View source for Denis Quilley

{{Short description|English actor, singer (1927–2003)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2016}}
{{Infobox person
| name            = Denis Quilley
| honorific_suffix = [[Order of the British Empire#Current classes|OBE]]
| image           = Denis-Quilley.jpg
| caption         = Quilley c. 1960
| birth_name      = Denis Clifford Quilley
| birth_date      = {{Birth date|1927|12|26|df=y}}
| birth_place     = [[Islington]], [[London]], England
| death_date      = {{Death date and age|2003|10|5|1927|12|26|df=y}}
| death_place     = London, England
| other_names     =
| years_active    = Actor
| spouse          = {{marriage|Stella Chapman|1949}}
| children        = 3
}}

'''Denis Clifford Quilley''' (26 December 1927 – 5 October 2003) was an English actor and singer.
From a family with no theatrical connections, Quilley was determined from an early age to become an actor. He was taken on by the [[Birmingham Repertory Theatre]] in his teens, and after a break for compulsory military service he began a [[West End theatre|West End]] career in 1950, succeeding [[Richard Burton]] in ''[[The Lady's Not For Burning]]''. In the 1950s he appeared in [[revue]], [[Musical theatre|musicals]], [[operetta]] and on television as well as in classic and modern drama in the theatre.

During the 1960s Quilley established himself as a leading actor, making his first films and starring on Australian television. In the early 1970s he was a member of [[Laurence Olivier]]'s [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] company. He joined the [[Royal Shakespeare Company]] in 1977 in the central role in ''[[Privates on Parade]]'', which was later made into a feature film. His later parts in musicals included the title role in ''[[Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street|Sweeney Todd]]'' (1980) and Georges in ''[[La Cage aux Folles (musical)|La Cage aux Folles]]'' (1986).

In the 1990s Quilley returned to the National Theatre company, playing a wide range of parts, from Shakespearean comedy to Jacobean revenge tragedy, Victorian classics and his final role, a bibulous millionaire in the musical ''[[Anything Goes]]''.

==Life and career==

===Early years===
Quilley was born in [[Islington]], [[North London]], the son of Clifford Charles Quilley, a Post Office telegraphist, and his wife Ada Winifred, ''née'' Stanley.<ref name=who>Gaye, p. 1085</ref><ref name=guardian>Barker, Dennis. "Denis Quilley – Gifted actor whose versatility belied his great strengths", ''The Guardian'', 7 October 2003, p. 29</ref> He won a scholarship to [[Bancroft's School]] in [[Woodford Green]], London, and was expected to go from there to a university, but he was determined to become an actor as soon as possible.<ref name=guardian/>  He made his stage debut with the [[Birmingham Repertory Theatre]] Company, during the 1945 season, in a company that, he recalled, included [[Paul Scofield]], [[Stanley Baker]], [[Paul Eddington]], [[Alun Owen]] and "a 20-year-old ''wunderkind'' director called [[Peter Brook]], of whom everybody was already in some awe."<ref name=norman/><ref>Hebert, Hugh. "An Antony in search of his Cleo", ''The Guardian'', 31 January 1983, p. 11</ref>

Quilley's early career was interrupted when he was conscripted for [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|national service]] in the army, based in [[Khartoum]].<ref name=guardian/> His first London appearance after his release from the forces was at the [[Gielgud Theatre|Globe]] in 1950, when he took over the part of Richard in [[John Gielgud]]'s production of ''[[The Lady's Not For Burning]]'' from [[Richard Burton]], whom he had understudied in the early months of the run.<ref name=who/> The understudy to [[Claire Bloom]] in the play was Stella Chapman, whom Quilley married in 1949. They had a son and two daughters.<ref name=guardian/>

