Biography
Originally aiming for a military career, London-born Patrick Cargill attended Sandhurst, then spent several years as an officer in the Indian Army. Upon his return to England, Cargill shifted his sights toward the stage, making his London theatrical debut in the 1953 revue High Spirits. In films from 1952, Cargill is most fondly remembered by 1960s moviegoers as the prickly Scotland Yard investigator in
The Beatles' Help! (1965) and as the gentleman's gentleman with "consummation on the brain" in Chaplin's
A Countess From Hong Kong (1967). He also helped launch the chucklesome
Carry On film series by co-writing Ring for Catty, the novel upon which Carry On, Nurse (1958) was based. An inescapable presence on British television, Patrick Cargill co-produced the comedy series
Ooh La La and starred in
Father Dear Father (1968-1973, 1977) and The Many Wives of Patrick (1977-1978). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide