Bill Kerr

Infobox actor
name = Bill Kerr


caption =
birthdate = 1922
birthplace = Cape Town, South Africa
deathdate =
deathplace =
occupation = actor

Bill Kerr (born 1922) is an Australian film and television actor. He was born into a performing arts family in Cape Town, South Africa, but grew up in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia.

He began working as a child actor in depression era Australia, taking his first major role in "The Silence of Dean Maitland", one of Australia's first talking films.

After serving in the Second World War, Kerr moved to England to further his acting career, and during the 1940s he was regularly featured in the BBC radio series "Variety Bandbox". His trademark was his catch phrase "I'm only here for 4 minutes..."

In the 1950s, he had a recurring role as an Australian lodger in the BBC radio comedy series "Hancock's Half Hour". Initially sharper than Hancock's characterisation, it was developed into a more dim-witted character who became the butt of Hancock's jokes. His television appearances in Britain include a 1968 episode of "Doctor Who" called "The Enemy of the World", with Patrick Troughton, and a long running part in the early 1960s BBC-TV soap, "Compact".

Bill Kerr had much theatrical success in Britain, playing The Devil in the original West End production of "Damn Yankees", directed by Bob Fosse, and "Cole". In 1972 he co-starred with Anthony Newley in the long running Newley/Bricusse musical, "The Good Old Bad Old Days".

He also made several films in Britain, including "The Dam Busters" and "The Wrong Arm of the Law", before moving back to Australia. Although probably best known as a comic actor, and especially for his appearances in "Hancock's Half Hour", he has since played a number of serious roles, notably in Peter Weir's films "Gallipoli" (1981) and "The Year of Living Dangerously" (1982). He also worked on the Australian stage in the 1980s, in musicals such as "My Fair Lady", where he received excellent reviews as Alfred Doolittle. In 2001, he appeared in the Australian comedy "Let's Get Skase".

Kerr also appeared in the 1998 television comedy series "Minty".

Kerr now lives in Perth, Western Australia, with his family.

Filmography

* "The Silence of Dean Maitland" (1934)
* "Appointment in London" (1952) - Bill Brown
* "The Dam Busters" (1954)
* "The Night My Number Came Up" (1955)
* "Port of Escape" (1956)
* "The Wrong Arm of the Law" (1963)
* "Doctor in Distress" (1963)
* "Doctor in Clover" (1966)
* "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" (1966)
* "Gallipoli" (1981)
* "The Year of Living Dangerously" (1982)
* "The Pirate Movie" (1982)
* "Razorback" (1984)
*"The River Kings" (1991) (TV)

External links

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