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The versatile British character actor Damien Thomas was born in the town of Ismailia, situated on the west bank of the Suez Canal in Egypt. After relocating to London, he trained for acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1966. That same year, he made his theatrical debut as Flamineo in John Webster's 17th century play The White Devil. He subsequently also performed at London's Old Vic and with the New Shakespeare Company.

Thomas first graced the screen in 1968. He was, thereafter, cast in a wide variety of ethnic roles, ranging from Middle Easterners and Spaniards to Dutchmen and Russians. He is perhaps best remembered as the gleefully satanic Count Karnstein in Hammer's classic vampire film Twins of Evil (1971). His other prominent roles have included the cursed Prince Kassim in Ray Harryhausen's production of Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977), the unfortunate musician Mark Smeaton, executed by the king for adultery in Henry VIII and His Six Wives (1972), the Jesuit priest and translator Martin Alvito in the Emmy Award-winning miniseries Shogun (1980), a ruthless Spanish sea captain, Don Alfonso de la Torre, chief antagonist in Roman Polanski's swashbuckler Pirates (1986), and Agrippa, last king of Judea, in the six-part American/Italian period drama A.D. (1985). Thomas also made guest appearances in such diverse TV shows as Van der Valk (1972), Blake's 7 (1978), Dempsey and Makepeace (1985), The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1986) (as a murder victim), House of Cards (1990) and Zorro (1990).

Damien Thomas died on April 18 2025, a week after his 83rd birthday.

Terry Pratchett was born on 28 April 1948 in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for Good Omens (2019), Untitled Discworld Project and The Wee Free Men. He was married to Lyn Marian Purves. He died on 12 March 2015 in Broadchalke, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Willoughby Gray was born on 5 November 1916 in London, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for The Princess Bride (1987), A View to a Kill (1985) and Madame Bovary (1964). He was married to Felicity Gray. He died on 13 February 1993 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Tom Mennard was born on 11 February 1918 in Holbeck, Leeds, Yorkshire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Coronation Street (1960), Open All Hours (1976) and September Song (1993). He was married to Jillian M. Barrett and Muriel R. Gates. He died on 2 November 1989 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Tim Meats was born in 1947 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for State of Emergency (1975), Kinsey (1991) and Miracles Take Longer (1983). He died on 7 May 2019 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

He was educated at Eton College and at Oxford University (Christs Church), Oxford, England. He gained the rank of Lieutenant in the service of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. He fought in the Second World War between 1939 and 1945. He wrote the book "Sub-Lieutenant", published in 1942. He graduated from Oxford University in 1948 with the degree of Master of Arts (M.A.). He was the librarian between 1948-49 at Ashbridge College.

He wrote "Nelson's Band of Brothers" (published 1951), "One Man's Meat" (published 1953), and "Murder Story" (published 1954). He was a newscaster for ITN between 1956 and 1958. He held the office of Chancellor of the Navy Records Society between 1957 and 1960. In 1958 he fought the Rochdale by-election, as a Liberal candidate. In 1959 he fought for the Rochdale seat in the general election, again as a Liberal candidate.

He was a commentator and TV presenter for BBC, ITA, ATV, ABC and Yorkshire TV, on various show including Panorama, Face the Press, 24 Hours, Midweek, and Newsday between 1960 and 1979. He wrote the book "Ten Rillington Place" (which was published in 1961), "The Trial of Stephen Ward" (published 1964), "Very Lovely People" (published 1969). "Pursuit: the chase and sinking of the Bismarck" (published 1974), "A Presumption of Innocence: the amazing case of Patrick Meehan" (published 1975), "The Portland Spy Case" (published 1979), "Menace: the life and death of the Tirpitz" (published 1979), "Wicked Beyond Belief" (published 1980), "The Airman and the Carpenter" (published 1985), "On MY Way to the Club" (published 1989), "Euthanasia: the good death" (published 1990), "Truth to Tell" (published 1991), and "In Bed With an Elephant: a journey through Scotland's past and present" (published 1995).

