Ronald Shiner
Birthday: 1903-06-08
Place of Birth: London, England, UK
Biography: Ronald Alfred Shiner (8 June 1903 in London – 29 June 1966 in London) was a British stand-up comedian and comedic actor whose career encompassed film, West End theatre and music hall. A former Royal Northwest Mounted Police Officer, farmer, greengrocer, milkman, bookie's clerk, soldier and film extra, Shiner shot to fame appearing in 1,700 performances of the stage hit Worm's Eye View from 1945 to 1947 (he would later top his own record by appearing in the play Seagulls Over Sorrento for 2,000 performances between 1950 and 1954). At the height of his career Shiner insured his nose for £10,000 because he said "it's me beak which made 'em larf." In retirement he owned a pub at Blackboys in Sussex but was plagued by ill health in his final years and retired to Eastbourne. He died there in June 1966 leaving an estate of £30,955.
Movies
Limelight
A chorus girl (Anna Neagle) discovers a singer (Arthur Tracy) in the streets and asks her producer t...
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The Case of the Frightened Lady
A classic British thriller set in a sinister old house, based on a story by Edgar Wallace....
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King Arthur Was a Gentleman
Arthur King joins the army, and soon starts fantasizing about King Arthur and his knights....
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Forbidden
Set on Blackpool’s Golden Mile, Jim (Douglass Montgomery), a once promising scientist, sets up in bu...
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The Gang's All Here
John Forrest is anticipating a quiet retirement spent penning detective fiction when he learns that ...
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A Yank at Oxford
A brash young American aristocrat attending Oxford University gets a chance to prove himself and win...
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Dry Rot
Comedy about a trio of not particularly bright bookmakers who try to fix a horse race....
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Innocents in Paris
Romantic comedy about a group of Britons flying to Paris for the weekend....
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Let George Do It!
Shortly after the start of World War II, a ukelele player (George) takes the wrong boat and finds hi...
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The Night We Got the Bird
Good natured comic caper charting the misadventures of a hapless bunch of Brighton based petty crook...
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The Adventures of Dusty Bates
Dusty Bates observes some smuggled jewels hidden in a crate aboard a ship; he is pursued by low-life...
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Laughing Anne
Story of love affair of captain who runs ship in Java Seas and a French saloon singer. From a story ...
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Flying Fifty-Five
Bill Urquhart, a young wastrel disinherited by his father, tries to get a job as a jockey – just abo...
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George in Civvy Street
George Formby plays George Harper, a tavern owner, who works to turn a waitress from her current emp...
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Get Cracking
Get Cracking is a 1943 British comedy war film, directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Dinah Sherida...
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Girls at Sea
When HMS Scotia pays a visit to the French Riviera, the officers throw a lavish party to celebrate t...
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The Nursemaid Who Disappeared
An overheard conversation leads to clues that a kidnapping plot is afoot....
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The Navy Lark
An Inshore Minesweeping Unit has been forgotten by the Navy after World War II on the peaceful islan...
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Wild Boy
This film is a caper story of greyhound racing and the efforts of a crooked dog owner to stop a riva...
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St. Martin's Lane
On the sidewalks of the London theater district the buskers (street performers) earn enough coins fo...
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Aunt Clara
A wealthy old man dies and leaves his holdings--including a brothel and a gambling den, racing greyh...
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London Melody
Jacqueline intrigues a diplomat, so unbeknown to her he finds her an apartment and finances her musi...
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Squibs
Squibs, a cockney flowerseller with a father overwhelmed by gambling debts wins through with the hel...
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The Missing People
27 well-to-do people have all vanished under similar circumstances. J.G. Reeder, an elderly gentlema...
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Trouble Brewing
Ealing comedy starring music hall star George Formby. An eager newspaper reporter (Formby) goes unde...
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Come on George!
George Formby, who plays George, a stable boy. He also has the unique ability to soothe an anxious r...
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Keep It Clean
A man invents a new cleaning machine. His brother in law offers to help him promote it and they get ...
