Joseph Raymond "Ray" Mort (10 January 1926 - 4 July 1994) was an English actor. He was best known for his roles as Ray in the sitcom Oh No It's Selwyn Froggitt, and Ern in the trilogy of television plays for Play for Today that included The Fishing Party (1972), Shakespeare or Bust (1973) and Three for the Fancy (1974). He was best known best known for playing character roles in television and theatre. Active from the early 1950s onwards, he was equally adept at both drama and comedy parts.
Career Mort began his career working in repertory companies in Yorkshire and Lancashire. In 1950, he joined the Saxon Players, who performed shows at the Theatre Royal, Leicester; in 1954 he departed from the group and moved to London, where he worked in stock with the Theatre Royal Company appearing in Croydon and Chatham. Later in August 1955, he briefly returned to the Saxon Players, appearing in Seagulls Over Sorrento as Badger. In 1956, he joined the newly formed Windsor Players, a repertory company based at The Windsor, Salford. Later the same year he made his television debut appearing in ITV's Play of the Week. In 1957, he was among the original cast members in the Granada sitcom The Army Game. Between December 1960 - January 1961 he appeared as insurance agent Ron Bailey in several early episodes of Coronation Street, he later returned in December 1962, playing Harry Bailey, a near identical character. During the 1960's, he appeared in a number of television shows including Armchair Theatre, Z-Cars, No Hiding Place, Taxi!, The Plane Makers, Dixon of Dock Green, The Wednesday Play, Mogul and Softly Softly. In 1965, he joined the cast of Spring and Port Wine as Arthur, initially shown at The Alexandra, Birmingham, it later transferred to the West End in November 1965, showing at the Mermaid Theatre and subsequently at The Apollo Theatre in January 1966, he stayed with the cast until the end of its Apollo run in July 1967. In 1968, he appeared in the ATV crime-drama series Crime Buster as Jimmy Vine, which ran for a single series.
In 1970, he featured in the Doomwatch episode "The Battery People" as Jones. Later in 1972, he played Ern in The Fishing Party, alongside Brian Glover and Douglas Livingstone, a comedy about three Derbyshire miners who go on a fishing holiday to Whitby, he would subsequently reprise the role in Shakespeare or Bust and Three for the Fancy respectively. In 1975, he featured in It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow as family patriarch John Bell, a docu-drama that charts the events of the Bethnal Green disaster where 173 people were killed in a stampede at Bethnal Green Station on the night of 3 March 1943. The same year, he also appeared in The Evacuees as Louis, a television play written by Jack Rosenthal, a semi autobiographical story about two Jewish boys who are sent to lodge with a non-Jewish family in Blackpool at the beginning of World War Two, which later gained an International Emmy award in fiction and drama. Mort's best known television role was as Ray in the Yorkshire Television sitcom Oh No It's Selwyn Froggitt, where he worked as barman and club steward of the Scarsdale Social Club, he appeared in three series broadcast between 1976-1977. In 1978, he appeared as Mr. Wiggins in an episode of All Creatures Great and Small, he would go onto reprise the same role a decade later.
Mort has featured in a number of supporting roles in a number of comedy series, including The Good Life, The Cuckoo Waltz, The Other 'Arf, Give Us a Break, Only Fools and Horses, Hallelujah! and Duty Free. He has also appeared in a number of drama series including Owen M.D., Follyfoot, Shabby Tiger, South Riding, Churchill's People, The Sweeney, Esther Walters, Survivors, The XYY Man, All Creatures Great and Small, Crown Court, Dick Turpin, Juliet Bravo, When the Boat Comes In, The Chinese Detective, Bergerac, The Good Companions, Lytton's Diary, Casualty and The Bill.
In 1980, he played George Willis in the Play for Today film Thicker Than Water about a group of black pudding makers who compete in the annual Foire au Bodin (blood sausage) festival in Normandy, the play was written by his former co-star Brian Glover. Later that same year, he appeared with Glover in the ATV comedy-drama series Sounding Brass, that charts the misadventures of the Derbyshire based Ettaswell brass band, which ran for one series. In 1982, he appeared in the musical film Pink Floyd – The Wall, by Alan Parker, based on Pink Floyd's album The Wall. In 1983, Mort briefly appeared as a police officer in the Only Fools and Horses episode "Friday the 14th". In 1986, he featured in the two-part Lovejoy episode "Death and Venice" as Campie; later the same year he appeared as Norman in the Thames Television sitcom We'll Think of Something. In 1987, he featured as Raggles in several episodes of the 16-part BBC adaption of the novel Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray.