Hilda Kriseman was born on 14 August 1921 in South Africa. She was an actress, known for Man About the House (1973), BBC Play of the Month (1965) and Play for Today (1970). She died on 29 November 2012 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Cecil Beaton was born on 14 January 1904 in London, England, UK. He was a costume designer, known for My Fair Lady (1964), Gigi (1958) and Anna Karenina (1948). He died on 18 January 1980 in Broadchalke, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Phil Lynott was born on 20 August 1949 in West Bromwich, Birmingham, England, UK. He was an actor and composer, known for A Knight's Tale (2001), The Expendables (2010) and Rush (2013). He was married to Caroline Crowther. He died on 4 January 1986 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Roger Leach was born on 22 April 1948 in Sydney, Australia. He was an actor and writer, known for The Bill (1984), Nicholas Nickleby (1977) and Bergerac (1981). He died on 1 December 2001 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Edward Heath was born in 1916 in Broadstairs, Kent. His father was a carpenter, his mother was a maid and his background was very modest. He attended Balliol College at Oxford, where he earned a second-class degree in philosophy, politics and economics. He got active in Conservative Party politics while at Oxford, but opposed Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's policy of appeasement.

He served in the military during World War II, in the Royal Artillery. After the war, he entered the Civil Service in the Ministry of Aviation. In 1950, he was elected Conservative MP for Bexley. He would represent that constituency for more than fifty years. His rise through the ranks was rapid, being appointed a junior whip in 1951 and was promoted to Chief Whip in 1955. He was appointed Minister of Labour in 1959. He was also appointed Lord Privy Seal in 1960 and President of the Board of Trade in 1963.

The Conservative Party lost the 1964 election and its leader, Alec Douglas Home, stepped down shortly thereafter, but not after changing the leadership election rules, which made it easier for the rank and file to win the leadership. Edward Heath was elected leader of the Conservative Party in 1965, being the first commoner to lead the party. Edward Heath then went on to unexpectedly win the 1970 General Election for the Conservative Party on the 'Selsdon Platform', calling for more aggressive pro-growth economic policies.

Edward Heath's tenure as Prime Minister was very turbulent. His main accomplishment was to admit Britain into the European Community, which it joined in 1973. That was about his only major accomplishment as Prime Minister. The rest of Heath's time in office was not so happy. His Chancellor of the Exchequer, Iain McLeod, died within a month of winning the election and his successor, Tony Barber, was not nearly as capable. His Minister for Education, Margaret Thatcher, proved extremely capable, but attracted controversy when she abolished free milk in the schools, earning her the name 'Margaret Thatcher, the Milk Snatcher.'

Edward Heath's efforts to tame the power of trade unions did not match the rhetoric. The Industrial Relations Act did not deliver on its promises to curb trade union abuses. Northern Ireland was a source of continuing trouble. British soldiers fired on unarmed civilians in the Londonderry Massacre in 1972. The violence and disorder in Northern Ireland got so bad that Heath was forced to suspend the local government there and impose direct rule from London.

Back in Britain, the government caved before a miner's strike in 1972, after especially violent clashes between striking miners and police at Saltley Coke Depot; the police were withdrawn 'for their own protection' but it was a victory for the Miners' Union and thereafter, they had the power to make or break governments in Britain. Britain, like the rest of the Western World, was badly affected by the Arab Oil Embargo of 1973, but Britain was especially hard-hit as the miners struck again. Heath put the country on a three-day workweek to conserve energy, and break the will of striking miners. This backfired and hurt Heath's government more.

In early 1974, Heath called an election on the question of 'Who Governs Britain?' The electorate had lost confidence in Heath and it showed. The election of February 1974 was inconclusive. The Conservative Party lost its majority in Parliament. The Labour Party won the most seats, but not a majority--therefore, it could not really form a government. But Ted Heath was no longer Prime Minister and he handed power over to Harold Wilson in March 1974. Because the result of the February 1974 election was so inconclusive, another election was soon called for October.

