Ronald Fraser

Born

April 11, 1930

Died

March 13, 1997 (66 years old)

Known For

Acting

Place of Birth

Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK

Ronald Gordon Fraser (11 April 1930 – 13 March 1997) was a British character actor, who appeared in numerous British plays, films and television shows from the 1950s to the 1990s. Fraser was a familiar figure in West End clubs during the 1960s, having had a long-standing reputation as a heavy drinker.

His credits include The Long and the Short and the Tall (1961), ‘’The Best of Enemies (1961)’’Flight of the Phoenix (1965), The Avengers (1965), The Killing of Sister George (1968), The Misfit (1970–1971), Pygmalion (1973), Swallows and Amazons (1974), Come Play With Me (1977), The Wild Geese (1978), Spooner's Patch (1979), Trail of the Pink Panther (1982), Tangiers (1982), Absolute Beginners (1986), Minder (1985–1989), Scandal (1989), Let Him Have It (1991), Taggart (1992), and The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (1993)

Ronald Fraser was born in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, the son of an interior decorator and builder from Scotland. He attended Ashton-under-Lyne Grammar School. He was further educated in Scotland and did national service as a lieutenant in the Seaforth Highlanders. Whilst serving in Benghazi, North Africa, he appeared in the Terence Rattigan comic play French Without Tears.

He trained as an actor at RADA, graduating in 1953. He appeared at Glasgow's Citizens' Theatre, and joined the Old Vic repertory company in 1954, making his first London appearance in The Good Sailor, a stage adaptation of Herman Melville's novel, Billy Budd.

In the West End, he appeared in The Long and the Short and the Tall (1959), The Ginger Man, The Singular Man, Androcles and the Lion (1961), The Showing Up of Blanco Posnet (1961), Purple Dust by Seán O'Casey, Entertaining Mr Sloane, Joseph Papp's production of The Pirates of Penzance and High Society. He also played Falstaff in a production of The Merry Wives of Windsor at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park. His only Broadway show was the flop La Grosse Valise by Robert Dhéry, Gérard Calvi and Harold Rome.

He appeared in numerous television roles from 1954, and in nearly 50 films from 1957, mostly in comedies. He was notable as Basil "Badger" Allenby-Johnson in the 1970s television series The Misfit (1970–1971). In 1996 Fraser voiced the chief judge in The Willows in Winter.

The Willows in Winter

The Willows in Winter

Chief Judge

7.0

1996

Heavy Weather

Heavy Weather

Sir Gregory Parsloe

7.5

1995

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Phantom Train of Doom

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Phantom Train of Doom

Donald Parks

5.8

1993

The Mystery of Edwin Drood

5.7

1993

The Blackheath Poisonings

The Blackheath Poisonings

Doctor Porter · (3 episodes)

6.0

1993

The Blackheath Poisonings

The Blackheath Poisonings

Doctor Porter

0.0

1992

Virtual Murder

Virtual Murder

(1 episode)

6.5

1992

Let Him Have It

Let Him Have It

Niven's Judge

6.6

1991

Obituaries

Obituaries

Timothy Apcar

0.0

1990

Oxford

Oxford

Geoffrey

0.0

1990

Scandal

Scandal

Justice Marshall

5.9

1989

Doctor Who: The Happiness Patrol

Doctor Who: The Happiness Patrol

Joseph C

8.0

1988

The Play on One

The Play on One

Apcar · (1 episode)

6.0

1988

Fortunes of War

Fortunes of War

(7 episodes)

6.4

1987

Life Without George

Life Without George

(20 episodes)

7.0

1987

Murder on the Bluebell Line

Dr Watson

0.0

1987

Absolute Beginners

Absolute Beginners

Amberley Drove

5.5

1986

Lovejoy

Lovejoy

Drummer · (1 episode)

7.3

1986

Lovejoy

Lovejoy

Michael Edwards · (1 episode)

7.3

1986

In the Secret State

In the Secret State

Barnaby Tucker

0.0

1985

Tangiers

Jenkins

5.0

1985

Taggart

Taggart

(1 episode)

6.3

1983

Trail of the Pink Panther

Trail of the Pink Panther

Dr. Longet

5.2

1982

The Comic Strip Presents...

The Comic Strip Presents...

Geoffrey · (1 episode)

7.4

1982

Pygmalion

Pygmalion

Colonel Pickering

0.0

1981

Brideshead Revisited

Brideshead Revisited

Red-Haired Man · (11 episodes)

7.9

1981

Minder

Minder

Albert Goddard · (1 episode)

6.8

1979

Minder

Minder

Self-Inflicted Sid · (1 episode)

6.8

1979

Spooner's Patch

Spooner's Patch

Inspector Spooner · (6 episodes)

0.0

1979

The Bass Player and the Blonde

Charlie · (3 episodes)

0.0

1978

The Famous Five

The Famous Five

Mr Barling · (1 episode)

7.2

1978

The Wild Geese

The Wild Geese

Sgt. Jock McTaggart

6.8

1978

Pennies from Heaven

Pennies from Heaven

Major Archibald Paxville · (6 episodes)

7.6

1978

Ghosts

Ghosts

Engstrand

0.0

1977

Follow Me...