Later in 1950 Quilley joined the [[Old Vic]] Company for a [[British Council]] tour of Italy, playing Fabian in ''[[Twelfth Night]]'' and Gratiano in ''[[The Merchant of Venice]]''.<ref name=dt>[http://docs.newsbank.com/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:UKNB:DST1&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0FE0F816B5B50062&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=102CDD40F14C6BDA "Denis Quilley: Actor who was one of the most gifted performers of his generation, ranging from the classics to broad farce"], ''The Daily Telegraph'', 7 October 2003</ref>  He took part in a revival of the 17th century gigue ''Michael and Francis'' at [[Hampton Court]] as part of the [[Festival of Britain]] in 1951,<ref>News: Summer Festivals. ''[[Opera (British magazine)|Opera]]'', July 1951, Vol.5 No.1, p413.</ref> and sang in other performances by the London Opera Club alongside established opera singers, including their fifth anniversary concert at the Arts Council in 1953.<ref>News - Great Britain. ''Opera'', July 1954, Vol.5 No.1, p28.</ref> In 1953 he appeared in [[revue]], with [[Max Adrian]], [[Betty Marsden]] and [[Moyra Fraser]] in ''[[Airs on a Shoestring]],'' which ran for more than 700 performances.<ref name=who/>  In 1955 he  had his first leading role in a West End production, playing Geoffrey Morris in the musical ''Wild Thyme'', by [[Philip Guard]] and [[Donald Swann]]. In ''[[The Manchester Guardian]]'', [[Philip Hope-Wallace]] wrote, "Denis Quilley turns out a comparatively rare figure nowadays: a presentable singing English hero, a most likeable performance."<ref>Hope-Wallace, Philip. "Another simple musical: ''Wild Thyme''", ''The Manchester Guardian'', 15 July 1955, p. 7</ref> In 1956 Quilley opened in another long-running show, ''[[Grab Me a Gondola]]'' which played for more than 600 performances.<ref name=who/>

One of Quilley's other singing roles of the 1950s was the title character in [[Leonard Bernstein]]'s [[operetta]]  ''[[Candide (operetta)|Candide]]''. It ran for only sixty performances in this first London production in 1959; Quilley returned to the piece later in his career, playing the bombastic Baron and the misanthropic Martin in a [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] production in 1999.<ref>[http://catalogue.nationaltheatre.org.uk/CalmView/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Performance&id=1609&pos=1 "Candide"] National Theatre archive, retrieved 18 April 2014</ref> Quilley made no cinema films in the 1950s, but appeared in several television productions, ranging from Shakespeare (Bassanio in ''The Merchant of Venice'', 1955)<ref name=bfi/> to detective fiction (Jimmy Sutane in ''[[Dancers in Mourning]]'' (1959).<ref>[https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/search/0/20?q=dancers+in+mourning#top BBC Genome, "Radio Times", August 10, 1959 onwards.]</ref>

===1960s===
After playing in short runs of non-musical productions Quilley returned to a singing role in 1960, when he took over from [[Keith Michell]] as Nestor-le-Fripe in ''[[Irma La Douce (musical)|Irma la Douce]]''. He made his first [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] appearance the following year, again taking over the part of Nestor and subsequently touring the US with the production.<ref name=who/> After returning to England, he appeared at the [[Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park]] in June, 1963, as Benedick in ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]''. In November of that year he played Antipholus of Ephesus in ''[[The Boys From Syracuse]]'', with [[Bob Monkhouse]] as his twin brother,<ref name=who/> also recorded.<ref>London Cast Recording. ''The Boys from Syracuse.'' Decca Record Company Limited, 1963. LK 4564.</ref> At the [[Savoy Theatre|Savoy]] in 1964 he played Charles Condomine in the musical ''[[High Spirits (musical)|High Spirits]]'', an adaptation of [[Noël Coward|Coward]]'s ''[[Blithe Spirit (play)|Blithe Spirit]]'' which had a run of three months.<ref>Nightingale, Benedict. "High Spirits", ''The Guardian'', 21 October 1964, p. 9; and "Theatres", ''The Times'', 23 January 1965, p. 2</ref> Quilley sang in two complete BBC Gilbert and Sullivan radio broadcasts in 1966; Strephon in ''[[Iolanthe]]'', and Florian in ''[[Princess Ida]]''.<ref>[http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/art_p_q.htm#Q Gilbert & Sullivan discography] accessed 24 March 2020.</ref>