Labour won the October 1974 election by a tiny majority. This did not make Heath look good; he had lost three out of four elections. The mood of the Conservative Party was intense rage. Yet none of the Conservative Party establishment dared to cross him. However, Margaret Thatcher, his Minister of Education did challenge Heath for the party leadership in the next party election. On February 4, 1975, she defeated him in the party leadership election. Heath won only 119 votes to Margaret Thatcher's 130, but he had lost his grip on the party. He resigned as Leader of the Conservative Party on February 11, 1975, having handed it over to Margaret Thatcher.

From that point on, Heath refused to serve in the Shadow Cabinet or the front benches. Heath never recovered from his defeat, settling for being a glowering presence on the back benches of Parliament. He remained in Parliament for another twenty-five years. In late-1990, he flew to Iraq in an effort to bring about a diplomatic solution to the Invasion of Kuwait and met with Saddam Hussein; he was unable to persuade Saddam Hussein to pull out of Kuwait, though he did return home with a handful of British hostages.

In 1992, Edward Heath became the longest-serving MP in Parliament and thus became Father of the House, a position he held until he retired from Parliament in 2001 at the ripe old age of 85. Edward Heath was a lifelong bachelor. He never married. Politics was his main interest, but he had other hobbies which included sailing yachts and music. His favorite instruments to play were the piano and the organ. Edward Heath died at age 89 in 2005.

Alan Pattillo was born on 17 July 1929 in Aberdeen, Scotland, UK. He was a director and editor, known for Thunderbirds (1965), Walkabout (1971) and The Avengers (1961). He died on 16 January 2020 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Edward Palmer was born on 7 March 1910 in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, Wales, UK. He was an actor, known for Nicholas Nickleby (1968), ITV Play of the Week (1955) and Raffles (1975). He died on 1 December 1982 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Paul DiAnno was born on 17 May 1958 in Chingford, East London, England, UK. He was an actor and composer, known for Iron Maiden: Running Free (1985), Me Me Me (2011) and Top of the Pops (1964). He was married to Beverley, Wife #4, Wife #5, Wife #2 and Wife #3. He died on 21 October 2024 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Brian Nissen was born on 20 October 1927 in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Badger's Green (1949), BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950) and Ghost Squad (1961). He died on 8 February 2001 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Leon Quartermaine was born on 24 September 1876 in Richmond, Surrey, England, UK. He was an actor, known for As You Like It (1936), BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950) and Settled Out of Court (1925). He was married to Barbara Wilcox, Fay Compton and Aimée De Burgh. He died on 25 June 1967 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Charles Irwin was born on 7 April 1908 in Leeds, Yorkshire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Mystery Junction (1951), Danger Man (1960) and A Tale of Five Women (1951). He died in November 1984 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Dave Goodey was born on 22 June 1942 in Reading, Berkshire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Robin Hood (1991), Without a Clue (1988) and The Madness of King George (1994). He died on 26 September 2011 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Edith Fields was born on 26 January 1903 in Rochdale, Lancashire, England, UK. She was an actress. She was married to Douglas Wakefield. She died on 26 January 1987 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Aileen Vernon was born on 21 November 1921 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, UK. She was an actress and production manager, known for Dr. Finlay's Casebook (1962), This Man Craig (1966) and The Revenue Men (1967). She died in 2001 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Harry Brett was born on 22 March 1859 in Kensington, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for My Old Dutch (1915), A Fallen Star (1916) and The Bottle (1915). He died on 28 May 1918 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Patricia Foy was born on 25 November 1922 in London, England, UK. She was a producer and director, known for The Magic of Dance (1979), Music for You (1951) and Profile in Music: Beverly Sills Festival (1975). She was married to Richard Levin. She died on 26 July 2006 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Alex Johnston was born in 1936 in Fintray, Scotland, UK. He was an actor, known for Shades of Darkness (1983), Coronation Street (1960) and Cribb (1980). He died on 21 October 2007 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

A.G. Street was born on 7 April 1892 in Ditchampton Farm, Wilton, near Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Strawberry Roan (1944), A House on a Hill (1947) and The Great Harvest (1942). He died on 21 July 1966 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.

Alan White was born in 1924 in Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, UK. He was a writer, known for The Long Day's Dying (1968). He died in 2003 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK.