author
Miles Malleson
1888–1969
Best known as one of Britain’s most familiar character actors, he also wrote plays and screenplays and brought a sharp, witty presence to stage and screen. His career stretched from Edwardian theatre to classic mid-20th-century film.
1 Audiobook
The fanatics : A comedy in three acts
by Miles Malleson
About the author
Born in Croydon in 1888, Miles Malleson was an English actor, dramatist, and screenwriter whose face became instantly recognizable in British cinema. He is especially remembered for his work in comedy films from the 1930s through the 1960s, though his career was much broader than that, spanning theatre, writing, and film.
Alongside acting, he was a prolific writer for the screen and stage. Sources on his life consistently describe him as both an actor and a dramatist, and note his strong contribution to British film writing as well as his performances. That mix of thoughtful writing and memorable character work helped give him a long, varied career.
He died in London in 1969. Though rarely the central star, he left behind the kind of career that makes a performer unforgettable: a gifted supporting presence, a working writer, and a familiar part of British film history.