--- name: "Gordon Jackson" canonical: "https://film.one/person/gordon-jackson" roles: ["Actor"] born: "19 December 1923" died: "15 January 1990" reviewed_on_fi1m: 2 average_fi1m_score: 82 updated: "2026-09-16T16:17:13.602478+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." --- # Gordon Jackson Actor. Born 19 December 1923 in Glasgow, Scotland. Died 15 January 1990. ## Details - **Work:** Actor - **Born:** 19 December 1923, Glasgow, Scotland - **Died:** 15 January 1990 - **Active:** 1963–1971 - **Also known as:** 戈登·杰克逊 ## Fi1m on Gordon Jackson > Gordon Jackson gave butlers, officers and commanders an authority that could hold an ensemble together. We value him most in *Upstairs, Downstairs*, where his work helps make the servants' troubles matter as much as their employers'. In *Upstairs, Downstairs* (1971), Gordon Jackson's Angus Hudson gives the household's servants someone whose authority we take seriously. He plays the butler, but the job title is not what makes him worth watching. Alongside Angela Baddeley's Mrs Bridges, he makes the people below stairs a strong reason to return to the programme. We grew fond of Hudson because Jackson made his concerns worth following, without asking us to admire the household hierarchy. His route to that part ran through supporting work in British and international films in the 1950s and 1960s. *Tunes of Glory* (1960) cast him as Captain Jimmy Cairns; in *The Great Escape* (1963), he is MacDonald, ‘Intelligence’. John Sturges makes the practical business of escape absorbing, and Jackson belongs to an ensemble whose appeal is not confined to Steve McQueen. We warmly recommend the film, though it softens the hardships of captivity. It is also a useful place to see Jackson before television gave him the sustained attention that suited him so well. His Scottish accent sometimes narrowed the parts offered, and repeated casting as officers and commanders had its limits. A stern official needs something to do beyond issuing instructions. Hudson benefits from a series willing to let its characters develop, with Jean Marsh's Rose Buck central to the same patient attention. Jackson's authority has a purpose here: it helps prevent the servants from being treated as incidental to their employers' lives. The staging can be stiff, but the class tensions keep the household from becoming too comfortable. The move to *The Professionals* (1977) put him in charge again, as George Cowley, head of CI5. After Hudson, here was another television role with enough space to make his presence familiar: he appeared in all 57 episodes. That is a substantial stretch in which to play the man in charge, and a reminder of how closely television associated him with authority. For the clearest reason to spend time with Jackson, start with *Upstairs, Downstairs* and give the downstairs company time. ## Biography Gordon Jackson (19 December 1923 – 15 January 1990) was a Scottish actor. Born in Glasgow, he began his career with BBC radio work as a teenager before making his film debut in 1942. He trained initially as an engineering draughtsman at Rolls-Royce and appeared in numerous British films from the 1940s onwards, including *Whisky Galore!* (1949). Jackson gained international recognition for supporting roles in films such as *Mutiny on the Bounty* (1962), *The Great Escape* (1963) as MacDonald 'Intelligence', *The Ipcress File* (1965) and *Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines* (1965). On television he played Angus Hudson in *Upstairs, Downstairs* (1971–1975) and George Cowley in *The Professionals* (1977–1983). He received an Emmy Award for his performance in *Upstairs, Downstairs* and was appointed OBE in 1979. *Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, screenonline.org.uk.* ## On Fi1m (2) - *Upstairs, Downstairs* (1971), Fi1m 83, as Angus Hudson — [page](https://film.one/tv/upstairs-downstairs.md) - *The Great Escape* (1963), Fi1m 82, as MacDonald 'Intelligence' — [page](https://film.one/film/the-great-escape.md) ## Also known for - *The Ipcress File* (1965), Jock Carswell - *Mutiny on the Bounty* (1962), Seaman Edward Birkett - *The Quatermass Xperiment* (1955), BBC TV producer - *The Medusa Touch* (1978), Doctor Johnson - *Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes* (1965), MacDougal - *The Night of the Generals* (1967), Captain Engel - *Scrooge* (1970), Tom - Friend of Harry's - *Whisky Galore!* (1949), George Campbell --- © 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/gordon-jackson