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((Short description|British actor (1919–1993)))
((Use dmy dates|date=April 2022))
((more citations needed|date=March 2012))
((Infobox person
| name                    = Michael Bilton
| image                   = 
| caption                 = 
| birth_name              = Robert Michael Bilton
| birth_date              = 14 December 1919
| birth_place             = [[Cottingham, East Riding of Yorkshire|Cottingham]], [[East Riding of Yorkshire]], England
| death_date              = ((death date and age|1993|11|5|1919|12|14|df=yes))
| death_place             = [[Berkhamsted]], [[Hertfordshire]], England
| restingplace            = 
| restingplacecoordinates = 
| othername               = 
| occupation              = [[Actor]]
| yearsactive             = 1952 – 1993
))
'''Robert Michael Bilton''' (14 December 1919 – 5 November 1993) was an [[England|English]] [[actor]] best known for his roles in the [[United Kingdom|British]] television [[Situation comedy|sitcom]]s ''[[To the Manor Born]]'' (playing the gardener and sometime [[butler]] Ned) and ''[[Waiting for God (TV series)|Waiting for God]]'' (playing Basil, a septuagenarian [[Hypersexuality|satyr]]).

==Early life==
He attended [[Hymers College]], [[Kingston upon Hull|Hull]]. In the [[Second World War]], he was commissioned as a [[Second Lieutenant]] and was wounded at the [[Second Battle of El Alamein|Battle of El Alamein]]. After his recovery he began his acting career in repertory theatre.

==Career==
He had a strong comedic bent and featured in ''[[Keeping Up Appearances]]'', ''[[One Foot in the Grave]]'' and ''[[Grace and Favour]]'' (1992). He also appeared in ''[[Brideshead Revisited (TV serial)|Brideshead Revisited]]'', ''[[Pennies from Heaven (TV series)|Pennies From Heaven]]'', ''[[The Saint (TV series)|The Saint]]'', ''[[The Avengers (TV series)|The Avengers]]'', ''[[The Prisoner]]'', ''[[Quatermass II]]'', ''[[The Champions]]'',  the doorman at a hotel in ''[[Terry and June]]'', in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' stories, ''[[The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve]]'', ''[[Pyramids of Mars]]'' and ''[[The Deadly Assassin]]'', ''[[Wodehouse Playhouse]]'', (as Malay, the Butler), ''[[Dads Army]]'' (as Mr Maxwell, the solicitor), "The Adventure of Shoscombe Olde Place" episode of ''[[List of Sherlock Holmes episodes#The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes (1991–1993)|The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes]]''; (also notable in the cast was [[Jude Law]] as an aspiring jockey). Bilton's film appearances included ''[[A Taste of Honey (film)|A Taste of Honey]]'' (1961), ''[[The Thirty Nine Steps (1978 film)|The Thirty Nine Steps]]'' (1978) and ''[[The Fourth Protocol (film)|The Fourth Protocol]]'' (1987), as [[Kim Philby]].

Bilton appeared in a well-remembered [[Yellow Pages]] television commercial as an elderly gardener receiving a sit-on lawnmower from a couple with a large rear garden. The male half of the couple was played by [[David Hargreaves (actor)|David Hargreaves]], who also appeared in the BBC drama series ''[[Juliet Bravo]]''.<ref>((cite web | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-michael-bilton-1503439.html%3famp | title=Obituary: Michael Bilton | website=[[Independent.co.uk]] | date=11 November 1993 ))</ref>

In later years, crippling arthritis prevented him from working in the theatre. His last London West End appearance, in the early 1980s, was alongside [[Penelope Keith]] in Hobson's Choice at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket.

Bilton's final role was that of Basil Makepeace in the BBC Sitcom ''[[Waiting for God (TV series)|Waiting for God]]''. Basil grew in importance throughout the first four series eventually becoming the main supporting character. His final appearance was in the last episode of the fourth series. He died shortly after completing filming. In the 1993 Christmas episode, his absence was explained by his character having gone on an "Icelandic wife-swapping cruise" and he is not mentioned again. The character of Basil was essentially "replaced" by Jamie Edwards, Jane's spirited Irish grandfather, who was played by Paddy Ward.

==Personal life and death==
Bilton was married and divorced twice, first to Sally West from 1944 and later to actress Valerie Newbold, from 1953 until 1967.

Bilton died aged 73, on 5 November 1993 in [[Berkhamsted]], [[Hertfordshire]].

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
|1933|| ''[[Crime on the Hill]]'' || Youth With Straw Boater || Uncredited
|-
|1952|| ''[[Sing Along with Me]]'' || ||
|-
|1961|| ''[[A Taste of Honey (film)|A Taste of Honey]]'' || Landlord ||
|-
|1965|| ''[[The Early Bird]]'' || Nervous Man ||
|-
|1966|| ''[[Arabesque (1966 film)|Arabesque]]'' || Camera Shop Owner || Uncredited
|-
|1966|| ''[[Press for Time]]'' || Councilor Hedge ||
|-
|1972|| ''[[Frenzy]]'' || Blaney Trial Jury Foreman || Uncredited
|-
|1977|| ''[[Full Circle (1977 film)|Full Circle]]'' || Salesman ||
|-
|1978|| ''[[The Thirty Nine Steps (1978 film)|The Thirty Nine Steps]]'' || Vicar ||
|-
|1981|| ''[[Brideshead Revisited (TV serial)|Brideshead Revisited]]'' || Hayter ||
|-
|1987|| ''[[The Fourth Protocol (film)|The Fourth Protocol]]'' || [[Kim Philby]] ||
|-
|1990–1993|| ''[[Waiting for God (TV series)|Waiting for God]]'' || Basil Makepeace || 27 episodes, (final appearance)
|}

==References==
((Reflist))

==External links==
*((IMDb name|0082689))
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120721214702/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2ba560b99d Michael Bilton] at [[British Film Institute]]

((authority control))

((DEFAULTSORT:Bilton, Michael))
[[Category:1919 births]]
[[Category:1993 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Cottingham, East Riding of Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Actors from Berkhamsted]]
[[Category:English male film actors]]
[[Category:English male television actors]]
[[Category:Male actors from Yorkshire]]
[[Category:20th-century English male actors]]
[[Category:British Army personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:British Army officers]]
[[Category:Male actors from Hertfordshire\\

((UK-tv-actor-1910s-stub))

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