View source for John Le Mesurier

{{Short description|English actor (1912–1983)}}
{{for|other people of this name|John Le Mesurier (disambiguation)}}

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{{Use British English|date=December 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
[[File:John Le Mesurier.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|{{center|Le Mesurier in 1973}}]]

'''John Le Mesurier''' ({{IPAc-en|l|ə|_|ˈ|m|ɛ|ʒ|ə|r|ə}},{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=2}} born '''John Elton Le Mesurier Halliley'''; 5&nbsp;April&nbsp;1912{{spaced ndash}}15&nbsp;November&nbsp;1983) was an English actor. He is perhaps best remembered for his comedic role as [[Sergeant Arthur Wilson]] in the [[BBC]] television [[situation comedy]] ''[[Dad's Army]]'' (1968–1977).{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=ix–x}} A self-confessed "jobbing actor",<ref name="Guardian: star dies" /> Le Mesurier appeared in more than 120 films across a range of genres, normally in smaller supporting parts.

Le Mesurier became interested in the stage as a young adult and enrolled at the [[Fay Compton|Fay Compton Studio of Dramatic Art]] in 1933. From there he took a position in [[repertory theatre]] and made his stage debut in September 1934 at the Palladium Theatre in [[Edinburgh]] in the [[J. B. Priestley]] play ''[[Dangerous Corner]]''. He later accepted an offer to work with [[Alec Guinness]] in a [[John Gielgud]] production of ''[[Hamlet]]''.

He first appeared on television in 1938 as Seigneur de Miolans in the BBC broadcast of ''The Marvellous History of St Bernard''. During the [[World War II|Second World War]] Le Mesurier was posted to [[British Raj|British India]], as a [[Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)|captain]] with the [[Royal Tank Regiment]]. Following the war, he returned to acting and made his film debut in 1948, starring in the [[B movie|second feature]] comedy short ''[[Death in the Hand]]'', opposite [[Esme Percy]] and [[Ernest Jay]].

Le Mesurier had a prolific film career, appearing mostly in comedies, usually in roles portraying figures of authority such as army officers, policemen and judges. As well as ''[[Hancock's Half Hour]]'', Le Mesurier appeared in [[Tony Hancock]]'s two principal films, ''[[The Rebel (1961 film)|The Rebel]]'' and ''[[The Punch and Judy Man]]''. In 1971, Le Mesurier received his only award: a [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] "Best Television Actor" award for his lead performance in [[Dennis Potter]]'s television play ''[[Traitor (TV drama)|Traitor]]''; it was one of his few lead roles.

He took a relaxed approach to acting and felt that his parts were those of "a decent chap all at sea in a chaotic world not of his own making."{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=72}} Le Mesurier was married three times, most notably to the actress [[Hattie Jacques]]. A heavy drinker of alcohol for most of his life, Le Mesurier died in 1983, aged 71, from a stomach haemorrhage, brought about as a complication of [[cirrhosis]] of the liver. After his death, critics reflected that, for an actor who normally took minor roles, the viewing public were "enormously fond of him".<ref name="Guardian: 2nd row" />

==Biography==

===Early life===
[[File:Dorset sherbone school.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|[[Sherborne School]], Dorset, which Le Mesurier disliked intensely]]
Le Mesurier was born John Elton Le Mesurier Halliley, in [[Bedford]] on 5 April 1912.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=1}} His parents were Charles Elton Halliley, a [[solicitor]],{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=1}} and Amy Michelle ({{nee}} Le Mesurier), whose family were from [[Alderney]] in the [[Channel Islands]];{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=2}} both families were affluent, with histories of government service or work in the legal profession.{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=1–2}}{{efn|On his father's side, the Halliley family had been civil servants based abroad; Elton's father, Charles Bailey Halliley, was brought up in [[Sri Lanka|Ceylon]] where his father was a senior civil servant in the Customs Department.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=1}} Other members of the Halliley family held high ranks in the services, or positions of power in Whitehall.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=2}} Amy Le Mesurier's family included the Rev. [[Thomas Le Mesurier (priest, born 1756)|Thomas Le Mesurier]], a British cleric, lawyer and polemicist; [[John Le Mesurier (Alderney)|John Le Mesurier]], the last hereditary [[governor]] of [[Alderney]]; and Colonel Frederick Le Mesurier, the inventor of the [[RML 2.5-inch Mountain Gun|screw gun]].{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=1–2}}}} While John was an infant the family settled in [[Bury St Edmunds]], in [[West Suffolk (county)|West Suffolk]]. He was sent to school, first to Grenham House in [[Kent]], and later to [[Sherborne School]] in Dorset, where one of his fellow-pupils was the  mathematician [[Alan Turing]].{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=33}}

Le Mesurier disliked both schools intensely,{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=42}} citing insensitive teaching methods and an inability to accept individualism.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=39}}{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=31}} He later wrote: "I resented Sherborne for its closed mind, its collective capacity for rejecting anything that did not conform to the image of manhood as portrayed in the ripping yarns of a scouting manual".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=17}}

From an early age Le Mesurier had been interested in acting and performing; as a child he had frequently been taken to the [[West End of London]] to watch [[Ralph Lynn]] and [[Tom Walls]] perform in the series of [[Aldwych farce|farces]] at the [[Aldwych Theatre]]. In his childhood in Bury St Edmunds, the family lived less than 300 yards from the Theatre Royal, and his autobiography records meeting actors from that theatre as his earliest childhood memory.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=10}} These experiences fuelled an early desire to make a career on the stage.<ref name="Nimmo (DNB)" />{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=53}} After leaving school he was initially persuaded to follow his father's line of work, as an [[articled clerk]] at Greene & Greene, a firm of solicitors in Bury St Edmunds; in his spare time he took part in local amateur dramatics.<ref name="Nimmo (DNB)" /> In 1933 he decided to leave the legal profession, and in September he enrolled at the [[Fay Compton|Fay Compton Studio of Dramatic Art]]; a fellow-student was the actor [[Alec Guinness]], with whom he became close friends.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=58}}

In July 1934, the studio staged their annual public revue in which both Le Mesurier and Guinness took part; among the judges for the event were [[John Gielgud]], [[Leslie Henson]], [[Alfred Hitchcock]] and [[Ivor Novello]].{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=61}} Le Mesurier received a Certificate of Fellowship, while Guinness won the Fay Compton prize.<ref name="ST: Compton awards" /> After the revue, rather than remain at the studio for further tuition, Le Mesurier took an opportunity to join the [[Edinburgh]]-based [[Millicent Ward's Studio Theatre|Millicent Ward Repertory Players]] at a salary of £3.10s (£3.50) a week.<ref name="Nimmo (DNB)" />{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=63–64}}

