British comedy actor Ronnie Stevens dies at 81

Posted:
Nov 14, 2006

Ronnie Stevens, a veteran of British comedy films, died Saturday at 81.

Stevens played Grandpa Charles James in the 1998 Lindsay Lohan remake of Disney's The Parent Trap. He died in Denville Hall, the actors' retirement home in Northwood, Middlesex.

Described by one anonymous observer as "a genial sort of fellow purveyor of the meek or mildly annoying," he was in the voice cast of Tony Collingwood's 1998 short Rarg, which was nominated for a BAFTA for Best Animated Film.

Stevens and writer Oliver Postgate narrated the 1959 black and white TV series Noggin the Nog. The cutout animation show ran initially on BBC from 1959 to 1965, then was revived for a color run on BBC-2 in 1982.

He provided the voices of Slim, Husky and Professor Haggarty in the 1963-64 syndicated series Space Patrol. An imitation of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's Supermarionation series, the show was released in the United States as Planet Patrol to avoid confusion with a 1950s live-action series already named Space Patrol.

In the 1962 puppet series Sara and Hoppity, Stevens voiced Hoppity, Mr Brown, Shaggy and The Junk Man.

Born on September 2, 1925 in Peckham, London, Stevens started his career during the 1950s in revues in the West End, London's counterpart to Broadway. He played comic roles in many films, including I'm All Right Jack (1959) with Peter Sellers and Dentist in the Chair (1960) with Bob Monkhouse.

In the 1962 movie series entry Carry On Cruising, he was one of many funny actors on board.

Other movies included Doctor at Large (1957), Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965) and Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969).

Especially in recent years, he guested in many TV series, including Goodnight Sweetheart, As Time Goes By, Rumpole of the Bailey and Hetty Wainthropp Investigates.

During the 1970s, he was a leading member of the Prospect Theatre Company, playing the Fool in King Lear and Sir Nathaniel in Love's Labours Lost. In 1980, he portrayed Sir Andrew Aguecheek in a made-for-TV production of Twelfth Night.

With Sir Ian McKellen, he was a founding member of the Actor's Company.