Ballard Berkeley appearing in Fresh Fields

Ballard Berkeley (born Ballard Blascheck; 6 August 1904 – 16 January 1988) was an English actor best remembered for his role in the British sitcom Fawlty Towers, in which he played the character of Major Gowen. Events 1538 - Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. Year 1904 ( MCMIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting on Events 27 BC - The title Augustus is bestowed upon Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian by the Roman Senate. Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works Fawlty Towers is a British sitcom made by the BBC and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975 Major Gowen was a fictional character played by veteran actor Ballard Berkeley in the hit BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.

He was born in 1904 in Margate, Kent, England. Margate is a Seaside resort town within the Thanet district of East Kent, England. KENT (1400 AM) is a Radio station broadcasting a Adult Standards/MOR format England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Berkeley served as a Special Constable with the Metropolitan Police during World War II, witnessing The Blitz at first hand [1]. A special (police constable ( SC or SPC) is a law enforcement officer who is not a regular member of a police force but is a member of a volunteer police auxiliary "Metropolitan Police" redirects here See also Metropolitan police. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Blitz was the sustained bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941 in World War II.

Acting

He also portrayed a retired military man (Colonel Freddie Danby) in The Archers, taking over the role from Norman Shelley; he also played a starring role in Fresh Fields as main character Hester's father Guy, was Uncle Greville in To the Manor Born, had a small role in the 1980 adaptation of Little Lord Fauntleroy, and appeared once in The Avengers. The Archers is a British radio Soap opera broadcast on the BBC 's main spoken-word channel, Radio 4. Norman Shelley ( February 16, 1903 – August 22, 1980) was an English actor best known for his work in radio in particular for the This article is about a British sitcom For the American national grocery store chain owned by Whole Foods see Whole Foods Market, and for the 1933 play by To the Manor Born is a British sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1979 to 1981 and in 2007 Fauntleroy redirects here For other uses see Fauntleroy (disambiguation. The Avengers was a British Television series featuring Secret agents in 1960s Britain. Earlier in his career, during the 1930s, he performed regularly in the so-called "quota quickies". The Cinematograph Films Act of 1927 was an act of the United Kingdom Parliament designed to stimulate the declining British film industry. One of his earliest roles was in the 1942 film In Which We Serve - he also appeared in the Hitchcock film Stage Fright

Berkeley later performed the role of 'The Major' in the radio comedy Wrinkles by Doug Naylor and Rob Grant, although it is never suggested that this was the same character as portrayed in Fawlty Towers. In Which We Serve is a 1942 War film that tells the story of the British destroyer HMS Torrin, as told in flashbacks by the survivors as Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE (13 Stage Fright is a 1950 Hitchcock Crime film starring Jane Wyman, Marlene Dietrich, Michael Wilding, and Doug Naylor is a British Comedy writer Science fiction writer and Television producer. Robert Grant is a British Comedy writer and Television producer, who was born in Salford and studied Psychology at Liverpool [2] He also played the role of Badedas the Blue, one of the wizards in the radio comedy series "Hordes of the Things"

His last notable role was as the Head of the Army in the animated film version of Roald Dahl's The BFG. Roald Dahl ( 13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British Novelist Short story Writer The BFG (which stands for "Big Friendly Giant" is a children's book written by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake, first published