===Career===

====1934–1946====
The Millicent Ward repertory company typically staged evening performances of three-act plays; the works changed each week, and rehearsals were held during the daytime for the following week's production.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=67}} Under his birth name John Halliley, Le Mesurier made his stage debut in September 1934 at the [[Palladium Theatre, Edinburgh]] in the [[J. B. Priestley]] play ''[[Dangerous Corner]]'', along with three other newcomers to the company.<ref name="Scotsman: Dangerous Corner" /> The reviewer for ''[[The Scotsman]]'' thought that Le Mesurier was well cast in the role.<ref name="Scotsman: Dangerous Corner" /> Appearances in ''While Parents Sleep'' and [[Cavalcade (play)|''Cavalcade'']] were followed by a break, as problems arose with the lease of the theatre. Le Mesurier then accepted an offer to appear with Alec Guinness in a John Gielgud production of ''Hamlet'', which began in Streatham in the spring of 1935 and later toured the English provinces. Le Mesurier [[understudy|understudied]] [[Anthony Quayle]]'s role of [[Rosencrantz and Guildenstern|Guildenstern]], and otherwise appeared in the play as an [[Extra (actor)|extra]].{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=69}}
[[File:Royal Lyceum Theatre 2.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Royal Lyceum Theatre]] in Edinburgh, where Le Mesurier appeared in numerous roles during 1938]]
In July 1935, Le Mesurier was hired by the [[Oldham]] repertory company, based at the [[Oldham Coliseum Theatre|Coliseum Theatre]]; his first appearance with them was in a version of the [[Wilson Collison]] play, ''Up in Mabel's Room''; he was sacked after one week for missing a performance after oversleeping.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=71}}{{efn|On hearing the story later, Noël Coward told Le Mesurier "A very sensible choice of play to sleep through, dear boy".<ref name="S Times: Worrier" />{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=29}}}} In September 1935, he moved to the [[Sheffield Repertory Theatre]] to appear in ''Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary'', and also played [[Malvolio]] in Shakespeare's ''Twelfth Night''. Le Mesurier later commented on the slow progress of his career: "had I known it was going to take so long, I might well have given the whole thing up".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=18}} In 1937 he joined the [[Croydon]] Repertory Theatre, where he appeared in nine productions in 1936 and 1937. During this period Le Mesurier changed his professional name from John Halliley to John Le Mesurier; his biographer Graham McCann observes that "he never bothered, at least in public, to explain the reason for his decision".{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=77}} Le Mesurier used his new name for the first time in the September 1937 production of ''[[Love on the Dole#The play|Love on the Dole]]''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=78}}

Le Mesurier first appeared on television in 1938, thus becoming one of the medium's pioneering actors. His initial appearance was in a production of ''The Marvellous History of St Bernard'' in which he appeared as Seigneur de Miolans in a play adapted from a 15th-century manuscript by [[Henri Ghéon]].{{sfn|Barry|1992|p=190}} Alongside the television appearance, he continued to appear on stage in Edinburgh and Glasgow with the Howard and Wyndham Players, at least until late 1938 when he returned to London and re-joined Croydon Repertory Theatre.

His second spell with the troupe ended a few months later when, from May to October 1939 he appeared in ''[[Gaslight (play)|Gaslight]]'', first in London and subsequently on tour. The reviewer in ''[[The Guardian|The Manchester Guardian]]'' considered that Le Mesurier gave "a faultless performance", and that "the character is not overemphasised. One may praise it best by saying that Mr. Le Mesurier gives one a really uncomfortable feeling in the stomach".<ref name="Guardian: Gas Light" />

From November to December 1939, Le Mesurier toured Britain in a production of ''[[Goodness, How Sad]]'',{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=83}} during which time he met the director's daughter, June Melville, whom he married in April 1940.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=86}} After spending January and February 1940 in ''[[French Without Tears]]'' at the Grand Theatre in [[Blackpool]], he returned to London where he was employed by the [[Brixton]] Theatre, appearing in a series of productions.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=306}} In his time in repertory, Le Mesurier took on a variety of roles across several genres; his biographer Graham McCann observed that his range included "comedies and tragedies, thrillers and fantasies, tense courtroom dramas and frenzied farces, Shakespeare and [[Henrik Ibsen|Ibsen]], [[Richard Brinsley Sheridan|Sheridan]] and [[Oscar Wilde|Wilde]], [[Molière]] and [[George Bernard Shaw|Shaw]], [[William Congreve|Congreve]] and [[Noël Coward|Coward]]. The range was remarkable".{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=69}}

In September 1940 Le Mesurier's rented home was hit by a German bomb, destroying all his possessions, including his call-up papers.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=88}} In the same bombing raid, the theatre in Brixton in which he was working was also hit.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=89}} A few days later he reported for basic training with the [[Royal Armoured Corps]];{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=90}} in June 1941 he was commissioned into the [[Royal Tank Regiment]].<ref name="LG 11 July 1941" /> He served in Britain until 1943 when he was posted to [[British Raj|British India]] where he spent the rest of the war.<ref name="Nimmo (DNB)" /> Le Mesurier later claimed that he had had "a comfortable war, with [[Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)|captaincy]] thrust upon me, before I was [[Demobilisation of the British Armed Forces after the Second World War|demobbed]] in 1946".<ref name="Guardian Obit" />

====1946–1959====
On his return to Britain, Le Mesurier returned to acting; he initially struggled for work, finding only a few minor roles.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=104}} In February 1948 he made his film debut in the [[B movie|second feature]] comedy short ''[[Death in the Hand]]'',{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=111}} which starred [[Esme Percy]] and [[Ernest Jay]].<ref name="BFI: Death in the Hand" /> He followed this with equally small roles in the 1949 film ''[[Old Mother Riley's New Venture]]''—where his name was misspelt on the credits as "Le Meseurier"<ref name="BFI: Old Mother Riley's New Venture" />{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=112}}—and the 1950 crime film ''[[Dark Interval]]''.<ref name="BFI: Dark Interval" /> During the same period he also frequently appeared on stage in Birmingham.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=306}}

Le Mesurier undertook several roles on television in 1951, including that of Doctor Forrest in ''The Railway Children'',<ref name="BFI: The Railway Children" /> the blackmailer Eduardo Lucas in ''Sherlock Holmes: The Second Stain'',<ref name="BFI: The Second Stain" /> and [[Saint Joseph|Joseph]] in the nativity play ''A Time to be Born''.<ref name="BFI: A Time to Be Born" /> The same year [[Tony Hancock]] joined Le Mesurier's second wife, [[Hattie Jacques]] (the couple had married in 1949 following his divorce from June Melville earlier that year) in the radio series ''[[Educating Archie]]''. Le Mesurier and Hancock became friends; they would often go for drinking sessions around [[Soho]], where they ended up in jazz clubs.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=136}} After Hancock left ''Educating Archie'' in 1952 after one season, {{sfn|Foster|Furst|1996|p=188}} the friendship continued, and Jacques joined the cast of ''[[Hancock's Half Hour]]'' during the fourth radio series in 1956.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=24}}
[[File:Its a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World Trailer17.jpg|thumb|left|[[Terry-Thomas]], alongside whom Le Mesurier appeared in ''[[Private's Progress]]'' and ''[[Carlton-Browne of the F.O.]]'']]
In 1952, as well as appearing in the films ''[[Blind Man's Bluff (1952 film)|Blind Man's Bluff]]'' and ''[[Mother Riley Meets the Vampire]]'',{{sfn|Browning|Picart|2010|p=127}} Le Mesurier also appeared as the doctor in ''Angry Dust'' at the New Torch Theatre, London. [[Parnell Bradbury]], writing in ''[[The Times]]'', thought Le Mesurier had played the role extraordinarily well;<ref name="Times: Angry Dust" /> [[Harold Hobson]], writing in ''[[The Sunday Times]]'', thought that "the trouble with Mr. John Le Mesurier's Dr. Weston is that he approaches the man too snarlingly&nbsp;... [it is] a notion of genius that would be unacceptable anywhere outside Victorian melodrama".<ref name="S Times: Angry Dust" /> In 1953, he had a role as a bureaucrat in the short film ''[[The Pleasure Garden (1953 film)|The Pleasure Garden]]'', which won the ''Prix du Film de Fantaisie Poétique'' at the [[Cannes Film Festival]] in 1954.<ref name="BFI: Pleasure Garden"/> After a long run of small roles in second features, his 1955 portrayal of the registrar in [[Boulting brothers|Roy Boulting's]] comedy ''[[Josephine and Men]]'', "jerked him out of the rut", according to [[Philip Oakes]].<ref name="S Times: Worrier" />

