Gerald Sim

Gerald Sim
Born
Gerald Grant Sim

4 June 1925
Liverpool, England
Died 11 December 2014 (aged 89)
Northwood, Hillingdon, London, England
Occupation Actor
Years active 1947–1993; 2007
Spouse
Deidre Benner
(m. 1967; died 1999)
Relatives Sheila Sim (sister)
Michael Attenborough (nephew)
Jane Attenborough (niece)
Charlotte Attenborough (niece)
Tom Attenborough (great nephew)
Will Attenborough (great nephew)

Gerald Grant Sim (4 June 1925 – 11 December 2014) was an English television and film actor who is perhaps best known for having played the Rector in To the Manor Born.

Early life

Sim was born in Liverpool, Lancashire. He was the younger brother of the actress Sheila Sim and brother-in-law of the actor/director Richard Attenborough.

Career

Sim made over a hundred film and television appearances, beginning with an uncredited role in the film Fame Is the Spur (1947). Film and TV roles include The L-Shaped Room (1962), Séance on a Wet Afternoon (1964), King Rat (1965), The Avengers (1966), Oh! What a Lovely War (1969), Ryan's Daughter (1970), Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (1971), Frenzy (1972), Young Winston (1972), The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (episode 7, as the Vicar - 1976), A Bridge Too Far (1977), The New Avengers (1977), Edward & Mrs. Simpson (1978), Gandhi (1982), as Dr George Bagster Phillips in Jack the Ripper (1988), Chaplin (1992) and Patriot Games (1992).

Another occasion in which he played a vicar was when he appeared in an episode of Keeping Up Appearances. By then retired, he appeared in the 2007 25th anniversary special episode of To the Manor Born.

Personal life and death

Sim was married to the British actress Deidre Benner, from 1967 until her death in 1999. In his later years, Sim lived in Denville Hall, the same north London care home for entertainers as his sister and brother-in-law, who occupied the rooms on either side of him. Sim died on 11 December 2014.

Filmography