Sad news today that iconic TV actor Clive Dunn, OBE passed away, from complications following surgery in Portugal.

Dunn was born in Covent Garden, into a family of actors and it was clear from a young age that he would be continuing the family tradition. He started acting professionally in the 1930s, until the outbreak of WWII, where he enlisted with the 4th Queen’s Own Hussars. He was captured in Greece and spent more than four years an an Austrian POW camp.

The post-war years saw Dunn work in a wide range of music halls and theatres, where he developed his trademark “doddering old man” character. This helped him clinch the role of Corporal Jack Jones in the long-running BBC sitcom Dad’s Army in 1968. It was a role that he played so well that many of the shows’ fans were surprised to learn that at 48, he was one of the youngest members of the cast.

Dunn was a staunch socialist through most of his life and his political beliefs often brought him into conflict with fellow actor Arthur Lowe, (who played Captain Mainwaring and who was an active Conservative). Their rivalry was such that after Dunn finally accepted an OBE, after many offers, it was reported that Lowe would only accept a higher-rated honour from the Queen

After Dad’s Army ended, Dunn played the lead character in the made-for-children series Grandad, following a surprise numer-one record of the same name in 1971. When the series ended in 1984, Dunn retired to the Algarve where he spent the remaining 30 years of his life as an artist, painting landscapes and portraits.

RIP Jonesy

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