Jack Watson(1915-1999)
- Actor
Tall, rugged, red-haired character actor whose heavily lined face
suggested a hard life. Started in show biz with his father,
Nosmo King (real name Vernon Watson), as half
of a music hall double act. Later worked as a monologuist and
impersonator in radio. During the Second World War, he served as petty
officer in the Royal Navy. An unlikely comedian during the first half
of his career, he became a stalwart character actor in films of the
1960's and 70's, generally utilised as by-the-book police inspectors
(Peeping Tom (1960),
Konga (1961), or gruff, laconic soldiers
(The Hill (1965),
Tobruk (1967)). An avid sportsman in real
life, he was effectively cast as Len Miller, captain of a Rugby League
team, in Lindsay Anderson's
This Sporting Life (1963). He
also impressed in the villainous role of corrupt police officer Quince
in The Strange Affair (1968).
Watson's career was rejuvenated in the 1970's, with strong parts in television, particularly as the star of The Rebellious Red Gauntlets (1970) and as Llud, right hand man to Oliver Tobias, in Arthur of the Britons (1972). He also made sporadic appearances on Coronation Street (1960) and Z Cars (1962). A man of few pretensions, Watson rejected offers from Hollywood, and remained firmly rooted to British screens.
Watson's career was rejuvenated in the 1970's, with strong parts in television, particularly as the star of The Rebellious Red Gauntlets (1970) and as Llud, right hand man to Oliver Tobias, in Arthur of the Britons (1972). He also made sporadic appearances on Coronation Street (1960) and Z Cars (1962). A man of few pretensions, Watson rejected offers from Hollywood, and remained firmly rooted to British screens.
