Such an amazing actor, I really loved watching some of his old films kind hearts and coronets, The Card, Last holiday and my favourite The lady killers. Such a shame his resting place looks a bit sad. 😞💐💐💐
Kind hearts and Coronets. One of his lesser known films. I could win a pub quiz or two but nothing to write home about. Also The ladykillers with Peter sellers. I'm still at a loss as to what Peter sold.
What I have noticed about a lot of the graves of very popular actors and actresses is the abysmal condition of the actual site itself, overgrown and dirty headstone in a lot of cases. Soon would come clean with a hosepipe., A lot of these graves are in beautiful cemateries and village type graveyards, Disgraceful.
Totally agree. For someone who was as well known and respected as Sir Alex you'd think someone would show some care for his and his wife's gravestones.
A humble headstone for such a brilliant Actor. I would have expected a little more lavish stone & size. I think someone should alert them the words are wearing off, how sad. One of the greatest actors of his era and still as an older man with Star Wars. A brilliant man. RIP. 🌺
Agreed. It's only been there for what, 22 years? Looks like it's been there for 50. There must be someone left that looks after it? Anyway, great video. Love Alec.
@@Diamondmine212 bet his son got quite a financial windfall once his father passed , could have at least spent a bit of it on a decent headstone for his father ,absolute shame
People may be shocked at such a simple, almost pauper's headstone. Perhaps this is the way Sir Alec wanted it --- he was an unassuming and humble man with a great gift, but he knew that this made him no better than anyone else when it comes time to take the final journey we all must take. Perhaps this is why he has an _everyman's_ grave --- an unassuming and humble grave. Rest in Peace Sir Alec and thank you for _Herbert Pocket, Fagin, The D'Ascoyne family, George Bird, Benjamin Disraeli, Henry Holland, Sidney Stratton, Father Brown, Professor Marcus, Col. Nicholson, Capt. William Horatio Ambrose, Gulley Jimson, Major Jock Sinclair, Prince Faisal, Marcus Aurelius, Lt. Zhivago, Pope Innocent III, George Smiley and Obi-Wan Kenobi_ (among many others!!!)
I really liked his eary movies such as 'Oliver' in which he played Fagan and 'Kind hearts and coronets' in which he played multiple roles. A great actor.
This would have been very much what Sir Alec would have wanted, in life he was never one to seek the limelight and tried very hard to just be the person he was, so it makes sense that his gravestone and that of his wife would be much as anybody elses would be and not overly flash or over the top...it is simple and does the job perfectly just like the man himself.
Wow that headstone!!! To say he was a sir!!! That’s crazy how unassuming it is?! I am really shocked it looks like a poor mans grave and he must have left a fortune behind. Very shocked at his grave very shocked, unkept doesn’t he have any relatives how very sad. In America there graves are amazing for such talented actors!! Such a shame! Thank you for this!! 👍👏👏👏👏❤️
Sir Alec was an icon, so it's quite sad to see the poor state of their headstone. Surely the Movie Industry could do something given how much revenue he earned them If it was closer, I'd do it myself. Thanks for sharing Paul
Some people must have benefitted from his wealthy legacy (he took a share of the profits of “Star Wars”) but, as is typical of human nature, where is honour in death !?
Amazing home unkempt his grave is. Given that his estate still earns a fortune. He was on a percentage for Star Wars. A larger one than Mark Hamil (being the more famous actor).
Good shout and thanks for your efforts. Just as others have commented, that's a humble grave for Sir Alec Guinness CH CBE. Probably the world's greatest character actor but definitely one of the most popular stars. The word prolific really seems apt for Sir Alec, and he did his bit in WW2 as well. Just for starters he was George Smiley; Fagin; Colonel Nicholson; Obi Wan Kanobe. There is a Blue Plaque but quite frankly the man deserves a much better monument.
An early couple of his films worth seeking out are "Kind hearts and coronets" in this he plats a multitude of characters, the other is "The card" this was filmed in Stoke on Trent especially Burslem.
Did your know he was charged with cottaging under another name. He became very well off after starwars as he had a percentage of the merchandise in which he negotiated.
love your videos mate its very depressing but also fascinating I'm not in for looking at grave sites but it's also a morbid curiosity especially the great stars you do a tremendous job and alot of research involved hat off to yer
Hi, Paul looks cold mate, well one of the great actors of all time, l remember him in the Dickens classic Great Expectations and the Malta Story and many more films when he was interviewed he always came across as a modest man which to me is a mark of greatness you just have to do is see his wife's and his headstones very modest and when he did Star Wars he was perfect for the part you can't see anyone else doing it, he is sadly missed not only for his acting but also as a person.
