Peter Vaughan

Peter Olm
1923 -
British born Shropshire

Height 6' (1.83 m) . A true character actor in the best sense of the word, off-beat British thesp Peter Vaughan's hefty frame could appear intimidating or marshmallow benevolent, his beady, hollow eyes menacing or tender, his mere presence menacing or avuncular. Adept at playing both sides of the law, his characters usually possessed a strange, somewhat wary countenance that seemed to keep his audience slightly off balance. A homely sort with a bloated face, jutting chin, sliver lips and a pronounced nose, this veteran has been a stalwart presence for nearly fifty years. Born Peter Ohm in 1923, he began on the stage and didn't enter films until 1959 - well into middle age.Married in 1952 to rising actress Billie Whitelaw, Peter was primarily in the background at first offering a cheapjack gallery of thugs, unsmiling cops, and foreign agents in movies. An easily unsympathetic bloke, he played unbilled policemen in his first two films, then slowly gravitated up the credits list. He appeared as the Chief of Police in the spy drama The Devil's Agent (1961), which also featured his wife, then gained a bit more attention in a prime part as an offbeat insurance investigator in the programme Smokescreen (1964), a role that propelled him into the higher ranks. Noticeably shady roles came with playing Tallulah Bankhead's seedy handyman who meets a fatal end in the Gothic horror Fanatic (1965) [aka Die! Die! My Darling!]; his villainous roles in the spy thrillers The Naked Runner (1967) opposite Frank Sinatra and The Man Outside (1967); a German thug in A Twist of Sand (1968); and Sgt. Walker in The Bofors Gun (1968).Divorced from Whitelaw in 1966, he later married actress Lillias Walker, who had roles in a couple of his pictures - Malachi's Cove (1974) and Intimate Reflections (1974). TV became a large source of income for Vaughan in the 1970s, particularly his role of Grouty in Porridge (1979) on both the large and small screen, and his quirky demeanor fitted like a glove for bizarre director Terry Gilliam, who cast him as the Ogre in Time Bandits (1981), then as Mr. Helpman in Brazil (1985). For the past few decades he has maintained a healthy balance between film, including standout roles Zulu Dawn (1979), The Remains of the Day (1993) and The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), and TV mini-movies, both contemporary and period. Still performing past age 80. Spouse Billie Whitelaw (1952 - 1966) (divorced), Lillias Walker (? - present).