In 1965, Quilley appeared in the science-fiction TV series ''[[Undermind (TV series)|Undermind]]'' playing Professor Val Randolph - a scientist who after four episodes is revealed to be an alien traitor. The same year he made his first cinema film, playing Ben in ''[[Life at the Top (film)|Life at the Top]]''. His only other film of the 1960s was ''[[Anne of the Thousand Days]]'' (1969), in which he appeared as Weston.<ref name=bfi/> In the later 1960s he worked extensively in Australia; he toured with [[June Bronhill]] in the musical ''[[Robert and Elizabeth]]'',<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131774550 "Leisure – the arts"] ''The Canberra Times'', 24 May 1966, p. 12</ref> and became known for his role as Customs Inspector Ted Hallam in [[ABC Television (Australian TV network)|ABC Television]]'s drama series, ''[[Contrabandits]]''.<ref name=guardian/>

Returning to Britain in 1969 Quilley joined the company of the [[Nottingham Playhouse]], which was among the leading repertory theatres of the time.<ref name=guardian/> Among his roles there was Archie Rice in [[John Osborne]]'s ''[[The Entertainer (play)|The Entertainer]]'', a part created in the original London production by [[Laurence Olivier]]. By this time Olivier was in charge of the National Theatre; the director [[Michael Blakemore]], one of his team, saw the new production and recommended Quilley to Olivier.<ref name=norman/>

===1970s===
In the 1970s and again towards the end of his career Quilley was a member of the National company, first at the Old Vic and then at the new building on the [[South Bank]]. Under Olivier's directorship he played Tullus Aufidius in ''[[Coriolanus]]'', with [[Anthony Hopkins]] in the title role (1971); Jamie in ''[[Long Day's Journey Into Night]]'' with Olivier (1971, filmed for television in 1973); Banquo in ''[[Macbeth]]'' (with Hopkins); Bolingbroke in ''[[Richard II (play)|Richard II]]''; Crabtree in ''[[The School for Scandal]]''; Hildy Johnson in ''[[The Front Page]]'' (all 1972) and Lopakhin in ''[[The Cherry Orchard]]'' (1973). In ''[[The Times]]'', the critic [[Barry Norman]] said that Quilley was "the only Banquo I have ever seen act Macbeth off the stage".<ref name=norman>Norman, Barry. "Denis Quilley at the National", ''The Times'', 30 December 1972, p. 11</ref> When [[Peter Hall (director)|Peter Hall]] succeeded Olivier in 1975, Quilley was the only member of the old company to be invited to appear in the opening production of the new regime, playing Caliban to Gielgud's Prospero in ''[[The Tempest]]''.<ref name=dt/> When the National moved to the new building in 1976, Quilley disliked acting there; he found it "like going to work in a factory", and he declined to return during the next 14 seasons.<ref name=dt/>

Quilley made two cinema films in the 1970s, playing Antonio Foscarelli in ''[[Murder on the Orient Express (1974 film)|Murder on the Orient Express]]'' and Bateson in ''[[The Black Windmill]]'' (both 1974). He appeared on television in a wide range of roles, from Commander Traynor in a children's science fiction series, ''[[Timeslip]]'' (1970), to [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] in ''A Bill of Mortality'' (1975), George Cannon in a serialisation of the ''[[The Clayhanger Family|Clayhanger]]'' novels (1975), and [[Agamemnon|the title role]] in [[Frederic Raphael]]'s version of [[Aeschylus]]'s ''[[Agamemnon (play)|Agamemnon]]'' (1979).<ref name=bfi>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120721210606/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b9f0c626f "Denis Quilley"], British Film Institute, retrieved 30 May 2014</ref>

