Bernard Cribbins facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bernard Cribbins OBE
Cribbins filming Old Jack's Boat in 2012
Born	Bernard Joseph Cribbins (1928-12-29)29 December 1928 Oldham, Lancashire, England
Died	27 July 2022(2022-07-27) (aged 93) Weybridge, Surrey, England
Occupation	Actor singer
Years active	1943–2022
Spouse(s)	Gillian McBarnet ​ ​ (m. 1955; died 2021)​

Bernard Joseph Cribbins OBE (29 December 1928 – 27 July 2022) was a much-loved English actor and singer. His amazing career lasted for over seventy years!

Bernard Cribbins was famous in the UK for his fun songs like "The Hole in the Ground" and "Right Said Fred" in the 1960s. He also appeared in many comedy films, including the Carry On series.

You might know him as Albert Perks from The Railway Children (1970). On TV, he read stories for the BBC show Jackanory for many years. He also narrated the children's show The Wombles and played the main character in the CBeebies series Old Jack's Boat.

Many people also remember him from Doctor Who. He played Tom Campbell in the 1966 film Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D.. Later, he returned to the TV show as Wilfred Mott, the kind grandfather of Donna Noble. Wilfred even became a temporary companion to the Tenth Doctor.

Early life

Bernard Joseph Cribbins was born on 29 December 1928. His hometown was Oldham, in Lancashire, England. His mother, Ethel, was a cotton weaver. His father, John Edward Cribbins, was a veteran from the First World War.

Bernard grew up with his two sisters. His family was quite poor. He said his father was a "jack of all trades" who also enjoyed acting. Bernard left school when he was 13 years old. He got a job as an assistant stage manager at a local theatre club. There, he also got to act in small roles. He then trained at the Oldham Repertory Theatre. In 1947, he joined the Parachute Regiment for his national service.

Career

Early acting and music

Bernard Cribbins first appeared in London's West End theatre in 1956. He acted in a play called A Comedy of Errors. He also starred in other West End shows like Not Now Darling.

In 1960, he was in a show called And Another Thing. This show helped him get noticed by George Martin from Parlophone. Bernard signed with Parlophone to record a song from the show. Later, he recorded two very popular songs: "The Hole in the Ground" and "Right Said Fred". Both songs became top ten hits in the UK in 1962. His third song that year, "Gossip Calypso", also made it into the top 30.

Films

Cribbins started acting in films in the early 1950s. Most of his early films were comedies. He appeared with Peter Sellers in Two-Way Stretch (1960). He was also in three Carry On films: Carry On Jack (1963), Carry On Spying (1964), and Carry On Columbus (1992).

He played Special Police Constable Tom Campbell in the second Doctor Who film, Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D. (1966). A very famous role was Albert Perks, the station porter, in The Railway Children (1970). He also appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's thriller Frenzy (1972).

Narration and voice work

Bernard Cribbins was the voice of the British children's TV series The Wombles from 1973 to 1975. He also played the Water Rat in a BBC radio version of The Wind in the Willows.

He was the most frequent storyteller on the show Jackanory. He appeared 114 times between 1966 and 1991. He also narrated the audio version of the book The Mousehole Cat. From 1974 to 1976, he narrated Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings.

In the 1960s, Cribbins was the voice of Tufty in road safety films. He also voiced Buzby, a cartoon bird mascot for the Post Office. He even appeared in commercials for Hornby Railways model trains. In 1978, he voiced the robin in an electricity safety film called Play Safe.

Television

Cribbins with Susie Silvey in Cuffy (1983)

Cribbins starred in his own ITV series called Cribbins (1969–70). He also appeared in The Avengers (1968). A memorable role was Mr Hutchinson in the Fawlty Towers episode "The Hotel Inspectors" (1975).

He was a regular on BBC children's television in the 1970s. He hosted game shows like Star Turn. These shows often ended with Cribbins telling a detective story as his character "Ivor Notion". He also appeared on The Good Old Days, singing old Music Hall songs.

Later, he appeared in shows like Last of the Summer Wine (2003) and Coronation Street (2003).

From 2013, Cribbins starred as Old Jack in the CBeebies series Old Jack's Boat. The show was filmed in Staithes. In 2015, he gave a reading at the VE Day 70 celebration in London. This was shown live on BBC1.

Later stage career

Bernard Cribbins also had a long career in theatre. He played Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls at the National Theatre. He also appeared in many pantomimes. In 2014, he played Old Jack at the BBC CBeebies Proms at the Royal Albert Hall.

Doctor Who

Bernard Cribbins played Tom Campbell in the 1966 film Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D.. Tom was a companion to Dr. Who.

He returned to Doctor Who in 2007. He first appeared as Wilfred Mott in the Christmas special, "Voyage of the Damned". Wilfred then became a regular character in the 2008 series. He was the grandfather of the companion Donna Noble.

Wilfred Mott became a temporary companion to the Tenth Doctor in "The End of Time". This was a two-part special in 2009–10. Bernard Cribbins is the only actor to have played two different companions in Doctor Who. He is also the only actor to have faced the Daleks in both the TV show and the cinema films. Cribbins was filming for a 2023 Doctor Who episode for the show's 60th anniversary before he passed away.

Honours

Bernard Cribbins received the General Service Medal. This was for his service in Palestine with the Parachute Regiment in 1948.

In 2009, he received a Special Award at the British Academy Children's Awards. This was for his great work in children's television. His former co-star Catherine Tate presented the award. He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2011. This award was for his services to drama. He received his OBE from the Princess Royal at Windsor Castle. In 2014, he received the J. M. Barrie award. This was for his lasting contribution to children's arts.

BBC America named Cribbins "British Icon of the Week" on 23 December 2020.

Personal life

Bernard Cribbins was married to his wife, Gillian, from 1955 until her death in 2021. They lived in Weybridge, Surrey. They did not have any children.

In 2018, his autobiography was published. It was called Bernard Who? 75 Years of Doing Just About Anything. He started recording an audiobook version of it, but he passed away before it was finished.

Bernard Cribbins died on 27 July 2022, at the age of 93.

Filmography

Source:

Film

Television

Selected audio roles

Discography

Albums

Chart singles

See also

In Spanish: Bernard Cribbins para niños