Biography
Harcourt Williams (1880–1957) was an English actor and theatre director. Born Ernest George Harcourt Williams in Croydon, Surrey, he joined Frank Benson’s touring company in 1897 after drama lessons and made his London debut in 1900. From 1929 to 1934 he served as director of the Old Vic, recruiting actors including John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson.
Williams appeared in stage productions for over five decades and took film and television roles from the mid-1940s. His screen credits include King Charles VI of France in Laurence Olivier’s Henry V (1944), the First Player in Hamlet (1948), Prewitt in Brighton Rock (1948), the Coachman in Under Capricorn (1949), the Ambassador in Roman Holiday (1953), and Hinshaw in Around the World in 80 Days (1956). He was married to the actress Jean Sterling MacKinlay.
