Leslie Phillips

Leslie Phillips is a highly-respected British actor with a career that spans over six decades. He is known for his upper-class accent and suave charm. Despite his public persona of being a debonair aristocrat however, he came from a poor family. His high-class accent is the result of elocution lessons his mother made him take in order to procure better work. It paid off, and by 1938, he was earning money for the family through acting. At that time he was mainly a stage performer, working in dingy halls and playhouses, but also on the screen in various uncredited roles.

He received his first on-screen credit in the dramatic TV movie "Morning Departure" in 1948, and began to be featured in mainly light comedic roles. In 1952, he landed in his first recurring TV role, playing the son in the short-lived comedy/drama series "My Wife Jacqueline." Some of his earlier credits include the TV series "The Adventures of Robin Hood" in 1955, the 1962 John Wayne war film "The Longest Day," and the 1970 comedy "Doctor in Trouble," where he received top billing. After he married Bond girl Angela Scoular in 1982, he moved away from the campy roles that had made up much of his early career. Some of his later credits include 1987's "Empire of the Sun," and the voice of The Sorting Hat in the "Harry Potter" films. Leslie Phillips died on November 7, 2022 at the age of 98.