In one of his final acting roles, in 1989, Mort featured in the Minder episode "The Wrong Goodbye" as Billy, who is coerced into receiving a consignment of dolls by Arthur Daley, before the bank seizes Daley's business for non-payment.
Selected filmography YearTitleRole Notes1956Play of the WeekReporterStory: "Shooting Star"1960Armchair TheatreCorporal TomkinsStory: "Hail the Conquering Hero"SkyportJackEpisode: "Landfall"1960 – 1961Coronation StreetRon Bailey5 episodes1961Armchair TheatreTubbsStory: "Looking for Frankie"No Hiding PlaceGobbo SmithEpisode: "Explosion Underground"1962Z-CarsFelixEpisode: "Sudden Death"ManEpisode: "Johnny Sailor"1962 –1964Coronation StreetHarry Bailey6 episodes 1963No Hiding PlacePostmanEpisode: "Four Faces of Clare"Taxi!BernardEpisode: "Don't Do as I Do"1963 – 1964The Plane MakersSam/ Jack Brough4 episodes1964Dixon of Dock GreenMr. ArkwrightEpisode: "The Witness"No Hiding PlaceBert LaneEpisode: "Rogue's Gallery"The Wednesday PlayPeasantStory: A Crack in the Ice"1965Dixon of Dock GreenCharlieEpisode: "Other People's Lives"MogulJack HartleyEpisode: "Safety Man"Z-CarsDoddsEpisode: "Another Fairytale"1968Crime BusterJimmy Vine13 episodesSoftly SoftlyBob SpenderEpisode: "Quicker by Rail"Z-CarsCollinstoneEpisode: "Collinstone" (2 parts)1970DoomwatchJonesEpisode: "The Battery People"1971Softy Softy TaskforceDentEpisode: "An Inside Job"1972Owen M.D.Harry Spence2 episodes1973FollyfootPolicemanEpisode: "Sell the Tiger"Shabby TigerJoe Kepple4 episodes1972 –1974Play for TodayErn3 episodes1974JusticeTed WatsonEpisode: "Under Suspicion"Special BranchRon MurrayEpisode: "Stand and Deliver"South RidingBarney Holly7 episodes1975The EvacueesLouisTV MovieChurchill's PeopleChurch CommissionerEpisode: "America!, America!"The Cuckoo WaltzTruscottEpisode: "House for Sale"The Good LifeAnglerEpisode: "The Thing in the Cellar"It's a Lovely Day TomorrowJohn BellTV MovieThe SweeneyDriscollEpisode: "Ringer"1976Our Mutual FriendMr. Wilfer4 episodesSofty Softy TaskforceGeorge BartonEpisode: "As Good Cooks Go..."1976 –1977Oh No It's Selwyn FroggittRay21 episodes1977Esther WatersJim Saunders1 episodeSurvivorsJoe BriggsEpisode: "Long Live The King"The XYY ManDS King2 episodes1978 –1988All Creatures Great and SmallMr. Wiggins2 episodes1979Crown CourtTommy Weekes Episode: "The Irish Connection" (2 parts)1980Dick TurpinRadstockEpisode: "The Judge"Play for TodayGeorge WillisStory: "Thicker than Water"Juliet BravoWalter PengallyEpisode: "Oscar"The Other 'ArfStanEpisode: "Never the Twain"Sounding BrassGerry Thompson6 episodes1981BergeracKranskiEpisode: "See You in Moscow"The Chinese DetectivePolish Caretaker2 episodesCrown CourtJohn WinderEpisode: "Proof Spirits" (2 parts)The Good Companions PitsnerEpisode: "Salvage Work"Juliet BravoJack WillisEpisode: "Party Fun"When the Boat Comes InManny GoldsteinEpisode: "Action!"1982Pink Floyd - The WallPlayground Father Film1983Give Us a BreakSolly GoldsteinEpisode: "When It Rains, It Pours"Only Fools and HorsesPolicemanEpisode: "Friday the 14th"1983 –1984Hallelujah!Benge/ Harold Marshall2 episodes1984Duty FreeGeorge2 episodes1985Lytton's DiaryPorterEpisode: "The Lady in the Mask"1986LovejoyCampieEpisode: "Death and Venice" (2 parts)We'll Think of SomethingNorman6 episodes1987CasualtyAlbie MondayEpisode: "Hooked"Vanity FairRaggles7 episodes1988The BillMr. BaxterEpisode: "Stop and Search"1989MinderBillyEpisode: "The Wrong Goodbye"Young Charlie ChaplinWilliam Jackson1 episode (final role)
References
External links
Ray Mort at British Comedy Guide