Bernard Spear

{{Infobox person

| name = Bernard Spear

| image = Actor_Bernard_Spear.jpg

| birth_name =

| birth_date = {{birth date|1919|09|11|df=y}}

| birth_place = Croydon, Surrey, England

| death_date = {{death date and age|2003|05|09|1919|09|11|df=y}}

| death_place = Sutton, London, England

| occupation = Actor

| years_active = 1956-2003

| spouse = {{marriage|Mary Newton|1949}}

| children = 1

}}

Bernard Spear (11 September 1919 – 9 May 2003) was an English actor.

Early life

Spear was born on 11 September 1919 in Croydon, Surrey, to a Polish-Jewish father and a Russian-Jewish mother.{{CN|date=January 2024}} He was educated at Central Federation School in London, and worked as a clerk at a tobacco manufacturers before serving in the Royal Artillery in Gibraltar during World War II.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/may/22/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries1|title=Obituary: Bernard Spear|first=Keith|last=Skues|newspaper=The Guardian |date=May 22, 2003}}

Career

Spear starred in the BAFTA TV Award-winning television play Bar Mitzvah Boy, and also portrayed the dual roles of Cervantes's manservant and Sancho Panza in the 1968 London stage version of Man of La Mancha.{{Cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1362271/index.html|title=BFI Screenonline: Bar Mitzvah Boy (1976)|website=www.screenonline.org.uk}}{{Cite web|url=https://theatricalia.com/person/xn3/bernard-spear|title=Bernard Spear | Theatricalia|website=theatricalia.com}} His film career includes roles in the films Drop Dead Darling (1966), Bedazzled (1967), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), The Adventures of Barry McKenzie (1972), Secrets of a Door-to-Door Salesman (1972), Wombling Free (1977) and Yentl (1983).{{Cite web|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba1baa9d9|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407092855/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba1baa9d9|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 April 2018|title=Bernard Spear|website=BFI}} His only regular role on television was as Morris Ransome in the soap opera Albion Market (1985–86).{{CN|date=January 2024}}

Personal life

Spear married dancer/writer Mary Newton (pka Logan) in 1949; the couple had one child, Julian, owner of Julian Spear PR (an independent music promotion company for radio and television), who was married to actress Carol Royle.{{Cite web|url=https://www.shutterstock.com/editorial/image-editorial/actress-carol-royle-with-son-sam-taran-and-husband-record-company-executive-julian-spear-1551189a|title=Actress Carol Royle Son Sam Taran Husband Editorial Stock Photo - Stock Image | Shutterstock|website=Shutterstock Editorial}}

Bernard and Mary remained married until his death in 2003.