---
name: "Donald Finlay"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/donald-finlay"
fi1m_id: "donald-finlay"
imdb_id: "nm0277973"
tmdb_id: 10278
roles: []
born: "27 May 1909"
died: "18 April 1970"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-09-25T02:47:24.078301+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Donald Finlay

## Identity

Donald Finlay

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/donald-finlay
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** donald-finlay
- **IMDb ID:** nm0277973
- **TMDB ID:** 10278
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0277973/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/10278

Actor. Born 27 May 1909 in Christchurch, England. Died 18 April 1970.

## Details

- **Born:** 27 May 1909, Christchurch, England
- **Died:** 18 April 1970
- **Elsewhere:** https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0277973/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/10278

## Biography

Donald Finlay was a British athlete and Royal Air Force officer. Specialising in the 110 metres hurdles, he won a bronze medal at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and a silver medal at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. He also competed at the 1948 Summer Olympics, where he served as British team captain and took the Olympic Oath.

Finlay joined the RAF as an apprentice in 1925 and rose to the rank of Group Captain. He flew Spitfires during the Battle of Britain, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Force Cross. He appeared uncredited as himself in the 1938 documentary film *Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, olympedia.org, watch.plex.tv, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations* (1938), Fi1m 75, as Self - 110m Hurdles, Great Britain (uncredited) — [page](https://film.one/film/olympia-part-one-festival-of-the-nations.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/donald-finlay