The Book of Beasts : April 2022

The second part of our spotlight on Bernard Lee looks at his television work.

Lee’s first encounter with television was during the dawn of the media in 1938 when he appeared in Love From A Stranger (23^rd November 1938), a version of the Agatha Christie short story, transmitted live on the fledgling BBC TV service to a very small audience in the London area. No recording was made of this production. Another early appearance was shortly after the TV service resumed after World War Two. The BBC production I Have Been Here Before (29^th May 1949), based on a J B Priestly play, saw Lee playing Walter Ormund, one of six guests at The Black Bull Inn in North Yorkshire that become increasingly anxious when they are convinced they have been at the hotel before – perhaps in a past life? Lee’s next BBC TV play was Sweet Coz (4^th January 1955) a comedy adapted from the play by Josephine Tey.

Lee was a regular player in single plays for the fledgling ITV network in the 1950s with roles in such productions as Television Playhouse – ‘The Golden Fleece’ (31^st December 1955), Playdate – ‘All Correct Sir’ (13^th December 1956) and Television Playhouse – ‘Cornelius’ (18^th July 1958). ‘Cornelius’ was an adaptation of a play by J B Priestley depicting the story of a small business nearing bankruptcy with Lee cast as the eponymous Cornelius, the head of the doomed business. Lee also made three different appearances in episodes of the prestigious Armchair Theatre strand; ‘Ernie Barger is 50’ (8^th February 1959) had Lee struggling with an American accent, ‘Cold Fury’ (31^st January 1960) and ‘Nest of Four’ (15^th May 1960). The latter play was written by Brian Clemens and told the tale of four men who are about to commit a robbery when one of them shoots a policeman. They gang hide out before they are eventually caught. Lee played the leader of the gang with Alfred Lynch undertaking the role of the youngest gang member who fires the gun that kills the policeman. ‘Cold Fury’ was written by James Workman and directed by Dennis Vance with a cast that also included Sam Wanamaker and Lyndon Brook. The plot featured three men cooped up in an Artic weather station with their relationship slowly disintegrating. Lee’s character, Aaronson, burns to death after lighting a doctored stove.

During the same period Lee also contributed towards several plays for the BBC Sunday Night Theatre strand; ‘Mirror, Mirror’ (20^th March 1955), ‘In Writing’ (1^st January 1956), ‘The Uninvited’ (23^rd November 1958) and ‘Crime Passionnel’ (20^th September 1959). ‘In Writing’ cast Lee as another policeman, Detective Inspector Hurst, who is locked in a battle of wills with Terence Morgan who is suspected of killing his wife. The Stage declared the play was “one of the most worthwhile excursions into crime to be televised for many a day.[1]” ‘Crime Passionnel’ was based on the Jean Paul Sartre play and also featured a young David McCallum in the cast.

Lee’s next BBC role was as Superintendent Farron in the play The Interrogator (22^nd December 1961) written by Troy Kennedy Martin. Lee was Special Branch Superintendent in a story set in Cyprus during 1956 with Lee’s character interrogating a group of terrorists during a night that becomes a struggle for survival. A rare leading role was in the BBC One play O Captain, My Captain (31^st August 1961) which saw Lee sharing screen time and cabins with Kevin Stoney playing a ship’s mate. Lee was Vasco a discredited skipper of a Costa Rican tramp steamer who undertakes to deliver a valuable cargo of diamond drills to Antwerp. His tough outlook and discipline makes the voyage an ordeal for his crew. The voyage also seems to have been an ordeal for viewers as well with The Stage newspaper declaring “What might have been a promising theme was destroyed by an over-indulgent drunk performance on the part of Bernard Lee.[2]” Lee also appeared as Angus Meyrick in an episode of the TV series The Third Man (‘Portrait of Harry’ – 18^th May 1963).

By now Lee was starting to make guest appearances in ongoing series and this become his mainstay of employment as the decade progressed with the actor making fewer appearance in single plays or one off dramas. TV plays were not forgotten, just fewer and included Thirty Minute Theatre – ‘The Passenger’ (30^th December 1965). Lee was given top billing for this intriguing half hour thriller, though his character has no name and simply credited as ‘man’. The story sees a mental patient has escaped and two strangers meet on a train, a man and a woman. Each suspect that the other passenger is the escaped patient… Lee’s first starring role in a TV series, and a rare commitment to an ongoing series, came with the BBC production King of the River. Lee was cast as Joss King, head of the King family who tries keep their sail driven barge business going over seventeen episodes transmitted between 6^th July 1966 and 19^th February 1967[3]. The series was created and produced by Colin Morris and took in location filming at Newhaven, Faversham, Whitstable and Sheerness.

His other major TV role of the year was in Talking to a Stranger (2^nd October to 23^rd October 1966), often cited as one of the most important and affecting TV dramas of the decade. The series consisted of four separate plays which told the events of one weekend from the viewpoints of four members of the same family. The role of the daughter, Terry, was an early part for Judi Dench who would also eventually come to play M in the Bond films! Dench won a BAFTA for her performance in the series. Lee’s other TV roles for 1966 include guest roles in episodes of the Court Martial, Danger Man and The Baron.

For the remainder of the decade Lee undertook guest roles in a variety of continuing series; Man in a Suitcase (1967), Mogul (1967), Public Eye (1968), The Champions (1969) and horror anthology series Journey to the Unknown (1969) amongst many others. The run of guest appearances continued into the 1970s with Lee gracing episodes of Follyfoot (1973) and Father Brown (1974) before taking the role of Beeley in ‘Murrain’ (1975). The roles became less as the decade continued. He made a rare appearance in a comedic role as Wally Warner in What a Turn Up (7^th August 1975) a comedy play written by Brian Clemens and Dennis Spooner and had a small role as a yachtsman in ‘Knight Errant’ (20^th January 1976), an episode of the BBC drama series Warship. He also appeared alongside Michael Horden and John Le Mesurier as the Ghost of Christmas Present in a prestigious BBC production of A Christmas Carol (24^th December 1977). His final continuing role was in the ATV business drama The Foundation which saw him play the character Eddie Prince over two seasons during 1977 and 1978. His final role in a single play came with Saint Joan (30^th December 1979), a BBC One production of the George Bernard Shaw play which cast Lee as Monseigneur de la Tremoiulle, Lord Chamberlain. He was also a participant in the games show Star Games, which pitched personalities in competitive sports, on 4^th November 1980 alongside Tom Adams, Gareth Hunt, Paul Darrow and Jaqueline Pearce.

His final TV role was as a policeman in Dangerous Davies: The Last Detective (4^th January 1981). Lee played Sergeant Ben opposite Bernard Cribbins as the titular detective amongst a cast that also included Frank Windsor, Maureen Lipman and Joss Ackland. The play was filmed during May 1980.

[1] A Plan For Murder by E J, The Stage, Thursday 5^th January 1956, page 32

[2] O Captain, You Made The Night Too Long! by The Stage, Thursday 7^th September 1961, page 11

[3] The last episode was delayed and had to be shown at a later date