Following his appearance in ''Josephine and Men'', John and Roy Boulting cast Le Mesurier as a [[psychiatrist]] in their 1956 Second World War film, ''[[Private's Progress]]''. The cast featured many leading British actors of the time, including [[Ian Carmichael]] and [[Richard Attenborough]].<ref name="S Times: Private's Progress" /> [[Dilys Powell]], reviewing for ''The Sunday Times'', thought that the cast was "embellished" by Le Mesurier's presence, among others.<ref name="S Times: Private's Progress" /> Later in 1956 Le Mesurier again appeared alongside Attenborough, with small roles in [[Jay Lewis]]'s ''[[The Baby and the Battleship]]'' and Roy Boulting's ''[[Brothers in Law (film)|Brothers in Law]]'', the latter of which also featured Carmichael and [[Terry-Thomas]].{{sfn|Dimmitt|1967|p=51}}{{sfn|Castell|1984|p=120}} He was also active in television, in a variety of roles in episodes of ''[[Douglas Fairbanks Presents]]'', a series of short dramas.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=308}}

Le Mesurier's friendship with Tony Hancock provided a further source of work when Hancock asked him to be one of the regular supporting actors in ''Hancock's Half Hour'', when it moved from radio to television. Le Mesurier subsequently appeared in seven episodes of the show between 1957 and 1960, and then in an episode of a follow-up series entitled ''Hancock''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=138}} In 1958 he appeared in ten films, among them Roy Boulting's comedy ''[[Happy Is the Bride]]'',{{sfn|Maltin|Anderson|Sader|2003|p=584}} about which Dilys Powell wrote in ''The Sunday Times'': "[M]y vote for the most entertaining contributions&nbsp;... goes to the two fathers, John Le Mesurier and [[Cecil Parker]]".<ref name="S Times: Happy is the Bride" /> In 1959, the busiest year of his career, Le Mesurier took part in 13 films, including ''[[I'm All Right Jack]]'',{{sfn|Mayer|2003|p=206}} which was the most successful of Le Mesurier's credited films that year;{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=130}} he also had an uncredited role as a doctor in ''[[Ben-Hur (1959 film)|Ben-Hur]]''.{{sfn|Lloyd|Robinson|1988|p=294}}{{efn|The thirteen films in which Le Mesurier appeared in 1959 were: ''[[Our Man in Havana (film)|Our Man in Havana]]'', ''[[The Captain's Table]]'', ''[[Operation Amsterdam]]'', ''[[Ben-Hur (1959 film)|Ben-Hur]]'', ''[[The Lady Is a Square]]'', ''[[Jack the Ripper (1959 film)|Jack the Ripper]]'', ''[[The Wreck of the Mary Deare (film)|The Wreck of the Mary Deare]]'', ''[[Desert Mice]]'', ''[[Follow a Star]]'', ''[[Too Many Crooks]]'', ''[[Carlton-Browne of the F.O.]]'', ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]'' and ''[[I'm All Right Jack]]''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=310–311}}<ref name="BFI: JLM filmography" />}}

====1960–1968====
Le Mesurier appeared in nine films in 1960,<ref name="BFI: JLM filmography" />{{efn|The nine films were ''[[School for Scoundrels (1960 film)|School for Scoundrels]]'', ''[[The Day They Robbed the Bank of England]]'', ''[[Never Let Go]]'', ''[[Doctor in Love]]'', ''[[The Bulldog Breed]]'', ''[[The Pure Hell of St Trinian's]]'', ''[[A Touch of Larceny]]'', ''Let's Get Married'' and ''[[Dead Lucky]]''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=310–311}}<ref name="BFI: JLM filmography" />}} as well as nine television programmes, including episodes of ''[[Hancock's Half Hour]]'', ''[[Saber of London]]'' and ''[[Danger Man]]''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=308–310}}{{efn|The nine television programmes were ''[[Saber of London]]'' (two episodes), ''[[Hancock's Half Hour]]'', ''The Somerset Maugham Stories'', ''Play Gems'', ''[[The Adventures of William Tell]]'', ''Jazz Session'', ''[[Danger Man]]'' and ''The Third Man''.<ref name="BFI: JLM filmography" />{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=308–310}}}} His work the following year included a part in Peter Sellers's directorial debut ''[[Mr. Topaze]]'', a film which failed both critically and commercially.<ref name="Radio Times: Topaze" /> He provided the voice of Mr. Justice Byrne in a recording of excerpts from the transcript of ''[[R v Penguin Books Ltd.]]''—the court case concerning the publication of [[D. H. Lawrence]]'s ''[[Lady Chatterley's Lover]]''—which also featured [[Michael Hordern]] and [[Maurice Denham]]. J.W. Lambert, reviewing for ''The Sunday Times'', wrote that Le Mesurier gave "precisely the air of confident incredulity which the learned gentleman exhibited in court".<ref name="S Times: Lady Chat" /> Later that year he played Hancock's office manager in the first of Tony Hancock's two principal film vehicles, ''[[The Rebel (1961 film)|The Rebel]]''.<ref name="BFI: The Rebel" />

[[File:Peter Sellers at home in Belgravia, London, 1973.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Peter Sellers]], with whom Le Mesurier appeared in several films]]

In 1962 he appeared in [[Wendy Toye]]'s comedy film ''[[We Joined the Navy]]''<ref name="BFI: Cast: We Joined the Navy" /> before reuniting with Peter Sellers in ''[[Only Two Can Play]]'', Sidney Gilliat's film of the novel ''[[That Uncertain Feeling (novel)|That Uncertain Feeling]]'' by [[Kingsley Amis]]; Powell noted with pleasure "the armour of his gravity pierced by polite bewilderment".<ref name="Powell: Faces to remember" /> She compared Le Mesurier with the well-known American straight-face comedian, [[John McGiver]].<ref name="Powell: Faces to remember" /> After appearing in another Sellers film in 1962—''[[Waltz of the Toreadors (film)|Waltz of the Toreadors]]''—Le Mesurier joined him in the 1963 comedy ''[[The Wrong Arm of the Law]]''.<ref name="BFI: JLM filmography" /> Powell again reviewed the pair's film, commenting that "I thought I knew by now every shade in the acting of John Le Mesurier (not that I could ever get tired of any of them); but there seems a new shade here".<ref name="S Times: Wrong Arm" /> The same year, he appeared in a third Sellers film, ''[[The Pink Panther (1963 film)|The Pink Panther]]'', as a defence lawyer,<ref name="BFI: The Pink Panther" /> and in the second and last of Tony Hancock's starring vehicles, ''[[The Punch and Judy Man]]''. Le Mesurier played Sandman in the latter film; Powell wrote that the role "allowed a gentler and subtler character than usual".<ref name="S Times: Punch & Judy" /> He also appeared in a series of advertisements for [[Homepride]] flour in 1964, providing the [[voice-over]] for the animated character Fred the Flourgrader; he continued as the voice until 1983.<ref name="Mirror: Homepride" /><ref name="CET: Homepride" />

In a change from his usual comedic roles, Le Mesurier portrayed the Reverend Jonathan Ives in [[Jacques Tourneur]]'s 1965 science fiction film, ''[[City Under the Sea]]'', before returning to comedy in ''[[Where the Spies Are]]'', a comedy-adventure film directed by [[Val Guest]], which starred [[David Niven]]. In 1966 Le Mesurier also played the role of Colonel Maynard in the [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] sitcom ''[[George and the Dragon (TV series)|George and the Dragon]]'', with [[Sid James]] and [[Peggy Mount]]. The programme ran to four series between 1966 and 1968, totalling 26 episodes.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=309}} He also took a role in four episodes of a ''[[Coronation Street]]'' spin-off series,{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=180}} ''[[Pardon the Expression]]'', in which he starred opposite [[Arthur Lowe]].{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=215}}

