Howard Lang
English actor (1911–1989)
title: "Howard Lang" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1989-deaths", "english-male-film-actors", "english-male-television-actors", "male-actors-from-london", "people-from-marylebone", "royal-navy-personnel-of-world-war-ii", "20th-century-english-male-actors", "royal-navy-officers", "actors-from-the-city-of-westminster", "date-of-birth-missing"] description: "English actor (1911–1989)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Lang" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary English actor (1911–1989) ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Howard Lang |
| image | Howard Lang as Captain William Baines.jpg |
| caption | Howard Lang (1975) |
| birth_name | Donald Yarranton |
| birth_date | 20 March 1911 |
| birth_place | Marylebone, London, England |
| death_date | 11 December 1989 (age 78) |
| death_place | West Hampstead, London, England |
| occupation | Actor |
| years_active | 1946–1986 |
| :: |
| name = Howard Lang | image = Howard Lang as Captain William Baines.jpg | imagesize = | caption = Howard Lang (1975) | birth_name = Donald Yarranton | birth_date = 20 March 1911 | birth_place = Marylebone, London, England | death_date = 11 December 1989 (age 78) | death_place = West Hampstead, London, England | othername = | occupation = Actor |years_active = 1946–1986}}
Howard Lang (born Donald Yarranton; 20 March 1911 – 11 December 1989) was an English actor known for playing Captain William Baines in the BBC nautical drama The Onedin Line.
Early life
Lang was born in Marylebone, London, the son of Edward John Yarranton (1884–1954) and Clara Ann (née Malkin) (1888–1921). His father had left the family's bookbinding business to become a senior commercial traveller for Winsor & Newton, the manufacturer of artists' materials.
Lang served for seven years in the Royal Navy including during World War II. In January 1941 he was appointed Temporary Sub-Lieutenant, and in January 1942 Temporary Lieutenant, a position he held until the end of the war.
His younger brother from his father's second marriage was Sir Peter Yarranton (1924–2003), chairman of the United Kingdom Sports Council from 1989 to 1994, and a notable figure in the world of rugby union, both as a player and as an administrator, for more than 40 years.
Acting career
For his role as seafaring Captain Baines in The Onedin Line (1971–1980) he gained international attention. In a 1977 interview in Radio Times Lang recalled a personal appearance in Norway: ::quote When the series was first shown in Norway I was asked to make a personal appearance in a small shipbuilding town. As I was brought into Grimstad by sea I caught sight of huge crowds – all of 3,000 townsfolk out on the quay to greet me. I learned afterwards that I had been received as family because almost every home had an ancient photograph of an uncle, cousin or grandfather dressed and sideburned precisely as I appear on The Onedin Line. ::
Lang's other parts included roles in The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1970), Z-Cars, Softly, Softly, The Vise, and an appearance as caveman Horg in three of the four episodes of the first Doctor Who story, An Unearthly Child. He also played Winston Churchill in the 1983 TV miniseries The Winds of War.
He also played the role of Bert Hudd in the first production of Harold Pinter's first play,The Room.
In an early seafaring role, he had a cameo in Ben-Hur as the hortator aboard a Roman galley leading up to the epic battle with an enemy fleet.
Howard Lang died in West Hampstead, London in 1989.
Filmography
Film
::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Great Expectations | Man at Magwitch's Trial | Uncredited |
| 1947 | Jassy | Juryman | Uncredited |
| 1950 | The Mudlark | Footman | Uncredited |
| 1951 | Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. | Officer aboard Cassandra | Uncredited |
| 1952 | The Floating Dutchman | Gaoler | Uncredited |
| 1953 | The Missing Man | Inspector Haslett | Uncredited |
| Counterspy | Policeman | Uncredited | |
| 1954 | The Blazing Caravan | Publican | Uncredited |
| The House Across the Lake | Inspector Edgar | Uncredited | |
| Beau Brummell | Heckler | Uncredited | |
