Peter Bowles obituary
msn.comThe Good Life – Bowles had turned down the role taken in that series by Paul Eddington – this was his moment, and he seized it with relish.
Thereafter, he appeared sporadically on the West End stage as an authentic leading player, and initiated, often as a co-deviser, or “original idea” supplier, a string of major television serials including Only When I Laugh (1979-82), in which he starred with James Bolam and Christopher Strauli as one of three troublesome hospital patients under the supervision of Richard Wilson’s irascible doctor; The Irish RM (1983-85), in which he played a tetchily disposed army major serving as a resident magistrate in Northern Ireland (“Bowles Saves Channel 4” ran one headline after it opened to rave reviews and large viewing figures); and Perfect Scoundrels (1990-92), with Bowles and Bryan Murray playing likable conmen, latter-day Robin Hoods choosing only deserving victims.
The phenomenon of a posh villain or cultured cad was nothing new. But Bowles could suggest complications beyond the superficially suave.
He often paraded his charm as a veil for true menace or nastiness, as well as spivvery, and there was always a hint of phoniness around the smooth-talking self-assurance.
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