The Avengers International Fan Forum

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Mark Heath

Actor, played Rev. Garfield Percival in Avengers episode The Little Wonders (1964).

As it turned out, the year of birth of Mark on all resources is incorrect. Most of the resources indicates 1940, while IMDb and clones of this base indicates 1930.

Actually, he was born approx. in 1926, came to U.K. in 1944 (as 18 years old) and was attached to R.A.F.'s entertainment section.

His lifetrace was lost for many years in the late 1980s and it was only recently discovered that he changed his stage name to Marcus Heath.

https://bbashakespeare.warwick.ac.uk/people/marcus-heath

Part of this information is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0372684
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Denis

dissolute · Posted: Wed May 15, 2019 4:26 pm Post subject:

Are you sure about that? There may well be two Mark Heaths, as the one in The Avengers is from Jamaica but the University of Warwick site lists Marcus Heath as being born in the US.
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http://www.dissolute.com.au/the-avengers-tv-series/
Every episode from 1961 to 1977 plus more trivia than you can shake a brolly at.

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

It is good that Piers raised the topic of discrepancies in information on the performers (even the world famous) in various confidential sources (see posts above on this page), as it is interesting to look at this in details (within the framework of The Avengers):

The main reason why we do not know the information about some actors lies in the fact that either the performers themselves or their agencies consciously create a certain myth around the created images. In such cases, there is never any one specific source (excluding family) that you can rely on to be sure that you are learning the facts. This is regardless of whether the source is an authority or not, whether someone is a friend or a distant relative of the person being studied, whether it is someone you trust or not. It simply often does not work properly. In this scheme there are facts based on the consideration of several sources, their comparison and study. It may take years when you will sure of something.

Let's look at examples:

BFI (British Film Institute - undoubtedly authorities).

Actor Edward Burnham

https://web.archive.org/web/20090906035726/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/48990

For many long years it was believed that the actor was born 23/11/1912 (Lincolnshire, England) as Edward Charles Burnham, and died 05/1992 (Manchester, Lancs., England).

BFI referred:
Checked birth and death at the Family Records Centre, London. Died in the Manchester, Lancashire born in the Spilsby, Lincolnshire registration district.

Obligated to this, many sites and people just took information from BFI and distributed. Only when in the beginning of 2010s one person at one of the forums (I don’t remember exactly where) wrote that he saw Edward in the series Black Books, there appeared a doubt that he died in 1992.
Soon people began to confirm the information that Edward is alive and thus the BFI changed the information about him.

https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba0826a00

Now it is right. Smile

Though some websites including IMDb still indicate his full name as Edward Charles Burnham, but in fact, his full name is Edward Noel Burnham.

There were many other errors on BFI that were corrected over time, but there are those that are still uncorrected, as for example:

John Scott, who played in Avengers episode The Rotters.

https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba02054ad

BFI indicates he born 20 February 1927, Finchley, London

No, in fact he born September 25, 1913 in Shoreditch, London, England, UK, while on 20 February 1927 in Finchley, London born other actor, known as Jonathan Scott, who played in Avengers episode The Morning After.

etc...

2. Directories like Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television, theatre programmes and other.

Here as rule takes information from old records which went through the agencies.

There you will learn all that we lived before: Honor Blackman was born in 1926, Elizabeth Sellars in 1923, and many other.

3. Authoritative print media like the newspaper The Stage and the magazine Variety.

Good sources for research and rare information, but with occasional throwing inaccuracies.

4. People who personally know the person being studied (not part of family).

A good example is Peter Wyngarde, who led many to believe that he was born in 1933. Smile

Many fans of the actor talked with different people who knew him well, but were not able to identify in what year he was born. There are inconsistencies and the puzzle is not going to.

5. Ancestry and similar datebases.

Good sources to find out the date of birth and death, the full name and the names of family members. Nevertheless, there you can stumble on sort of records that do not correspond to reality.

As for the instance, the same Peter Wyngarde or John Gayford, etc.

Well... Rolling Eyes

these are all indicators that we cannot be sure of focusing on only one-two even authoritative sources.

There are still many secrets around some of the performers of the series. Attention can be paid to people like:

Nicole Shelby

One part of sources cite that she was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, others that in Gulfport, Mississippi, USA! Where is truth? Confused

I still don't know. We could assume that there were two Nicole Shelby, if not that these sources point to some general similar information in her career, just like Mark Heath and Pamela Ann Davy.

Pamela Ann Davy

One part of sources cite that she was born in Sydney, Australia, others that in Melbourne, Australia, third - in Tasmania! Where is truth?

