Nigel Patrick

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English actor and stage director (1912–1981)

title: "Nigel Patrick" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1912-births", "1981-deaths", "british-army-personnel-of-world-war-ii", "english-male-film-actors", "english-film-directors", "english-male-stage-actors", "english-male-television-actors", "king's-royal-rifle-corps-officers", "deaths-from-lung-cancer-in-england", "20th-century-english-male-actors"] description: "English actor and stage director (1912–1981)" topic_path: "history" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigel_Patrick" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary English actor and stage director (1912–1981) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]

FieldValue
nameNigel Patrick
imageNigel_Patrick.jpg
captionWith Beatrice Campbell in Grand National Night (1953)
birth_nameNigel Dennis Patrick Wemyss-Gorman
birth_date
birth_placeClapham, London, England
death_date
death_placeLondon, England
occupationActor, director, stage manager, writer
yearsactive1932–1981
spouse
children2
awardsZulueta Award – Best Actor
1960 The League of Gentlemen
::

| name = Nigel Patrick | image = Nigel_Patrick.jpg | imagesize = | caption = With Beatrice Campbell in Grand National Night (1953) | birth_name = Nigel Dennis Patrick Wemyss-Gorman | birth_date = | birth_place = Clapham, London, England | death_date = | death_place = London, England | othername = | occupation = Actor, director, stage manager, writer | yearsactive = 1932–1981 | spouse = | children = 2 | domesticpartner = | website = | awards = Zulueta Award – Best Actor 1960 The League of Gentlemen

Nigel Dennis Patrick Wemyss-Gorman (2 May 1912 – 21 September 1981) was an English actor and stage director born into a theatrical family.

During the late 1940s and 1950s, he became known as a debonair leading man in British films, though he could also portray rogues. He featured in The Sound Barrier (aka, Breaking Through the Sound Barrier, 1952), under the direction of David Lean.

Biography

Patrick was born in London, England, the son of Thomas Joseph Charles Aubrey Wemyss Gorman (born 1875 – died 19??) and actress Dorothy Hilda Turner (1890–1969).

Stage actor

He made his professional stage debut in The Life Machine at the Regent Theatre, in Kings Cross, London, in 1932 following a period in repertory. Thereafter he appeared in many successful plays, including Half a Crown (1934), Ringmaster (1935), Roulette (1935), The Lady of La Paz (1936) and Madmoiselle (1936)

He starred in the long-running George and Margaret (1937) at the Wyndham's Theatre, which ran for 799 performances.

He followed it with Tony Draws a Horse (1939) and Children to Bless You (1939).

Second World War

His acting career was put on hold until after service in the Second World War, during which, as a Lieutenant-Colonel in the King's Royal Rifle Corps, he fought in the Middle East, North Africa and Italy.

Film career

His debut film performance was as a reporter in a supporting romantic role in Mrs. Pym of Scotland Yard (1940). It was filmed in July 1939 and released the following year. After the war, Patrick appeared in Morning Departure (1946) on TV and Fools Rush In, Tomorrow's Child (1946) and Noose (1947) on stage.

Patrick had film roles in Spring in Park Lane (1948), Uneasy Terms (1948) and notably Noose (1948) playing a spiv. Patrick had a good part in Silent Dust (1948) and was promoted to star for The Jack of Diamonds (1949), which he also co-wrote.

He supported Patricia Roc in The Perfect Woman (1949), and had a key role in the film version of Morning Departure (1950) (a different part to the one he had played on TV).

Patrick was one of several names in Trio (1950) based on stories by W. Somerset Maugham and appeared in the Hollywood-financed Pandora and the Flying Dutchman (1951). He was the young teacher in The Browning Version (1951) with Michael Redgrave, and appeared in a popular comedy Young Wives' Tale (1951). He returned to the world of Maugham with Encore (1951) and was in Who Goes There! (1951) on stage.

Patrick reprised his Who Goes There! (1952) performance on film then played a test pilot in the popular The Sound Barrier (1952). He was then in Meet Me Tonight (1952) and The Pickwick Papers (1952). Due mostly to The Sound Barrier, exhibitors voted Patrick the seventh most popular British film star with the public, in 1952.

Patrick was in Grand National Night (1953) and was the ninth most popular British star. On stage he was in Escapade (1953) and Birthday Honours (1953).

