Bernard Cribbins: Remembering the nation's storyteller
Bernard Cribbins was an actor without airs, but for decades he enjoyed the “afterglow” of our applause.
This article was originally published in Radio Times magazine.
A couple of years ago, when I was preparing to write a book on the Carry On films and working out who best to interview, there was one name at the top of my wish-list: Bernard Cribbins. He’d appeared in three of the series and, on his debut in 1964’s Carry On Jack, been praised by the notoriously critical Kenneth Williams as “the best droll I’ve seen in years”. The only problem? While Cribbins was still mightily busy and working well into his 90s, he was known to be far happier plying his trade than talking about it to journalists.
The ghost-writer of his lively memoir, James Hogg, suggested I pen a handwritten letter, which he duly delivered to the great man. A few weeks later, I was sitting at my desk when the phone rang. “Is that Caroline? Bernard Cribbins here.”
We had a long, delightful chat about all things from Carry On to The Wombles, but it was clear that, while delighting in meeting fans still touched by his roles in a career lasting seven decades, Cribbins was not remotely sentimental about the craft of acting. To him, it was a job – even if it was one at which he proved singularly effective, versatile and enduring.
He really could turn his hand to anything. When he worked in the music studio with producer George Martin, his novelty hit The Hole in the Ground saw Cribbins playing both a workman digging a hole and a bowler-hatted busybody. The song became a top ten hit and a favourite of Noël Coward, and the follow-up Right Said Fred was another unlikely classic.
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Cribbins’s film career was proof of a popular actor always in demand, co-starring with the likes of Peter Sellers, David Niven and Ursula Andress. Of his own work in the Carry On series, he spoke of it lightly as “just another job”. He told me: “I wasn’t doing anything else at the time, so I said, ‘Yes, I’ll do it.’”
Thus, he joined the cast of Carry On Jack in 1963 to spend what he called “a very happy few weeks” jumping around on boats, swinging between ropes and performing his own stunts on location at Frensham Ponds in Surrey.
He was less happy on the set of Spying the following year, particularly when he was accidentally hit at close range by the blank from an extra’s gun. He clearly still remembered the shock decades later, telling me: “A blank is not a safe gun at close
range because it shoots out burning particles. One hit me in the lip. Agony!”
He recounted both the speed of Carry Ons’ production and the cast’s famous camaraderie – for him, the two were connected. He explained: “We were filming so quickly, there wasn’t any time for arguments. We had to get on with each other.”
His greatest delight, though, came with working alongside his friend Barbara Windsor, whom he called “a breath of fresh air”. Babs was actually persuaded to join the Carry On team because she’d previously co-starred with Cribbins in comic caper Crooks in Cloisters. When she was asked to join the cast of Spying, she said: “It was with Bernie Cribbins, who was a friend. I thought, ‘That’ll be nice.’” And he told her: “You’ll learn about filming on that.”
For the rest of his life, Cribbins delighted in the long-lasting popularity of the films and the fact that, over half a century later,
he could still get a letter from a fan who remembered him fondly in Carry On Jack (released 1964). He said happily: “I’ve
received lots of very long-term applause.” He called it “an afterglow”.
Equally memorable was his role in the 1970 classic The Railway Children, where he played Mr Perks, the grumbling stationmaster with a twinkle in his eye. His young co-star Jenny Agutter remembered him as “a constant delight and hugely generous”.
But it was on British children’s television where the star sealed his place in the hearts of multiple generations of fans. He made his Jackanory debut in December 1966 and went on to become the show’s most prolific storyteller, appearing in more than 100 editions.
His skill with narration was put to equally splendid use in The Wombles. Cribbins narrated 60 episodes in all, voicing characters including Great Uncle Bulgaria, Tobermory, Orinoco and his own favourite, Madame Cholet. Half a century later and he was still at it, sharing stories with fresh young fans in CBeebies series Old Jack’s Boat.
Any of these roles would have been enough to mark a very special career, but Cribbins also enjoyed a devoted fanbase through his long-running connection with Doctor Who. He appeared in the second Dalek movie back in 1966, and later played Catherine Tate’s grandad Wilf in the series between 2007 and 2010. Showrunner Russell T Davies remembered of Cribbins, “He loved being in Doctor Who. He said, ‘Children are calling me grandad in the street!’”
He was last seen filming in London’s Camden Market earlier this year, a few months after his 93rd birthday. Although no official announcement has been made, fans will be delighted to see Bernard Cribbins in the upcoming Doctor Who special marking the show’s 60th anniversary, and it will be a fitting finale for an actor, much and long beloved.
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Caroline Frost’s bestselling book, Carry On Regardless: Getting to the Bottom of Britain’s Favourite Comedy Films, is available now.
Read more:
- How Bernard Cribbins brought magic and warmth to the world of Doctor Who
- David Tennant and Catherine Tate pay tribute to Bernard Cribbins
- How The Railway Children Return pays homage to Bernard Cribbins
Doctor Who returns to BBC One this autumn for its centenary episode. For what to watch tonight, check out our full TV Guide.
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