John Clive (6 January 1933 – 14 October 2012) was an English actor and author, known internationally for his historical and social fiction, such as KG200 and Barossa.[2]
Born Clive John Frederick Hambley on 6 January 1933 in London.[9] He was still a child when his family moved to Liverpool, and in 1939 he was evacuated to North Wales.[10]
Clive left school when he was 14 years old, and began working as a page at the New Shakespeare Theatre.[10] He soon auditioned for plays and musicals, and was cast in singing roles in children's musicals and as an assistant to comedians in sketches. His first starring role was the lead in The Winslow Boy in 1938.[9] He developed a keen interest in motion pictures as a teenager, especially for the films of Errol Flynn.[10]
In 1977, he co-wrote the historical novel KG 200 with J.D. Gilman, a story about a secret Luftwaffe unit during the Second World War.[13] This book was an international best-seller.[14]The Last Liberator,[15] followed in 1980 and was well received by literary critics.[14]Barossa[16] also achieved critical acclaim.[14]Broken Wings[17] was published in 1983 and matched the international success of KG 200.[14] Other fictional titles written by Clive followed including Ark co-written with Nicholas Headin, in 1986[18] which also received good reviews[14] and The Lions' Cage which was published in 1988.[19]
Death
John Clive died after a short illness on 14 October 2012 in England aged 79.[1] In 2021, his daughter appeared on the BBC TV show The Repair Shop, to which she brought a model of the yellow submarine by Corgi Toys. This had been given to her father at the premiere of the film in which he voiced John Lennon. Steve Fletcher on The Repair Shop restored the model.
Bibliography
Clive, John and Gilman J. D. KG 200: The Force with no Face. Simon and Schuster (1977). ISBN978-0-671-22890-3