Based on all this, we still cannot figure out the path of Yole Marinelli, Laurie Leigh, Didi Sullivan and many others... But who knows for sure what will bring us tomorrow? Wink

_________________
Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

June Kidd

Played Horse (top) in Avengers episode Look - (Stop Me If You've Heard This One) But There Were These Two Fellers... (1968).

Real name: Doreen Birrell.

Born: May 1, 1915 in West Derby, Lancashire, England, UK

Firstly married on William Lappin, in 1935. After married on dancer James Henry Haggerty (alias Jimmy Kidd) in 1950.
Her son, by alias Paul Kidd (he is in mentioned Avengers episode too), often performed with his mother.

Died: July 6, 2010 in London, England, UK

Part of this info is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0452254/
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Denis

dissolute · Posted: Tue May 28, 2019 2:18 pm Post subject:

You wouldn't have a photo of June's face would you? I could never find one.

Also, I'm pretty sure Pamela Ann Davy was born in Tassie but I don't remember the source of my info. She certainly lived in Sydney as well.
_________________
Mrs Peel, you're needed!
http://www.dissolute.com.au/the-avengers-tv-series/
Every episode from 1961 to 1977 plus more trivia than you can shake a brolly at.

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

John Bown

Actor.

Played Roger in Avengers episode All Done with Mirrors (1968).

I just realized that the actor is no longer with us. This is indicated on the site Tardis (Dr. Who fandom), info by based on note from Doctor Who Magazine 524 (dated by May 2018).

https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/John_Bown

I read this note in mentioned magazine.

Died: November 5, 2017

Recently sent this information about his death at IMDb. Info will soon posted there:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0101421
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Hazel Graeme

Actress, model and fashion designer.

Played May Murton in Avengers episode Toy Trap (1961).

It became known that the year of birth of Hazel on IMDb is incorrect.

IMDb indicates the year as 1931, while actually:

Born: July 6, 1932 in Scotland, UK

Started a career under the name Hazel Graeme-Harrison.

Info will soon posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0333663/

Someone by nick "birdy_artist" met her two years ago - some details here:

https://deskgram.net/p/1502452309068974925_186586561
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

June Hodgson

Model.

Participated as model in Avengers episode Killer Whale (1963).

Full name: June Mary Hodgson

Born: June 23, 1941 in England, UK

Reached success in her career already in the late 1950s. Won the title of first-ever Queen of Majorca. Smile

Died: July 26, 2000 in Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Part of this info is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7163687
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Ken Buckle

Stuntman and actor

Played a window cleaner in Avengers episode Super Secret Cypher Snatch (1968).

It became known that the year of death of Ken on BFI is incorrect:

https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2baaf91ac5

BFI indicates the year of death as 1995, and there was no way to find any clues for Ken on Ancestry and similar datebases for the add reason, because the name Ken Buckle is a pseudonym.

After careful research I came to the follow result:

Real name: Reginald Buckle

Yes, he always used that surname Buckle (while Buckell is mistake. I don't know, maybe Buckell came from the documents like Call Sheets).

Born: May 10, 1918 in Banbury, Oxfordshire, England, UK

Died: November 21, 1994 in Ealing, London, England, UK

Info is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0118543/

------------------------------------------------------------------------

By the way, Orderly (in the episode Split!) and Guard (in the episode The Morning After) are not Ken Buckle.

_________________
Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

George Lane Cooper

Stuntman and actor

Played Marvin in TNA episode Hostage (1977).

It became known that the year of death of George on all websites, related to the movies and TV, is incorrect.

I think that this mistake came from the magazine Stuntman 86, where it was said that George died in 2006 at the age of 61.

https://issuu.com/jonauty/docs/stuntman_86

I blindly trusted it many years until I finally wondered why nothing could be found there except the year of his death. Confused

It is curious that when for first time his death was mentioned in a well-known forum about British movie and TV, I absolutely lost sight of the following clue:

http://filmdope.com/forums/84652-mr-peter-braham.html

Messages

30-07-11 01:34 PM #11
Toscana

Aitch, do you know if George Lane Cooper is still with us?

30-07-11 08:15 PM #12
harryfielder

I asked about today.....

Steve Whyment (famous stuntman)
Hi aitch, no george went sadly about 8 to 10 years ago, he was a good old boy. So many have gone, terry plummer was the latest, his funeral was last thursday. Hope your'e keeping well yourself?. Take care. Steve.

Aitch,

Yes, Steve, George’s friend, hinted that George died sometime during 2001-2003. He was right.

Studying information about George from various sources, I came to the important details:
a) He was a professional British boxer named George Cooper until 1960. (Henry Cooper's brother was forced to change his name to Jim Cooper).
b) George's wife's name was Val.
с) He lived in London.

