Acting
Robert Dorning
Born May 13, 1913 · St Helens, Lancashire, UK
Died February 20, 1989 · aged 75
No biography available.
Known For
Evil Under the Sun · 1982Evil Under the Sun
★ 6.91982
MovieThrillerCrime
An opulent beach resort provides a scenic background to this amusing whodunit as Poirot attempts to uncover the nefarious evildoer behind the strangling of a notorious stage star.
Innocent Meeting · 1959Innocent Meeting
★ 6.71959
MovieDramaCrime
The daughter of a textile company owner falls in love with a young illustrator with a secret criminal past.
Cul-de-sac · 1966Cul-de-sac
★ 6.71966
MovieThrillerComedy
On the run and in search of help, two wounded gangsters find refuge in the secluded castle of a feeble man and his wife; however, under the point of a gun, nothing is what it seems.
Fanatic · 1965Fanatic
★ 6.61965
MovieHorrorThriller
A young woman is terrorized by her former fiance's demented mother who blames her for her son's death. Also known as Die! Die! My Darling!
School for Sex · 1969School for Sex
★ 3.71969
MovieComedy
Lord Wingate, aquitted after appearing in court for fraud, starts up a 'finishing school' to teach girls how to extract money from rich men, in return for a percentage of their gains. He enlists the help of the Duchess of Burwood as a teacher and Hector as fitness instructor. A probation officer friend supplies the first batch of pupils fresh from Holloway prison via a clapped out old mini bus. Suspicious neighbours and police together with newspaper reports naming the prison girls now hobnobbing in high society results in a raid and new court appearance for Lord Wingate. The Judge sentences him but plots to start up his own 'school for sex'.
Mona Lisa · 1986Mona Lisa
★ 6.91986
MovieCrimeDrama
George is a small-time crook just out of prison who discovers his tough-guy image is out of date. Reduced to working as a minder/driver for high class call girl Simone, he has to agree when she asks him to find a young colleague from her King's Cross days. That's when George's troubles just start.
Ragtime · 1981Ragtime
★ 7.01981
MovieDramaHistory
A young black pianist becomes embroiled in the lives of an upper-class white family set among the racial tensions, infidelity, violence, and other nostalgic events in early 1900s New York City.
The Human Factor · 1979The Human Factor
★ 5.81979
MovieThriller
When a leak of information in the African section of British Intelligence is discovered, a security man is brought in to investigate.
Movies
Evil Under the Sun · 1982Evil Under the Sun
★ 6.91982
MovieThrillerCrime
An opulent beach resort provides a scenic background to this amusing whodunit as Poirot attempts to uncover the nefarious evildoer behind the strangling of a notorious stage star.
Innocent Meeting · 1959Innocent Meeting
★ 6.71959
MovieDramaCrime
The daughter of a textile company owner falls in love with a young illustrator with a secret criminal past.
Cul-de-sac · 1966Cul-de-sac
★ 6.71966
MovieThrillerComedy
On the run and in search of help, two wounded gangsters find refuge in the secluded castle of a feeble man and his wife; however, under the point of a gun, nothing is what it seems.
Fanatic · 1965Fanatic
★ 6.61965
MovieHorrorThriller
A young woman is terrorized by her former fiance's demented mother who blames her for her son's death. Also known as Die! Die! My Darling!
School for Sex · 1969School for Sex
★ 3.71969
MovieComedy
Lord Wingate, aquitted after appearing in court for fraud, starts up a 'finishing school' to teach girls how to extract money from rich men, in return for a percentage of their gains. He enlists the help of the Duchess of Burwood as a teacher and Hector as fitness instructor. A probation officer friend supplies the first batch of pupils fresh from Holloway prison via a clapped out old mini bus. Suspicious neighbours and police together with newspaper reports naming the prison girls now hobnobbing in high society results in a raid and new court appearance for Lord Wingate. The Judge sentences him but plots to start up his own 'school for sex'.
Mona Lisa · 1986Mona Lisa
★ 6.91986
MovieCrimeDrama
George is a small-time crook just out of prison who discovers his tough-guy image is out of date. Reduced to working as a minder/driver for high class call girl Simone, he has to agree when she asks him to find a young colleague from her King's Cross days. That's when George's troubles just start.
