John Walter Lawrence Clegg, (9 July 1934), is a British actor best known for playing Gunner Graham in It Ain't Half Hot, Mum.
He was born in British India in the area that is now Pakistan. When his parents moved back to the UK, he came along with them and studied at RADA, which was followed by some time spent at the Watford Palace Theatre Company. It was here he met many people he would work with again in his career, including Jimmy Perry, Michael Knowles, Donald Hewlett, and Mavis Pugh, the latter of which he would marry in 1959, despite a twenty-year age gap between the two.
His first TV appearance came in a 1961 episode of Dixon of Dock Green. Despite this, his career wouldn't pick up until The '70s, wherein he made guest roles in Sitcoms including Whack-O!, Father, Dear Father, Lollipop Loves Mr. Mole, Dad's Army, Bless This House, and Are You Being Served?. The aforementioned Jimmy Perry cast him as concert party pianist Gunner Graham in It Ain't Half Hot, Mum (which also starred Knowles and Hewlett), the role that Clegg would become most famous for. For a brief period in 1978, Clegg played Clifford Howes in Crossroads.
His acting career took a halt in The '80s, but by The '90s he was back to playing small roles on TV, including the recurring role of Mr. Franklyn in the first series of You Rang, M'Lord?, another series written by Perry and once more starring Knowles and Hewlett, alongside Clegg's wife, Mavis Pugh. His final acting role came in the 2006 short, Tommy the Kid, as a police officer.
Not to be mistaken for Johnny Clegg.
Works on TV Tropes he appeared in:
Films- Bridget Jones' Diary (2001) — Elderly Man
- Dixon of Dock Green, episode "George Takes a Bowler" (1961) — Detective Constable Greaves
- Dad's Army, episode "Round and Round Went the Great Big Wheel" (1972) — Wireless Operator
- Bless This House, episode "I'm Not Jealous, I'll Kill Him" (1973) — Waiter
- It Ain't Half Hot, Mum, 56 episodes (1974-81) — Gunner Jonathan "Paderewski" Graham
- Are You Being Served?, 2 episodes:
- "Hoorah for the Holidays" (1974) — Ready-Made Suit Customer
- "Wedding Bells" (1975) — Bald-Headed Sweater Customer
- Whodunnit?, episode "A Bad Habit" (1976) — Brother Paul
- Crossroads, 7 episodes (1978) — Clifford Howes
- You Rang, M'Lord?, 2 episodesshow list (1990) — Mr. Franklyn
- Doctor at the Top, episode "Happy Birthday, Sir Geoffrey" (1991) — Dinner Guest
- Mr. Bean, episode "Back to School, Mr. Bean" (1994) — Calligrapher
- Coogan's Run, episode "The Curator" (1995) — Alf
