Sir Bernard James Miles, Baron Miles, CBE (27 September 1907-14 June 1991) was an English character actor, writer and director.
Miles was born in Uxbridge, London. While his parents were respectively a farm labourer and a cook, he was educated at Pembroke College, Cambridge. He entered the theatre in the 1930s, soon appearing in films. Like many actors, he featured prominently in the patriotic cinema during the Second World War, including classics of the genre such as In Which We Serve and One of Our Aircraft is Missing.
His typical persona as an actor was as a countryman, with a strong accent typical of the Hertfordshire/Buckinghamshire Counties. He was also, after Robert Newton the actor most associated with the part of Long John Silver, which he played in a British TV version of Treasure Island, and in an annual performance at the Mermaid. He had a pleasant rolling bass-baritone voice that worked well in theatre and film, as well as being much in demand for voice-overs.
He opened the Mermaid Theatre in London in 1959. He was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 1953, was knighted in 1969, and was granted a life peerage as Baron Miles, of Blackfriars in the City of London in 1979. In 1981, he co-authored the book Curtain Calls with J.C. Trewin. He died in Yorkshire
His daughters are the actress Sally Miles and the artist Bridget Miles. His son John Miles was a Grand Prix Driver in the late 1960s and early 1970s with the Lotus team.
The British character actor Bernard Miles was born in Uxbridge, Middlesex, England, in 1907; his father was a farm laborer and his mother a cook. After graduation from Pembroke College, Oxford, he was a teacher for a while and then joined the New Theatre in London. In 1937, he worked in the Herbert Farjeon's revue company and established his theatrical career. He made appearances in relatively few films, serving as director, producer, and screenwriter, as well as actor, on a number of them. In 1959, Miles opened the Mermaid Theatre in London; his contributions to the London stage won him a knighthood in 1969 and a life peerage ten years later.
