Peter Copley
Copley in Help! (1965)
Born	Peter Francis Gabain Copley 20 May 1915 Bushey, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom
Died	7 October 2008(2008-10-07) (aged 93) Bristol, England, United Kingdom
Years active	1934–2008
Spouses	Pamela Brown ​ ​ (m. 1941; div. 1953)​ Ninka Dolega ​ ​ (m. 1953, divorced)​ Margaret Tabor ​ (m. 1967)​
Children	1

Peter Copley (20 May 1915 – 7 October 2008) was an English television, film and stage actor.^[1][2]

Biography

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.^[3] 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.^[4]

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, Lovejoy, The Bill, Cadfael and One Foot in the Grave.^[5][6]

Copley continued to act well into his nineties.^[7]

A resident of Bristol, Copley was awarded an Honorary Degree of Master of Arts by the University of the West of England in 2001.^[8]

Filmography