James Cossins

Acting

Born December 4, 1933, Beckenham, Kent, England, UK

James Cossins (4 December 1933 – 12 February 1997) was an English actor. Born in Beckenham, Kent, he became widely recognised as the abrupt, bewildered Mr Walt in the Fawlty Towers episode "The Hotel Inspectors" and as Mr Watson, the frustrated Public Relations training course instructor, in an episode of Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em. Cossins was born in Beckenham and educated at the City of London School. After serving in the Royal Air Force, he trained at Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where he won the silver medal in 1952. Cossins first appeared in repertory theatre and at the Nottingham Playhouse. He played a wide range of characters throughout his colourful and extensive career on television and stage, often portraying blustering, pompous, crusty and cantankerous characters. Cossins appeared in Charley's Aunt at the Apollo Theatre in 1971 with Tom Courtenay, David Horovitch, Garth Forwood, Joanna McCallum, and Celia Bannerman. He appeared in more than forty films, including The Anniversary (recreating his West End stage role), and The Lost Continent (both 1968), Gandhi (1982), and The Man with the Golden Gun (1974). On the small screen, Cossins appeared as a guest in a variety of shows, including The Likely Lads and Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, Minder, Bergerac, The Sweeney, Bless This House, Shadows, All Creatures Great and Small, Citizen Smith, Just William, The Good Life, L for Lester, Neville Dennis in Callan "Rules of the Game" (1972), Z-Cars, and as the regular character Bruce Westrop (in 1979) in Emmerdale Farm. He also played Major Bagstock in Dombey and Son (1983), and appeared in the first series of All in Good Faith in 1985. He played a magistrate in episodes of four different British sitcoms, Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, The Good Life, Citizen Smith and Minder. Cossins's later appearances were limited by ill health and he lived in semi-retirement in Surrey. Cossins died from heart disease at the age of 63, in 1997

Filmography

• 2005The Funny Blokes of British Comedy — Mr. Walt (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 1993Unnatural Causes — Justin Bryce
• 1992Immaculate Conception — Godfrey
• Murder Most Horrid — Sir Hugh Lotterby
• 1987Grand Larceny
• Miss Marple: At Bertram's Hotel — Colonel Luscombe
• Call Me Mister
• All in Good Faith — Major Andrews
• Marjorie And Men — Henry Bartlett
• 1984The Masks of Death — Frederick Bains
• Good Night And God Bless — Geoffrey
• 1983James Bond: The First 21 Years — Colthorpe (archive footage)
• Number 10 — Sir William Harcourt
• 1982Aliens — Major Lucas
• 1982Gandhi — Brigadier
• L For Lester — Chief Inspector Rodgers
• Bergerac — Tuchel, Calhoun
• 1981Loophole — 1st Interviewer
• 1981Sphinx — Lord Carnarvon
• 1981Timon of Athens — Lucullus
• 1980Why Didn't They Ask Evans? — Henry Bassington-ffrench
• Minder — Judge
• All Creatures Great and Small — Mr. Barge, Aloysius Barge
• 1978The First Great Train Robbery — Harranby
• Citizen Smith — Court Judge
• Don't Forget to Write! — Phillip Mounter
• One-Upmanship
• Fawlty Towers — Mr. Walt
• Shadows — Custodian
• The Good Life — Magistrate
• The Sweeney — Colonel Rosier
• Churchill's People — William
• Fall of Eagles — Count Josi Hoyos
• Good Girl — Manager
• 1974The Man with the Golden Gun — Colthorpe
• The Pallisers — Sergeant Bunfit
• 1974What Next?
• 1973Bequest to the Nation — McKillop
• Centre Play — Burret
• 1973Hitler: The Last Ten Days — German Officer
• 1973Possession — Kellet
• Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
• 1973That Sinking Feeling — Eric
• Thriller — Kellet
• Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? — Magistrate
• 1972A Day Out — Mr. Shorter
• Crown Court — Graham Erringburn
• 1972Death Line — James Manfred O.BE.
• 1972Fear in the Night — The Doctor
• 1972Follow Me! — Party Guest (uncredited)
• Pretenders — Old Elam
• 1972The Breaking of Colonel Keyser — Partridge
• 1972The Incredible Robert Baldick: Never Come Night — Peter Elmstead
• Van der Valk — Noordhoff
• 1972Young Winston — Barnsby
• 1971Bel Ami — Forestier
• Bel Ami — Charles Forestier
• Bless This House — Tom Williams
• 1971Blood from the Mummy's Tomb — Older Male Nurse
• Justice — Mr. Ritson
• 1971Melody — Headmaster
• 1971Say Hello to Yesterday — Policeman
• 1971The Piano — Jeremy
• 1971The Rainbirds — Father - Mr. Rainbird
• The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes — Dr. Jervis
• The Ten Commandments — Tom
• 1971Villain — Brown
• 1970Mad Jack
• 1970Scrooge — Party Guest (uncredited)
• 1970The Horror of Frankenstein — Dean
• 1970The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer — Crodder
• 1970Wuthering Heights — Mr. Linton
• 1969Carry On Camping — Man in Cinema (uncredited)
• 1969Otley — Jeffcot
• 1968A Dandy in Aspic
• 1968The Anniversary — Henry Taggart
• 1968The Lost Continent — Nick, chief engineer
• Callan
• 1967How I Won the War — Drogue
• 1967Privilege — Professor Tatham
• 1967The Prophet — Interviewer
• Mystery and Imagination — Landlord
• 1966The Deadly Bees — Coroner
• 1965Darling — Mr. Basildon
• Legend of Death — Irwin
• Londoners — The Interviewer
• 1965Love's Labour's Lost — Holofernes
• 1965Strife — William Scantlebury
• Thirty-Minute Theatre — Tim Singleton
• The Likely Lads — Vicar, Scoutmaster
• Theatre 625 — Henry
• 1963The Invasion — TV Commentator
• The Avengers — Henry
• Coronation Street — Mr. Soames
• No Hiding Place
• Armchair Theatre — Uncle Eric