# Olaf Pooley

Oloe Krohn "Olaf" Pooley (13 March 1914 – 14 July 2015) was an English actor, screenwriter and painter. As an actor, he appeared as Professor Stahlman in the seven-part Doctor Who serial Inferno (1970).

## Early life

Pooley was born to an English father and Danish mother in Parkstone, Dorset. He attended Dane Court preparatory school in Pyrford where his father was headmaster. He studied painting at Chelsea College of Arts and at the Académie Colarossi in Paris under the tutelage of Marcel Gromaire, before training at the Architectural Association School of Architecture to enable a more financially secure career option. His paternal uncle Sir Ernest Pooley, the future Chairman of the Arts Council of Great Britain, secured him a job as a set designer at Pinewood Studios. During World War II, Pooley registered as a conscientious objector and volunteered as a fireman; he was subsequently discharged on medical grounds and began his acting career on stage.

## Career

He wrote and appeared in the film The Corpse (released in the United States as Crucible of Horror), starring Michael Gough, and wrote, directed and appeared in The Johnstown Monster. He also wrote the screenplay for a film version of Bernard Taylor's novel The Godsend (1980). Beaumont directed the film. Pooley's other writing credits include the television film Falcon's Gold (1982) and being an uncredited writer on the sci-fi horror film Lifeforce (1985).
Pooley's TV guest appearances from the 1950s onwards include Dixon of Dock Green, Paul Temple, Jason King, MacGyver and Star Trek: Voyager. He played Professor Stahlman and his parallel Earth counterpart Director Stahlmann in the Doctor Who serial Inferno (1970). He also played Lars Torvik in the first episode of The Sandbaggers ("First Principles", 1978). His other appearances include the BBC Radio play Ambrose in Paris (1958) and Sebastian in a BBC Television Sunday Night Theatre production of Shakespeare's The Tempest (1956). Pooley had a major career in West End theatre appearing in such notable productions as Noël Coward's Peace in Our Time and revivals of The Tempest and Othello. He was also a member of the BBC Radio repertory company.

## Personal life

In 1946, Pooley married actress Irlin Hall and together they had a daughter, the actress Kirstie Pooley (born 1954) and a son, comedian Seyton Pooley and later divorced. In 1982, he married director Gabrielle Beaumont, although they later separated. Pooley moved to the United States in 1986 and lived in Southern California, with an art studio in Santa Monica where he devoted his time to painting. He turned 100 on 13 March 2014.

### Death

He died from congestive heart failure on 14 July 2015, aged 101, at his home in Santa Monica, California. Pooley was survived by his two children, Seyton and Kirstie, and four grandchildren.

## Filmography

    n.b. for credit listings reference

### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1948 | Penny and the Pownall Case | Von Leicher | |
| 1949 | The Huggetts Abroad | Straker | The final film of The Huggetts |
| 1949 | The Lost People | Milosh | Set after the Second World War |
| 1950 | She Shall Have Murder | Mr. White | British drama film |
| 1950 | Highly Dangerous | Detective-Interrogator | British spy film |
| 1951 | Hell Is Sold Out | Cheri | British drama film |
| 1952 | The Woman's Angle | Fudolf Mansell | British drama film |
| 1952 | Gift Horse | German Interrogation Officer | Uncredited |
| 1952 | Top Secret | Professor Roblettski | British comedy film |
| 1956 | The Gamma People | Bikstein | |
| 1956 | The Iron Petticoat | | |
| 1956 | Anastasia | Zhadanov | Uncredited |
| 1957 | Windom's Way | Colonel Lupat | Uncredited British thriller film |
| 1959 | Left Right and Centre | TV newscaster | |
| 1960 | Sink the Bismarck! | Officer of the Watch on Sheffield | Uncredited |
| 1962 | The Password Is Courage | German doctor | Based on John Castle's 1954 Second World War memoir of the same name |
| 1962 | The Battleaxe | Cranborn | |
| 1966 | Naked Evil | Father Goodman | British horror film |
| 1969 | The Assassination Bureau Limited | Swiss Cashier | Released in North America as The Assassination Bureau A black comedy film |
| 1971 | The Corpse | Reid | Originally known as The Velvet House in the United Kingdom Released as Crucible of Horror in the United States |
| 1979 | Charlie Muffin | Soviet First Secretary | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1952 | Dial M for Murder | Captain Lesgate | Original production BBC Television, 23 March 1952 20.30 |
| 1958 | The Adventures of Ben Gunn | Billy Bones | 4 episodes |
| 1958 | Colonel March of Scotland Yard | Carlmeddy | Episode: "The Abominable Snowman" (S 1:Ep 3) |
| 1958 | The Invisible Man | Casino Manager | Episode: "Odds Against Death" (S 1:Ep 12) |
| 1960 | The Four Just Men | Lorenzo | Episode: "The Rietti Group" (S 1:Ep 21) |
| 1963 | Ghost Squad | Kobelik | Episode: "The Menacing Mazurka" (S 2:Ep 10) |
| 1963 | Hancock | Ron Roberts | Episode: "The Reporter" (S 1:Ep 11) |
| 1965 | Sherlock Holmes | Lascar | Episode: "The Man with the Twisted Lip" (S 1:Ep 7) |
| 1966 | The Master | The Master | Southern Television six-part adaptation of T. H. White novel |
| 1967 | The Troubleshooters | Aircraft Captain | Episode: "Think Big (S 2:Ep 6) |
| 1968 | Detective | Mr. Nash | Episode: "Crime of Passion" (S 2:Ep 14) |
| 1968 | The Expert | Adams | Episode: "He's Good for It" (S 1:Ep 10) |
| 1968 | Dixon of Dock Green | Captain Bailey | Episode: "Berserk" (S 15:Ep 16) |
| 1969 | Paul Temple | John Blight | Episode: "Who Dies Next" (S 1:Ep 1) |
| 1970 | Codename | Istov | Episode: "The Quickness of the Hand" (S 1:Ep 8) |
| 1970 | Doctor Who | Professor Stahlman | Serial: Inferno (7 episodes) |
| 1971 | Doomwatch | Ensor | Episode: "By the Pricking of My Thumbs..." (S 2:Ep 5) |
| 1971 | Jason King | Gorini | Episode: "A Page Before Dying" (S 1:Ep 2) |
| 1973 | Pathfinders | Leidig | Episode: "Operation Pickpocket" (S 1: Ep 11) |
| 1973 | The Protectors | Commissioner Braun | Episode: "WAM, Part Two" (S 2:Ep 9) |
| 1974 | Special Branch | Eastry Senior | Episode: "Jailbait" (S 1:Ep 1) |
| 1974 | The Zoo Gang | Inspector | Episode: "The Twisted Cross" (S 1:Ep 6) |
| 1978 | The Sandbaggers | Lars Torvik | Episode: "First Principles" (S 1:Ep 1) |
| 1984 | Scarecrow and Mrs. King | Claude | Episode: "The Artful Dodger" (S 1:Ep17) |
| 1985 | MacGyver | Dr. Sidney Marlow | Episode: "Pilot" (S 1:Ep 1) |
| 1986 | Hill Street Blues | Jaeger | Episode: "Suitcase" (S 7:Ep 1) |
| 1992 | L.A. Law | Dr. Stanley Schulan | Episode: "Great Balls Afire" (S 6:Ep 15) |
| 1996 | Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman | Judge | Episode: "Eye for an Eye" (S 4:Ep 20) |
| 2000 | Star Trek: Voyager | Cleric | Episode: "Blink of an Eye" (S 6:Ep 12) |