Follow Me...

Sid Dawes · (7 episodes)

5.0

1977

The Bass Player and the Blonde

Charlie

0.0

1977

Come Play with Me

Come Play with Me

Slasher

4.7

1977

Hardcore

Hardcore

Marty

3.3

1977

Star Maidens

Star Maidens

(1 episode)

3.2

1976

The Sweeney

The Sweeney

Titus Oates · (1 episode)

7.8

1975

Melissa

Melissa

Felix Hepburn · (3 episodes)

5.0

1974

The Wood Demon

The Wood Demon

Serbryakov

0.0

1974

Percy's Progress

Percy's Progress

Bleeker

3.6

1974

Fallen Angels

Fallen Angels

Willy Banbury

2.0

1974

Swallows and Amazons

Swallows and Amazons

Uncle Jim

7.7

1974

Pygmalion

Pygmalion

10.0

1973

A Bit of a Lift

A Bit of a Lift

Alec

8.0

1973

Rentadick

Rentadick

Major Upton

4.1

1972

Ooh...You Are Awful

Ooh...You Are Awful

Reggie Campbell Peek

4.6

1972

The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins

The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins

George (segment "Wrath")

4.9

1971

The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes

The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes

Horrocks · (1 episode)

7.4

1971

The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer

The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer

Tom Hutchinson

6.1

1970

Too Late the Hero

Too Late the Hero

Private Campbell

6.5

1970

The Misfit

The Misfit

Basil Allenby-Johnson · (13 episodes)

0.0

1970

Sinful Davey

Sinful Davey

MacNab

5.5

1969

The Killing of Sister George

The Killing of Sister George

Leo Lockhart

6.2

1968

The Fifty-Seventh Saturday

Mr. McCarthy

4.0

1968

The Brahmin Widow

Major-General Peter Howard

0.0

1968

Luther

Luther

Tetzel

0.0

1968

Sebastian

Sebastian

Toby

6.0

1968

Fathom

Fathom

Col. Douglas Campbell, Chief of HADES

6.1

1967

The Whisperers

The Whisperers

Charlie Ross

6.4

1967

The Flight of the Phoenix

The Flight of the Phoenix

Sergeant Watson

7.2

1965

BBC Play of the Month

BBC Play of the Month

Serebryakov · (1 episode)

5.0

1965

BBC Play of the Month

BBC Play of the Month

Squire · (1 episode)

5.0

1965

BBC Play of the Month

BBC Play of the Month

Col. Pickering · (1 episode)

5.0

1965

Daylight Robbery

Daylight Robbery

0.0

1964

The Counterfeit Constable

The Counterfeit Constable

Sergent Timothy Reagan

5.6

1964

The Beauty Jungle

The Beauty Jungle

Walter Carey

5.2

1964

Code 7, Victim 5

Code 7, Victim 5

Inspector Dickie Lean

4.6

1964

Crooks in Cloisters

Crooks in Cloisters

Walter Dodd

5.4

1964

Doctor Who

Doctor Who

Joseph C. · (3 episodes)

7.9

1963

Girl in the Headlines

Girl in the Headlines

Sergeant Saunders

5.8

1963

Festival

Festival

Tom Broadbent · (1 episode)

8.0

1963

The V.I.P.s

The V.I.P.s

Joslin

6.1

1963

The Punch and Judy Man

The Punch and Judy Man

Mayor Palmer

7.8

1963

In Search of the Castaways

In Search of the Castaways

Guard at Dockyard Gate

6.4

1962

Out of This World

Out of This World

(1 episode)

4.3

1962

The Pot Carriers

The Pot Carriers

Red Band

6.1

1962

The Ginger Man

0.0

1962

Private Potter

Private Potter

Doctor

2.0

1962

The Hellions

The Hellions

Frank

6.1

1961

The Best of Enemies

The Best of Enemies

Perfect

6.9

1961

Don't Bother to Knock

Don't Bother to Knock

Fred

5.1

1961

The Long and the Short and the Tall

The Long and the Short and the Tall

L / Cpl. Macleish

6.8

1961

The Sundowners

The Sundowners

Ocker

6.7

1960

There Was a Crooked Man

There Was a Crooked Man

Gen. Cummins

6.1

1960

No Hiding Place

No Hiding Place

(1 episode)

3.7

1959

Black Ice

0.0

1957

Armchair Theatre

Armchair Theatre

(1 episode)

5.8

1956