The following year he was in Forbidden Cargo (1954) and was one of several British stars in The Sea Shall Not Have Them (1954). He supported Richard Widmark in A Prize of Gold (1955) for Warwick Films, who announced Patrick might direct In All Dishonesty for them on stage. It did not happen. Instead Patrick starred in a comedy All for Mary (1955). On stage he was in Green Room Rags (1954) and The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker (1955).

He had a major role in Raintree County (1957).

Director

For Warwick Films, Patrick starred in and directed How to Murder a Rich Uncle (1957).

He supported Jeffrey Hunter in Count Five and Die (1957) and appeared in The Egg (1957) on stage. Patrick made another for Warwick but as an actor only, The Man Inside (1958), with Jack Palance.

On stage Patrick directed No Way to Kill (1958) and Not in the Book (1958) and acted in and directed Pleasure of His Company (1959). He starred in Sapphire (1959), winner of Best British Film at the 1960 BAFTA Film Awards. It was directed by Basil Dearden who then used Patrick in The League of Gentlemen (1960). On stage he acted in and directed Settled Out of Court (1960).

Patrick made another for Warwick as an actor, The Trials of Oscar Wilde (1960), then made Johnny Nobody (1961) for them as director and actor.

He was in Zero One (1962–1965) on TV and starred in the tough crime thriller The Informers (1963).

Later career

Patrick appeared on stage in The Schoolmistress (1964) and Present Laughter (1965) and he directed Past Imperfect (1964) and Present Laughter (1965) and Alan Ayckbourn's Relatively Speaking (1967) at the Duke of York's Theatre. Film appearances included Battle of Britain (1969), The Virgin Soldiers (1969) and The Executioner (1970). He directed Avanti! (1968) on Broadway.

Other stage appearances included Best of Friends (1970), Reunion in Vienna (1971), Habeas Corpus (1974), The Pay Off (1974), Dear Daddy (1976) and Peter Pan (1978). He also worked steadily as a director.

Personal life and death

He married the actress Beatrice Campbell at St James's, Spanish Place, Marylebone, London on 12 January 1951. She predeceased him in 1979; he died, two years later, from lung cancer, on 21 September 1981.

Filmography

As an actor

As a director

As a writer

As a narrator

Theatre credits

As an actor

As a director/stage manager

Television

  • Morning Departure (1946) as Lt-Cmdr. Stanford
  • Zero One (1962–1965) as Alan Garnett
  • It Takes a Thief – "Flowers from Alexander" (1969)
  • Sunday Night Thriller – "Blunt Instrument" (1981) as Hugh Logan

References

References

  1. (22 September 1981). "Nigel Patrick, 68, Dies; Stage and Movie Actor". The New York Times.
  2. "Dorothy Turner with Laurence Olivier at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, 1927".
  3. (16 November 1950). "New film". [[The Advertiser (Adelaide).
  4. (8 October 1949). "Casting new Mills film". [[The Mail (Adelaide).
  5. (28 December 1952). "COMEDIAN TOPS FILM POLL.". [[The Sunday Herald (Sydney).
  6. (1 January 1954). "WORLD NEWS IN BRIEF". [[The Age]].
  7. Scheuer, P. K.. (Jun 13, 1954). "A TOWN CALLED HOLLYWOOD.". Los Angeles Times.
  8. Vagg, Stephen. (30 May 2025). "Forgotten British Studios: Group Film Productions".
  9. (24 November 1956). "BOGIE IS NO BOGEY". [[The Argus (Melbourne).
  10. S. W.. (Dec 30, 1956). "ON THE ENGLISH PRODUCTION SCENE". New York Times.
  11. Vagg, Stephen. (8 December 2025). "Forgotten British Film Moguls: Cubby Broccoli and Irving Allen".
  12. Vagg, Stephen. (4 July 2025). "Forgotten British Film Studios: The Rank Organisation, 1960".
  13. S. W.. (Apr 24, 1960). "Tax veto encourages industry -- 'oscar' race -- addenda". New York Times.
  14. Irish, T. R.. (May 17, 1960). "Ardmore to make two more films". The Irish Times.
  15. (3 April 1964). "New Detective Series Tonight". [[The Canberra Times]].
  16. (11 September 1952). "Girl Raiders Disturbed". [[The Newcastle Sun]].
  17. (23 September 1981). "Actor Nigel Patrick dies". [[The Canberra Times]].

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1912-births1981-deathsbritish-army-personnel-of-world-war-iienglish-male-film-actorsenglish-film-directorsenglish-male-stage-actorsenglish-male-television-actorsking's-royal-rifle-corps-officersdeaths-from-lung-cancer-in-england20th-century-english-male-actors