Norman Bird (30 October 1920 – 22 April 2005) was one of Britain's foremost character actors. Often sporting a moustache and an air of worried resignation, he seemed to specialise in downtrodden roles. Describing himself as "the man with the cardigan", his doleful looks ensured that he was usually cast as henpecked husbands, petty officials or interfering busybodies.
Bird was born in Coalville, Leicestershire, England. A RADA graduate, he made his West End debut in Peter Brook's production of The Winter's Tale at the Phoenix Theatre in 1951. His first film appearance was as the foreman in An Inspector Calls (1954).
He was a familiar face to British cinema audiences of the 60s, appearing in such classic films as The League of Gentlemen (1960), The Angry Silence (1961), Whistle Down the Wind (1961) and Victim (1961).
He went on to make nearly 70 films and over 200 television appearances, notably as Mr Braithwaite in Worzel Gummidge (1979-81) and as Mr Arrad in the Fawlty Towers episode "Waldorf Salad" (1979). His long list of credits include Steptoe and Son, Rising Damp, Ever Decreasing Circles, Yes Minister, To Serve Them All My Days, Z-Cars, The Saint, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) and Boon. In 1990 he appeared in Stay Lucky, with Dennis Waterman, which marked his 200th television appearance. One of his last film appearances was as a taxi driver in Richard Attenborough's Shadowlands (1993).
Filmography
An Inspector Calls (1954)
The Angry Silence (1960)
The League of Gentlemen (1960)
The Man in the Moon (1960)
Very Important Person (1961)
Cash on Demand (1961)
The Secret Partner (1961)
Night of the Eagle (1962)
Whistle Down the Wind (1961)
Victim (1962)
Term of Trial (1962)
In Search of the Castaways (1962)
The Cracksman (1963)
Bitter Harvest (1963)
Hot Enough for June (1963)
80,000 Suspects (1963)
Maniac (1963)
The Mind Benders (1963)
The Punch and Judy Man (1963)
The Bargee (1964)
The Beauty Jungle (1964)
First Men in the Moon (1964)
The Hill (1965)
The Black Torment (1965)
Sky West and Crooked (1965)
The Wrong Box (1966)
A Dandy in Aspic (1968)
The Limbo Line (1969)
Run a Crooked Mile (1969) (TV)
Oh! What a Lovely War (1969)
Barnacle Bill (All at Sea) (1970)
The Virgin and the Gypsy (1970)
The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer (1970)
The Raging Moon (1971)
Hands of the Ripper (1971)
Please Sir! (1971)
Young Winston (1972)
Ooh… You Are Awful (Get Charlie Tully) (1972)
King Arthur, the Young Warlord (1975)
The Slipper and the Rose (1976)
The Medusa Touch (1978)
The Lord of the Rings (1978) (Voice)
Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981)
If You Go Down in the Woods Today (1981)
A Voyage Round My Father (1982) (TV)
Shadowlands (1993)
External links
Norman Bird at the Internet Movie Database
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Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Bird"
Categories: 1920 births | 2005 deaths | Deaths from cancer | English film actors | English television actors
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