
Acting
John Franklyn-Robbins
Born — Died
1924-12-14 — 2009-03-21
Place of birth
Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, UK
Known for
Acting
Credits
76 titles
Known for
7.5The peacefulness of the Midsomer community is shattered by violent crimes, suspects are placed under suspicion, and it is up to a veteran DCI and his young sergeant to calmly and diligently eliminate the innocent and ruthlessly pursue the guilty.
Midsomer Murders
1997
7.9The adventures of The Doctor, a time-traveling humanoid alien known as a Time Lord. He explores the universe in his TARDIS, a sentient time-traveling spaceship. Its exterior appears as a blue British police box, which was a common sight in Britain in 1963 when the series first aired. Along with a succession of companions, The Doctor faces a variety of foes while working to save civilizations, help ordinary people, and right many wrongs.
Doctor Who
1963
8.4Follow the intergalactic adventures of Capt. Jean-Luc Picard and his loyal crew aboard the all-new USS Enterprise NCC-1701D, as they explore new worlds.
Star Trek: The Next Generation
1987
6.6Play for Today is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage plays and novels, were transmitted. The individual episodes were between fifty and a hundred minutes in duration.
Play for Today
1970
5.2A BBC television anthology series featuring productions of classic and contemporary stage plays usually broadcast on BBC1. Each production featured a different work, often using prominent British stage actors in the leading roles. The series was transmitted from October 1965 to September 1983.
BBC Play of the Month
1965
7.0ITV Playhouse is a British comedy-drama TV series that ran from 1967 to 1983, which featured contributions from playwrights such as Dennis Potter, Rhys Adrian and Alan Sharp. The series began in black and white, but was later shot in colour and was produced by various companies for the ITV network, a format that would inspire Dramarama. Actors appearing in the series included Leslie Anderson, Gwen Nelson, Ricky Alleyne, Pat Heywood, Michael Elphick, Ian Hendry, Edward Woodward, Margaret Lockwood, Jessie Matthews and Lloyd Peters.
ITV Playhouse
1967
Film credits
2000s · 6 titles
6.1In a parallel universe, after overhearing a shocking secret, precocious orphan Lyra Belacqua trades her carefree existence roaming the halls of Jordan College for an otherworldly adventure in the far North, unaware that it's part of her destiny.
The Golden Compass
2007
5.8In early 19th century England, orphaned Becky Sharp defies her poverty-stricken background and ascends the social ladder alongside her best friend.
Vanity Fair
2004
5.6Two angels, one from the heaven and one from the hell, come to earth to save the soul of a boxer.
Don't Tempt Me
2001
6.6Disappointed with humanity, God wants to revoke his contract with humanity and wants to take back the stone tablets containing the ten commandments. To this end an angel is sent out to affect the personal lives of three humans so an appropriate child may be conceived.
The Discovery of Heaven
2001
7.7Readers and fans worldwide know the land of Narnia and the magical beings who dwell there. But few know the genius who created this beloved fantasy. Now meet C.S. Lewis, an extraordinary creative force, in this engaging true life story, filmed in Oxford, England where he lived, worked and imagined The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and the other tales that make up the beloved The Chronicles of Narnia.
C.S. Lewis: Beyond Narnia
2005
7.6A dog who was named after the Beatles album, inherits his master's fortune. His owner's two children, however, devise a plan to make off with his wealth.
Sergeant Pepper
2004
1990s · 5 titles
6.6Emma Woodhouse is a congenial young lady who delights in meddling in other people’s affairs. She is perpetually trying to unite men and women who are utterly wrong for each other. Despite her interest in romance, Emma is clueless about her own feelings, and her relationship with gentle Mr. Knightley.
Emma
1996
7.0Miser Ebenezer Scrooge is awakened on Christmas Eve by spirits who reveal to him his own miserable existence, what opportunities he wasted in his youth, his current cruelties, and the dire fate that awaits him if he does not change his ways. Scrooge is faced with his own story of growing bitterness and meanness, and must decide what his own future will hold: death or redemption.
A Christmas Carol
1999
4.7A scientist creating perfumes inherits his great grandfather Dr. Jekyll's formula and decides to use modern technology to improve it. He ends up as an ambitious, ruthless woman. She tries to prevent returning into the spineless man.
Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde
1995
5.7Clarissa Dalloway looks back on her youth as she readies for a gathering at her house. The wife of a legislator and a doyenne of London's upper-crust party scene, Clarissa finds that the plight of ailing war veteran Septimus Warren Smith reminds her of a past romance with Peter Walsh. In flashbacks, young Clarissa explores her possibilities with Peter.
Mrs. Dalloway
1997
NRToad's life is just one big adventure! His latest and greatest hobby is racing around the countryside in his new motor car getting into all sorts of trouble. Meanwhile, his wonderful home, Toad Hall, has been taken over by the wicked weasels and ferrets. It's now up to Toad and his riverbank friends to embark on the biggest adventure of all - the Great Battle of Toad Hall!
The Adventures of Toad
1996
1980s · 12 titles
7.8Two dogs, Rowf and Snitter, struggle to survive in the countryside after escaping from an animal research laboratory. They're pursued by search parties and then the military after rumours spread that they could be carrying the bubonic plague.
The Plague Dogs
1982
5.0Philip Kimberly, the former head of the British Secret Service who defected to Russia, is given plastic surgery and sent back to Britain by the KGB to retrieve some vital documents. With the documents in hand, he instead plays off MI6 and the KGB against each other.
The Jigsaw Man
1983
6.9A lawyer travels to a small seaside town to settle the estate of a recently deceased woman, but soon becomes ensnared in something much more sinister.
The Woman in Black
1989
5.6A young knight sets out to join King Richards crusaders. Along the way, he encounters The Black Prince who captures children and sells them as slaves to the Muslims. It is Robert Narra's sworn duty to protect the children and lead them to safety.
Lionheart
1987
4.2Based on the acclaimed novel by Doris Lessing, this dystopian science fiction tale concerns a woman struggling to make her way in a post-apocalyptic society. D (Julie Christie) is living in a city that's at the point of collapse following a catastrophic nuclear war; lawlessness and violence rule the day, and gangs of brutal youth roam the streets. With the help of her teenage companion Emily (Leonie Mellinger), D tries to make her way, and in order to cope, she often escapes into a fantasy world in which she lives in genteel Victorian surroundings in the 19th century.
Memoirs of a Survivor
1981
4.6This heroic story follows the life of Karol Wojtyla, a Polish Roman catholic who ascends the throne of St. Peter as Pope John Paul II. As a young boy, Karol is a bright and talented student. Archbishop Sapieha recognizes the very special, moving qualities Karol possesses and encourages him to consider the priesthood. Although determined to study Polish literature, Karol turns to the church; he is ordained and studies in Italy, France, and Belgium. Torn by fear and repression in post-Stalin Eastern Europe, Karol becomes a poisonous thorn in the communists' side. His deer reverence and commitment return him to Poland as Pope John Paul II.
From a Far Country
1981
8.0Baptista has two daughters: Kate and Bianca. Everyone wants to wed the fair Bianca, but nobody's much interested in problem child, Kate. Baptista declares that he won't give Bianca away in a marriage until he's found a husband for Kate, so all the suitors begin busily hunting out a madman who's willing to do it, and they find Petruchio: a man who's come to wive it wealthily in Padua. And Petruchio marries Kate with a plan to tame her, while everybody else begins scheming to win Bianca's hand.
The Taming of the Shrew
1980
7.3A rich merchant, Antonio is depressed for no good reason, until his good friend Bassanio comes to tell him how he's in love with Portia. Portia's father has died and left a very strange will: only the man that picks the correct casket out of three (silver, gold, and lead) can marry her. Bassanio, unfortunately, is strapped for cash with which to go wooing, and Antonio wants to help, so Antonio borrows the money from Shylock, the money-lender. But Shylock has been nursing a grudge against Antonio's insults, and makes unusual terms to the loan. And when Antonio's business fails, those terms threaten his life, and it's up to Bassanio and Portia to save him.
The Merchant of Venice
1980
NRWhen John Fielding, MP, disappeared on the way home to his country estates he was, perhaps, cracking the first good joke of his life. Sergeant Jennings, left to pursue the investigation, finds little humour or help amongst Fielding's friends or family. Only Isobel could believe that Fielding might have wanted to disappear.
The Enigma
1980
NRJohn Fothergill, aesthete and scholar, becomes the proprietor of the Spread Eagle, in Thame, Oxfordshire, with the intent of turning it into the most celebrated Inn in England, catering to the brightest lights in London's literati.
Fothergill
1981
NRFamily picnics should not be like this; bugging devices, men with X-ray eyes. Mary doesn't understand what terrifies Simon, nor the bizarre events of the next six months.
