Welcome to the
www.TheOnedinLine.com
website / page / Actor details
 Actor details:
Actor name: Peter Gilmore
Role played: James Onedin (husband of
Anne Webster)
Background info
Born in Germany in 1931, Peter Gilmore came to the UK at the
age of six and was raised by relatives in Yorkshire. He quit
school at age 14 to pursue his dream of becoming an actor,
joined RADA, but was expelled shortly after. Peter then
joined the army to do his National Service and it was whilst
helping to put on variety shows to entertain the troops that
he discovered he had a bit of a knack for singing.
The big break
After leaving the army, Gilmore joined a singing group, The
George Mitchell Singers, and also won parts in a variety of
musicals. This didn’t lead to the success that he was
looking for, so he gave up singing to concentrate on acting.
Peter got his first break as a supporting member of the
‘Carry On’ team, appearing in several installments during the
60s and 70s, including the classic Carry On Cleo.
Career highs
Lovers of classic horror would certainly count 1971’s The
Abominable Dr Phibes, in which Gilmore starred alongside a
cackling Vincent Price, as a career high. However, the clear
masterpiece of Gilmore’s career has to be The Onedin Line.
First broadcast in 1976, this rich period series finally
gave him the chance to play the dashing leading man – and it
was one of the biggest hits of its day.
Career lows
The 1970s gave us such cinematic masterpieces as The
Godfather, Apocalypse Now and Last Tango in Paris. Alas, the
decade also gave us Warlords of Atlantis, the very poor
sci-fi fantasy in which Gilmore played an explorer who
bravely battles rubber sea monsters and bog-standard aliens.
Frightening stuff, for all the wrong reasons!
Did you know?
After starring in The Onedin Line, Gilmore decided to return
to his first love - singing. Rather than capitalising on his
newfound fame to get more TV roles, he spent years on tour
in different musicals.
The final word
Many actors find being associated with one role frustrating,
but not Peter. "I’m very grateful to The Onedin Line,
Gilmore once said. "Without it, I’d just be remembered for
playing funny coppers and crazy Romans in the Carry On
films."
Source:
http://uktv.co.uk |
|
