Geoffrey Chater

Geoffrey Michael Chater Robinson[1] (23 March 1921 – 16 October 2021) was an English film, television and stage actor. He appeared in the crime drama series Callan, Foyle's War and Midsomer Murders.

Geoffrey Chater
Born
Geoffrey Michael Chater Robinson

(1921-03-23)23 March 1921
Barnet, Hertfordshire, England
Died16 October 2021(2021-10-16) (aged 100)
Iden, East Sussex, England
OccupationActor
Years active1950–2005

Biography

Geoffrey Michael Chater Robinson was born in Barnet, Hertfordshire on 23 March 1921 and lived in Iden, East Sussex and London. His father, Lawrence Chater Robinson, was a composer of music for dance bands and his mother Peggy was an actress. It was seeing her perform at London St Martin's Theatre when he was 11 that made him want to follow her onto the stage.[2]

Chater was educated at Marlborough College, and joined the Royal Fusiliers in 1940. He served as a captain in India and Burma, where he wrote and performed in revues for the troops during time off.[2] He served in the British Army from 1940 to 1946.

After the Second World War, he focused on his career in the entertainment industry.[2] He became an assistant stage manager at the Theatre Royal, Windsor, where in 1947, made his first professional appearance in A Midsummer Night's Dream. His West End debut was in 1952, as "Constable" in Master Crook.[3] Later on he appeared in Howard Brenton's play Magnificence.[4] He also had a minor role in a British TV serial Brideshead Revisited where he played a role of British Consul.[5] He made his film debut in 1958 with The Strange World of Planet X. In Gandhi, he played the chairman of the enquiry into the Amritsar massacre. He also appeared in the film classics If.... (1968) and Barry Lyndon (1975) in supporting roles.

His career saw him take on roles from Shakespeare to Midsomer Murders. While he appeared in films and television roles, he avoided longer contracts so he could have time to devote to his first love of performing in the Theatre.[2]

In 2017, Chater began giving poetry readings and he continued to read the lesson at his local church until lockdown was imposed as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic on 23 March 2020, his 99th birthday.[6]

He turned 100 on 23 March 2021 and died on 16 October 2021 in Iden, East Sussex.[7][8]

Filmography

Film

Television

References
  1. Room, Adrian (2010). Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins. McFarland & Co. p. 103. ISBN 9780786443734.
  2. "Geoffrey Chater obituary". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  3. Wearing, J. P. (2014). The London Stage 1950-1959: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel (2nd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. p. 138. ISBN 978-0-81089308-5.
  4. Roberts, Phillip (2015). The Royal Court Theatre (Routledge Revivals): 1965-1972. Routledge.
  5. Vermilye, Jerry (1992). The Complete Films of Laurence Olivier. Citadel Book Press. p. 263. ISBN 0-8065-1302-0.
  6. Foster, Heidi (9 April 2017). "Ship to Shore in Iden". RYE News. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  7. "Geoffrey Chater, polished and charming character actor acclaimed as Polonius opposite Jonathan Pryce's Hamlet – obituary". The Telegraph. 19 October 2021. (subscription required)
  8. "Geoffrey Chater obituary". TheGuardian.com. 25 October 2021.
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