UFO: The Vault

7. Actors

Casting director; Rose Tobias Shaw

Ed Bishop;

Micheal Billington; Born Christmas Eve 1941 in Blackburn in Lancashire, Billington appeared in 1966 in Incident at Vichy at the Phoenix Theatre in London. He had also appeared in Dream A40 (1965), the BBC's United! (1965)The Prisoner episode A Change Of Mind (1967) and Offa in Alfred the Great (1969), before he landed the role of Colonel Paul Foster. The role of a younger man who could handle the more action-oriented scenes. Sylvia Anderson chose Franco DeRosa (who had hit a part in Doppelganger practically cut out) for his role as Franco Desica, who was fired from the shooting of the opening episode Identified. This role was filled by Lieutenant Gay Ellis who Gerry Anderson, director of the episode, was impressed with. Hence, some last-minute writing had to be done. An introductory story, Exposed, written by Tony Barwick, filled him into the show. Billington was auditioned several times for the role of James Bond but did have a part in the 1977 film The Spy Who Loved Me as Sergei Barsov. He died on 3rd June 2005 of cancer, aged 63, five days before Ed Bishop died.

George Sewell; Born 1924 in Hoxton, London, Sewell left school at 14 to work in the printing trade to follow his father footsteps before he trained in the Royal Air Force, too late to see action in WW2. Entering acting at 35, he met Dudley Sutton at a pub and recommended him for some auditions. Sewell made it into TV with Up The Junction (1965), Softly, Softly (1966), Man In A Suitcase (1967) and Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (1969), starring also in Doppleganger (1969) before becoming Colonel Freeman, leaving from orders of ITC New York to "get rid of the old ugly guy". He would later go on to, for example, Special Branch, The Sweeney, The Detectives and Doctor Who (Remembrance Of The Daleks - 1988). He passed away on 2nd April 2007. 

Wanda Ventham; Born 1935, Ventham has a long-acting career appearing in The Prisoner (It's Your Funeral - 1967), Heartbeat, Only Fools and Horses, Midsomer Murders, Father Brown, Minder, The Two Ronnies, and three Doctor Who serials (The Faceless Ones (1967), Image Of The Fendahl (1977) and Time and the Rani (1987). Her most famous role however remains playing Colonel Lake in UFO. She did appear as Sherlock's mother in the modern BBC TV adaption by Steven Moffat, starring Benedict Cumberbatch - her son.

Keith Alexander; Alexander's TV credits include The New Avengers, Minder, Softly, Softly and The Day of the Triffids with film credits including Hanover Street, Submarine X-1, and even the original Superman in 1978. He got in contact with Anderson as he moved to England in 1965 from Australia, proving himself to be a highly skilled voice artist in different accents with equal skill in English, Australian and American. As he recorded his voice for the mini-album Topo Gigo in London for Century 21's mini albums. He replaced the voice of an unavailable Ray Barrett for the voice of John Tracy and the Hood for Thunderbird 6, also providing the voice of Sam Loover for Joe 90 and several voices for The Secret Service.

Grant Taylor; Born 1917 in Newcastle, Taylor is best known for his role as General Henderson as well as his lead role of Forty Thousand Men (1940). Moving to Australia with his parents as a child before working as a professional boxer in Melbourne and then appearing in Forty Thousand Men. After his army service from 1942-1946, he worked as an actor in Australia before moving to work in the UK, appearing in Quatermass And The Pit in 1967. He died of cancer at the age of 54 in 1971, only a year after completion of UFO.