Anton Rodgers
Overview
- Occupation Actor
- Birth name Anthony Rodgers
- Birth date January 10, 1933
- Birth place Ealing, London, England, UK
- Died December 1, 2007 (Reading, Berkshire, England, UK)
- Character German Officer at Airfield
Biography
Anton Rodgers (10 January 1933 – 1 December 2007) was an English actor and director whose career spanned six decades across stage, film, and television. Born Anthony Rodgers in London, he studied at the Italia Conti Academy and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He began performing professionally at the age of fourteen, appearing at Covent Garden in Carmen and touring in Great Expectations as Pip. After working in repertory theatre, he developed a reputation as a versatile performer capable of moving between comedy, drama, and classic roles.
Rodgers made his West End debut in The Boy Friend in 1957 and went on to play a wide range of parts in productions including The Owl and the Pussycat, The Threepenny Opera, Uncle Vanya, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. His stage work encompassed everything from Ibsen and Shaw to farce and musical theatre, and he also directed several plays in London and regional theatres.
On screen, Rodgers appeared in more than 50 films. His credits include Scrooge (1970), in which he performed the song “Thank You Very Much,” The Day of the Jackal (1973), The Fourth Protocol (1987), and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988), where he played the sly French policeman André. He was also known for narrating the children’s television series Old Bear Stories, endearing him to a new generation of viewers.
Television brought Rodgers his widest recognition. He starred in several long-running sitcoms, notably as William Fields in Fresh Fields and French Fields and as Alec Callender in May to December. His ability to bring warmth and subtle humor to middle-class characters made him one of Britain’s most beloved TV actors of the 1980s and 1990s.
He was first married to ballet dancer Morna Watson, with whom he had two children, and later to actress Elizabeth Garvie, his frequent stage partner. Rodgers died in Reading, Berkshire, in 2007 at the age of 74, remembered as a consummate professional whose intelligence and charm illuminated both stage and screen.
Selected films
- The Man Who Never Was – 1956
- The Day They Robbed the Bank of England – 1960
- The Prisoner (TV-series) – 1967
- The Man Who Haunted Himself – 1970
- Scrooge – 1970
- The Devils – 1971
- Nicholas and Alexandra – 1971
- The Fourth Protocol – 1987
- Dirty Rotten Scoundrels – 1988
- The Merchant of Venice – 1980
- Fresh Fields (TV-series) – 1984–1986
- After the War (TV-series) – 1989
- French Fields (TV-series) – 1989–1991
- Performance (TV-series) – 1992
- Son of the Pink Panther – 1993
- May to December (TV-series) – 1989–1994
- Redwall (TV-series) – 1997–2000
- Noah’s Ark (TV-series) – 1997–1998
- The Last Drop – 2006
- Longford (TV) – 2006
- C.S. Lewis: Beyond Narnia (TV) – 2005
- The Merchant of Venice – 2004
- Secret Passage – 2004
- The Duke – 2004
- Where the Heart Is (TV-series) – 2006
- You Can Choose Your Friends (TV) – 2007
- Go Go Tales – 2007
- Midsomer Murders (TV-series) – 2002
Curiosa
- One of BBC-TV's most prolific actors, he appeared in more than 100 dramas and comedies.
- His final stage engagement was in the touring production of Alan Bennett's "The History Boys" in 2006; sadly, ill health forced his withdrawal.
- Performed as Macheath in "Threepenny Opera" at Canada's Stratford Festival
- Won the Laurence Olivier best supporting actor award for his performance in 'Songbook' on London's west end stage. Jointly won the Variety Club of Great Britain award for best TV personality with Julia McKenzie for 'Fresh Fields'.
- Father of Adam Rodgers.
- He met and fell in love with Elizabeth Garvie while filming 'Something in Disguise for ITV and had a baby born Oct 1981.
- Nearly died of pneumonia at 6 months.
- He had 5 older sisters.