Frank Thornton Video | Celebrity Interview and Paparazzi

Frank Thornton (born 15 January 1921) is an English actor who is known for playing Captain Peacock in Are You Being Served? and its sequel Grace & Favour (Are You Being Served Again) and as Truly in Last of the Summer Wine. Frank Thornton Ball (he would later drop his surname professionally) was born in Dulwich, London, the son of Rosina Mary (née Thornton) and William Ernest Ball. He wanted to act from an early age, but his father, who worked in a bank, wanted him to get a 'proper' job and so he got a job working in insurance after leaving Alleyn's School. He soon enrolled at a small... MORE

Frank Thornton (born 15 January 1921) is an English actor who is known for playing Captain Peacock in Are You Being Served? and its sequel Grace & Favour (Are You Being Served Again) and as Truly in Last of the Summer Wine. Frank Thornton Ball (he would later drop his surname professionally) was born in Dulwich, London, the son of Rosina Mary (née Thornton) and William Ernest Ball. He wanted to act from an early age, but his father, who worked in a bank, wanted him to get a 'proper' job and so he got a job working in insurance after leaving Alleyn's School. He soon enrolled at a small acting school, the London School of Dramatic Art, and did evening classes. After two years working at the insurance company, Frank Thornton was invited to become a day student at the acting school and persuaded his father to finance his studies. During the Second World War Thornton was evacuated along with the drama school and his first job was touring with four plays in Ireland. On 5 June 1945, he married actress Beryl Jane Margaret Evans in West Wickham, London and they had a daughter, Jane. He served during World War II as an officer in the Royal Air Force and was demobilised in 1947. Almost LESS