Milton Johns

John Robert Milton (born 13 May 1938), known professionally as Milton Johns, is an English retired character actor who worked almost continuously throughout his career. A versatile talent, he specialises in sinister or obsequious roles and featured regularly in many British popular television series for both adults and children. He trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

Biography Johns was born on 13 May 1938 in Bristol. He trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School between 1959-62, after graduating he continued to work at the Bristol Old Vic until 1965. The same year he made his West End debut in War & Peace. He subsequently did seasons in repetory theatre in Belgrave, Coventry and Sheffield.

Career Johns' early television roles include Object Z, Orlando, No Hiding Place, Softly, Softly and The Troubleshooters. Other roles have included parts in Poldark, Born and Bred, Ever Decreasing Circles, Home to Roost, Dempsey and Makepeace, Murder Most English, Shoestring, Yes Minister, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, Softly, Softly, Going Straight, The Good Life, The Saint, Don't Wait Up, Butterflies, Minder, A Horseman Riding By, Campion and Z-Cars.

Johns also appeared in the TV mini-series Moll Flanders in 1996, where he played a pawnshop owner.

He is best known for being in Happy Families (1989) as Mr Alphonso, the café manager of Mrs Wobble, Coronation Street as Brendan Scott (1991–93), the shopkeeper who died of a heart attack while pedalling along the eponymous cobbled street. He played the landlord in The Basil Brush Show (2002–07). He also played jobsworth Derek Cassidy in Murphy's Mob, an ITV children's television drama series (1982–85) his character helped to manage the building used by the junior supporters of the football club, Dunmore United. Johns appeared in Doctor Who on three occasions: as Theodore Benik in The Enemy of the World (1967-68); Guy Crayford in The Android Invasion (1975); and Castellan Kelner in The Invasion of Time (1978).

In 1972 Johns starred in the children's Sunday evening series The Intruder and in 1977, appeared in another children's series, Midnight Is A Place. In 1983 he also appeared in the Grange Hill spin-off Tucker's Luck. Johns also appeared as an Imperial Officer (Captain Bewil) in the 1980 film, The Empire Strikes Back. He played Perker in the 1985 adaptation of The Pickwick Papers.

Selected Filmography