| The Men of Sherwood Forest | Town Crier | ||
| Devil's Point | Marne, company executive | Uncredited | |
| 1955 | The Mysterious Bullet | Davy Charlesworth | |
| Stolen Time | Scotland Yard detective | ||
| 1956 | Keep It Clean | Police Sergeant | |
| Eyewitness | Cinema Commissionaire | Uncredited | |
| Destination Death | Police Sgt | Uncredited | |
| The Battle of the River Plate | Guns – HMS Exeter | Uncredited | |
| The Hideout | Greeko | ||
| 1957 | The Crooked Sky | Commissioner | |
| The Big Chance | Saw Mill Man | ||
| The Birthday Present | Cellblock Officer | Uncredited | |
| 1958 | Dunkirk | Chief, Sheerness Dockyard | Uncredited |
| A Night to Remember | Chief Officer Henry Wilde – Titanic | Uncredited | |
| Corridors of Blood | Chief Inspector | Uncredited | |
| 1959 | Behemoth the Sea Monster | Naval Commander | Uncredited |
| Innocent Meeting | Macey | ||
| A Woman's Temptation | Uncredited | ||
| Man Accused | Uncredited | ||
| Ben-Hur | Hortator | Uncredited | |
| Date at Midnight | Inspector | ||
| 1960 | Night Train for Inverness | Sergeant | |
| Jackpot | George | ||
| The Trials of Oscar Wilde | Court Usher | ||
| 1961 | Gorgo | First Colonel | |
| Feet of Clay | Warder | ||
| The Curse of the Werewolf | Irate Farmer | Uncredited | |
| 1963 | The Haunting | Hugh Crain | Uncredited |
| The Runaway | Norring | ||
| 1964 | Nothing but the Best | Jutson | |
| 1965 | He Who Rides a Tiger | Prison Governor | |
| 1966 | A Woman's Temptation | Uncredited | |
| 1967 | Frankenstein Created Woman | Guard | Uncredited |
| 1970 | Perfect Friday | Bank Commissionaire | |
| 1971 | 10 Rillington Place | Man in Pub | Uncredited |
| Macbeth | Old Soldier | Uncredited | |
| :: |
Television
::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Role | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1952–1955 | BBC Sunday-Night Theatre | Courier Pilot | Season 3, episode 29: Arrow to the Heart |
| 1954 | Fabian of the Yard | Harry | Season 1, episode 4: Bombs in Piccadilly |
| 1955 | The Hole in the Wall | 2nd Policeman | TV movie |
| 1955–1961 | The Vise | Police Sergeant | Season 2, episode 8: The Broken Link |
| 1956 | ITV Play of the Week | George Hutton | Season 1, episode 37: Come Read Me a Riddle |
| The Adventures of the Big Man | Balford | Season 1: (3 episodes) | |
| The Crime of the Century | Mr. Barton | Season 1: (2 episodes) | |
| 1956–1957 | The Adventures of Robin Hood | Landlord | Season 2: (2 episodes) |
| 1957 | Sword of Freedom | Major Domo | Season 1, episode 4: Caterina |
| ITV Television Playhouse | Watchman | Season 2, episode 44: And So to Bed | |
| Overseas Press Club - Exclusive! | Polish bosun | Season 1, episode 11: The Unknown Man | |
| White Hunter | Burrows | Season 1, episode 4: The No-Account | |
| 1957–1958 | O.S.S. | Bruehl | Season 1: (3 episodes) |
| 1958 | African Patrol | Brad | Season 1: (2 episodes) |
| The Adventures of William Tell | Schmidt | Season 1: (3 episodes) | |
| 1959–1960 | Interpol Calling | Commander Siddons | Season 1: (2 episodes) |
| 1959–1962 | Dixon of Dock Green | 1st Carter | Season 5, episode 22: A Case for the Inland Revenue |
| 1960 | Man From Interpol | Sergeant | Season 1, episode 7: Love by Extortion |
| The Strange World of Gurney Slade | Season 1, episode 3 | ||
| Knight Errant Limited | Dr. O'Kelly | Season 3, episode 10: The Conspirators | |
| 1961 | Rendezvous | Goddard | Season 1, episode 29: The Executioner |
| 1961–1962 | Sir Francis Drake | Richard Grenville | Season 1: (15 episodes) |
| 1962 | The Cheaters | Willie | Season 2, episode 18: The Dashing Major |
| 1963 | Richard the Lionheart | First Shepard | Season 1, episode 28: Capture |
| Sergeant Cork | Drayman | Season 1, episode 1: Case of the Reluctant Window | |
| Doctor Who | Horg | Season 1: (3 episodes) | |
| 1964 | Espionage | Ted Newcombe | Season 1, episode 19: Snow on Mount Kama |
| HMS Paradise | Commander Bell | Season 1, episode 3: An Officer and a Gentleman | |
| Gideon's Way | Sgt. Fowler | Season 1, episode 6: The Lady Killer | |
| 1964–1969 | Z-Cars | Brown | Season 4, episode 6: Somebody Said... |
| 1965 | The Scales of Justice | Abbott | Season 1, episode 6: Personal and Confidential |
