Richard Ainley

Richard Ainley (22 December 1910 – 18 May 1967) was a British stage and film actor born in Middlesex, England. He was the son of actor Henry Ainley and a half-brother of Anthony Ainley.

Ainley began his stage career in 1928, performing initially under the name Richard Riddle, a stage name derived from his mother's maiden name. His Broadway debut came in 1939 with Foreigners at the Belasco Theater, marking his first appearance before American audiences.

His screen career began in 1936 with a role as Sylvius in As You Like It, a production in which his father Henry Ainley also appeared. Subsequent film and television work included the role of Ferdinand in a 1939 television production of The Tempest, Dr. Hale in Shining Victory (1941), and a Foreign Office official in the thriller Above Suspicion (1943). A disabling wound sustained during his military service in World War II brought his film career to an end, after which he returned to the stage. In the early 1960s he served briefly as principal of the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

Ainley was married three times. His first wife was actress Ethel Glendinning; he was divorced from both his first and second wives. His third wife, Rowena Woolf, died in 1968.