When I recently learned that George was a professional boxer in the 1950s, I thought if he was born in the mid-1940s (accordingly to magazine Stuntman 86), then it turns out that he started his professional career at the age of 8-12? Very Happy

After, I went to the website BoxRec and found only one Englishman, George Cooper, who was in business in the 1950s.

http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/44876

Biographical data is very different from what was stated in the Stuntman 86.

After, I went to Ancestry, and based on data from BoxRec, I discovered his full name and the fact that he married Valerie Sheehan.

Good match.

I went to the StarTiger website where I discovered that his personal address is listed as 16 Robin Hood Green, St Mary Cray, Orpington, Kent BR5 2.

Good match, again.

His latest work in stunt business was 2002 year according to film bases.

Good match, again.

Finally, as I said earlier, Steve Whyment mentioned that George died in the period 2001-2003.

Good match, again.

Well, this is quite enough to be sure for:

Full real name: George Ernest Edward Cooper.

Born: January 28, 1934 in England, UK

Married: Valerie Sheehan in 1980.

Died: February 8, 2002 in Bromley, Kent, England, UK

Part of this information is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0178059/

------------------------------------------------------------------------

By the way, the year of death of stuntman Jack Cooper on IMDb is incorrect too. There indicated 2010.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0178109

Jack in Avengers episode The Master Minds (1965):

It was already mentioned at the end of 2009 that he died.
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Wilfred Grove

Actor, played Male Nun in Avengers episode Dead on Course (1962).

Full name: Wilfred Stacey Grove

Born: May, 1931 in Nottinghamshire, England, UK

Married on Thelma Trigg, Charles Dickens expert. Smile

Since 2013 lives with Thelma in Royston, Hertfordshire.

Information is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0343995/
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Dane Howell

Actor, played Peter Somers in Avengers episode The Radioactive Man (1961).

There are no screenshot (s) with Dane from Avengers episode "The Radioactive Man", but in any case, he took part in. Wink

Based on the book "The Face Pressed Against a Window: A Memoir" by Tim Waterstone, released in this year, it managed to finally go to the following conclusions:

Dane Howell is real name.

Born: 1948 in Folkestone, Kent, England, UK

Married to Camilla Sonia Laird-Clowes in 1979 (have 4 children).

This information is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2183099

Dane lives in Westminster, London.
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Laurie Leigh

Actress, played Dorothy in Avengers episode Bullseye (1962).

Real name is Eleanor, and it is very possible that she began her acting career as Eleanor Leigh.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0500210/

Born: September 16, 1932

Was married to a clock restorer Woolf Leigh (real surname is Leibovitch) from 1952 to 1992 (his death). Son: David Leigh, instrument restorer and classical musician.

This information is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0500254/

There is an interesting article about Laurie:

https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/6639545.dont-give-up-hope/

Laurie Leigh was also known as the secretary of comedian Bob Hope.

Moreover, she played a part in creating the first James Bond. When Dr No, the first 007 film, was being planned, she was working for the movie's creators Harry Saltzman and Cubby Broccoli.

Saltzman's desk was covered in pictures of hunks. Laurie spotted Sean Connery, with whom she had appeared in a TV production of Anna Karenina.

Saltzman asked her view of the big Scot. She replied: "He's nice. Very nice."

Saltzman later took Connery for lunch at the Dorchester. When he saw every female in the restaurant turning to look at his guest, he realised they shared Laurie's assessment. Connery got the job.

Laurie lives in Oxford.
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Lucille Soong

Actress, played miss Smith in Avengers episode The Cybernauts (1965).

As it turned out, the year of birth of Lucille on all resources, related to films and TV, is incorrect. Film and TV resources indicates 1938.

This is surprising, given that the actress herself gives in an interview a different age, which corresponds to old newspapers, Ancestry and her age in the database of the place of residence.

So, she was born in 1935. I do not know if the day and month of her birthday on August 15 is true, because on Ancestry it is September 5, and on Twitter - October 12.

This information is already sent on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0814586
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Peter J. Elliott

Actor, stuntman, ex-singer and diver, played in some color Avengers episodes, starting since The Bird Who Knew Too Much (1967).

Yes, here is that Peter personally spoke about:

https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/interviews/why-tom-daley-is-not-a-true-olympian-by-britain-s-teen-diving-star-of-1948-7800263.html

...(Peter) initially refused to dive as stunt man in The Avengers. “Ray Austin, the stunt arranger for The Avengers, asked me to do a very spectacular dive. I said, ‘But I’m still an amateur,’ At that stage, nobody had paid me to dive.”

Austin persuaded him to go to Pinewood Studios and asked him, “Would you be prepared to dress up in Diana Rigg’s catsuit, wear a wig and do the fight and the dive? I’ll teach you how to do the fight.”

