Biography

He considered training as a doctor before deciding to become an actor.

In Knowles' writing career, he co-adapted (with Harold Snoad) the radio version of Dad's Army and writing with Snoad the Dad's Army spinoff series It Sticks Out Half a Mile for radio, which became the television series High and Dry.

In 2022, following the death of Frank Williams, Knowles agreed to take over as president of the Dad's Army Appreciation Society, having been a great supporter of the society since its founding in 1993.

Knowles appeared in the first episode of Are You Being Served? and played the first customer that was served on the series. Knowles later went on to co-write several episodes.

In 1988, Knowles played The Honourable Teddy Meldrum in Jimmy Perry and David Croft's last collaboration You Rang, M'Lord? which ran until 1993. The series was a success in Eastern Europe and especially in Hungary. In 2018, Knowles along with four other former cast members attending an event in Budapest with 900 Hungarian fans.