====1968–1977====
In 1968 Le Mesurier was offered a role in a new BBC [[sitcom|situation comedy]] playing an upper-middle-class [[Sergeant Arthur Wilson]] in ''[[Dad's Army]]'';{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=208}} he was the second choice after [[Robert Dorning]].{{sfn|McCann|2001|p=56}} Le Mesurier was unsure about taking the part as he was finishing the final series of ''George and the Dragon'' and did not want another long-term television role.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=209}} He was persuaded both by an increase in his fee—to £262&nbsp;10s (£262.50) per episode—and by the casting of his old friend [[Clive Dunn]] as [[Lance-Corporal Jack Jones|Corporal Jones]].{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=214}} Le Mesurier was initially unsure of how to portray his character, and was advised by series writer [[Jimmy Perry]] to make the part his own.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=217}} Le Mesurier decided to base the character on himself, later writing that "I thought, why not just be myself, use an extension of my own personality and behave rather as I had done in the army? So I always left a button or two undone, and had the sleeve of my battle dress slightly turned up. I spoke softly, issued commands as if they were invitations (the sort not likely to be accepted) and generally assumed a benign air of helplessness".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=118}} Perry later observed that "we wanted Wilson to be the voice of sanity; he has become John".<ref name="Guardian: the breed" />

[[File:Dad's Army cast - 1971.jpg|thumb|left|Le Mesurier (second from left) with the cast of ''[[Dad's Army]]'', from the 1971 Christmas Special ''[[Battle of the Giants!]]'']]
[[Nicholas de Jongh]], in a tribute written after Le Mesurier's death, suggested that it was in the role of Wilson that Le Mesurier became a star.<ref name="Guardian: star dies" /> His interaction with Arthur Lowe's character [[Captain George Mainwaring]] was described by ''The Times'' as "a memorable part of one of television's most popular shows".<ref name="Times Obit" /> Tise Vahimagi, writing for the [[British Film Institute]]'s [[Screenonline]], agreed, and commented that "it was the hesitant exchanges of one-upmanship between Le Mesurier's Wilson, a figure of delicate gentility, and Arthur Lowe's pompous, middle class platoon leader Captain Mainwaring, that added to its finest moments".<ref name="BFI: Le Mez" /> Le Mesurier enjoyed making the series, particularly the fortnight the cast would spend in [[Thetford]] each year filming the outside scenes.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=245}} The programme lasted for nine series over nine years, and covered eighty episodes, ending in 1977.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=257}}

During the filming of the series in 1969, Le Mesurier was flown to Venice over a series of weekends to appear in the film ''[[Midas Run]]'', an [[Alf Kjellin]]-directed crime film that also starred [[Richard Crenna]], [[Anne Heywood]] and [[Fred Astaire]].<ref name="BFI: Midas Run" />{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=134}} Le Mesurier became friends with Astaire during the filming and they often dined together in a local cafe while watching horse-racing on television.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=137}} In 1971 [[Norman Cohen]] directed a [[Dad's Army (1971 film)|feature film of ''Dad's Army'']];{{sfn|Slide|1996|p=151}} Le Mesurier also appeared as Wilson in a stage adaptation, which toured the UK in 1975–76.{{sfn|Pertwee|2009|p=165}} Following the success of ''Dad's Army'', Le Mesurier recorded the single "[[A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square (song)|A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square]]" with "Hometown" on the reverse side (the latter with Arthur Lowe). This, and an album, ''Dad's Army'', featuring the whole cast, was released on the Warner label in 1975.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=311}}

In between his performances in ''Dad's Army'', Le Mesurier acted in films, including the role of the prison governor opposite [[Noël Coward]] in the 1969 [[Peter Collinson (film director)|Peter Collinson]]-directed ''[[The Italian Job]]''.<ref name="BFI: The Italian Job" /> The cinema historian Amy Sargeant likened Le Mesurier's role to the "mild demeanour" of his Sergeant Wilson character.{{sfn|Sargeant|2005|p=246}} In 1970, Le Mesurier appeared in Ralph Thomas's ''[[Doctor in Trouble]]'' as the purser;{{sfn|Halliwell|1994|p=304}} he also made an appearance in [[Vincente Minnelli]]'s ''[[On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (film)|On a Clear Day You Can See Forever]]'', a [[romantic fantasy]] [[Musical film|musical]].{{sfn|Harvey|1990|p=311}}

In 1971 Le Mesurier played the lead role in [[Dennis Potter]]'s television play ''[[Traitor (TV drama)|Traitor]]'', in which he portrayed a "boozy British aristocrat who became a spy for the Soviets";<ref name="Roberts2009">{{cite book|author=Jerry Roberts|title=Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YB6tyFdq5TcC&pg=PA60|date=15 June 2009|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-6138-1|page=60}}</ref> his performance won him a [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] "Best Television Actor" award.<ref name="traitor" /> Writing for the British Film Institute, Sergio Angelini considered "Le Mesurier is utterly compelling throughout in an atypical role".<ref name="BFI: Traitor" /> Chris Dunkley, writing in ''The Times'', described the performance as "a superbly persuasive portrait, made vividly real by one of the best performances Mr Mesurier {{sic}} has ever given".<ref name="Times: Traitor" /> The reviewer for ''The Sunday Times'' agreed, saying that Le Mesurier, "after a lifetime supporting other actors with the strength of a pit-prop, gets the main part; he looks, sounds and feels exactly right".<ref name="S Times: Traitor" /> Reviewing for ''[[The Guardian]]'', [[Nancy Banks-Smith]] called the role "his [[Prince Hamlet|Hamlet]]", and said that it was worth waiting for.<ref name="Guardian: Traitor" /> Although delighted to have won the award, Le Mesurier commented that the aftermath proved "something of an anticlimax. No exciting offers of work came in".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=127}}

Le Mesurier made a cameo appearance in Val Guest's 1972 sex comedy ''[[Au Pair Girls]]'', and starred alongside [[Warren Mitchell]] and [[Dandy Nichols]] in [[Bob Kellett]]'s ''[[The Alf Garnett Saga]]''.<ref name="BFI: Alf Garnett Saga" /> In 1974 he played a police inspector in a similar Val Guest comedy, ''[[Confessions of a Window Cleaner]]'', alongside [[Robin Askwith]] and [[Antony Booth]].{{sfn|Halliwell|1994|p=231}} The following year he also narrated ''[[Bod (series)|Bod]]'', an animated children's programme from the BBC; there were thirteen episodes in total.<ref name="Independent: Bod" />

====1977–1983====
In 1977 Le Mesurier portrayed [[Jacob Marley]] in a BBC television adaptation of ''[[A Christmas Carol]]'', which starred [[Michael Hordern]] as [[Ebenezer Scrooge]];<ref name="BFI: Christmas Carol" /> Sergio Angelini, writing for the British Film Institute about Le Mesurier's portrayal, considered that "although never frightening, he does exert a strong sense of melancholy, his every move and inflection seemingly tinged with regret and remorse".<ref name="BFI: Christmas Carol" /> In 1979 he portrayed Sir Gawain in [[Walt Disney]]'s ''[[Unidentified Flying Oddball]]'', directed by [[Russ Mayberry]], and co-starring [[Dennis Dugan]], [[Jim Dale]] and [[Kenneth More]].{{sfn|Umland|Umland|1996|p=188}} The film, an adaptation of [[Mark Twain]]'s novel ''[[A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court]]'', was hailed by ''[[Time Out (company)|Time Out]]'' as "an intelligent film with a cohesive plot and an amusing script" and cited it as "one of the better Disney attempts to hop on the sci-fi bandwagon".<ref name="TO: King Arthur's Court" /> The reviewers praised the cast, particularly Kenneth More's Arthur and Le Mesurier's Gawain, which they said were "rather touchingly portrayed as friends who have grown old together".<ref name="TO: King Arthur's Court" />

Le Mesurier played [[List of minor The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy characters#The Wise Old Bird|The Wise Old Bird]] in the 1980 [[BBC Radio 4]] series ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (radio series)|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'' and appeared on the same station as [[Bilbo Baggins]] in the [[The Lord of the Rings (1981 radio series)|1981 radio version]] of ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=287}} In the spring of 1980 he took the role of David Bliss alongside [[Constance Cummings]]—as Judith Bliss—in a production of [[Noël Coward]]'s 1920s play ''[[Hay Fever (play)|Hay Fever]]''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=283}}<ref name="Observer: Hay Fever" /> Writing for ''The Observer'', Robert Cushman thought that Le Mesurier played the role with "deeply grizzled torpor",<ref name="Observer: Hay Fever" /> while [[Michael Billington (critic)|Michael Billington]], reviewing for ''The Guardian'', saw him as a "grey, gentle wisp of a man, full of half-completed gestures and seraphic smiles".<ref name="Guardian: Hay Fever" />

