Charles Kenneth Anton Benda (3 June 1902 – 26 July 1978) was an English actor often on television.[1] He appeared in British television series No Hiding Place, The Saint, The Avengers, Z-Cars, The Prisoner, Doctor Who, Doomwatch and films The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, The Ruling Class, Horror Hospital, The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother, The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It, International Velvet and others.[2][3] His stage appearances included small roles at The Old Vic and with Peter Hall's National Theatre company.[4][5]
Kenneth Benda | |
|---|---|
 in The Avengers: A Sense of History (1966) | |
| Born | Charles Kenneth Anton Benda 3 June 1902 Hampstead, London, England |
| Died | 26 July 1978 (aged 76) Hammersmith, London, England |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Spouse | Lucy Evelyn Alston (m. 1932 - 1978) |
| Children | Two (Anthony and Rosemary) |
Private life
editBenda was the son of Charles Benda, a company director and merchant dealing in Oriental Goods. His grandparents, Anton Benda and his wife Frances Mandelbaum, both originally from the Kingdom of Bavaria, were naturalized as British subjects, and in the census of 1871 his grandfather was described as a foreign agent.[6]
On 2 June 1932, at St Peter's, Cranley Gardens, he married Lucy Evelyn Alston, a daughter of Sir Beilby Alston.[7] Their daughter Rosemary Evelyn was born in 1936. In 1960, she married Robert Calder-Smith and they had two daughters and three sons, Henrietta, Anthony, Victoria, Dominic and Benjamin.
Benda retired to the Old Vicarage, Crondall, near Farnham, Surrey, where he died in July 1978.[8] His widow survived him until 1991. Both are buried at Crondall.
Acting credits
edit| Production | Notes | Role |
|---|---|---|
| No Hiding Place |
|
Gen. Barnaby |
| The Scales of Justice |
|
Judge Club Member |
| The Plane Makers |
|
Indian Passenger |
| The Saint |
|
Lord Henry Wentworth |
| Call the Gun Expert |
|
Bernard Spilsbury |
| Edgar Wallace Mysteries |
|
Lord Chief Justice Bryce |
| The Wednesday Play |
|
Sir John's Father |
| Bindle (One of Them Days) |
|
Rev. Sopley |
| Adam Adamant Lives! |
|
Sir James |
| The Avengers |
|
James Broom Lord Mansford |
| Softly, Softly |
|
Chief Constable Everett |
| Sir Arthur Conan Doyle |
|
Lord Mannering |
| Theatre 625 |
|
Sir Graball D'Encloseland |
| The Prisoner |
|
Supervisor |
| The Franchise Trail |
|
Pharaoh Mamoulian |
| Detective |
|
Sir James Trevor |
| Z-Cars |
|
Sir Francis King |
| The Jazz Age |
|
Sir Maurice Cope |
| BBC Play of the Month |
|
Jean-Baptiste Prieur |
| Callan |
|
Doctor |
| A Touch of Love |
|
Mr. Stacey |
| Doctor in the House |
|
Sir William |
| Scream and Scream Again |
|
Prof. Kingsmill |
| Oh, Brother! |
|
|
| Take Three Girls |
|
Second Assistant |
| Secrets of Sex |
|
Sacha Seremona |
| If It Moves, File It |
|
Admiral |
| The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes |
|
Minister |
| Biography |
|
Schneller |
| The Befrienders |
|
Lawton |
| Doctor Who | 2 episodes:
|
The Minister |
| Paul Temple |
|
Gunther |
| The Guardians |
|
General |
| The Search for the Nile |
|
Sir Henry Rawlinson |
| Justice |
|
Wetherby |
| The Regiment |
|
Lord Chief Justice |
| Clouds of Witness Lord Peter Wimsey (TV series) |
|
Serjeant-at-arms |
| The Ruling Class |
|
Lord Chancellor |
| Doomwatch |
|
Clive Hughes |
| The Venturers |
|
Grumbold |
| Scoop |
|
Prime Minister |
| Arthur of the Britons |
|
Ulrich |
| The Edwardians |
|
Archbishop of Canterbury |
| Horror Hospital |
|
Carter |
| Emmerdale |
|
Sir Gerald Scott |
| A Pin to See the Peepshow |
|
Crown counsel |
| The Dragon's Opponent |
|
Air Vice-Marshal |
| The Pallisers |
|
Major Domo |
| Fall of Eagles |
|
Professor Widerhoffer |
| Play for Today |
|
Duke of Sutherland |
| No, Honestly |
|
Royle |
| The Early Life of Stephen Hind |
|
Wexford |
| The Stud |
|
Carruthers |
| Churchill's People |
|
Lord Grabble |
| The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother |
|
Butler |
| Wodehouse Playhouse |
|
Bagshot – Butler |
| The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It |
|
Sir Miles Messervey, 'M' |
| The Basil Brush Show |
|
|
| International Velvet |
|
Presentation Official |
References
edit- ^ "C. Kenneth Benda". BFI. Archived from the original on 25 October 2020.
- ^ "Kenneth Benda". PrettyFamous.
- ^ "Kenneth Benda". www.aveleyman.com.
- ^ "Kenneth Benda | Theatricalia". theatricalia.com.
- ^ "Stage by Stage South Bank: 1976 – 1987" (PDF). National Theatre. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 November 2021.
- ^ Anton Benda, ancestry.co.uk
- ^ Charles Kenneth Benda in the London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1936, ancestry.co.uk, accessed 10 February 2022 (subscription required)
- ^ Wills and Administrations (England & Wales) 1978 (1979), p. 602