Keep Smiling
1980
his three-part miniseries begins with elderly Lady Slane (Wendy Hiller) sitting watchfully by the deathbed of her husband. Tended by her equally aged French maid Genoux (Eileen Way), who has served her faithfully for a lifetime, Lady Slane deals with a succession of advice from her large flock of middle-aged children. The family is chagrined by, but honors, her choice to live a modest country retirement at some distance, in Hampstead Heath. Lady Slane competently comes to terms to lease and restore a crumbling house, aided by an aging land agent Gervase Bucktrout (Maurice Denham). Once settled, an acquaintance from 50 years past, Mr. Fitzgeorge (Harry Andrews), visits the cottage to rekindle memories of their brief, deep, but unfulfilled brush as soul-mates in colonial India when Lady Slane was a devoted young wife and mother. Great-granddaughter Deborah (Jane Snowden), who has been trapped by a socially desirable but passionless engagement, regularly visits to confide and seek wisdom.
All Passion Spent
1986
1970s · 11 titles
6.1A young psychiatrist applies for a job at a mental asylum and must pass a test by interviewing four patients. He must figure out which of the patients, is in fact, the doctor that he would be replacing if hired.
Asylum
1972
6.8During World War II, a young man is called up and, with an increasing sense of foreboding, undertakes his army training ready for D-Day, June 6th, 1944.
Overlord
1975
9.0The 1972 BBC adaptation of Ibsen’s epic dramatic fantasy about a man in search of his soul.
Peer Gynt
1972
A moody drama concerning the lonely but luxurious imprisonment of Napoleon Bonaparte on St Helena.
Betzi
1978
8.9The Time Lords dispatch the Doctor to the past of the planet Skaro on his deadliest adventure yet — to prevent the creation of the Daleks.
Doctor Who: Genesis of the Daleks
1975
7.0A witness to a mob murder hides out in a nightclub dressed in drag.
A Couple of Beauties
1971
5.5Glamour model Diane Shepherd is routinely being beaten by her husband Tim, who accuses her of infidelity. When she can't take it anymore, she finds shelter with photographer Mark and his girlfriend Carrie. They introduce Diane to Millie, who is in a similar situation. Meanwhile, Tim informs Diane that if she doesn't come back to him, he will see to it that he gains custody of their son, Timmy.
The Brute
1977
7.4On holiday with their mother in the Lake District in 1929 four children are allowed to sail over to the nearby island in their boat Swallow and set up camp for a few days. They soon realise this has been the territory of two other girls who sail the Amazon, and the scene is set for serious rivalry.
Swallows and Amazons
1974
In the snooker room at a genteel gentleman's club, the mood darkens when adultery becomes the subject of conversation.
Snooker
1975
8.0When an undergraduate commits suicide, his best friend is sent down from university because he did nothing to prevent the death, which he felt was a choice his friend had a right to make.
Running Scared
1972
Scientists who worked for the allies on the development of the atom bomb in World War II are revealed to be Russian agents.
The Atom Spies
1979
1960s · 2 titles
6.6Jo, the mother of seven children, divorces her second husband in order to marry Jake, a successful but promiscuous screenwriter. Though they are physically and emotionally compatible, they are slowly torn apart.
The Pumpkin Eater
1964
The 75-minute hybrid fiction-documentary follows a sculptor named Arthur King experiencing a severe creative crisis while searching for a specific type of stone near Glastonbury, blending artistic struggle with Arthurian and Merlin mythos.
The Quarry: Portrait of a Man as a Paralysed Artist
1966
Series credits
7.5The peacefulness of the Midsomer community is shattered by violent crimes, suspects are placed under suspicion, and it is up to a veteran DCI and his young sergeant to calmly and diligently eliminate the innocent and ruthlessly pursue the guilty.
Midsomer Murders
1997
7.9The adventures of The Doctor, a time-traveling humanoid alien known as a Time Lord. He explores the universe in his TARDIS, a sentient time-traveling spaceship. Its exterior appears as a blue British police box, which was a common sight in Britain in 1963 when the series first aired. Along with a succession of companions, The Doctor faces a variety of foes while working to save civilizations, help ordinary people, and right many wrongs.
Doctor Who
1963
8.4Follow the intergalactic adventures of Capt. Jean-Luc Picard and his loyal crew aboard the all-new USS Enterprise NCC-1701D, as they explore new worlds.
Star Trek: The Next Generation
1987
6.6Play for Today is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage plays and novels, were transmitted. The individual episodes were between fifty and a hundred minutes in duration.
Play for Today
1970
5.2A BBC television anthology series featuring productions of classic and contemporary stage plays usually broadcast on BBC1. Each production featured a different work, often using prominent British stage actors in the leading roles. The series was transmitted from October 1965 to September 1983.