| Theatre 625 | Grimmett | Season 3, episode 10: * The World of George Orwell: Coming Up for Air* | |
| 1966 | The Wednesday Play | Dart player | Season 1, episode 54: A Walk in the Sea |
| King of the River | Captain Friar | Season 1, episode 12: Flash Point | |
| 1966–1969 | Softly, Softly | Dobson | Season 1, episode 19: The Short Cut |
| 1968 | Freewheelers | Admiral Nash | Season 1: (3 episodes) |
| Georgia Brown Sings Kurt Weill | Narrator | TV movie | |
| 1969 | W. Somerset Maugham | Clark | Season 1, episode 4: The Letter |
| Detective | Packer | Season 3, episode 7: Elimination Round | |
| 1970 | The Six Wives of Henry VIII | Sir John Seymour | Season 1, episode 3: Jane Seymour |
| Macbeth | Siward | Season 1, episode 5 | |
| 1971 | The Persuaders! | Coalition Club Member | Season 1, episode 6: The Time and Place |
| 1971–1980 | The Onedin Line | Captain Baines | Season 1: (15 episodes) |
| 1972 | It's Murder But Is It Art | Chief Constable | Season 1 (3 episodes) |
| 1974 | King Thrushbeard and the Proud Princess | King Geoffrey | TV movie |
| 1976 | The Basil Brush Show | Unknown | |
| 1983 | The Winds of War | Winston Churchill | Season 1 (4 episodes) |
| 1984 | The Last Days of Pompeii | Medon | Season 2, episode 5 |
| Jane | Churchill | Season 1; (3 episodes) | |
| 1985 | The Pickwick Papers | Tony Weller | Season 1 (3 episodes) |
| 1986 | The Pyrates | Captain Yardley | TV movie, (final film role) |
| :: |
References
References
- [http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/42965/person/1157938861 Donald Yarranton Family Entry] on [[Ancestry.com]] {{subscription required
- [http://interactive.ancestry.co.uk/2406/40565_625988_2618-00384/8412479?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.co.uk%2f%2fcgi-bin%2fsse.dll%3frank%3d1%26new%3d1%26MSAV%3d1%26gss%3dangs-c%26gsfn%3dDonald%26gsln%3dYarranton%2b%26msbdy%3d1911%26msbpn__ftp%3dLondon%252c%2bLondon%252c%2bEngland%26msbpn%3d85535%26msbpn_PInfo%3d8-%257c0%257c0%257c3257%257c3251%257c0%257c0%257c0%257c5274%257c85535%257c0%257c%26msddy%3d1989%26msmns0%3dMalkin%26gskw%3dHoward%2bLang%2b%26cpxt%3d1%26catBucket%3drstp%26uidh%3drc8%26cp%3d11%26pcat%3d39%26h%3d8412479%26recoff%3d2%2b3%26db%3dUKNavyLists%26indiv%3d1%26ml_rpos%3d1&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnRecord UK Navy Lists, 1888–1970 (1941) for Donald Yarranton] – [[Ancestry.com]] {{subscription required}}
- [http://interactive.ancestry.co.uk/2406/40565_606246_0907-00493/7987532?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.co.uk%2f%2fcgi-bin%2fsse.dll%3frank%3d1%26new%3d1%26MSAV%3d1%26gss%3dangs-c%26gsfn%3dDonald%26gsln%3dYarranton%2b%26msbdy%3d1911%26msbpn__ftp%3dLondon%252c%2bLondon%252c%2bEngland%26msbpn%3d85535%26msbpn_PInfo%3d8-%257c0%257c0%257c3257%257c3251%257c0%257c0%257c0%257c5274%257c85535%257c0%257c%26msddy%3d1989%26msmns0%3dMalkin%26gskw%3dHoward%2bLang%2b%26cpxt%3d1%26catBucket%3drstp%26uidh%3drc8%26cp%3d11%26pcat%3d39%26h%3d7987532%26recoff%3d2%2b3%26db%3dUKNavyLists%26indiv%3d1%26ml_rpos%3d2&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnRecord UK Navy Lists, 1888–1970 (1942) for Donald Yarranton] – [[Ancestry.com]] {{subscription required}}
- [http://interactive.ancestry.co.uk/2406/40565_606246_0896-00390/8856598?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.co.uk%2f%2fcgi-bin%2fsse.dll%3frank%3d1%26new%3d1%26MSAV%3d1%26gss%3dangs-c%26gsfn%3dDonald%26gsln%3dYarranton%2b%26msbdy%3d1911%26msbpn__ftp%3dLondon%252c%2bLondon%252c%2bEngland%26msbpn%3d85535%26msbpn_PInfo%3d8-%257c0%257c0%257c3257%257c3251%257c0%257c0%257c0%257c5274%257c85535%257c0%257c%26msddy%3d1989%26msmns0%3dMalkin%26gskw%3dHoward%2bLang%2b%26cpxt%3d1%26catBucket%3drstp%26uidh%3drc8%26cp%3d11%26pcat%3d39%26h%3d8856598%26recoff%3d2%2b3%26db%3dUKNavyLists%26indiv%3d1%26ml_rpos%3d4&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnRecord UK Navy Lists, 1888–1970 (1945) for Donald Yarranton] – [[Ancestry.com]] {{subscription required}}
- [http://www.gilmore-stallybrass.eu/html/onedin/interv_art/tol_interv_art_rt1977.htm "Life On The Ocean Wave"], ''[[Radio Times]]'', 25 June – 1 July 1977 as reproduced on the Peter Gilmore-Anne Stallybrass website
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