He took on the role of Father Mowbray in [[ITV Granada|Granada Television's]] 1981 adaptation of ''[[Brideshead Revisited (TV serial)|Brideshead Revisited]]''.<ref name="BFI: Cast: Brideshead" /> He guest-starred in episodes of the British comedy television series ''[[The Goodies (TV series)|The Goodies]]'', and in an early episode of ''[[Hi-de-Hi!]]''.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=310}} His final film appearance was also Peter Sellers's final cinema role, ''[[The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu]]'', which was completed just months before Sellers's death in July 1980.{{sfn|Evans|1980|p=245}}

In 1982 Le Mesurier reprised the role of Arthur Wilson for ''[[It Sticks Out Half a Mile]]'', a radio sequel to ''Dad's Army'', in which Wilson had become the bank manager of the Frambourne-on-Sea branch, while Arthur Lowe's character, Captain George Mainwaring, was trying to apply for a loan to renovate the local pier. The death of Lowe in April 1982 meant that only a pilot episode was recorded, and the project was suspended.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=290}} It was revived later that year with Lowe's role replaced by two other ''Dad's Army'' cast members: [[Private Frank Pike|Pike]], played by [[Ian Lavender]], and [[List of Dad's Army characters#ARP Warden William Hodges|Hodges]], played by [[Bill Pertwee]]. A pilot and twelve episodes were subsequently recorded,{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=292}} and broadcast in 1984.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=308}} Le Mesurier also teamed up with another ex-''Dad's Army'' colleague, Clive Dunn, to record a novelty single, "There Ain't Much Change from a Pound These Days"/"After All These Years", which had been written by Le Mesurier's stepson, David Malin.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=290}} The single was released on KA Records in 1982.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=311}}

He appeared opposite [[Anthony Hopkins]] in a four-part television series, ''A Married Man'', in March 1983, before undertaking the narration on the short film ''[[The Passionate Pilgrim (1984 film)|The Passionate Pilgrim]]'', an [[Eric Morecambe]] vehicle, which was Morecambe's last film before his death.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=294}}

===Personal life===
{{Quote box|quote=<big>'''JOHN LE MESURIER''' Wishes it to be known that he conked out on November 15th. He sadly misses family and friends.</big>|source=Self-penned death notice in ''[[The Times]]'', 16 November 1983<ref name="Times conked out"/>|width=200px}}
In 1939, Le Mesurier accepted a role in the [[Robert Morley]] play ''Goodness, How Sad!'', directed by June Melville—whose father Frederick owned several theatres, including the [[Lyceum Theatre, London|Lyceum]], [[Shaftesbury Theatre|Prince's]] and Brixton.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=83}} Melville and Le Mesurier soon began a romance, and were married in April 1940.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=86}} Le Mesurier was [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|conscripted]] into the army in September 1940; after his demobilisation in 1946, he discovered that his wife had become an alcoholic: "She became careless about appointments and haphazard professionally".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=62}} As a result, the couple separated and were divorced in 1949.<ref name="Nimmo (DNB)" />{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=114}}

In June 1947, Le Mesurier went with fellow actor [[Geoffrey Hibbert]] to the [[Players' Theatre]] in London, where among the performers was Hattie Jacques.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=107}} Le Mesurier and Jacques began to see each other regularly; Le Mesurier was still married, albeit estranged from his wife.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=114}} In 1949, when his divorce came through, Jacques proposed to Le Mesurier, asking him, "Don't you think it's about time we got married?".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=74}} The couple married in November 1949{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=60}}<ref>[[General Register Office for England and Wales|General Register Office]], ''England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes'', volume 5c, p. 2328.</ref> and had two sons, [[Robin Le Mesurier|Robin]] and Kim.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=123}}

Jacques began an affair in 1962 with her driver, John Schofield, who gave her the attention and support that Le Mesurier did not.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|pp=122–123}} When Jacques decided to move Schofield into the family home, Le Mesurier moved into a separate room and tried to repair the marriage.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=162}} He later commented about this period: "I could have walked out, but, whatever my feelings, I loved Hattie and the children and I was certain—I had to be certain—that we could repair the damage".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|pp=86–87}} The affair caused a downturn in his health; he collapsed on holiday in [[Tangier]] in 1963 and was hospitalised in Gibraltar.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=165}} He returned to London to find the situation between his wife and her lover was unchanged, which caused a relapse.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=166}}

During the final stages of the breakdown of his marriage, Le Mesurier met [[Joan Le Mesurier|Joan Malin]] at the [[The Establishment (club)|Establishment club]] in Soho in 1963.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1988|p=96}} The following year he moved out of his marital house, and that day proposed to Joan, who accepted his offer.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1988|pp=69–70}} Le Mesurier allowed Jacques to bring a divorce suit on grounds of his own infidelity, to ensure that the press blamed him for the break-up, thus avoiding any negative publicity for Jacques.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=136}} Le Mesurier and Malin married in March 1966.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=180}}<ref>General Register Office, ''England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes'', volume 5b, p. 1040.</ref> A few months after they were married, Joan began a relationship with Tony Hancock,{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=183}} and left Le Mesurier to move in with the comedian.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=186}} Hancock was a self-confessed alcoholic by this time,{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1988|p=76}} and was verbally and physically abusive to Joan during their relationship.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=187}}

After a year together, with Hancock's violence towards her worsening, Joan attempted [[suicide]]; she subsequently realised that she could no longer live with Hancock and returned to her husband.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1988|pp=140–141}} Despite this, Le Mesurier remained friends with Hancock, calling him "a comic of true genius, capable of great warmth and generosity, but a tormented and unhappy man".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=111}} Without Le Mesurier's knowledge, Joan resumed her affair with Hancock and, when the comic moved to Australia in 1968, she planned to follow him if he was able to overcome his [[alcoholism]]. She abandoned these plans and remained with Le Mesurier after Hancock committed suicide on 25 June 1968.{{sfn|McCann|2010|pp=203–205}}

[[File:John Le Mesurier - geograph 2847147.jpg|thumb|left|The grave of Le Mesurier and his son Kim at St George's Church, Ramsgate, Kent]]
Le Mesurier was a heavy drinker, but was never noticeably drunk.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1988|p=143}} In 1977 he collapsed in Australia and flew home, where he was diagnosed with [[cirrhosis]] of the liver and ordered to stop drinking.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=262}} Until then he had not considered himself an alcoholic; he accepted that "it was the cumulative effect over the years that had done the damage".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1988|p=144}} It was a year and a half before he drank alcohol again, when he avoided spirits and drank only beer.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=277}}

Jacques claimed that his calculated vagueness was the result of his dependence on [[Cannabis (drug)|cannabis]],<ref name="Lewis (2007)" /> although according to Le Mesurier the drug was not to his taste; he smoked it only during his period of abstinence from alcohol.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=156}} Le Mesurier's favoured pastime was visiting the jazz clubs around Soho, such as [[Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club|Ronnie Scott's]], and he observed that "listening to artists like [[Bill Evans]], [[Oscar Peterson]] or [[Alan Clare]] always made life seem that little bit brighter".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=111}}

Towards the end of his life Le Mesurier wrote his [[autobiography]], ''A Jobbing Actor''; the book was published in 1984, after his death.{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=302}} Le Mesurier's health visibly declined from July 1983 when he was hospitalised for a short time after suffering a [[Bleeding|haemorrhage]].{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=294}} When the condition recurred later in the year he was taken to [[Ramsgate]] Hospital;{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1988|p=189}} after saying to his wife, "It's all been rather lovely", he slipped into a coma{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=298}} and died on 15 November 1983, aged 71.<ref>General Register Office, ''England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes'', volume 16, p. 1890.</ref> His remains were cremated, and the ashes buried at the Church of St. George the Martyr, Church Hill, Ramsgate. His [[epitaph]] reads: "John Le Mesurier. Much loved actor. Resting."<ref name="Farndale (2008)" /> His self-penned death notice in ''The Times'' of 16 November 1983 stated that he had "conked out" and that he "sadly misses family and friends".<ref name="Times conked out"/>{{sfn|McCann|2010|p=298}}

After Le Mesurier's death fellow comedian [[Eric Sykes]] commented: "I never heard a bad word said against him. He was one of the great [[wikt:droll|drolls]] of our time".<ref name="Mirror: Conked out" /> Le Mesurier's fellow ''Dad's Army'' actor [[Bill Pertwee]] mourned the loss of his friend, saying, "It's a shattering loss. He was a great professional, very quiet but with a lovely sense of humour".<ref name="Mirror: Conked out" /> Director [[Peter Cotes]], writing in ''The Guardian'', called him one of Britain's "most accomplished screen character actors",<ref name="Guardian Obit" /> while ''The Times'' obituarist commented that he "could lend distinction to the smallest part".<ref name="Times Obit" />

''[[The Guardian]]'' observed of Le Mesurier: "No wonder so many whose lives were very different from his own came to be so enormously fond of him".<ref name="Guardian: 2nd row" /> A memorial service was held on 16 February 1984 at the "Actors' Church", [[St Paul's, Covent Garden]], at which Bill Pertwee gave the eulogy.<ref name="Times: Memorial" />

==Approach to acting==
{{quote box|width=25em|align=right|quote=The character he cumulatively created will be remembered when others more famous are forgotten, not just for the skill of his playing but because he somehow embodied a symbolic British reaction to the whirlpool of the modern world—endlessly perplexed by the dizzying and incoherent pattern of events, but doing his best to ensure that resentment never showed.|source=—''[[The Guardian]]'', 16 November 1983<ref name="Guardian: 2nd row" />|salign =right }}

Le Mesurier took a relaxed approach to acting, saying, "You know the way you get jobbing gardeners? Well, I'm a jobbing actor&nbsp;... as long as they pay me I couldn't care less if my name is billed above or below the title".<ref name="Guardian: star dies" /> Le Mesurier played a wide range of parts, and became known as "an indispensable figure in the gallery of second-rank players which were the glory of the British film industry in its more prolific days".<ref name="Nimmo (DNB)" /> He felt his characterisations owed "a lot to my customary expression of bewildered innocence"{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=72}} and tried to stress for many of his roles that his parts were those of "a decent chap all at sea in a chaotic world not of his own making".{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=72}}

[[Philip French]] of ''The Observer'' considered that when playing a representative of bureaucracy, Le Mesurier "registered something&nbsp;... complex. A feeling of exasperation, disturbance, anxiety [that] constantly lurked behind that handsome bloodhound face".<ref name="Observer: Mesurier's multitude" /> The impression he gave in these roles became an "inimitable brand of bewildered persistence under fire which Le Mesurier made his own".<ref name="Guardian: 2nd row" /> ''The Times'' noted of him that although he was best known for his comedic roles, he, "could be equally effective in straight parts", as evidenced by his BAFTA-award-winning role in ''Traitor''.<ref name="Times Obit" /> Director Peter Cotes agreed, adding, "he had depths unrealised through the mechanical pieces in which he generally appeared";<ref name="Guardian Obit" /> while [[Philip Oakes]] considered that, "single-handed, he has made more films watchable, even absorbing, than anyone else around".<ref name="S Times: Worrier" />

==Portrayals==
Le Mesurier's second and third marriages have been the subject of two [[BBC Four]] biographical films, the 2008 ''[[Hancock and Joan]]'' on Joan Le Mesurier's affair with Tony Hancock—with Le Mesurier played by [[Alex Jennings]]<ref name="BBC: Hancock and Joan" />—and the 2011 ''[[Hattie (film)|Hattie]]'' on Jacques's affair with John Schofield—with Le Mesurier played by [[Robert Bathurst]].<ref name="BBC: Hattie" />{{efn|Robert Bathurst was subsequently cast to play Sergeant Wilson, Le Mesurier's character in ''Dad's Army'', when [[UKTV]] recreated the series' three [[Dad's Army missing episodes|missing episodes]] in 2019.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/news/5097/dads_army_2019_cast/ |title=Kevin McNally and Robert Bathurst to star in new Dad's Army |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=9 November 2018 |website=comedy.co.uk |access-date=26 June 2022 }}</ref>}} In ''We're Doomed! The Dad's Army Story'', a 2015 comedy drama about the making of ''Dad's Army'', Le Mesurier was portrayed by [[Julian Sands]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06t3m7t|title=We're Doomed! The Dad's Army Story!|publisher=BBC|access-date=19 July 2017}}</ref> Le Mesurier was portrayed by [[Anton Lesser]] in the BBC Radio 4 drama ''Dear Arthur, Love John'' on 7 May 2012.<ref>{{cite web|title=BBC Radio 4 - Drama, Roy Smiles - Dear Arthur, Love John|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01h6463|website=BBC|access-date=10 May 2022}}</ref>

==Filmography and other works==
{{main|John Le Mesurier on stage, radio, screen and record}}

==Notes and references==

===Notes===
{{notes}}

===References===
{{reflist
| colwidth = 25em
| refs =
                    <!--BFI references -->

<ref name="BFI: JLM filmography">
{{cite web|title=Filmography: Le Mesurier, John|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/81662?view=credit|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114081055/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/81662?view=credit|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=22 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Midas Run">
{{cite web| title= Cast: Midas Run |url= http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/49055?view=cast |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090118112557/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/49055?view=cast |url-status= dead |archive-date= 18 January 2009 |work=[[Screenonline]]|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=22 September 2012 }}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Cast: We Joined the Navy">
{{cite web|title=Cast: We Joined the Navy|url= http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/57416?view=cast |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090119012129/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/57416?view=cast |url-status= dead |archive-date= 19 January 2009 |work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=10 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Cast: Brideshead">
{{cite web|title=Cast: Brideshead Revisited: Julia Episode 6|url= http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/56511?view=cast|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090118015252/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/56511?view=cast|url-status= dead|archive-date= 18 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=10 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Christmas Carol">
{{cite web|last=Angelini|first=Sergio|title=Christmas Carol, A (1977)|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1153404/index.html|work=[[Screenonline]]|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=10 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Alf Garnett Saga">
{{cite web|title=The Alf Garnett Saga|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/27635|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090117234913/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/27635|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=24 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Traitor">
{{cite web|last=Angelini|first=Sergio|title=Traitor (1971)|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1009076/index.html|work=[[Screenonline]]|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=6 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Le Mez">
{{cite web|last=Vahimagi|first=Tise|title=Le Mesurier, John (1912–1983)|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/465317/|work=[[Screenonline]]|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=6 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: The Italian Job">
{{cite web|title=Cast: The Italian Job|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/37932?view=cast|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090118001125/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/37932?view=cast|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=5 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: The Pink Panther">
{{cite web|title=Cast: The Pink Panther|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/46487?view=cast|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090117124105/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/46487?view=cast|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=5 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: The Rebel">
{{cite web|title=Cast: The Rebel|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/25330?view=cast|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090117090557/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/25330?view=cast|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=5 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Pleasure Garden">
{{cite web|title=The Pleasure Garden|url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/blu-rays-dvds/pleasure-garden|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=30 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: A Time to Be Born">
{{cite web|title= A Time to Be Born (1951)|url= http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/557176|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090119025404/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/557176|url-status= dead|archive-date= 19 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=30 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: The Second Stain">
{{cite web|title=Cast: Sherlock Holmes (BBC, 1951): The Second Stain|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/556903?view=cast |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090530215526/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/556903?view=cast |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 May 2009 |work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=30 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: The Railway Children">
{{cite web|title= Cast: The Railway Children (BBC TV, 1951): An Illness and a Birthday|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/551166?view=cast|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090203181552/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/551166?view=cast|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 February 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=30 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Death in the Hand">
{{cite web|title=Death in the Hand (1948)|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/30908|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=29 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090903020331/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/30908|archive-date=3 September 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Old Mother Riley's New Venture">
{{cite web|title=Old Mother Riley's New Venture|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/44902|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116104112/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/44902|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 January 2009|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=24 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BFI: Dark Interval">
{{cite web|title=Dark Interval (1950)|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/30716|work=Film & TV Database|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=24 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131221041151/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/30716|archive-date=21 December 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>

