Arthur Brough
| Arthur Brough | |
|---|---|
As Mr. Grainger in Are You Being Served?
|
|
| Born |
Frederick Arthur Baker 26 February 1905 Petersfield, Hampshire, England |
| Died | 28 May 1978 (aged 73) Folkestone, Kent, England |
| Years active | 1926–1978 |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth Addyman (1929–1978) (her death) |
| Children | Joanna Hutton |
Arthur Brough (born Frederick Arthur Baker) (26 February 1905 – 28 May 1978) was a British actor, best known for portraying the character of senior menswear salesman Mr. Ernest Grainger on the BBC sitcom Are You Being Served?
The diminutive actor (5 feet 2 inches (1.57 m)) originally wanted to become a teacher, but failed to gain such employment, and worked in a solicitor's office. He found this job too mundane and he began to take an interest in the theatre. After indulging in amateur theatricals, Brough attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in the mid-1920s. After graduating, he joined a Shakespearean theatrical troupe, where he met his wife-to-be, actress Elizabeth Addyman. After they married, they used their wedding dowry as collateral to rent the Leas Pavilion, a repertory theatre in Folkestone, Kent. They had one daughter, Joanna, who was educated at Ashford School for Girls.
Brough ran the company ("The Arthur Brough Players") and acted in the shows and, once the new Folkestone rep was established, he established new repertory companies in Bradford, Bristol, Blackpool, Keighley, Leeds, Lincoln, Oxford and Southampton, as well as other acting companies throughout the country. With the outbreak of World War II, he enlisted in the Royal Navy, in which he served for the duration of the war. His service included helping with the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940, his ship returning to the rescue scene several times.
Following demobilisation, he resumed his acting career and reopened the Folkestone rep. Many prominent actors began their careers with the Arthur Brough Players, including Peter Barkworth, who appeared in The Guinea Pig in 1948: Eric Lander, later a star of the TV series No Hiding Place, in 1949: Polly James in the 1960s: and Anne Stallybrass, who started out as ASM in 1960 and went on to play Ida the maid in Pool's Paradise by Philip King; as well as appearing in The Aspern Papers, Candida, and A Taste of Honey at the little Folkestone theatre. Others included Andrew Jack; Sydney Sturgess, who went on to marry Barry Morse; and Trevor Bannister, who would later act alongside Brough in Are You Being Served?
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