BBC Play of the Month
1965
7.0ITV Playhouse is a British comedy-drama TV series that ran from 1967 to 1983, which featured contributions from playwrights such as Dennis Potter, Rhys Adrian and Alan Sharp. The series began in black and white, but was later shot in colour and was produced by various companies for the ITV network, a format that would inspire Dramarama. Actors appearing in the series included Leslie Anderson, Gwen Nelson, Ricky Alleyne, Pat Heywood, Michael Elphick, Ian Hendry, Edward Woodward, Margaret Lockwood, Jessie Matthews and Lloyd Peters.
ITV Playhouse
1967
4.2An anthology of short plays shown on BBC Television between 1965 and 1973, used in part at least as a training ground for new writers, on account of its short length, and which therefore attracted many writers who later became well known.
Thirty-Minute Theatre
1965
4.2An anthology of short plays shown on BBC Television between 1965 and 1973, used in part at least as a training ground for new writers, on account of its short length, and which therefore attracted many writers who later became well known.
Thirty-Minute Theatre
1965
4.2An anthology of short plays shown on BBC Television between 1965 and 1973, used in part at least as a training ground for new writers, on account of its short length, and which therefore attracted many writers who later became well known.
Thirty-Minute Theatre
1965
7.0A one-hour anthology television series of one-off contemporary and classic dramas produced by the BBC.
Playhouse
1974
7.0A one-hour anthology television series of one-off contemporary and classic dramas produced by the BBC.
Playhouse
1974
7.0Anthology series of dramatic works.
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
1969
6.5After a plane carrying three Agents crashes in the Himalayas, they are rescued by an advanced civilisation secretly living in Tibet who grant them enhanced versions of the ordinary five senses, and intellectual and physical abilities.
The Champions
1968
6.0The BBC Television Shakespeare is a series of British television adaptations of the plays of William Shakespeare, created by Cedric Messina and produced by BBC Television. It was transmitted in the UK from 3 December 1978 to 27 April 1985 and spanned seven series. Development of the series began in 1975 when Messina saw that Glamis Castle would make a perfect location for an adaptation of Shakespeare's play As You Like It. On returning to London, he envisioned an entire series devoted exclusively to the dramatic works of Shakespeare. After encountering numerous problems trying to produce the series, Messina eventually pitched the idea to the BBC’s departmental heads and the series was greenlighted. The series as a whole received generally negative reviews from critics.
The BBC Television Shakespeare
1978
7.0The Onedin Line is a BBC television drama series which ran from 1971 to 1980. The series was created by Cyril Abraham. The series is set in Liverpool from 1860 to 1886 and deals with the rise of a shipping line, the Onedin Line, named after its owner James Onedin. Around this central theme are the lives of his family, most notably his brother and partner, shop owner Robert, and his sister Elizabeth, giving insight into the lifestyle and customs at the time, not only at sea, but also ashore. The series also illustrates some of the changes in business and shipping, such as from wooden to steel ships and from sailing ships to steam ships. It shows the role that ships played in affairs like international politics, uprisings and the slave trade.
The Onedin Line
1971
7.8Acclaimed blackly comic historical drama series. Set amidst a web of power, corruption and lies, it chronicles the reigns of the Roman emperors - Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula and finally Claudius.
I, Claudius
1976
8.2The Storyteller, aided by his cynical dog, narrates classic folk tales, fables, and legends.
The Storyteller
1988
7.0Anthology series of half hour plays produced in BBC's Television Centre's studios.
Centre Play
1973
7.0Callan is the title of a British television series set in the murky world of espionage. Originally produced by ABC Weekend Television and later Thames Television, it was aired on the ITV network over four seasons spread out between 1967 and 1972. The series starred Edward Woodward as David Callan, a reluctant professional killer for a shadowy branch of the British Government's intelligence services known as 'the Section'.
Callan
1967
5.8Mystery and Imagination is a British television anthology of classic horror and supernatural dramas. Five series were broadcast from 1966 to 1970 on ITV and produced by ABC and Thames Television.
Mystery and Imagination
1966
7.2Budgie is a popular British television series starring former popstar Adam Faith which was produced by ITV company London Weekend Television and broadcast on the ITV network between 1971 and 1972. The series was created by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall . The show was produced by Verity Lambert, Rex Firkin was the Executive producer.
Budgie
1971
7.0A crime drama set in Southampton following a team of detectives and the cases they solve.