Ragtime · 1981Ragtime
★ 7.01981
MovieDramaHistory
A young black pianist becomes embroiled in the lives of an upper-class white family set among the racial tensions, infidelity, violence, and other nostalgic events in early 1900s New York City.
The Human Factor · 1979The Human Factor
★ 5.81979
MovieThriller
When a leak of information in the African section of British Intelligence is discovered, a security man is brought in to investigate.
The Black Windmill · 1974The Black Windmill
★ 6.31974
MovieThrillerAction
A British agent's son is kidnapped and held for a ransom of diamonds. The agent finds out that he can't even count on the people he thought were on his side to help him, so he decides to track down the kidnappers himself.
They Came by Night · 1940They Came by Night
★ 6.31940
MovieCrimeDrama
A man is blackmailed into taking his brother's place in a gang for a jewellery heist.
The Ups and Downs of a Handyman · 1976The Ups and Downs of a Handyman
★ 4.31976
MovieComedy
A young handyman and his wife move to a small village and set up business. There, the handyman encounters numerous strange characters, including a local constable more inept than a squad car full of Keystone Kops; an elderly magistrate whose primary passion is spanking young women; a schoolmistress with a closetful of kinks; and more predatory housewives than the young man can handle.
I'm Not Feeling Myself Tonight · 1976I'm Not Feeling Myself Tonight
★ 3.61976
MovieComedy
Virginal nerd Jon Pigeon, manages to secure a job in a sex research institute where the patients run about the corridors naked, nude aerobics are encouraged and no man is safe from the crotch-grabbing tea lady. In his attempts to seduce pretty office secretary Cheryl, Pigeon invents a machine called Agnes that emits a 'sonic aphrodisiac' guaranteed to turn any man or woman into an slathering sex maniac. Although his attempts to zap Cheryl are singularly unsuccessful, Pigeon gets some interesting results when he accidentally turns the 'sex ray' on his bullying boss Nutbrown and the prudish Mary Watchtower.
Salt & Pepper · 1968Salt & Pepper
★ 5.31968
MovieComedyCrime
After discovering the body of a murdered female agent in their trendy Soho, London nightclub, groovy owners Charles Salt and Christopher Pepper partake in a fumbling investigation and uncover an evil plot to overthrow the government. Can our cool, yet inept duo stop the bad guys in time?
Confessions of a Pop Performer · 1975Confessions of a Pop Performer
★ 4.51975
MovieComedy
Either you've got it or you haven't - some like randy young Timothy Lea (Robin Askwith), manage to get it all the time! Signing up with a pop group, our boisterous hero progresses rapidly from local gigs to scoring a titillating hit with The Climax Sisters, with plenty of ribald adventures along the way!
Man About the House · 1974Man About the House
★ 4.91974
MovieComedy
An unscrupulous property developer wants to flatten the street to make way for new buildings. Householder George Roper is happy to take the offered money and run but his wife Mildred and their lodgers join with other residents to take a stand and keep things as they are.
Carry On Emmannuelle · 1978Carry On Emmannuelle
★ 3.91978
MovieComedy
The beautiful and sex-starved Emmannuelle Prevert just cannot inflame her husband's ardour. In frustration she seduces a string of VIPs, including the Prime Minister and the American Ambassador. A jealous lover gives a list of all her conquests to the national press and a scandal ensues. But will she ever manage to get her own husband into bed?
Lady in the Fog · 1952Lady in the Fog
★ 6.51952
MovieMystery
In this murder mystery, a woman's brother is killed in a freak accident, or so she believes. Fortunately for her, an American journalist is more suspicious and so begins roaming the London streets in search of the killer.
The Man Who Was Nobody · 1960The Man Who Was Nobody
★ 7.01960
MovieCrime
A slick young man buys a jewel with a cheque that bounces. He then disappears and both the police and a lawyer try to find him. The lawyer hires a female detective to track down the missing man, but when his body is found in the Thames the case is by no means over.
The Plank · 1979The Plank
★ 7.41979
MovieComedy
Classic short British comedy, full of stars, about two workmen delivering planks to a building site. This is done with music and a sort of "wordless dialogue" which consists of a few mumbled sounds to convey the appropriate emotion. TV remake of the 1967 short.
