← Back

Peter Copley

Peter Copley

Born: 1915-05-20 • Bushey, Hertfordshire, England, UK

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

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. 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. In 1951 he appeared at the Duchess Theatre in London's West End in the comedy play The Happy Family by Michael Clayton Hutton.

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 (episode "Nemesis"), Lovejoy, The Bill, Cadfael, The Diamond Brothers: South by South East and One Foot in the Grave.

Copley continued to act well into his nineties. A resident of Bristol, Copley was awarded an Honorary Degree of Master of Arts by the University of the West of England in 2001.

Filmography
Riot at the Rite poster
Riot at the Rite
2005 • Patron
Oliver Twist poster
Oliver Twist
2005 • Dining Hall Master
Janice Beard 45 WPM poster
Janice Beard 45 WPM
1999 • Sean's Father
Monk's Hood poster
Monk's Hood
1994 • Abbot Heribert
The Leper of St. Giles poster
The Leper of St. Giles
1994 • Abbot Heribert
The Sanctuary Sparrow poster
The Sanctuary Sparrow
1994 • Abbot Heribert
One Corpse Too Many poster
One Corpse Too Many
1994 • Abbot Heribert
A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia poster
A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia
1992 • Maitland
The Importance of Being Earnest poster
The Importance of Being Earnest
1988 • Gribsby
Empire of the Sun poster
Empire of the Sun
1987 • British Prisoner
The Trial of Klaus Barbie poster
The Trial of Klaus Barbie
1987 • Frossard
King of the Ghetto poster
King of the Ghetto
1986 • Vicar
Androcles and the Lion poster
Androcles and the Lion
1984 • Caesar
Witness for the Prosecution poster
Witness for the Prosecution
1982 • Dr. Harrison
United Kingdom poster
United Kingdom
1981 • Commissioner
Little Lord Fauntleroy poster
Little Lord Fauntleroy
1980 • Reverend Muldaur
Rabbit Pie Day poster
Rabbit Pie Day
1980 • The Colonel
Churchill and the Generals poster
Churchill and the Generals
1979 • Gen. Sir John Dill
The Black Panther poster
The Black Panther
1977
Shout at the Devil poster
Shout at the Devil
1976 • Admiral Howe
Hennessy poster
Hennessy
1975 • Home Secretary
Doctor Who: Pyramids of Mars poster
Doctor Who: Pyramids of Mars
1975 • Dr. Warlock
Beyond Our Means poster
Beyond Our Means
1973 • Dr. Charteris
Gawain and the Green Knight poster
Gawain and the Green Knight
1973 • Pilgrim
That's Your Funeral poster
That's Your Funeral
1972 • 1st Funeral Director
What Became of Jack and Jill? poster
What Became of Jack and Jill?
1972 • Dickson
Jane Eyre poster
Jane Eyre
1970 • John
No Image
Walk a Crooked Path
1969
Mosquito Squadron poster
Mosquito Squadron
1969 • Mr. Scott
Tower of London: The Innocent poster
Tower of London: The Innocent
1969 • Archbishop
Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed poster
Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed
1969 • Principal
All at Sea poster
All at Sea
1969 • Mr. Gordon
The Shoes of the Fisherman poster
The Shoes of the Fisherman
1968 • English Cardinal #1
Quatermass and the Pit poster
Quatermass and the Pit
1967 • Howell
No Image
The Investigation
1967 • Counsel for the Prosecution
No Image
The Devil's Eggshell
1966 • The Home Secretary
No Image
Don't Utter a Note
1966 • Vicar
Stranger in the Family poster
Stranger in the Family
1965 • Charles Wilson
Help! poster
Help!
1965 • Jeweller
The Knack... and How to Get It poster
The Knack... and How to Get It
1965 • Picture Owner
No Image
The Man Who Came to Die
1965 • Dr. Clarkeson
The July Plot poster
The July Plot
1964 • General Friedrich Olbright
King and Country poster
King and Country
1964 • Colonel
The Third Secret poster
The Third Secret
1964 • Dr Leo Whitset
Victim poster
Victim
1961 • Paul Mandrake
Mystery in the Mine poster
Mystery in the Mine
1959
Rockets Galore poster
Rockets Galore
1958 • Scientist
The Government Inspector poster
The Government Inspector
1958 • School Superintendent
Just My Luck poster
Just My Luck
1957 • Mr. Gilbert Weaver
No Image
The End Begins
1957 • Tom Jarrow
The Man Without a Body poster
The Man Without a Body
1957 • Leslie
The Smallest Show on Earth poster
The Smallest Show on Earth
1957 • Actor in The Mystery of Hell Valley (uncredited)
Time Without Pity poster
Time Without Pity
1957 • Prison Chaplain
No Image
The Film That Never Was
1957
Foreign Intrigue poster
Foreign Intrigue
1956 • Brown
Peril for the Guy poster
Peril for the Guy
1956 • Mr. Ritter
Saadia poster
Saadia
1953 • Leader Mokhazenis
The Clue of the Missing Ape poster
The Clue of the Missing Ape
1953 • His Excellency
The Sword and the Rose poster
The Sword and the Rose
1953 • Sir Edwin Caskoden
The Hour of 13 poster
The Hour of 13
1952 • Cummings
The Card poster
The Card
1952 • P. Shillitoe (uncredited)
Golden Salamander poster
Golden Salamander
1950 • Aribi
Farewell Again poster
Farewell Again
1937 • Minor Role
Tell Me If It Hurts poster
Tell Me If It Hurts
1934 • Waiter