In 1977, the [[Royal Shakespeare Company]] offered Quilley the role of  Captain Terri Dennis in [[Peter Nichols (playwright)|Peter Nichols]]'s ''[[Privates On Parade]]''. It was a singing role, but far removed from the romantic leads he had sung before. The character is a camp performer and director in a 1940s army song-and-dance troupe in Malaya. At first he declined the role, but reconsidered, reckoning the captain to be the most human character in the piece; he played him, as ''The Guardian'' reported, "as a vulnerable human being rather than a buffoon".<ref name=guardian/> For his performance Quilley won the [[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical]].<ref>Wolf, Matt. "Obituaries: Quilley Was Vet of London's West End", ''Variety'', 13 October 2003, p. 43</ref> He reprised the role in a [[Privates on Parade (1982 film)|film]] version made in 1982. Also in 1977, on the West End, Quilley played James opposite [[Deborah Kerr]] in [[George Bernard Shaw]]'s ''[[Candida (play)|Candida]]''. His last stage part of the decade was Sidney in [[Ira Levin]]'s  thriller, ''Deathtrap'', which had a short run at the [[Garrick Theatre]].<ref name=dt/>

===1980s===
Quilley returned to musicals in 1980, playing [[Sweeney Todd|the title role]] in the first London production of [[Hugh Wheeler]] and [[Stephen Sondheim]]'s ''[[Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street]]''. He won his second SWET award for the performance.<ref name=dt/> He continued to divide his time between the musical and non-musical theatre. In 1983 he played Jupiter/[[Napoleon III]] in the BBC television production of ''[[Orpheus in the Underworld]]''.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120725071752/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b75243f63 "Orpheus in the Underworld"], British Film Institute, retrieved 10 April 2013.</ref> In 1984 Quilley appeared on the original concept album for the musical ''[[Chess (musical)|Chess]]'' as Molokov. In 1985 at the [[Chichester Festival Theatre|Chichester Festival]] he co-starred with [[Diana Rigg]] in ''[[Antony and Cleopatra]]''.<ref>Wardle, Irving. Theatre, ''The Times'', 16 May 1985, p. 10</ref> Later that year he was in a BBC Mini-series ''Murder of a Moderate Man''<ref>O'Connor, John. TV Review "Mini-Series From BBC, Murder of Moderate Man", ''New York Times'', 22 January 1988</ref> and a West End thriller, ''Fatal Attraction'', before returning to musical theatre, in ''[[La Cage aux Folles (musical)|La Cage aux Folles]]'' in 1986. He played Georges, the partner of the flamboyant Albin ([[George Hearn]]). In ''[[The Guardian]]'' [[Michael Billington (critic)|Michael Billington]] wrote that Quilley made his character "dapper, ebullient and tender: he persuades you he might have both sired a son and loved a man."<ref>Billington, Michael. "A gay night at home with the boys", ''The Guardian'', 9 May 1986, p. 12</ref> In 1989 he played [[Francisco Pizarro]] in a national tour of ''[[The Royal Hunt of the Sun]]''. Billington commented that Quilley "conveys Pizzaro's journey from tough, hard brutal commander to enraptured idolater and, finally, grieving lover: he is at once indisputably masculine and a figure skittishly enlivened by his rival's physical presence."<ref>Billington, Michael. "An Indian love story", ''The Guardian'', 6 September 1989, p. 46</ref>

During the 1980s Quilley continued to appear in numerous television broadcasts, playing parts like Parris in ''[[The Crucible]]'', [[William Ewart Gladstone|W. E. Gladstone]] in ''[[Number 10 (TV series)|Number 10]]'', Captain Waterhouse in ''[[Tales of the Unexpected (TV series)|Tales Of The Unexpected]]'', [[Saint Peter|Peter]] in a biblical mini-series ''[[A.D. (miniseries)|A.D.]]'' (1985) and Dr. Leon Sterndale in the 1988 Sherlock Holmes adaptation of ''[[The Devil's Foot]]''.<ref name=bfi/> His cinema roles in the 1980s were Kenneth Marshall in ''[[Evil Under the Sun (1982 film)|Evil under the Sun]]'' (1982), Captain Dennis in the film of  ''[[Privates on Parade (film)|Privates on Parade]]'' (1982), Rejeb in ''[[Memed My Hawk (film)|Memed My Hawk]]'' (1984), the prophet [[Samuel]] in ''[[King David (film)|King David]]'' (1985), and the Prime Minister in ''[[Foreign Body (1986 film)|Foreign Body]]'' (1986).<ref name=bfi/> He took the role of God in Britten's ''[[Noye's Fludde]]'' in London in 1995.<ref>Kimberley, Nick. The [[National Youth Music Theatre]] at [[Freemasons' Hall, London|Freemasons' Hall]] (Covent Garden Festival) May 13. ''Opera'', July 1995, Vol.46 No.7, p862.</ref>

