Peter Jeffrey

Peter Jeffrey (18 April 1929 – 25 December 1999) was an English character actor. Starting his performing career on stage, he later portrayed many roles in television and film.
Early life
Jeffrey was born in Bristol, the son of Florence Alice (née Weight) and Arthur Winfred Gilbert Jeffrey. He was educated at Harrow School and Pembroke College, Cambridge, but had no formal training as an actor.
Career
Theatre
Jeffrey spent many years on stage with the Bristol Old Vic and the Royal Shakespeare Company. From 25 May 1966 he appeared in Tango, a play by Sławomir Mrożek at the Aldwych Theatre alongside Patience Collier, Mike Pratt, Ursula Mohan and Dudley Sutton, under director Trevor Nunn.
Television
Numerous television roles include two guest appearances in Doctor Who: as the Colony Pilot in The Macra Terror (1967) and as Count Grendel in The Androids of Tara (1978). In Granada Television's daytime legal drama series Crown Court, Jeffrey played Barrister Peter Edgar QC having made a previous appearance as William Askwith Vennings in the case involving Regina v Vennings & Vennings.
He played King Philip II of Spain in the BBC serial Elizabeth R (1971) and Oliver Cromwell in By the Sword Divided (1985). He also appeared in Special Branch (1973), Thriller (1974), Porridge (1975), Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em (1975), Quiller (1975), Rising Damp (1978), Minder (1980), Nanny (1981), Juliet Bravo (1982), Yes Minister (1984), and Dennis Potter's Lipstick on Your Collar (1993). He played the villainous Sultan in the fantasy epic The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988) and appeared as Police Commissioner Blamire in Our Friends in the North (1996).
He made three appearances in The Avengers; the episodes were "Room Without A View" (1966), "The Joker" (1967) and "The Game" (1968). He featured in The New Avengers episode "House of Cards" (1976)
Movies
He played the role of Headmaster in If...., the memorable 1968 film by Lindsay Anderson. In 1971, he played Inspector Trout in The Abominable Dr. Phibes, a role he reprised in 1972 in Dr. Phibes Rises Again.
Death
Jeffrey died on 25 December 1999 from prostate cancer.
Filmography
Never Look Back (1952) – Court reporter (uncredited)
Becket (1964) – Baron
The Early Bird (1965) – Fire Chief
That Riviera Touch (1966) – Mauron
A Choice of Kings (1966) – Bishop Odo
The Fighting Prince of Donegal (1966) – Sergeant
The Fixer (1968) – Berezhinsky
If.... (1968) – Headmaster: Staff
Ring of Bright Water (1969) – Colin Wilcox
The Best House in London (1969) – Sherlock Holmes (uncredited)
Anne of the Thousand Days (1969) – Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
Goodbye Gemini (1970) – Detective Inspector Kingsley
The Main Chance – "First you Eat, Later we Ruin you" (1970) – Kenneth Manmer
Countess Dracula (1971) – Captain Balogh – Chief Bailiff
The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) – Inspector Trout
The Horsemen (1971) – Hayatal
Kidnapped (1973) – Riach
What Became of Jack and Jill? (1972) – Dr. Graham
Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972) – Inspecter Trout
O Lucky Man! (1973) – Factory chairman / Prison Governor
The Odessa File (1974) – David Porath
Deadly Strangers (1975) – Belle's Uncle
The Return of the Pink Panther (1975) – General Wadafi
Midnight Express (1978) – Ahmet
Doctor Who The Androids of Tara Count Grendel (1978)
The Quiz Kid (1979) – Rigby
Britannia Hospital (1982) – Sir Geoffrey
Yes Minister - episode "Party Games" (1984) - Eric Jeffries
The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988) – Sultan
Hands of a Murderer (1990) – Mycroft Holmes
A Village Affair (1995) - Peter Morris
The Prince and the Pauper (1996) - The Duke of Norfolk
The Tale of Sweeney Todd (1997) - Dr. Maxwell
References
External links
Obituary in The Independent
1929 births
1999 deaths
20th-century English male actors
Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge
Deaths from prostate cancer
English male film actors
English male Shakespearean actors
English male stage actors
English male television actors
People educated at Harrow School
Male actors from Bristol