John Gregson
| John Gregson | |
|---|---|
|
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| Born |
Harold Thomas Gregson 15 March 1919 Liverpool, Lancashire, England, UK |
| Died | 8 January 1975 (aged 55) Porlock Weir, Somerset, England, UK |
| Cause of death | heart attack |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1945–1975 |
| Spouse(s) | Thea Gregory (1947–1975), 6 children (including John Gregson Jr, the retired headteacher) |
John Gregson, (born Harold Thomas Gregson, (15 March 1919 – 8 January 1975) was an English actor, credited in 40 films.
Gregson was born of Irish descent, and grew up in Wavertree, Liverpool, Lancashire, where he was educated at Greenbank Road Primary School and later at St. Francis Xavier's College. He left school at 16, working first for a telephone company, then for Liverpool Corporation, as the city council was then known, before the Second World War started. During this time, he became interested in amateur dramatics, joining first his local Catholic church theatre group at St. Anthony’s, Mossley Hill, and later the Liverpool Playgoers' Club.
When war broke out, Gregson was called up and joined the Royal Navy as a sailor on minesweepers. At one point, his minesweeper was torpedoed and he was rescued from the sea with a knee injury.
After being demobilised in 1945, he joined the Playhouse in Liverpool for a year, before going on to Perth Theatre in Perth, Scotland. Here he met his future wife, actress Ida Reddish from Nottingham, who at the time was using the stage name Thea Kronberg and had recently arrived from the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. In 1947 they moved to London and married there. They eventually had three daughters and three sons.
He was credited as 'John Gregson' in 40 films between 1948 and 1971 and on television from 1960 until his death. He was often cast as a police inspector or as a navy or army officer, or for his comedy roles in Ealing and other British films. One of his first appearances was in the film Saraband for Dead Lovers, a tearjerking romance starring Joan Greenwood and Stewart Granger.
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