Pretending to be Rigg meant Elliott fighting the villain, another stunt man, on a seven-metre high board. He had to knock him off into the water and then do his spectacular dive...
...Later he moved from stuntman to actor and played a villain opposite Rigg in another film.

As it turned out, the year of birth of Peter on IMDb and some other resources is incorrect. These resources indicates 1932.

This is surprising, given that Peter gives in an interview a different age, which corresponds to old newspapers and his age in the sport databases like sports-reference.com and olympic.org

https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/el/peter-elliott-1.html
https://www.olympic.org/peter-john-henry-elliott

So, actually he was born on June 14, 1930.

Full name: Peter John Henry Elliott.

This information is already sent on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0254593
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Delia Corrie

Actress, played Miss Power in Avengers episode The Mauritius Penny (1962).

Born: September 8, 1937 in Bombay, India (new info is the day and the month).

Information will soon posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0180941/
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Marijke Mann

Actress, played Miss Avril in Avengers episode Murdersville (1967).

Well, as often happens Very Happy

, the year of birth of Marijke on IMDb and some other resources is incorrect. These resources indicates 1939.

Actually she was born on December 19, 1937 in Semarang, Indonesia.

Full birthname: Marijke Margaretha Staal.

This information is already sent to IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0351816/

A more detailed look at Marika recently appeared on the ESAT database:

https://esat.sun.ac.za/index.php/Marijke_Haakman

Marijke Haakman (b. Semarang, Indonesia, 19/12/1937) was an actress. Also credited as Marika Mann and Marijke Mann.

Marijke Haakman was born Marijke Margaretha Staal on the Indonesian island of Java in what was then the Netherlands East Indies. Her mother was Nancy Ballangée, who was either widowed or divorced when she married Jacob Evert (Jaap) Haakman, a former Dutch fighter pilot, in 1947. That same year the couple and their two daughters came to South Africa, where Marijke’s stepfather became the local General Manager of the travel bureau Lissone-Lindeman.

She attended Redhill School in Johannesburg and in 1955 she made what may have been her first stage appearance. Entitled Circus Adventure, it was written by James Ambrose Brown for the Children’s Theatre. Initially she was sent to the Netherlands and France to study art, but she switched her interests to the theatre and in 1959 she graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London. Her first play as a professional actor in South Africa was Jean Giraudoux’s Tiger at the Gates, staged by Ricky Arden for the University Players in which she played Helen of Troy. This was followed by productions for Kushlick-Gluckman, the Johannesburg Repertory Society and the National Theatre.

In 1962 she returned to England and after a year in repertory she was spotted by Sir Laurence Olivier, for whom she played small roles in Saint Joan and The Workhouse Donkey at the Chichester Festival Theatre. Rather against her will, her agent had persuaded her to change her professional name to Marika Mann and in 1966-67 she spent some time first at the Sheffield Playhouse and after that at the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry. At the latter she was in the cast of the British premiere of Arthur Miller’s After the Fall (1967), together with no fewer than six other South Africans. In 1966 she had married Lancashire-born actor/producer John McKelvey (1916-1998), whom she had met when he had acted with her in The Complaisant Lover (1960) for Taubie Kushlick.

In January 1968 she was back in South Africa to take the role of Eleanor of Aquitaine opposite Joe Stewardson in The Lion in Winter for PACT, and again in 1971-72 when she was in Hedda Gabler and Macbeth for CAPAB. Back in England she and John McKelvey had a long run in Dear Liar, a play they also took on tour in Scandinavia and eventually to Israel. In South Africa she had acted in two films, namely Tremor (1961) directed by Denis Scully, and the anti-apartheid Dilemma (1962), based on the Nadine Gordimer novel A World of Strangers. She later said that the Danish director, Henning Carlsen, had duped her into taking the part. Certainly the authorities took a great interest in the circumstances under which it had been made.

In 1978 she and her husband emigrated to New Zealand and later settled in Australia, where they continued to act until a series of strokes brought his career to an end. First in England and later in Australia, she acted in numerous television plays and series, as well as in Bruce Beresford’s film Paradise Road (1997), about a group of women imprisoned by the Japanese on the Indonesian island of Sumatra during World War II. The last IMDb entry for her dates from 2010, when she appeared in an episode of the Australian series City Homicide.
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Denis

denis rigg · A Touch of Brimstone Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 2584

Dave Anderson

Actor, played Gordon in Avengers episode Build a Better Mousetrap (1964).

Born: August 1, 1945 in Rutherglen, Scotland, UK (new info is the day and the month).

Yes, Dave turned 74 today. Very Happy

Information is already posted on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0026578/
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Denis