Arthur Mullard
| Arthur Mullard | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Arthur Ernest Mullord 19 September 1910 Islington, London, England |
| Died | 11 December 1995 (aged 85) Islington, London, England |
| Occupation | Actor, singer |
| Years active | 1939-1995 |
| Spouse(s) | Florence Rose (1939 -1961) (her death) |
| Children | 3 |
Arthur Ernest Mullard (né Mullord; 19 September 1910 – 11 December 1995) was an English actor and singer.
Following military service and a brief boxing career, Mullard found work as a cockney character actor in film and TV comedy, notably in the series Romany Jones. Soon after his death, it was revealed that he had been guilty of extreme domestic violence and sexual abuse.
Mullard was born in a humble background in Islington, London. He started work at the age of 14 as a butcher's assistant, and joined the Army at 18. It was there that he began boxing, becoming champion of his regiment. When he left the army after three years, he had a short stint at boxing professionally. This ended after 20 fights over three years, following a knock-out from which he lost his memory. He married Florence Rose in the second quarter of 1939. He is recorded in the 1939 Register as a general labourer living with his parents at 35 Douglas Street, Islington. He rejoined the army in the Second World War, becoming a sergeant major in the Royal Artillery.
Following the end of the war in 1945, Mullard sought work as a stuntman at Pinewood and Ealing film studios, from which he drifted into uncredited bit-parts in British films such as Oliver Twist (1948), The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) and The Ladykillers (1955).
Mullard's face and cockney accent lent itself to a certain character, and he graduated to more visible roles in comedy films and on television. It was on television that Mullard made a name for himself, first as a straight man for Tony Hancock, Frankie Howerd and Benny Hill, then in The Arthur Askey Show. It was the London Weekend Television series Romany Jones, first aired in 1973, which give Mullard his highest profile, playing Wally Briggs, a crafty caravan-dweller.
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