Smokey Joe's Revenge · 1974Smokey Joe's Revenge
★ 7.01974
MovieFamily
Three children rejuvenate an old traction engine and enter it for the County Championship.
Man Accused · 1959Man Accused
★ 7.01959
MovieCrimeDrama
Soon after celebrating his engagement to aristocratic heiress Kathy Riddle (Carol Marsh), engineer Bob Jensen (Ronald Howard) is accused by an insurance investigator of being a notorious -- and murderous -- jewel thief. Can Bob restore his reputation and regain Kathy's trust? Desperate to prove his innocence, Bob engineers a daring jailbreak and pursues the real culprit. Montgomery Tully directs this crime drama.
Moment of Indiscretion · 1958Moment of Indiscretion
★ 7.01958
MovieCrimeDrama
Janet Miller (Lana Morris) is a married woman caught in awkward circumstances after police investigating a murder come up with evidence, and a potentially lethal motive, which lead them to suspect her of committing the crime. Their suspicions increase when Janet is less than forthcoming about a visit she paid to a former beau. Happily, her loyal husband (Ronald Howard) swears by her innocence and quickly leaps into motion to find the real killer.
Pickwick · 1969Pickwick
1969
MovieMusicDrama
Pickwick is a British television musical made by the BBC in 1969 and based on the 1963 stage musical Pickwick, which in turn was based on the 1837 novel The Pickwick Papers written by Charles Dickens. It stars Harry Secombe as Samuel Pickwick and Roy Castle as Sam Weller. This television production was based on the stage musical Pickwick which had been a commercial success. It was adapted for the screen by James Gilbert and Jimmy Grafton. The musical had premiered in the West End in 1963, again with Harry Secombe in the lead role. Running at 90 minutes and made in colour, the TV musical again had lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and a score by Cyril Ornadel. The book was by Wolf Mankowitz and it was directed by Terry Hughes. The programme was first transmitted on 11 June 1969 and again on 26 December 1969. One of the better known songs from the score is "If I Ruled the World". The cast of this production differed somewhat from that of the stage musical.
TV Shows
Crown Court · 1972Crown Court
★ 5.71972
SeriesDrama
Crown Court is an afternoon television courtroom drama produced by Granada Television for the ITV network that ran from 1972, when the Crown Court system replaced Assize courts and Quarter sessions in the legal system of England and Wales, to 1984.
Bergerac · 1981Bergerac
★ 6.71981
SeriesDrama
Jim Bergerac is a detective sergeant in The Foreigners Office who likes to do things his own way.
While dealing with his own personal demons Bergerac has a knack of finding trouble, and sometimes causing it.
The Professionals · 1977The Professionals
★ 7.61977
SeriesCrime
The lives of Bodie and Doyle, top agents for Britain's CI5 (Criminal Intelligence 5), and their controller, George Cowley.
The mandate of CI5 was to fight terrorism and similar high-profile crimes. Cowley, a hard ex-MI5 operative, hand-picked each of his men. Bodie is a cynical ex-SAS paratrooper and mercenary whose nature ran to controlled violence, while his partner, Doyle, comes to CI5 from the regular police force, and is more of an open minded liberal. Their relationship is often contentious, but they are the top men in their field, and the ones to whom Cowley always assigned to the toughest cases.
No Hiding Place · 1959No Hiding Place
★ 4.81959
SeriesCrimeDrama
No Hiding Place is a British television series that was produced at Wembley Studios by Associated-Rediffusion for the ITV network between 16 September 1959 and 22 June 1967.
It was the sequel to the series Murder Bag and Crime Sheet, all starring Raymond Francis as Detective Superintendent, later Detective Chief Superintendent Tom Lockhart.
Dad's Army · 1968Dad's Army
★ 7.41968
SeriesComedy
Introducing the Walmington-On-Sea home guard. During WW2, in a fictional British seaside town, a ragtag group of Home Guard local defense volunteers prepare for an imminent German invasion.
The Sweeney · 1975The Sweeney
★ 8.01975
SeriesDrama
Jack Regan, an unethical officer of the Flying Squad, uses unorthodox methods to pursue criminals with the help of his partner, George Carter.