===1990s===
In 1993 Quilley played Bob Carruthers in the Sherlock Holmes story ''The Solitary Cyclist'' for the BBC Radio 4 ''Sherlock Holmes'' drama series. As part of the character, he demonstrated his fine singing voice. Quilley played [[Judge Turpin]] in the 1993 revival of ''[[Sweeney Todd]]'' at the National Theatre, resuming his original role as the demon barber later in the run.<ref name=dt/> His other roles at the National included Sir Oliver Surface in ''The School for Scandal'' (1990), Brachiano in ''[[The White Devil]]'' (1991), Falstaff in ''[[The Merry Wives of Windsor]]'', Nestor in ''[[Troilus and Cressida]]'' (1999), Sir John Vesey in ''[[Money (play)|Money]]'', (1999), Polonius in ''Hamlet'' (2000) and George Pye in ''[[Humble Boy]]'' (2001).<ref name=ww>[http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whowaswho/U31693 "Quilley, Denis Clifford"], Who Was Who, online edition, Oxford University Press, 2014, retrieved 30 May 2014 {{subscription required}}</ref>  In his spells at the National from the 1970s onwards he played a total of 28 roles. His last stage performance was as the bibulous tycoon Elisha Whitney in  [[Cole Porter]]'s ''[[Anything Goes]]'' at the [[Olivier Theatre]] in 2002. The production was a success, but during the run his health gave way. 

The show transferred to the Theatre Royal, [[Drury Lane]] shortly after his death, and the first night was dedicated to his memory.<ref>Johns, Ian. "Anything Goes – Theatre Royal, Drury Lane", ''The Times'', 8 October 2003, p. 19</ref>

==Personal life==
In the 1980s he was a supporter of the [[Social Democratic Party (UK)|Social Democratic Party]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2024/feb/03/33-pictures-that-defined-british-politicians |title='People said it did in his career': 33 pictures that defined British politicians |work=The Guardian |date=3 Feb 2024 |access-date=2024-02-04}}</ref> Quilley was appointed an Officer of the [[Order of the British Empire]] (OBE) in the 2002 New Year Honours.<ref>Ezard, John. "Bee Gees add gongs to repertoire", ''The Guardian'', 31 December 2001, p. 11</ref> 

==Death==
Quilley was working on his autobiography in the months before he died in 2003 at his home in London, aged 75, from [[Hepatocellular carcinoma|liver cancer]].<ref>Ward, David. "Denis Quilley dies aged 75", ''The Guardian'', 7 October 2003, p. 14</ref>

