Jack May
Acting
1922-04-23 · Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire, England, UK
Jack May was a mellifluous-voiced actor best known for playing butlers and establishment figures, often representing Britain's interests in far-flung corners of the empire. With regards the former, he memorably played William E. Simms, former music hall artise turned manservant to Gerald Harper's titular swashbuckling adventurer in '60s TV cult classic Adam Adamant Lives! as well as providing the voice of Igor, the long-suffering valet in Cosgrove Hall's 1980s animation Count Duckula. His film credits included the district commissioner in 1975's The Man Who Would Be King and the prosecuting naval attorney in the remake of The Bounty (1984). For many, May was Nelson Gabriel 'the most disreputable character in Ambridge' in BBC Radio 4's long-running soap The Archers. May took the role of the shady rogue, later antique dealer and wine bar owner, in 1952 and continued to play him right up until the year of his death, 1997. This 45 year stint made May, at the time, the fourth-longest serving soap opera star in the world. He died at the age of 75, on 19 September 1997, survived by his wife, the actress Petra Davies, his daughter Henrietta, and son David.
Filmography
Without Air
1997 · Movie
Willie's War
1994 · Movie
More Children's Holiday Favourites
1990 · Movie
Jeeves and Wooster
1990 · Series
More Children's Summer Stories
1989 · Movie
Lollipop Children's Favourites - Volume 2
1989 · Movie
Lollipop Children's Favourites - Volume 1
1989 · Movie
Count Duckula
1988 · Series
Children's Favourites - Volume 1
1988 · Movie
Hard Road
1988 · Movie
Big Muzzy
1987 · Series
The Doctor and the Devils
1985 · Movie
Bulman
1985 · Series
The Shooting Party
1985 · Movie
The Bounty
1984 · Movie
A Swarm in May
1983 · Movie
Scarecrow and Mrs. King
1983 · Series
The Return of the Soldier
1983 · Movie
The Agatha Christie Hour
1982 · Series
Friends and Other Lovers
1981 · Movie
The Life and Times of David Lloyd George
1981 · Movie
The Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy
1981 · Movie
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
1981 · Series
Escape
1980 · Series
Whinfrey's Last Case
1979 · Movie
Shoestring
1979 · Series
Henry VIII
1979 · Movie
A Horseman Riding By
1978 · Series
Hawkmoor
1978 · Series
All Creatures Great and Small
1978 · Series
The Children of the New Forest
1977 · Series
Target
1977 · Series
The Seven-Per-Cent Solution
1976 · Movie
The Man Who Would Be King
1975 · Movie
Poldark
1975 · Series
Dawson's Weekly
1975 · Series
Soap Opera in Stockwell
1973 · Movie
Black and Blue
1973 · Series
Big Zapper
1973 · Movie
Away from It All
1973 · Series
The Breaking of Colonel Keyser
1972 · Movie
Van der Valk
1972 · Series
The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes
1971 · Series
Brett
1971 · Series
Budgie
1971 · Series
The Ten Commandments
1971 · Series
The Yes Girls
1971 · Movie
Trog
1970 · Movie
UFO
1970 · Series
Emma's Time
1970 · Movie
Goodbye, Mr. Chips
1969 · Movie
The Main Chance
1969 · Series
Doctor Who: The Space Pirates
1969 · Movie
Night After Night After Night
1969 · Movie
A Twist of Sand
1968 · Movie
How I Won the War
1967 · Movie
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
1966 · Movie
The Last Invasion
1966 · Movie
You Can't Win
1966 · Series
Adam Adamant Lives!
1966 · Series
Stranger in the Family
1965 · Movie
Out of the Unknown
1965 · Series
Six Shades of Black
1965 · Series
The Wednesday Play
1964 · Series
Detective
1964 · Series
The Protectors
1964 · Series
Doctor Who
1963 · Series
Festival
1963 · Series
Espionage
1963 · Series
In Search of Sierra Nine
1963 · Movie
The Spread of the Eagle
1963 · Series
A Prize of Arms
1962 · Movie
Solo for Sparrow
1962 · Movie
Dr. Finlay's Casebook
1962 · Series
Richard the Lionheart
1962 · Series
The Traitors
1962 · Movie
A for Andromeda
1961 · Series
The Avengers
1961 · Series
Two-Way Stretch
1960 · Movie
Danger Man
1960 · Series
There Was a Crooked Man
1960 · Movie
An Age of Kings
1960 · Series
The Professionals
1960 · Movie
No Hiding Place
1959 · Series
A Night to Remember
1958 · Movie
The Silent Enemy
1958 · Movie
Pride and Prejudice
1958 · Series
Nicholas Nickleby
1957 · Series
Cat Girl
1957 · Movie
The Adventures of Sir Lancelot
1956 · Series
The Adventures of the Scarlet Pimpernel
1955 · Series
The Men of Sherwood Forest
1954 · Movie
Mark Saber
1954 · Series
The Gay Dog
1954 · Movie
Trouble in Store
1953 · Movie
Behind the Headlines
1953 · Movie
Pool of London
1951 · Movie
The Blue Lamp
1950 · Movie
Sunday Night Theatre
1950 · Series
Saraband for Dead Lovers
1948 · Movie
Brief Encounter
1945 · Movie
Johnny Frenchman
1945 · Movie
This Happy Breed
1944 · Movie
Deadlock
1943 · Movie
Millions Like Us
1943 · Movie
The Gentle Sex
1943 · Movie