Great actor.. I never knew he was buried in Petersfield. I was a Police officer some years ago in Petersfield, Whitehill & Bordon. I grew up in South Harting and went to school in Midhurst.. RIP Sir Alec
@@UnusualThings1 History it seems is all around us.. Small world too, my parents are in Gosport. Good videos though mate, your channel will grow fast 👍🏼
@@woooster17 That’s cool, been to Gosport many times. Thank you, I’m going to keep researching and getting out to as many as I can and also any other unusual things that may be of interest to people. 🙏
The last time I visited a grave yard was at least 20 years ago when I went to see my Nan's resting place, which had also deteriorated, not just from vandals but from a family who didn't care about its upkeep. This is I'm sure the reason for Alec's and his wife's deteriorated headstones, because people simply stop caring and becomes just another 'chore'. The thing which strikes me though, watching your clips on here yesterday evening and again now, is something which struck me in my early 20's when taking a leisurely stroll around the large grounds of that graveyard, in how many husbands and wives were buried together in the same plots. For some, myself included, it gives a much needed ponderous assessment of one's life and the reality of it belonging to all life and all those living during our own time of life, beyond the daily quagmire of nonsenses and worries we think are important, because it reminded me how I once contemplated walking around at a time when I was at a deeply complex crossroads in my own life from being lost, unhappy and confused - wondering what was real, what wasn't real, and what true life was really about, what more was there beyond the mundanity, the abuse, the hatred, the loneliness, and what definitive purpose I had from a turbulent start. Being in a graveyard when one is going through that may seem to some to be asking for trouble, but it actually provides a rare opportunity at solemnity to ask oneself some very poignant questions, and find even more worthwhile answers. The dead do not speak nor answer, but the community they come to form offers the living a very worthwhile reflection of one's own mortality, and how despite these people now being just remains, each had their own personality, their own plans, likes and hobbies, idiosyncrasies, their own flaws, their own joys, their many transformations through birth, growth, decay and death which each brought them here, to lay beneath these stones. It occurred to me then as it did now, especially after watching the Buster Merryfield clip, how those two people side by side were once total strangers who never even knew each other existed; once babies and then children, teenagers and then adults, who'd meet by chance, courted, married, set their life together, had children and retired, then passed away, who now rest beside one another once more not even knowing one another, but what for the love of their life scribed on their stones, for what will be many lifetimes longer than their actual living life. It also struck me how many were buried with their own children, which again creates the very provocative thought that they were once altogether as a family, kids running about in the garden, parents working or doing households things, eating together at the table, going for walks, going to school, cuddling by the fire in winter, all the things we ourselves do from day to day and take for granted, to then shifting to the next reality of ending up in a row together deep within the ground, each in wooden boxes, identified only by concrete stones with names given to them by their forebears, being read and identified by passers-by. I think everybody should visit graveyards privately as a reason to rekindle the touch on life with all its meaning, and take in the entirety of who is there and who they were and how long they carved their presence into the history of our world, to jolt them back to a sense of reality itself and realise that one day, despite people's beliefs and fears, will each end up being a scribed memory on a piece of rock, being read by the respectful and reflective walkers by looking more introspectively at their own lives and their own purpose, or fearing they have wasted too much time, or, running out of it. This to me is what's missing in this modern world, the living life in blindness to death, which ignores the mortality within us all, for if we truly gave death its worthy time and attention, the value of life would be so much greater.
You didn’t seem yourself today Paul…hope your ok. I agree with other people here, who were surprised at how unkempt both gravestones and even flowers appeared. Such a shame. I did search to see if he had any children, he had three marriages and three children, the eldest of which is Matthew who is 82, and two daughters, one it said played a part in Star Wars too! Sir Alec also has a grandson who is a Professional football player..I don’t know who he plays for, but has the unusual name “Nesta Guinness-Walker!! So that’s my little contribution to Unusual Things Paul. Thanks for doing this search….I’m glad Sir Alec and wife are together , as you said she died not long after him, but I noticed on her stone she died just two days after her birthday!…such a brilliant and adaptable Actor! You forgot to mention his playing the part of Head Mistress in the Belles of St Trinians film, which was so good, and also Lady Agatha in “Kind Hearts and Coronets”…..another great film. If you havnt seen Belles of St Trinians Paul, do try and watch it….very funny film. Thanks again Paul! Best wishes! 🙋♀️😘🥰👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Alec Guiness also starred in numerous Ealing comedy films from the late 1940's and fifties.My absolute favourite being 'The Lady Killers' 1955.Great actor.
Hello Paul. Also, Sir Alec Guinness acted in an earier film, the black and white film called The Lady Killers. He starred alongside actor Peter Sellers. It is my favourite film!
Myself and my friend where travelling to Portsmouth from Tyne and Wear last year to travel to Spain on a motorbike holiday and the plan was to visit on the way but unfortunately the weather turned bad which was a shame because sir Alex was a part of our childhood growing up but hopefully in the future I’ll be able to see for myself RIP sir Alex
Everybody commenting on his headstone and how it seems very mundane. Just remember some people request this before they die. Maybe this is what Sir Alex wanted. Nothing lavish.