                    <!--Newspapers -->
<ref name="Guardian Obit">
{{cite news|last=Cotes|first=Peter|title=The quiet man of comedy: Peter Cotes pays tribute to John Le Mesurier|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=16 November 1983|author-link=Peter Cotes|location=London|page=9}}</ref>

<ref name="Guardian: 2nd row">
{{cite news|title=The ubiquitous second row|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=16 November 1983|location=London|page=10|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/26318270/}}</ref>

<ref name="Times Obit">
{{cite news|title=Obituary: John Le Mesurier|newspaper=[[The Times]]|date=16 November 1983|location=London|page=14}}</ref>

<ref name="Guardian: star dies">
{{cite news|last=de Jongh|first=Nicholas|title=Dad's Army star dies|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=16 November 1983|author-link=Nicholas de Jongh|location=London|page=1|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/26318125/obituary_john_le_mesurier/}}</ref>

<ref name="ST: Compton awards">
{{cite news|title=Multiple Classified Advertising Items|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|location=London|date=22 July 1934|page=6}}</ref>

<ref name="Times conked out">
{{cite news|last=Le Mesurier|first=John|title=Announcements|newspaper=[[The Times]]|date=16 November 1983|location=London|page=26}}</ref>

<ref name="Scotsman: Dangerous Corner">
{{cite news|title=Palladium Theatre: 'Dangerous Corner'|newspaper=[[The Scotsman]]|date=4 September 1934|location=Edinburgh|page=6}}</ref>

<ref name="Guardian: Gas Light">
{{cite news|title=The Prince's Theatre: 'Gas Light'|newspaper=[[The Guardian|The Manchester Guardian]]|date=24 October 1939|location=Manchester|page=4}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Happy is the Bride">
{{cite news|last=Powell|first=Dilys|title=A Heroine from the Crowd|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=23 February 1958|author-link=Dilys Powell|location=London|page=23}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Private's Progress">
{{cite news|last=Powell|first=Dilys|title=Spellbound|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=19 February 1956|author-link=Dilys Powell|location=London|page=6}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Worrier">
{{cite news|last=Oakes|first=Philip|title=Worrier on the Warpath|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=7 February 1971|author-link=Philip Oakes|location=London|page=26}}</ref>

<ref name="Lewis (2007)">
{{cite news|last=Lewis|first=Roger|title=Carry On Hattie Jacques|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/non_fictionreviews/3668600/Carry-on-Hattie-Jacques.html|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|telegraph.co.uk]]|date=18 October 2007|author-link=Roger Lewis|location=London}}</ref>

<ref name="Times: Angry Dust">
{{cite news|last=Bradbury|first=Parnell|title=New Torch Theatre|newspaper=[[The Times]]|location=London|date=17 January 1952|page=2}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Angry Dust">
{{cite news|last=Hobson|first=Harold|title=Drama's Essence|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=20 January 1952|author-link=Harold Hobson|location=London|page=2}}</ref>

<ref name="Observer: Mesurier's multitude">
{{cite news|last=French|first=Philip|title=Mesurier's multitude|newspaper=[[The Observer]]|date=20 November 1983|author-link=Philip French|location=London|page=34}}</ref>

<ref name="Farndale (2008)">
{{cite news|last=Farndale|first=Nigel|title=Joan Le Mesurier had affair with Tony Hancock|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1579708/Joan-Le-Mesurier-had-affair-with-Tony-Hancock.html|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|telegraph.co.uk]]|date=24 February 2008|author-link=Nigel Farndale|location=London}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Wrong Arm">
{{cite news|last=Powell|first=Dilys|title=Old faces, new jokes|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=17 March 1963|author-link=Dilys Powell|location=London|page=41}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Punch & Judy">
{{cite news|last=Powell|first=Dilys|title=Skirmish at the beach|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=7 April 1963|author-link=Dilys Powell|location=London|page=41}}</ref>

<ref name="Powell: Faces to remember">
{{cite news|last=Powell|first=Dilys|title=Faces to remember|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=22 May 1966|author-link=Dilys Powell|location=London|page=29}}</ref>

<ref name="Times: Traitor">
{{cite news|last=Dunkley|first=Chris|title=Traitor|newspaper=[[The Times]]|date=15 October 1971|location=London|page=12}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Traitor">
{{cite news|title=Inside the enigmatic spy|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=10 October 1971|location=London|page=53}}</ref>

<ref name="Guardian: Traitor">
{{cite news|last=Banks-Smith|first=Nancy|title=Traitor on television|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=15 October 1971|author-link=Nancy Banks-Smith|location=London|page=10}}</ref>

<ref name="S Times: Lady Chat">
{{cite news|last=Lambert|first=J. W.|title=Hazards of the Old Bailey|newspaper=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=28 May 1961|location=London|page=33}}</ref>

<ref name="Independent: Bod">
{{cite news|last=Lister|first=David|title=Bod Recreated For a New Generation of Fans|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=26 September 2002|location=London|page=11}}</ref>

<ref name="Observer: Hay Fever">
{{cite news|last=Cushman|first=Robert|title=Inside Pinter's Hothouse: Theatre|newspaper=[[The Observer]]|date=4 May 1980|location=London|page=16}}</ref>

<ref name="Guardian: Hay Fever">
{{cite news|last=Michael Billington|first=Michael|title=Hay Fever|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=30 April 1980|author-link=Michael Billington (critic)|location=London|page=10}}</ref>

<ref name="Guardian: the breed">
{{cite news|last=Hutchison|first=Tom|title=Last of the breed|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=15 August 1970|location=London|page=6}}</ref>

<ref name="Mirror: Conked out">
{{cite news|last=Marshall|first=William|title=Just tell them I've conked out|newspaper=[[Daily Mirror]]|date=16 November 1983|location=London|page=11}}</ref>

<ref name="Times: Memorial">
{{cite news|title=Deaths: Memorial services|newspaper=[[The Times]]|date=17 February 1984|location=London|page=14}}</ref>

<ref name="Mirror: Homepride">
{{cite news|last=Breese|first=James|title=Your Money: Treasure Hunters|newspaper=[[Sunday Mirror]]|date=21 August 2005|location=London|page=55}}</ref>

<ref name="CET: Homepride">
{{cite news|last=Evans|first=Ann|title=Weekend: Food: Fred Has Still Got Flour Power|newspaper=[[Coventry Telegraph|Coventry Evening Telegraph]]|date=24 April 2004|location=Coventry|page=27}}</ref>

                    <!--Journals & Gazettes-->
<ref name="LG 11 July 1941">
{{London Gazette |issue=35218 |date=11 July 1941 |pages=4055–4056  |supp=y }}</ref>

<ref name="Nimmo (DNB)">
{{cite ODNB|last=Nimmo|first=Derek|title=Le Mesurier, John (1912–1983)|volume=1|date=January 2011|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/31350|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/31350|access-date=21 August 2012|author-link=Derek Nimmo}}</ref>

                    <!--Websites-->
<ref name="Radio Times: Topaze">
{{cite web|url=http://www.radiotimes.com/film/hqqzs/mr-topaze-1961|title=Mr Topaze|work=[[Radio Times]]|access-date=10 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="TO: King Arthur's Court">
{{cite web|url=http://www.timeout.com/film/reviews/81053/the-unidentified-flying-oddball.html|title=Unidentified Flying Oddball|publisher=[[Time Out (company)|Time Out]] |access-date=24 August 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="traitor">
{{cite web|title=BAFTA Awards 1971|url=http://www.bafta.org/awards-database.html?award=false&category=false&pageNo=3&year=1971|work=BAFTA Awards Database|publisher=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]]|access-date=2 September 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="BBC: Hancock and Joan">
{{cite web|title=Hancock and Joan|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/hancockandjoan/|work=BBC: Drama|publisher=[[BBC]]|access-date=11 January 2016}}</ref>

<ref name="BBC: Hattie">
{{cite web|last=Chamberlain|first=Laura|title=Ruth Jones stars in BBC Four drama Hattie|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/walesarts/2011/01/ruth_jones_hattie_bbc_four.html| work=BBC: Wales |publisher=[[BBC]]|access-date=22 August 2012}}</ref>
}}

==Bibliography==
{{refbegin|25em}}

* {{cite book|last=Barry|first=Michael|author-link= Michael Barry (television producer) |title=From the Palace to the Grove: Michael Barry|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XbxkAAAAMAAJ |year=1992|publisher=[[Royal Television Society]]|location=London|isbn=978-1-871527-40-7}}
* {{cite book|last1=Browning|first1=John Edgar|last2=Picart|first2= Caroline Joan (Kay)|author-link2= Caroline Joan S. Picart|title=Dracula in Visual Media: film, television, comic book and electronic game appearances, 1921–2010|year=2010|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=32-FBgZ1Ct4C&pg=PP1|publisher=[[McFarland & Company]]|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|isbn=978-0-7864-3365-0}}
* {{cite book|last=Castell|first=David|title=Richard Attenborough: a pictorial film biography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fHFZAAAAMAAJ|year=1984|publisher=[[The Bodley Head]]|location=London|isbn=978-0-370-30986-6}}
* {{cite book|last=Dimmitt|first=Richard Bertrand|title=An Actor Guide to the Talkies: A comprehensive listing of 8,000 feature-length films from January, 1949, until December, 1964|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rZNmAAAAMAAJ|year=1967|publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield|Scarecrow Press]]|location= Lanham, Maryland |oclc= 833091 }}
* {{cite book | last = Evans | first = Peter | year = 1980 | title = The Mask Behind the Mask | location = London | publisher = Severn House Publishers | isbn = 978-0-7278-0688-8 }}
* {{cite book| last1= Foster|first1=Andy|last2=Furst|first2=Steve|title=Radio Comedy 1938 – 1968 |year=1996|publisher=[[Virgin Books]]|location=London|isbn=978-0-86369-960-3}}
* {{cite book|last=Halliwell|first=Leslie|author-link= Leslie Halliwell |title=Halliwell's Film Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8TkqAAAAYAAJ|year= 1994|publisher=[[Harper Perennial]]|location=New York|isbn= 978-0-06-271573-9 }}
* {{cite book|last=Harvey|first=Stephen|title=Directed by Vincente Minnelli|year=1990|publisher=[[Museum of Modern Art]]|location=New York|isbn=978-0-06-016263-4|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/directedbyvincen0000harv}}
* {{cite book|last=Le Mesurier|first=Joan|author-link=Joan Le Mesurier |title=Lady Don't Fall Backwards: A memoir dedicated to Tony Hancock and John Le Mesurier|year=1988|publisher=[[Sidgwick & Jackson]] |location=London|isbn=978-0-283-99664-1}}
* {{cite book|last=Le Mesurier|first=John|title=A Jobbing Actor|year=1984|publisher=Elm Tree Books |location=London |isbn=978-0-241-11063-8}}
* {{cite book|last1=Lloyd|first1=Ann|last2=Robinson|first2=David|title=Seventy Years at the Movies|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CNJWAAAAYAAJ|year= 1988|publisher=[[Random House|Crescent Books]]|location=New York|isbn=978-0-517-66213-7}}
* {{cite book|last1=Maltin|first1=Leonard|last2=Anderson|first2=Cathleen|last3=Sader|first3=Luke|author-link1= Leonard Maltin |title=Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide 2004|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X7ZaIMp0aNQC|year= 2003|publisher=[[Plume (publisher)|Plume]]|location=New York|isbn=978-0-452-28478-4 }}
* {{cite book|last=Mayer|first=Geoff|title=Guide to British Cinema|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7FOX_OWDyHEC&pg=PA206|year=2003|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|location= Westport, Connecticut |isbn=978-0-313-30307-4 }}
* {{cite book|last=McCann|first=Graham|title=Dad's Army|year=2001|publisher=[[HarperCollins|Fourth Estate]]|location=London|isbn= 978-1-84115-308-7}}
* {{cite book|last=McCann|first=Graham|title=Do You Think That's Wise? The life of John Le Mesurier|year=2010|publisher=[[Aurum Press]]|location=London|isbn=978-1-84513-583-6}}
* {{cite book|last=Merriman|first=Andy|title=Hattie: The authorised biography of Hattie Jacques|year=2007|publisher=[[Aurum Press]]|location=London |isbn=978-1-84513-257-6}}
* {{cite book|last= Pertwee|first= Bill |author-link= Bill Pertwee|title=Dad's Army: The Making of a Television Legend|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HoqHel5bnfMC&pg=PP1 |year=2009|publisher=[[Anova Books]]|location=London|isbn= 978-1-84486-105-7 }}
* {{cite book|last=Sargeant|first=Amy|title=British Cinema: A Critical History|url=https://archive.org/details/britishcinemacri00sarg|url-access=registration|year=2005|publisher=[[British Film Institute|BFI Publishing]]|location=London|isbn=978-1-84457-066-9}}
* {{cite book|last=Slide|first=Anthony|author-link=Anthony Slide|title=Some Joe You Don't Know: An American Biographical Guide to 100 British Television Personalities|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_S4f-nobIxEC&pg=PA151|year=1996|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|location=Westport, Connecticut|isbn=978-0-313-29550-8}}
* {{cite book|last1=Umland|first1=Rebecca A.|last2=Umland|first2=Samuel J.|title=The Use of Arthurian Legend in Hollywood Film: From Connecticut Yankees to Fisher Kings|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LE5mGSVCd7wC&pg=PA188|year=1996|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|location=Westport, Connecticut|isbn=978-0-313-29798-4 }}

{{refend}}

==External links==
* {{BFI|4ce2ba17d9e7e|name=John Le Mesurier}}
* {{Screenonline name|465317}}
* {{IMDb name}}
* {{TCMDb name}}

{{British Academy Television Award for Best Actor 1960–1979}}
{{Portal bar|Biography|Comedy|England}}
{{Authority control}}

{{featured article}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Le Mesurier, John}}
[[Category:1912 births]]
[[Category:1983 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century English male actors]]
[[Category:Male actors from Bedfordshire]]
[[Category:British Army personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:Deaths from cirrhosis]]
[[Category:British male comedy actors]]
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[[Category:English male voice actors]]
[[Category:English autobiographers]]
[[Category:People educated at Sherborne School]]
[[Category:British people of Channel Islands descent]]
[[Category:People from Bedford]]
[[Category:People from Bury St Edmunds]]
[[Category:Royal Tank Regiment officers]]
[[Category:Burials in Kent]]
[[Category:English male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:Best Actor BAFTA Award (television) winners]]
[[Category:Alcohol-related deaths in England]]
[[Category:Royal Armoured Corps soldiers]]
[[Category:20th-century English male writers]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Bedfordshire]]