Bernard Joseph Cribbins was an English actor and singer whose career spanned seven decades He died on the 28th of July 2022 at the age of 93.
R.I.P. During the 1960s, Cribbins became known in the UK for his successful novelty records including “The Hole in the Ground” and “Right Said Fred” and appearances in comedy films including Two-Way Stretch (1960) and the Carry On series.
His notable screen roles include Albert Perks in The Railway Children (1970), barman Felix Forsythe in Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy (1972) and pretentious hotel guest Mr. Hutchinson in the Fawlty Towers episode “The Hotel Inspectors” (1975).
On television, he was a regular and prolific reader for the BBC series Jackanory from 1966 to 1991, he narrated the children’s programme The Wombles (1973–1975) and played the title role in the CBeebies series Old Jack’s Boat (2013–2015).
In the 1966 film Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 A.D., Cribbins portrayed Tom Campbell, a companion to Dr.
Who. 41 years later, he began appearing in the revival series of Doctor Who as Wilfred Mott, the grandfather of regular companion Donna Noble and a temporary companion to the Tenth Doctor.
Bernard Joseph Cribbins was born on 29 December 1928 in the Derker area of Oldham, Lancashire, the son of cotton weaver Ethel (née Clarkson; 1898–1989) and World War I veteran John Edward Cribbins (1896–1964).
He has two siblings, alongside whom he grew up close to poverty.
He described his father as a “jack of all trades” who also dabbled in acting.
Before Bernard Cribbins’s death, he was married to Gillian Cribbins.
Bernard Cribbins Wife: Who is Gillian Cribbins?
Gillian Cribbins was the wife of Bernard Cribbins, the couple got married in 1955 and they’ve been together since, until Bernard Cribbins’s sudden demise.
Cribbins met Gillian McBarnet, an aspiring actress. They were married from 1955 until her death on 11 October 2021.
They lived in Weybridge, Surrey, and had no children, with Cribbins revealing in 2018 that they “lost one quite early on and that was the only time [they] got near it”.
