Bernard Joseph Cribbins (29 December 1928 – 27 July 2022) was an English actor and singer whose career spanned over eight decades.
During the 1960s, Cribbins became known in the UK for his successful novelty records "The Hole in the Ground"… Bernard Joseph Cribbins (29 December 1928 – 27 July 2022) was an English actor and singer whose career spanned over eight decades.
During the 1960s, Cribbins became known in the UK for his successful novelty records "The Hole in the Ground" and "Right Said Fred" and for his appearances in comedy films including Two-Way Stretch (1960) and the Carry On series. His other screen roles include the astronaut Vincent Mountjoy in The Mouse on the Moon (1963), Albert Perks in The Railway Children (1970), the barman Felix Forsythe in Alfred Hitchcock's Frenzy (1972) and the pretentious hotel guest Mr Hutchinson in the Fawlty Towers episode "The Hotel Inspectors" (1975). On television, he was a regular and prolific reader for the BBC series Jackanory from 1966 to 1991, he narrated the children's programme The Wombles (1973–1975) and he played the title role in the CBeebies series Old Jack's Boat (2013–2015).
In the 1966 film Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D., Cribbins portrayed Tom Campbell, a companion to Dr. Who. 41 years later, he began appearing in the revival series of Doctor Who as Wilfred Mott, the grandfather of regular companion Donna Noble and a temporary companion to the Tenth Doctor. He made his final appearance posthumously in the 60th anniversary special "Wild Blue Yonder" (2023).
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