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Little Big Shot
Harry Hawkwood is the son of 'Pa' Hawkwood, one of England's greatest crooks, and it's Harry's ambit...
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Doctor's Orders
Leslie Fuller stars as a quack whose son qualifies as a doctor in total ignorance of his father's oc...
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Spare a Copper
George is an inept reserve policeman working in wartime Liverpool, who is chosen by a gang of Nazi s...
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Old Bill and Son
Old Bill has grumbled his way through the trenches of the First World War. Now it is the Second and,...
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Excuse My Glove
A young man, whose main interest in life is stained glass, accidentally accepts a challenge to fight...
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Top of the Form
A con man hides out in a boys' school, posing as a professor. When the undisciplined and lazy boys h...
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Carry On Admiral
Two friends get drunk and decide to switch identities. One is a Parliamentary Secretary, and the oth...
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Beauty and the Barge
A young girl is engaged to a man she doesn't love, and rather than marry him she decides to flee the...
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It's a Bet
A young English reporter makes a bet with a wealthy publisher that he can disappear for a month. In ...
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Bees in Paradise
Four pilots become stranded on a tropical island inhabited by beautiful women....
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Up to His Neck
A maritime farce set in the South Seas. A strong supporting cast includes Brian Rix, Anthony Newley ...
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The Middle Watch
Through a series of unforeseen events, two glamorous young ladies find that they are obliged to spen...
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Not Wanted on Voyage
The scheming Albert Higgins and his dim witted mate Cecil Hollebone, set out on a ocean voyage under...
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The Magic Box
Now old, ill, poor, and largely forgotten, William Freise-Greene was once very different. As young a...
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Once a Thief
Down on his luck inventor Roger (John Stuart) "borrows" some money from a handbag he finds but thing...
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Gentlemen's Agreement
A young doctor realises that his father is a quack and changes places with a down-and-out....
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Operation Bullshine
During World War II, a Royal Artillery officer is assigned to an anti-aircraft battery that is fille...
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The Gentle Sex
During the War seven women from very different backgrounds find themselves together in the Auxiliary...
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Unpublished Story
Morale-boosting story released in the middle of World War II. A journalist uncovers a peace organisa...
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The Black Sheep of Whitehall
A professor teaching at a correspondence school discovers that a Nazi agent is trying to prevent a ...
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My Learned Friend
An insane murderer is on the loose, and gunning for the men who put him away. Will Hay is on the lis...
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Miss London Ltd.
Askey stars as a man trying to save his flagging escort agency. A new partner suggests getting some ...
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I Live in Grosvenor Square
The WW II romance set in Grosvenor square aka Eisenhower's home where the GIs stayed in London. Neag...
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Caesar and Cleopatra
The aging Julius Caesar finds himself intrigued by the young Egyptian queen Cleopatra....
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They Drive by Night
“Shorty” Matthews having recently been released from prison visits his girlfriend in London only to ...
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Salvage with a Smile
Wartime propaganda short in which a professor enlists the help of a dustman to explain the importanc...
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South American George
To help out his exact double, George Formby (in a dual role) takes the place of a noted South Americ...
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They Flew Alone
The story of flyer Amy Johnson the girl from Yorkshire who won the hearts of the British public in t...
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Thursday's Child
A couple's little girl becomes a movie star, but all it seems to bring is trouble....
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Sabotage at Sea
The captain of a British cargo ship shanghais a group of sabateurs, unaware that the daughter of the...
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Dinner at the Ritz
The daughter of a murdered financier works as a jewelry salesperson while she tracks her father's co...
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The Mind of Mr. Reeder
Mr. Reeder, a somewhat eccentric old gentleman employed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, gets...
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The Young Mr. Pitt
This biopic tells the story of the life of Pitt The Younger, who became Prime Minister of Great Brit...
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Reluctant Heroes
This comedy is set in an army boot camp. It displays a drill sergeant who must somehow turn an inept...
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The Black Tulip
In the Dutch Republic in 1672, a wealthy man named Cornelius Van Baerle devotes his life to growing ...
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