Bill Owen

British born actor known for playing working class characters on film and TV. Born William Rowbotham, the son of a tram driver and laundress, he started playing drums in London nightclubs and toured music halls with his own cabaret act to pay for acting classes. He entertained at Butlin's holiday camps and performed in repertory, joining the Unity Theatre where he attained respect as a stage producer. His career was interrupted by military service with the Royal Army Ordinance Corps where he was injured in an explosion during a battle training course. Returning to acting, he started making a name for himself in such films as Johnny in the Clouds (1945), When the Bough Breaks (1947), Maniacs on Wheels (1949), and The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952). He continued to perform in the theatre limelight and peaked in roles with Katharine Hepburn in "As You Like It" in 1950, and with "The Threepenny Opera" and "The Mikado", which made use of his musical talents. A writer at heart, he penned songs, musicals and plays over the years. Partnered with Mike Sammes, he wrote songs recorded by Pat Boone, Harry Secombe, Engelbert Humperdinck and Sir Cliff Richard, who had a hit with his 1980 song "Marianne". In the 60s he produced the stage musical, "The Matchgirl", and focused heavily on film slapstick with the 'Carry On' series. TV stardom came late, in the role of Compo in the BBC's 1973 series "Last of the Summer Wine". When he died of pancreatic cancer in 1999, he asked to be buried in the Yorkshire village of Holmfirth, where the TV series was filmed. Owen was awarded the MBE in 1976 for his steadfast work for the National Association of Boys Clubs and for his role as chairman of the Performing Arts Advising Panel.

Known For: Acting

Born: Acton, London, England, UK, 1914-03-14

Died: 1999-07-12

No.	Year	Title	Role	Vote Average
1	1941	Tank Patrol	Geordie	0
2	1943	Breathing Space	(uncredited)	0
3	1945	A City Reborn		0
4	1945	The Way to the Stars	Sgt. 'Nobby' Clarke	61
5	1946	School for Secrets	Paratroop Sergeant	70
6	1947	Dancing with Crime	Dave Robinson	61
7	1947	When The Bough Breaks	Bill Collins	63
8	1948	Easy Money	Mr. Lee	60
9	1948	Daybreak	Ron	60
10	1948	My Brother's Keeper	Syd Evans	61
11	1948	The Weaker Sex	Soldier with Chicken	60
12	1948	Trouble in the Air		70
13	1949	Once a Jolly Swagman	Lag Gibbon	54
14	1949	Diamond City	Pinto	52
15	1949	Trottie True	Joe Jugg	70
16	1950	The Girl Who Couldn't Quite	Tim	60
17	1951	Hotel Sahara	Private Binns	53
18	1952	The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men	Stutely	61
19	1953	There Was a Young Lady	Joe	60
20	1953	The Square Ring	Happy Burns	71
21	1953	A Day to Remember	Shorty Sharpe	71
22	1954	The Rainbow Jacket	Sam	69
23	1955	The Ship That Died of Shame	Birdie	69
24	1956	Not So Dusty		63
25	1958	Davy	Eric	50
26	1958	Carve Her Name with Pride	NCO Instructor	58
27	1958	Carry On Sergeant	Corporal Bill Copping	64
28	1959	Carry On Nurse	Percy 'Perc' Hickson	64
29	1960	The Shakedown	David Spettigue	57
30	1961	The Hellfire Club	Martin	52
31	1961	Carry On Regardless	Mike Weston	64
32	1961	On the Fiddle	Cpl. Gittens	53
33	1963	Carry On Cabby	Smiley Sims	65
34	1964	The Last Word on Julie	Ray	0
35	1964	Kiss Me, Kate	Gangster	0
36	1964	The Secret of Blood Island	George Bludgin	0
37	1966	Georgy Girl	Ted	63
38	1966	The Fighting Prince of Donegal	Officer Powell	56
39	1968	Headline Hunters		0
40	1969	Mischief		0
41	1970	Unfair!	Worker	0
42	1973	O Lucky Man!	Supt. Barlow / Insp. Carding	69
43	1975	In Celebration	Mr. Shaw	48
44	1978	The Comeback	Mr. B	56
45	1983	Getting Sam Home	Compo	80
46	1984	Laughterhouse	Amos	50
47	1986	That's Television Television	Compo	0
48	1993	The Entertainer	Billy Rice	70
49	2022	Last Of The Summer Wine: 30 Years Of Laughs	Self (archive)	0

No.	Year	Title	Role	Vote Average
1	1951	Sherlock Holmes	Inspector Lestrade	0
2	1956	The Buccaneers	Clip West	55
3	1963	Taxi!	Fred Cuddel	0
4	1967	Man in a Suitcase		70
5	1968	Cilla	Self	100
6	1970	Catweazle	Pickle	75
7	1971	Coppers End		0
8	1972	Shirley's World		50
9	1973	Last of the Summer Wine	Compo (archive footage)	71
10	1973	Last of the Summer Wine	Compo	71
11	1973	Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?	George Chambers	77
12	1975	Angels		37
13	1979	Blankety Blank		46
14	1979	Tales of the Unexpected	Meakins	67
15	1981	Brideshead Revisited	Lunt	79
16	1982	The Kids International Show	Compo	0
17	1991	Performance	Billy Rice	60
18	1991	Noel's House Party	Compo	72

Bill Owen

Film

Television