Thriller · 1973Thriller
★ 6.91973
SeriesDramaCrime
Thriller is a British television series, originally broadcast in the UK from 1973 to 1976. It is an anthology series: each episode has a self-contained story and its own cast. As the title suggests, each story is a thriller of some variety, from tales of the supernatural to down-to-earth whodunits.
Sykes · 1972Sykes
★ 6.71972
SeriesComedy
Classic sitcom starring Eric Sykes and Hattie Jacques as brother and sister twins who have to tackle the trials and tribulations of suburban life.
Mind Your Language · 1977Mind Your Language
★ 8.31977
SeriesComedy
Mind Your Language is a British sitcom broadcast on ITV. Created and written by Vince Powell, and directed by Stuart Allen, three series were produced by London Weekend Television between 1977 and 1979, and it was briefly revived in 1985 (or 1986 in most ITV regions) with six of the original cast members.
Jeremy Brown, a language teacher, tries to make a living by teaching English to immigrants. With pupils from India, France, China, and many other countries, his lessons do not always go as planned.
Rising Damp · 1974Rising Damp
★ 7.41974
SeriesComedy
Set in a seedy bedsit, the cowardly landlord Rigsby has his conceits debunked by his long suffering tenants.
Terry and June · 1979Terry and June
★ 6.51979
SeriesComedy
Middle-aged Terry and June Medford are beginning to find the trials of life more difficult as they try to succeed in their daily lives. The couple have just moved to Purley, south-east London... Aunt Lucy and the mynah bird have disappeared, as had the occasionally visiting daughters. Terry and June now mixed with friendly next door neighbour Beattie; Terry's chatty work colleague, Malcolm; and their gruff boss Sir Dennis Hodge. Otherwise, things were much as before, with Terry's pigheaded childishness causing no end of problems, usually thwarting June's attempts at leading a cosy life.
Till Death Us Do Part · 1966Till Death Us Do Part
★ 7.61966
SeriesComedy
This English follows the East End working-class Garnett family, headed by patriarch Alf, a reactionary working-class man who wields racist and anti-Socialist views. His long-suffering wife Else manages to keep things in control... for the most part. Their progressive daughter Rita lives with them, as does her Irish husband Mike, who, with an array of liberal worldviews, often quarrels with his father-in-law. It inspired the American show "All In The Family" and several other international variations on the same theme.
Hancock's Half Hour · 1956Hancock's Half Hour
★ 7.41956
SeriesComedy
Hancock's Half Hour is a BBC television comedy series of the 1950s and 60s written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The series starred Tony Hancock with Sid James. The final series, renamed simply Hancock, starred Hancock alone.
Comedian Tony Hancock starred in the show, playing an exaggerated and much poorer version of his own character and lifestyle, Anthony Aloysius St John Hancock, a down-at-heel comedian living at the dilapidated 23 Railway Cuttings in East Cheam.
The series was influential in the development of the situation comedy, with its move away from radio variety towards a focus on character development.
The Scales of Justice · 1962The Scales of Justice
★ 6.71962
SeriesCrimeDrama
The Scales of Justice is a series of thirteen British cinema featurettes produced from 1962 to 1967 for Anglo-Amalgamated at Merton Park Studios in London. The first nine were made in black and white, and the last four in colour. The finale, Payment in Kind, was Merton Park's final production.
Episodes were based on criminal cases, and each film was introduced by criminologist Edgar Lustgarten. The series derives its title from the symbolic scales held by the statue of Justice, situated above the dome of London's Central Criminal Court, The Old Bailey. The opening narration describes her as having "in her right hand, the Sword of Power and Retribution, and in her left – The Scales of Justice".
Bootsie and Snudge · 1960Bootsie and Snudge
★ 7.01960
SeriesComedy
Bootsie and Snudge is a British television situation comedy series written, in the early days, by Barry Took and Marty Feldman; later writers were John Antrobus, Jack Rosenthal, ventriloquist Ray Alan and Harry Driver. The plot follows Former Sergeant Major Claude Snudge meets up with Corporal Bootsie when they both start work at an exclusive Gentlemen's Club. Of the 104 produced episodes, 100 of these survive.
Q... · 1969Q...