Death at a Funeral (2007) , "Heartbeat" (2002) , Malice Aforethought (2005) , The Queen of Sheba's Pearls (2004) , Beauty (2004) , The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004) , Life Beyond the Box: Norman Stanley Fletcher (2003) , "Sweet Medicine" (2003) , Margery and Gladys (2003) , The Mother (2003/I) , "Casualty" (2003) , "The Jury" (2002) , Lorna Doone (2000) , "The Thing About Vince" (2000) , Hotel Splendide (2000) , "The 10th Kingdom" (2000) , Canone inverso - making love (2000) , Longitude (2000) , Second Sight: Kingdom of the Blind (2000) , Thursday the 12th (2000) , Kiss Kiss (Bang Bang) (2000) , An Ideal Husband (1999) , Hornblower: The Frogs and the Lobsters (1999) , Leggenda del pianista sull'oceano, La (1998) , Misérables, Les (1998) , "Our Mutual Friend" (1998) , The Good Son (1998) , Face (1997/I) , The Crucible (1996) , The Secret Agent (1996) , "Our Friends in the North" (1996) , The Moonstone (1996) , "The Choir" (1995) , "Oliver's Travels" (1995) , "Birds of a Feather" (1994) , Fatherland (1994) , Heart of Darkness (1994), "Murder Most Horrid" (1994) , "Dandelion Dead" (1994) , The Remains of the Day (1993) , "Nightingales" (1993) ,Circle of Deceit (1993) , "Lovejoy" (1992) , "Boon" (1991) , Prisoner of Honor (1991) , "The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes" (1991) , "Chancer" (1990) , Mountains of the Moon (1990) , "Chillers" (1990), King of the Wind (1989) , "Under a Dark Angel's Eye" (1989) , Countdown to War (1989) , "War and Remembrance" (1988) , "Game, Set, and Match" (1988) , The Bourne Identity (1988) , Codename: Kyril (1988) , Coast to Coast (1987) , When We Are Married (1987) , Our Geoff (1987) , Harry's Kingdom (1987) , Season's Greetings (1986) , Monte Carlo (1986) , Haunted Honeymoon (1986) , "Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense" (1986) , "Sins" (1986) , Jamaica Inn (1985) , "C.A.T.S. Eyes" (1985) , "Bleak House" (1985) , Brazil (1985) , Forbidden (1984) , The Razor's Edge (1984) , "Play for Today" (1984) , Coming Out of the Ice (1982) , The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981) , "Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years" (1981) , Time Bandits (1981) , "Shelley" (1981) , A Last Visitor for Mr Hugh Peter (1981) , "Fox" (1980) , The Crucible (1980) , The Badness Within Him (1980) , Porridge (1979) , Zulu Dawn (1979) , Henry VIII (1979) , Freedom of the Dig (1978) , "The Doombolt Chase" (1978) , Valentino (1977) , Philby, Burgess and Maclean (1977) , "Porridge" (1974) , "Citizen Smith" (1977) , "The Sweeney" (1975) , "Härte 10" (1974) , Malachi's Cove (1974) , 11 Harrowhouse (1974) , Symptoms (1974) , "Zodiac" (1974) , "Fall of Eagles" (1974) , Intimate Reflections (1974) , "The Pallisers" (1974) , Rappresaglia (1973) , "The Protectors" (1973) , "Black and Blue" (1973) , Glorious Miles (1973) , The MacKintosh Man (1973) , The Blockhouse (1973) , "Thriller" (1973) , "Madigan" (1973) , The Return (1973/I) , "The Adventurer" (1973) , A Warning to the Curious (1972) , Savage Messiah (1972) , "No Exit" (1972) , The Pied Piper (1972) , Straw Dogs (1971) , "The Persuaders!" (1971) , "The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes" (1971) , Eyewitness (1970) , "The Wednesday Play" (1968) , "Strange Report (1969) ,"Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)" (1969) , Alfred the Great (1969) , "The Gold Robbers" (1969) , "The Avengers" (1969) , A Taste of Excitement (1969) , A Twist of Sand (1968) , Hammerhead (1968) , The Bofors Gun (1968) , "Man in a Suitcase" (1967) , "Haunted" (1967) , The Man Outside (1967) , The Naked Runner (1967) , "Theatre 625" (1967) , "This Way for Murder" (1967), "Great Expectations" (1967) , "Coronation Street" (1960) , "The Informer" (1966) , "Adam Adamant Lives!" (1966) , "Public Eye" (1966) , "Quick Before They Catch Us" (1966) , "Dixon of Dock Green" (1966) , Rotten to the Core (1965) , Fanatic (1965) , "The Saint" (1964) , "Armchair Mystery Theatre" (1964) , "Espionage" (1964) , "Crane" (1964) , Smokescreen (1964) , The Victors (1963) , "Disneyland" (1963) , The Horse Without a Head (1963) , "Dimensions of Fear" (1963) , The Punch and Judy Man (1963) , I Thank a Fool (1962) , "Oliver Twist" (1962) , "A Chance of Thunder" (1961) , "Top Secret" (1961) , The Devil's Agent (1961) , Two Living, One Dead (1961) , Make Mine Mink (1960) , Village of the Damned (1960) , "Deadline Midnight" (1960) , "Man from Interpol" (1960) , The Crucible (1959) , "Interpol Calling" (1959) , Sapphire (1959) , The 39 Steps (1959)