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Dudley Foster

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Dudley Foster
Born
Frank Dudley Foster

(1924-08-07)7 August 1924
Brighouse,West Riding of Yorkshire,England
Died8 January 1973(1973-01-08)(aged 48)
Hampstead,Greater London,England
OccupationActor
Spouse
Eileen Kennally
​
(m.1952)​
Children2

Frank Dudley Foster(7 August 1924 – 8 January 1973) was an English actor who regularly appeared in television roles.

Foster was born inBrighouse,West Riding of Yorkshire.His family had established links with the theatre; and a brother and sister also appeared on the stage. They were the children of Frank Geden Foster, a civil engineer, who was to die exactly a week before his son. Educated atPocklington School,and following service as a navigator in the RAF, Dudley Foster studied chemistry at theUniversity of Leeds.In 1948 he joined the recently formedBradford Civic PlayhouseTheatre School and after turning professional, spent several successful years with northern repertory companies. From the later 1950s into the 1960s, he was a member ofJoan Littlewood'sTheatre Workshopbased at London'sTheatre Royal Stratford East.In her autobiography,Joan's Book,Littlewood recalled that Foster had a wealthy father who financed some of the troupe's productions.[1]

On television, he appeared often in villainous roles in such series asDanger Man,The Saint,The Avengers( "The Hour That Never Was",1965)," Something Nasty in The Nursery "(1967) and" Wish You Were Here "(1969 – playing a perfect mannered yet sinister hotel manager in a parody of the TV seriesThe Prisoner),Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)(1969 in the episode "All Work and No Pay", as villain George Foster), The Persuaders!(1971 in the episode "Anyone Can Play", in which he played the spy network paymaster Heather),Catweazle( "The Ghost Hunters as Hector Kenley", 1971),Public Eye(1972 episode "Mrs Podmore's Cat", as Major Thursby-Byers),Steptoe and Son(four episodes: playing Martin, the oily 'card shark' in "Full House", the superciliousLabour Partyrep in "My Old Man's ATory",the pained police inspector in" Robbery with Violence ", and uncredited as the car salesman in" The Colour Problem ") andDoctor Who( "The Space Pirates",1969).[1]

InZ-Cars,in the early 1960s, he played a police detective, Inspector (later Superintendent) Dunn. He was also inBat Out of Hell(1966), a BBC serial byFrancis Durbridge,playing a formidable police inspector, and starred withJohn Birdin the office comedy seriesIf It Moves File It(1970) byTroy Kennedy Martin.He occasionally appeared in films: inThe Little Onesas Superintendent Carter alongsideDerek Newark;and inA Study in Terror(both 1965) asHome SecretaryHenry Matthews.

He also participated in a 30-minute documentary titledTwo in a Tiger.This film follows his training as he learns to fly aDe Havilland Tiger Moth.

In 1970 he provided the voice-over for an edition of the BBC documentary seriesChronicle:"The Great Iron Ship", about the salvage and return from theFalkland Islandsof theIsambard Kingdom BrunelshipSS Great Britain.

His penultimate role was in the film version of the BBC sitcomThat's Your Funeral(1972) and his final appearance was in the 18th-century-set comedy-dramaMistress Pamelawhich was not released until after his death.

Foster died at 3Holly Hill,Hampstead,NW3,in January 1973.[2]His early death was found to be the result of suicide by hanging.[1]He left a widow, the actress Eileen Kennally (who appeared inIn Sickness and in Health); they had married in 1952 and had two sons. Foster's estate was valued for probate at £36,535,[2]equivalent to £558,087 in 2023.

Selected filmography

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References

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  1. ^abcBiography of Foster on 'The Avengers Forever' website
  2. ^ab"FOSTER Frank Dudley" inWills and Administrations 1973 (England and Wales)(1974), p. 3017
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