Ralph Bates (12 February 1940 – 27 March 1991) was an English film and television actor, known for his role in the British sitcom Dear John and the original Poldark drama series.[1]

Ralph Bates
Photo by Edward Wing, 1970s
Born	(1940-02-12)12 February 1940 Bristol, England
Died	27 March 1991(1991-03-27) (aged 51) London, England
Education	Trinity College, Dublin (BA) Yale University (MFA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1967–1991
Spouse(s)	Joanna Van Gyseghem (1964–1973) Virginia Wetherell (1973–1991)
Children	3

Biography

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Bates was born in Bristol, England.[2] His parents were both psychiatrists; his mother was French[3] and he was a great-great-grandson of French scientist Louis Pasteur.[4] He held dual-nationality and was bilingual,[3] and was educated at Trinity College Dublin.[4] He read French there, before winning a scholarship to Yale Drama School. The course completed, Bates returned to Ireland to make his stage debut in Shaw's You Never Can Tell at The Gate Theatre, Dublin, in 1963. A career in repertory theatre soon followed and the young actor gained experience in productions ranging from Hedda Gabler to raucous comedies.

Later, Bates carved a niche in the world of horror films and played important roles or the lead in several Hammer Horror productions, such as Taste the Blood of Dracula, The Horror of Frankenstein, Lust for a Vampire, and Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde, in which he played a doctor who mistakenly transforms himself into a beautiful siren.[5][6]

He portrayed Caligula in the series The Caesars and alongside Cyd Hayman in a passionate French tale of murder and mystery, the Crime of Passion series.[7] After playing Thomas Culpeper in an episode of The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1970), he went on to star in the BBC drama series Moonbase 3 (1973) and Poldark, in which he played villainous George Warleggan.[2] The series ran for 29 episodes, starting in 1975.[8] He also played communist Paul Vercors in the final season of the drama series Secret Army.[9] Because of his French ancestry and dark looks, he was often chosen to play a Frenchman on television, as for instance in a second series episode of ITV comedy drama Turtle's Progress.[10] Bates also appeared in the television movie Minder on the Orient Express, again as a Frenchman.[11]

It looked, for some time, as if he might remain typecast in sinister roles, but he was offered a part in a comedy series by the writer John Sullivan, which saw Bates cast in a more sympathetic role as the newly divorced member of a singles group. Dear John (1986–87) ran for two series, and gave him chance to display a talent for comic roles.[12] Around the same time, he appeared in the Yorkshire Television sitcom Farrington of the F.O. (1986) with Angela Thorne and Joan Sims.

Private life

Bates was divorced from the actress Joanna Van Gyseghem,[13] and survived by his second wife, actress Virginia Wetherell (married 1973–1991). The couple had a son and a daughter.^{[citation needed]}

Death

Bates was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and died from the disease in London, aged 51.[14] The large metal cross marking his grave at Chiswick New Cemetery bears the epitaph "Don't worry - Be Happy!"[15]

The Ralph Bates Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund is a registered charity, number 1007819.[16]

Filmography

References

External links

• Ralph Bates at IMDb
• Ralph Bates at AllMovie
• Photos of Ralph Bates' grave at Findagrave

На других языках

[de] Ralph Bates (Schauspieler)