Target
1977
8.5The Dreamstone is a British animated television series that ran for 4 series of 13 episodes each between 1990 and 1995. The original concept and artwork were created by Michael Jupp who would later create another cartoon show Bimble's Bucket. The series was produced by FilmFair as a Central production for ITV. In 1996 Filmfair was bought from the Caspian Group by the Canadian company Cinar, then it became Cookie Jar Entertainment, but then it became part of DHX Media. This resulted in DHX's ownership of the first two series, while a company called Dreamstone Productions Ltd. retain the ownership of the third and fourth series. The Dreamstone is set in an alternative world called the 'Sleeping World,' and concerns itself principally with the struggle between good, and evil.
The Dreamstone
1990
5.0Churchill's People is a British anthology series based on A History of the English-Speaking Peoples, Winston Churchill's four-volume history of Britain and its former colonies. 26 episodes were produced by the BBC and initially broadcast from 30 December 1974 to 23 June 1975.
Churchill's People
1974
9.0An hour-long anthology series hosted by Jim Henson and generally included two segments. The first, MuppeTelevision, features comedy skits starring the Muppets, as well as frequent guest appearances by popular entertainers. The second often rebroadcasts original productions, primarily The StoryTeller.
The Jim Henson Hour
1989
6.5Campion is a television show made by the BBC, adapting the Albert Campion mystery novels written by Margery Allingham. Two series were made, in 1989 and 1990, starring Peter Davison as Campion, Brian Glover as his manservant Magersfontein Lugg and Andrew Burt as his policeman friend Stanislaus Oates. A total of eight novels were adapted, four in each series, each of which was originally broadcast as two separate hour-long episodes. Peter Davison sang the title music for the first series himself; in the second series, it was replaced with an instrumental version.
Campion
1989
6.2The Edwardians is an eight-part miniseries broadcast in 1972–73. An anthology, each 90-minute episode explores influential figure(s) of the Edwardian era: Charles Rolls and Henry Royce; Horatio Bottomley; E. Nesbit; Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; Robert Baden-Powell; Marie Lloyd; Daisy Greville, Countess of Warwick; and David Lloyd George.
The Edwardians
1972
7.5Follows the linked fates of nine bank robbers, led by George. It begins with the nine men meeting in prison during their appeal and traces each individual after the group escape from custody.
Villains
1972
7.4Bittersweet comedy about a 61-year-old former model trying to cope with life in London.
Sensitive Skin
2005
An anthology series of plays. Each episode explores a different story of villainy.
The Villains
1964
8.0Ex-insurance investigator Ian Souter sets up his own security agency — the SIS (Specialists in Security) — alongside ex-cop Robert Shoesmith and secretary Heather Keys - and fight crime.
The Protectors
1964
6.8In Loving Memory is a British period sitcom set in an undertakers business that starred Thora Hird and Christopher Beeny. A pilot was transmitted in 1969 by Thames Television who rejected the idea before it was finally accepted by Yorkshire Television in 1979 where it further ran for five series between until 1986.
In Loving Memory
1969
This is a series of thrillers designed to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.
Menace
1970
7.0Napoleon and Love is a British television miniseries produced by Thames Television for ITV, lasting for nine episodes from 5 March to 30 April 1974. The series stars Ian Holm in the title role as Napoleon and depicts his relationships with the women who featured in his life as a backdrop to his rise and fall.
Napoleon and Love
1974
Scottish Playbill was a series of single television plays for BBC 2, produced by BBC Scotland Television Drama and broadcast in 1978 and 1979. It was billed as "a showcase for undiscovered writers and directors".
Scottish Playbill
1978
A series of plays, each reflecting an individual dilemma - sometimes serious, occasionally humorous - and each with a happy ending.
Happy Ever After
1969
NRAn anthology of six plays, contemporary twists on well-loved tales with dark endings.
Bedtime Stories
1974
7.0Public relations consultant Harry Shaw has to face the challenge of starting afresh in his mid-forties. Disillusioned with the values of city life, he returns to his father's farm in Yorkshire to think over his future.
This Year Next Year
1977
6.0Armchair Theatre is a British television drama anthology series of single plays that ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by Associated British Corporation, and later by Thames Television from mid-1968.
Armchair Theatre
1956
5.0Jude the Obscure is a British television serial directed by Hugh David and dramatised by Harry Green, based on Thomas Hardy's 1895 novel of the same name. Born into poverty, young Jude Fawley refuses to accept his lot in life. As his dreams are shattered one by one, his life gradually descends into tragedy.
Jude the Obscure
1971
