---
name: "John Penrose"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/john-penrose"
fi1m_id: "john-penrose"
imdb_id: "nm0672290"
tmdb_id: 97249
wikidata_id: "Q6252518"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "5 May 1914"
died: "22 May 1983"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-09-17T21:23:48.681247+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."
---

# John Penrose

## Identity

John Penrose

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/john-penrose
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** john-penrose
- **IMDb ID:** nm0672290
- **TMDB ID:** 97249
- **Wikidata ID:** Q6252518
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Penrose_(actor), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6252518, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0672290/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/97249

Actor. Born 5 May 1914 in Southsea, Hampshire, England, UK. Died 22 May 1983.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 5 May 1914, Southsea, Hampshire, England, UK
- **Died:** 22 May 1983
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Penrose_(actor), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6252518, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0672290/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/97249

## Streaming the US now

- **Apple TV:** [*Kind Hearts and Coronets*](https://film.one/film/kind-hearts-and-coronets.md) (91)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

John Penrose (5 May 1914 – 22 May 1983) was a British actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1936, he made his London stage debut the following year in *Old Music* at the St James's Theatre.

His best-known screen role was as Lionel Holland in the 1949 Ealing comedy *Kind Hearts and Coronets*. He also appeared in *The Spy in Black* (1939), *They Made Me a Fugitive* (1947), *The Adventures of Tartu* (1943) and *Secret People* (1952), typically in supporting parts.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Kind Hearts and Coronets* (1949), Fi1m 91, as Lionel Holland — [page](https://film.one/film/kind-hearts-and-coronets.md)

## Complete filmography (12)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Street of Shadows* (1953), as Gerald Gale
- *Counterspy* (1953), as Paulson
- *Hot Ice* (1953), as Freddie Usher
- *Secret People* (1952), as Bill
- *Hell Is Sold Out* (1951), as Repatriation Official
- *The Adventures of P.C. 49: Investigating the Case of the Guardian Angel* (1949), as Barney
- *Kind Hearts and Coronets* (1949), as Lionel Holland — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/film/kind-hearts-and-coronets.md)
- *Corridor of Mirrors* (1948), as Brandy
- *They Made Me a Fugitive* (1947), as Shawney
- *Freedom Radio* (1941), as Otto
- *The Lion Has Wings* (1939), as Unnamed Character
- *The Spy in Black* (1939), as Newlywed at Kiel Hotel

---
© 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/john-penrose