★ 7.31969
SeriesComedy
Q... was a surreal television comedy sketch show from Spike Milligan which ran from 1969 to 1982 on BBC2. There were six series in all, the first five numbered from Q5 to Q9, and a final series titled There's a Lot of It About. The first and third series ran for seven episodes, and the others for six episodes, each of which was 30 minutes long.
Various reasons have been suggested for the title. One possibility is that it was inspired by the project to construct the Cunard liner QE2, launched in September 1967, which was dubbed Q4. Another theory is that Milligan was inspired by the BBC 6-point technical quality scale of the time, where "Q5" was severe degradation to picture or sound, and "Q6" was complete loss of sound or vision. This was extended by some engineering departments to a 9-point scale, finishing at "Q9". According to Milligan's autobiography, the final series was renamed There's a Lot of It About after the BBC felt the public might find Q10 too confusing.
Raffles · 1977Raffles
★ 8.41977
SeriesComedyCrime
Raffles was a 1977 television adaptation of the A. J. Raffles stories by Ernest William Hornung. The series was produced by Yorkshire Television and written by Philip Mackie. The episodes were largely faithful adaptations of the stories in the books, though occasionally two stories would be merged to create one.
In Victorian-era London, gentleman thief A. J. Raffles, a renowned cricketer, and his friend, the eager but naive Bunny Manders, test their skills in relieving the wealthy of their valuables whilst avoiding detection, especially from the persistent Inspector Mackenzie.
Happy Ever After · 1974Happy Ever After
★ 6.81974
SeriesComedy
Middle-aged, middle-class couple Terry and June Fletcher expect to settle down in domestic bliss when their children leave home and they are left with a quiet, peaceful house. Their peace, however, is short-lived when ditzy Aunt Lucy decides she’s moving in.
Pride and Prejudice · 1967Pride and Prejudice
★ 8.01967
SeriesDrama
The arrival of a young, well-off, eligible man named Mr. Bingley sends the Bennet household--with five girls of a marrying age--into a tizzy. But it's the introduction of Mr. Bingley's friend, Mr. Darcy, that sets in motion the fate of Elizabeth Bennet, resolved only after a labyrinth of social and personal complexities.
You're Only Young Twice · 1977You're Only Young Twice
★ 6.41977
SeriesComedy
You're Only Young Twice is a British sitcom produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV. Created and written by Michael Ashton and Pam Valentine, the programme ran for four series from 1977 to 1981, with a total of 31 episodes.
At the Paradise Lodge retirement home, Flora Petty and her sidekick Cissie Lupin attempt to thwart the long-suffering staff, led by Miss Milton. The duo are occasionally assisted by former theatrical artiste Dolly Love and the haughty Mildred Fanshaw.
The Bounder · 1982The Bounder
★ 7.01982
SeriesComedy
The Bounder is a British sitcom which ran from 16 April 1982 to 28 October 1983, made by Yorkshire Television. The series starred Peter Bowles as Howard Booth, an ex-convict who served two years in jail. He lives with Trevor Mountjoy who's his brother in law, and his wife Mary Rosalind Ayres. The latter left after Series one in 1982. It also starred Isla Blair as the next door widowed neighbour, Laura Miles. This series was created by Eric Chappell.
Not on Your Nellie · 1974Not on Your Nellie
★ 6.01974
SeriesComedy
When Jed Pickersgill finds himself too ill to run his Chelsea pub, The Brown Cow, he calls upon his middle-aged daughter Nellie for help. Nellie moves from Bolton to London to help, despite being a teetotal.
Hardwicke House · 1987Hardwicke House
★ 5.21987
SeriesComedy
Hardwicke House is a 1987 British sitcom produced by Central Independent Television for ITV. Seven spisodes were made, but the series was so poorly received that only the first two were transmitted.
In the large comprehensive school Hardwicke House, the staff of which are as dysfunctional as the pupils. One teacher is a multiple murderer while the deputy headmaster lusts after male pupils. One teacher, Moose Magnusson, is on an extended exchange placement because his own school in Iceland refuses to have him back.
The Galton & Simpson Playhouse · 1977The Galton & Simpson Playhouse
1977
SeriesComedy
A series of seven individual sitcom pilots from writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.