show on Earth
as Actor in The Mystery of Hell Valley (uncredited)
The Man Without a Body
as Leslie
Time Without Pity
as Prison Chaplain
The End Begins
1957
The End Begins
as Tom Jarrow
Foreign Intrigue
as Brown
Peril for the Guy
as Mr. Ritter
The Sword and the Rose
as Sir Edwin Caskoden
Saadia
as Leader Mokhazenis
The Clue of the Missing Ape
as His Excellency
The Card
as P. Shillitoe (uncredited)
The Hour of 13
as Cummings
Golden Salamander
as Aribi
Farewell Again
as Minor Role
Tell Me If It Hurts
as Waiter