Anthony Kimmins
Quick Facts
Biography
Anthony Martin Kimmins (born 10 November 1901 – 19 May 1964) was an English director, playwright, screenwriter, producer and actor.
Kimmins was born in Harrow, London on 10 November 1901, the son of the social activists Charles William Kimmins and Grace Kimmins. He served in the Royal Navy, and upon leaving the navy he became an actor.
His first directorial assignment was Keep Fit. Kimmins wrote and directed many of George Formby's best comedies. During World War II he returned to the Navy, running the Navy newspaper in Sydney during the Pacific war.
After the war he produced an eclectic mix of films, such as the psychological thriller Mine Own Executioner (1947), Bonnie Prince Charlie (1948) and Mr. Denning Drives North (1951). In the 1950s Kimmin's work included the Sir Alec Guinness comedy The Captain's Paradise and the children's Smiley series of films. His final film harked back to his early days – it was The Amorous Prawn (1962).
He was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1961 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews at the BBC Television Theatre.
He died in 1964, aged 62, at Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex, England.
Filmography
- Two Wives for Henry (1933)
- The Golden Cage (1933)
- Night Club Queen (1934)
- White Ensign (1934)
- Bypass to Happiness (1934)
- The Diplomatic Lover (1934)
- Midshipman Easy (1935)
- Once in a New Moon (1935)
- While Parents Sleep (1935)
- All at Sea (1935)
- His Majesty and Company (1935)
- Talk of the Devil (1936)
- Queen of Hearts (1936)
- Scotland Yard Commands (1936)
- Laburnum Grove (1936)
- Three Maxims (1936)
- Keep Your Seats Please (1936)
- The Show Goes On (1937)
- Who's Your Lady Friend? (1937)
- Feather Your Nest (1937)
- Good Morning, Boys (1937)
- Keep Fit (1937)
- I See Ice (1938)
- Trouble Brewing (1939)
- Come on George (1939)
- Under Your Hat (1940)
- It's in the Air (1940)
- Mine Own Executioner (1947)
- Bonnie Prince Charlie (1948)
- Mr. Denning Drives North (1951)
- Flesh and Blood (1951)
- The Passionate Sentry (1952)
- The Captain's Paradise (1953)
- Aunt Clara (1954)
- Smiley (1956)
- Smiley Gets a Gun (1958)
- The Amorous Prawn (1962)