Ron Moody

Moody was born on 8 January 1924 in Tottenham, Middlesex, the son of Kate (née Ogus; 1898–1980) and Bernard/Barnett Moodnick (1896–1964), a studio executive. His father was a Russian Jew and his mother was a Lithuanian Jew; said Moody, "I'm 100% Jewish—totally kosher!" He was a cousin of director Laurence Moody and actress Clare Lawrence. His surname was legally changed to the more anglicised Moody in 1930. Moody was educated at Southgate County School, which at the time was a state grammar school, and based in Palmers Green, Middlesex, followed by the London School of Economics in Central London, where he trained to become an economist. During World War II, he enlisted in the Royal Air Force (RAF) and became a radar technician. ==Career==

Despite training to be an economist, Moody began appearing in theatrical shows and later decided to become a professional actor. Reflecting on the role, Moody states: "Fate destined me to play Fagin. It was the part of a lifetime. That summer of 1967 [during filming] was one of the happiest times of my life". and again at the 1985 Royal Variety Performance in Theatre Royal, Drury Lane before Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. Moody appeared in several children's television series, including the voice of Badger and Toad in the TV Adaptation of Colin Dann's The Animals of Farthing Wood, ''Noah's Island, Telebugs, and Into the Labyrinth. Among his better known roles was that of Prime Minister Rupert Mountjoy in the comedy The Mouse on the Moon (1963), alongside Margaret Rutherford, with whom he appeared again the following year in Murder Most Foul'' (1964), one of Rutherford's Miss Marple films. He played French entertainer and mime artist The Great Orlando in the 1963 Cliff Richard film Summer Holiday. He appeared as Hopkirk in the 1966 episode entitled "Honey For the Prince" of The Avengers. He acted again with former Oliver! Co-star Jack Wild in Flight of the Doves (1971). In 1969, Moody was offered, but declined, the lead role in Doctor Who, following the departure of Patrick Troughton from the part. He later told many people (including Doctor Who companion Elisabeth Sladen) that declining the role was a decision he subsequently regretted. In 2004, the British ITV1 nostalgia series After They Were Famous hosted a documentary of the surviving cast of the film Oliver! Several of the film's musical numbers were reenacted. Moody, then 80 but still spry, and Jack Wild (seriously ill with oral cancer at the time) recreated their dance from the closing credits of the film. Moody was a guest star in an episode of ITV's long-running police drama The Bill in 2004 along with actress Mollie Sugden and appeared in BBC1's Casualty (aired on 30 January 2010) as a Scottish patient who had served with the Black Watch during the Second World War. On 30 June 2010, Moody appeared on stage at the end of a performance of Cameron Mackintosh's revival of Oliver! And made a humorous speech about the show's 50th anniversary. He then reprised the "Pick a Pocket or Two" number with the cast. Moody was a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur F.C. ==Personal life==

Moody married a Pilates teacher, Therese Blackbourn, in 1985. The couple had six children: Catherine Laura (b. July 1986), Daniel Maxmilian (b. September 1988), Matthew Alexander (b. Sept 1990), Micheal Orlando (b. July 1992), Jonathan Barnaby (b. April 1994) and Conrad Augustus (b. July 1996). ==Death==

Moody died of natural causes while in a London hospital on 11 June 2015, aged 91. ==Partial filmography==

• Davy (1958) – The Unicyclist (uncredited) • Follow a Star (1959) – Violinist • Make Mine Mink (1960) – Jelks (uncredited) • Five Golden Hours (1961) – Gabrielle • A Pair of Briefs (1962) – Sidney Pudney • Summer Holiday (1963) – Orlando • The Mouse on the Moon (1963) – Prime Minister Rupert Mountjoy • Ladies Who Do (1963) – Police Inspector • Murder Most Foul (1964) – H. Driffold Cosgood • ''Every Day's a Holiday'' (1964) – Professor Bastinado • San Ferry Ann (1965) – German • The Sandwich Man (1966) – Rowing Coach • Oliver! (1968) – Fagin • David Copperfield (1969, TV Movie) – Uriah Heep • The Twelve Chairs (1970) – Vorobyaninov • Flight of the Doves (1971) – Hawk Dove • The Edwardians (1972–1973, TV miniseries) – Robert Baden-Powell • Legend of the Werewolf (1975) – Zoo Keeper • Dogpound Shuffle (1975) – Steps • Closed Up-Tight (1975) • Starsky & Hutch (1976, TV Series) – Derek Stafford • The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It (1977) – Dr Henry Gropinger • Dominique (1978) – Dr. Rogers • The Word (1978, TV Mini-Series) – LeBrun • Unidentified Flying Oddball, aka The Spaceman and King Arthur (1979) – Merlin • Tales of the Unexpected (1980, TV Episode) – Richard Pratt • ''Nobody's Perfect'' (1980, TV Series) – Inspector Roger Hart • Into the Labyrinth (1981, TV Series) – Rothgo • Othello (1981, TV Movie) – Iago • Dial M for Murder (1981, TV movie) – Capt. Lesgate • Wrong Is Right (1982) – King Awad • Where Is Parsifal? (1983) – Beersbohm • Hart to Hart (1983) – Charles Thompson • The Other Side of London (1983) • The Telebugs (1986–1987, TV Series) – (voice) • Asterix and the Big Fight (1989) – Prolix (British version, voice) • A Ghost in Monte Carlo (1990, TV Movie) – Alphonse • ''How's Business'' (1991) – Pawnshop broker • ''Emily's Ghost'' (1992) – Dawson • The Animals of Farthing Wood (1993–1995, TV Mini-Series) – Toad, Badger, Whistler, Rollo, Bully, Spike, Large Town Rat, additional voices (voice) • ''A Kid in King Arthur's Court'' (1995) – Merlin • ''Noah's Island'' (1997–1999) – Noah, Rocco, Reg, Squadron Leader, additional voices (voice) • The 3 Kings (2000) – King Herod • Revelation (2001) – Sir Isaac Newton • Paradise Grove (2003) – Izzie Goldberg • Lost Dogs (2005) – Maurice Todd • Moussaka & Chips (2005) – Officer David Tomlinson ==Bibliography==