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IMDbPro

Bill Owen(1914-1999)

  • Actor
  • Writer
  • Music Department
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Bill Owen in Last of the Summer Wine (1973)
A singer holes up at a sinister estate to write new songs for his act. The ghost of his murdered wife begins to haunt him, then the person who actually killed her shows up at the mansion.
Play trailer2:05
Hallucinations (1978)
2 Videos
34 Photos
This English actor was born of humble, working class beginnings and became well-known for playing the same kind of blokes on both film and TV. Born William Rowbotham, he was the son of a tram driver and laundress. He knew early on that entertaining was the life for him. He worked in odd jobs as a printer's apprentice and band vocalist to make do and, when he became of legal age, started playing drums in London nightclubs and toured music halls with his own cabaret act to pay for acting classes. He entertained at Butlin's holiday camps and performed in repertory, joining the Unity Theatre where he attained respect as a stage producer. His career was interrupted by military service with the Royal Army Ordinance Corps and was injured in an explosion during battle training course.

Returning to acting, he was taken to post-war films after notice in a play. He started making a blue-collar character name for himself in such films as Le chemin des étoiles (1945), School for Secrets (1946), When the Bough Breaks (1947), Once a Jolly Swagman (1949), Robin des Bois et ses joyeux compagnons (1952), The Square Ring (1953) and Le bateau qui mourut de honte (1955). He continued to perform in the theatre limelight and peaked in roles with Katharine Hepburn in "As You Like It" in 1950, and with "The Threepenny Opera" and "The Mikado", which made sturdy use of his musical talents. A writer at heart, he penned songs, musicals and plays over the years. Partnered with Mike Sammes, he wrote songs recorded by Pat Boone, Harry Secombe, Engelbert Humperdinck, and Sir Cliff Richard, who made a hit of his 1980 song "Marianne". In the 60s, he produced the stage musical, "The Matchgirl", and focused heavily on film slapstick with the "Carry On" series, adding also to the lowbrow fun found in the comedy Deux des commandos (1961). TV stardom and a sense of renewed career came late after landing the role of "Compo" in the BBC's Last of the Summer Wine (1973) series in 1973, his scruffy, mischievous charm endearing audiences for decades.

Bill was awarded the MBE in 1976 for his steadfast work for the National Association of Boys Clubs and for his role as chairman of the Performing Arts Advising Panel. He was also awarded an honorary degree by Bradford University in 1998. For the rest of his life, Bill would be identified with the lovable scamp "Compo", complete with woolly hat and threadbare jacket.

Most fittingly, when he died of pancreatic cancer in 1999, he asked to be buried in the Yorkshire village of Holmfirth, where the TV series was filmed and the townspeople had taken him close to their hearts. Married twice, his actor/son Tom Owen joined the "Last of the Summer Wine" series in 2000.
BornMarch 14, 1914
DiedJuly 12, 1999(85)
BornMarch 14, 1914
DiedJuly 12, 1999(85)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank

Photos34

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Known for

Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Brian Wilde in Last of the Summer Wine (1973)
Last of the Summer Wine
7.1
TV Series
  • Compo
Not So Dusty (1956)
Not So Dusty
5.1
  • Dusty
  • 1956
Lynn Redgrave in Georgy Girl (1966)
Georgy Girl
6.9
  • Ted
  • 1966
Le bateau qui mourut de honte (1955)
Le bateau qui mourut de honte
6.7
  • Birdie Dick
  • 1955