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align: left; margin-right: 0;"      
! scope="col" |Year
! scope="col" |Title
! scope="col" |Role
! scope="col" |Notes
|-
| 1955
| ''The Merchant of Venice''
| Bassanio
| TV
|-
| 1959
| ''[[Dancers in Mourning]]''
| John Wilton
| TV
|-
| 1965
| ''[[Undermind (TV series)|Undermind]]''
| Professor Val Randolph
| TV series 
|-
| 1965
| ''[[Life at the Top (film)|Life at the Top]]''
| Ben
| Feature film
|-
| 1966
| ''[[Where the Spies Are]]''
| Dentist
| Feature film
|-
| 1967
| ''[[Contrabandits]]''
| Customs Inspector Ted Hallam 
| TV series
|-
| 1969
| ''[[Anne of the Thousand Days]]''
| Sir Francis Weston
| Feature film
|-
| 1971
| ''[[Timeslip]]'' 
| Commander Traynor
| TV series
|-
| 1974
| ''[[The Black Windmill]]''
| Bateson
| Feature film
|-
| 1974
| ''[[Murder on the Orient Express (1974 film)|Murder on the Orient Express]]''
| Gino Foscarelli
| Film
|-
| 1975
| ''[[In This House of Brede]]''
| Sir Richard
| Feature film 
|-
| 1975
| ''A Bill of Mortality''
| [[Charles II of England|Charles II]]
|
|-
| 1976
| ''[[The Clayhanger Family|Clayhanger]]'' 
| George Cannon
| TV series 
|-
| 1981
| ''[[Masada (miniseries)|Masada]]''
| General Marcus Quadratus
| TV miniseries 
|-
| 1982
| ''[[Evil Under the Sun (1982 film)|Evil under the Sun]]''
| Kenneth Marshall
| Feature film
|-
| 1983
| ''[[Privates on Parade (film)|Privates on Parade]]''
| Acting Captain Terri Dennis
| Feature film
|-
| 1983 
| ''[[Orpheus in the Underworld]]''
| Jupiter/[[Napoleon III]] 
| TV production of the operetta
|-
| 1983
| ''Murder of a Moderate Man''
| Morgan Hunter-Brown
| TV miniseries
|-
| 1983
| ''[[Number 10 (TV series)|Number 10]]''
| [[William Ewart Gladstone|W. E. Gladstone]] 
| TV series
|-
|
| ''[[The Crucible]]''
| Parris
| TV play 
|-
|
| ''[[Tales of the Unexpected (TV series)|Tales Of The Unexpected]]''
| Captain Waterhouse
| TV series
|-
| 1984
| ''[[Memed My Hawk (film)|Memed My Hawk]]''
| Rejeb
| Film
|-
| 1985
| ''[[King David (film)|King David]]''
| Samuel
| Feature film
|-
| 1985
| ''[[A.D. (miniseries)|A.D.]]''
| Saint Peter
| TV miniseries 
|-
| 1986
| ''[[Foreign Body (1986 film)|Foreign Body]]''
| Prime Minister
| Feature film
|-
| 1988
| ''[[The Devil's Foot]]''
| Dr. Leon Sterndale
| TV
|-
| 1990
| ''[[Mister Johnson (film)|Mister Johnson]]''
| Bulteen
| Feature film
|-
| 1991
| ''[[Rich Tea and Sympathy]]''
| George Rudge
| Feature film 
|-
| 1993
| ''[[Sparrow (1993 film)|Sparrow]]''
| Baron Cesaro
| Feature film
|}

==Notes==
{{Reflist|2}}

==References==
* {{cite book |editor-last= Gaye |editor-first=Freda |year=1967 |title=Who's Who in the Theatre |edition=14th |location=London |publisher=Sir Isaac Pitman and Sons |oclc=5997224}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb name}}
* {{Tcmdb name}}
* {{IBDB name}}
* {{Discogs artist}}

{{OlivierAward MusicalActor 1979–2000}}
{{OlivierAward ComedyPerformance}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quilley, Denis}}
[[Category:1927 births]]
[[Category:2003 deaths]]
[[Category:Deaths from liver cancer in England]]
[[Category:English male film actors]]
[[Category:English male musical theatre actors]]
[[Category:English male stage actors]]
[[Category:English male television actors]]
[[Category:Laurence Olivier Award winners]]
[[Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:People educated at Bancroft's School]]
[[Category:Military personnel from the London Borough of Islington]]
[[Category:Military personnel from the London Borough of Redbridge]]
[[Category:Actors from the London Borough of Islington]]
[[Category:Actors from the London Borough of Redbridge]]
[[Category:20th-century English singers]]
[[Category:20th-century English male singers]]
[[Category:Male actors from Essex]]
[[Category:People from Islington (district)]]
[[Category:People from Woodford, London]]