Lionel Jeffries English actor, screenwriter and director Date of Birth: 10.06.1926 Country: Great Britain

Biography of Lionel Jeffries

Lionel Charles Jeffries was born on June 10, 1926, in Forest Hill, London, England. He attended Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Dorset, Southwest England. In 1945, Lionel was enlisted in the Oxford and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry of the British Army during World War II. He was awarded the 'Burma Star' for his participation in the war.

After the war, Lionel began studying acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London. He performed with the David Garrick Theatre for about two years before transitioning to British television plays. Lionel established a successful career in British cinema, primarily playing comedic characters. Despite his premature baldness, he often portrayed characters much older than himself, including the father of the bumbling inventor Caractacus Potts (played by Dick Van Dyke) in the musical film 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' in 1968. Interestingly, Jeffries was actually six months younger than Van Dyke.

Lionel's acting career reached its peak in the 1960s when he played several leading roles in films such as 'Two-Way Stretch', 'The Trials of Oscar Wilde', 'First Men in the Moon', and 'Camelot'. In the 1970s, Jeffries started writing screenplays and directing children's films, including the renowned family drama 'The Railway Children' and the fantasy film 'The Amazing Mr Blunden'. He also directed the drama 'Baxter!' and the animated films 'Wombling Free' and 'The Water Babies'.

It is known that Lionel had a long-standing dislike for television. His first appearance on the small screen was in the television musical drama 'Cream in My Coffee' in 1980, followed by his portrayal of Charles Radford in an episode of the series 'Inspector Morse'. During the location shooting of an episode of the sitcom 'Tom, Dick and Harriet' in 1983, Jeffries and his co-stars Ian Ogilvy and Bridget Forsyth had to be rescued when a car stunt went wrong.

Lionel Jeffries retired from acting in 2001. After a prolonged illness, he passed away on February 19, 2010, at a nursing home in Poole, Dorset. He was married to Eileen Mary Walsh from 1951 until his death. Lionel left behind a son and two daughters.