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor



  • Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Brian Wilde in Last of the Summer Wine (1973)
    Last of the Summer Wine
    7.1
    TV Series
    • Compo
    • 1973–2000
  • Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Kathy Staff in Last of the Summer Wine Volume 3 (2000)
    Last of the Summer Wine Volume 3
    9.6
    Podcast Series
    • Compo (voice)
    • 2000
  • The Best of BBC Comedy: The Seventies
    Podcast Series
    • Compo (voice)
    • 1999
  • Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Brian Wilde in Last of the Summer Wine Volume 2 (1997)
    Last of the Summer Wine Volume 2
    9.6
    Podcast Series
    • Compo (voice)
    • 1997
  • Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Brian Wilde in Last of the Summer Wine Volume 1 (1995)
    Last of the Summer Wine Volume 1
    9.6
    Podcast Series
    • Compo (voice)
    • 1995
  • Performance (1991)
    Performance
    6.7
    TV Series
    • Billy Rice
    • 1993
  • Noel's House Party (1991)
    Noel's House Party
    6.3
    TV Series
    • Compo
    • 1992
  • Natasha Richardson in La servante écarlate (1990)
    La servante écarlate
    6.0
    • T.V. Announcer #2
    • 1990
  • Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Brian Wilde in That's Television Entertainment (1986)
    That's Television Entertainment
    9.5
    TV Movie
    • Compo
    • 1986
  • Laughterhouse (1984)
    Laughterhouse
    6.0
    • Amos
    • 1984
  • Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Brian Wilde in Getting Sam Home (1983)
    Getting Sam Home
    TV Movie
    • Compo
    • 1983
  • Geoffrey Palmer and Leonard Rossiter in The Funny Side of Christmas (1982)
    The Funny Side of Christmas
    8.2
    TV Movie
    • Compo
    • 1982
  • The Kids International Show
    9.2
    TV Mini Series
    • Compo
    • 1982
  • Bizarre, bizarre (1979)
    Bizarre, bizarre
    7.6
    TV Series
    • Meakins
    • 1982
  • Retour au château (1981)
    Retour au château
    8.6
    TV Mini Series
    • Lunt
    • 1981

Writer



  • Romance with a Double Bass (1975)
    Romance with a Double Bass
    7.1
    Short
    • based on a screenplay by
    • 1975
  • Rum Punch
    TV Movie
    • writer
    • 1955
  • Winkles and Champagne
    TV Special
    • writer (as William Rowbotham)
    • 1948

Music Department



  • Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, and Brian Wilde in Last of the Summer Wine (1973)
    Last of the Summer Wine
    7.1
    TV Series
    • composer: songs
    • 1996

Videos2

The Fighting Prince of Donegal
Clip 1:46
The Fighting Prince of Donegal
Trailer
Trailer 2:05
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 2:05
Trailer

Personal details

Edit
  • Alternative names
    • Bill Owen M.B.E.
  • Height
    • 1.63 m
  • Born
    • March 14, 1914
    • Acton, Middlesex, England, UK
  • Died
    • July 12, 1999
    • Westminster, London, England, UK(pancreatic cancer)
  • Spouses
      Kathleen O'DonoghueMarch 3, 1977 - July 12, 1999 (his death)
  • Children
    • Tom Owen
  • Other works
    He acted in David Storey's play, "The Contractor", at the Royal Court Theatre in London, England with T.P. McKenna, Philip Stone, Martin Shaw, John Antrobus and Constance Chapman in the cast. Lindsay Anderson was the director.
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Interview
    • 2 Articles

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Although a Londoner, his last wish was to be buried in the graveyard of St John's Church, Holmfirth, Yorkshire - filming location for the long-running sitcom, Last of the Summer Wine (1973), in which he played "Compo". His friend and fellow Last of the Summer Wine (1973) actor, Peter Sallis, chose to be buried in the adjacent grave following his death in 2017.
  • Quotes
    [on his role in Last of the Summer Wine (1973)] I became a professional entertainer 63 years ago, but the past 26 have been occupied by a little man in a woolly hat.
  • Salaries
      Carry on Cabby
      (1963)
      £325

FAQ

Powered by Alexa
  • When did Bill Owen die?
    July 12, 1999
  • How did Bill Owen die?
    Pancreatic cancer
  • How old was Bill Owen when he died?
    85 years old
  • Where did Bill Owen die?
    Westminster, London, England, UK
  • When was Bill Owen born?
    March 14, 1914

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