Why on earth do you need a big flash headstone? All of our War Veterans simply have a small plaque & they are totally respected. He’s not worrying about it he’s in a better place now. I see some of the big flash ones at different cemeteries I visit & I simply wonder why? Surely the main reason is a marker of where they were laid to rest for their family to visit rather than a shrine to their bank balance 😂😂
Alec was a great wise actor of obi wan in Star Wars if George Lucas went to Alec's grave George will say to him is maybe the force be with you all of us will be missing Alec in Star Wars films as Obi wan that's the end of Obi wan now if Alec was alive right now he could be in another Star Wars film and nobody won't ever replace another Obi wan
Hi yes it was a slip of the tongue on the description of the video there is a statement at the start that says at the start of the video I say he passed in 2020 Ali died in 2000.
Grrrrr! Again I can’t believe how these treasures of British acting lay there forgotten about, I’m not saying he should have neon flashing round his stone but please someone clean it 😡
Golders Green Crematorium could well be worth a visit. Obviously there are no graves to visit but the cloister walls have many memorials to the famous, just a thought.
I've seen every film he ever made several times and the ones I simple detest are the ones where he plays Obi Won Kenobi as much as he did acting in them !Yes,they certainly made money for him so that was a motive, but they are not for me.
Sir Alec Guinness play Jacob Marley in Scrooge one of my all time favourite films, he was an outstanding actor, I loved the old black and white films with him in it, even St Trinians he was awesome. Brilliant actor and very humble guy, every Christmas I watch his version of Scrooge it’s awesome, I never get bored of watching him. Great actor and extremely funny. Miss him very much 🙏🏻🙏🏻😂😂😂👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Needs some soda water pouring over the headstone. It will eat away all the lichen and bring it back to its original glory as befitting this screen giant.
“This is not the grave you are looking for” sorry couldn’t resist He was a great British actor, in Bridge over the river Kwai after he was locked in a cooler for weeks he simulated having bad legs, his son had polio which he said had enabled him to do this accurately
My favorite movies with Sir Alec Guinness are ''Great Expectations'', ''The Ladykillers'', ''Bridge on the River Kwai'', ''Tunes of Glory'', ''Murder By Death'' and of course the Star Wars trilogy.
I mean no disrespect to sir Alec, What a fantastic actor & so versatile. Many many years ago I worked at the US embassy & sir Alec came to the embassy to apply for a us visa. I have to say I have never met such an arrogant, pompous man before or since. I explained the visa proccess & to him & I could tell he had not listened to a word I said. Later that day he returned to collect his passport with the refused visa due to the application being incorrectly filled in. Of course it was all my fault, this is what you would expect from somebody so far up there own arse. I still think he was a fantastic actor & I still enjoy his films though.
Shocked that his family have allowed his gravestone to deteriate.they look ancient and unloved.he did great things in his life and obviously earned huge amounts of money. Those who benefit from it should show respect and tend to the graves. My opinion anyway but people today aren't nice sadly.
@juliefarmsworth, I would be surprised his son turned up at his funeral ! His mothers, yes he would turn up at that one. Anyway, Matthew certainly became a millionaire from his father's Will and also selling the house and all the private diaries to the British Museum with certain stipulations.....certainly made him money. Plus he made a lot from his mother's Will. Says a lot about fami!y secrets,too.
The state of the stones : maybe that was his wish ! His son and grandchildren would have looked after Merula's gravestone though....maybe he influenced her final wish too. Yes, she died not long after him but why separate gravestones ? Just wondering. Mysteries longer on....even after death.
@@apollonia6656 Well they bought 2 grave sites, and they died within months of each other, so used them both. I do not know much about her except that she wrote some children's books and was an accomplished painter.
Janet, I do not want to harp on about her submissive nature but here is another example of how she always did as her husband demanded. She was an actress and loved the theatre but her husband told her that if she returned to acting he would divorce her ! Their son called Matthew sold his father's private diaries which reveal a lot of unpleasantness.....some are available, others in decades to come: all at the British Library. Kind regards.
come to Tanworth in Arden........ Nick Drake & Mike Hailwood - both Legends also... ‘The Catacombs Birmingham jewellry quarter’ ......if you.ve never been - dusk would be good.
Surprized at how small the headstones are, & what looks like rather low-quality stone that won't last weathering very long. He didn't like the Star Wars films apparently, his best cinema film performance was in 'Kind Hearts & Coronets' to my mind.
Well I'm so shocked... I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the headstone of both of them...there's just no words.. but Paul.. you do an amazing job of keeping the public aware of these awesome actors have ended up xx always with the respect they all deserve xx
to all the comments about the condition of the memorial ... pretty sure it is made of Purbeck stone, which in certain conditions will 'weather' naturally, but also quickly due to the surface finish, which seems to attract lichens and detritus ..... reasonably easy to clean tho ... and yes it is a shame things get left ....... (ps. been in the trade 35+ years)
Wow, considering what an acting giant he was that is such a modest grave. His and his wife's headstones are only 23 years old but they look so much older. When he was asked to be in Star Wars (1977) he was offered a 1.5% cut of the profits as a sweetener by George Lucas to get him onboard. Twentieth Century Fox involved thought the film would die a quick death but as we now know it was a monster hit and although Guinness thought the dialogue and the script was rubbish, he was amazed at how popular the film would become and how successful. There's a great interview with Michael Parkinson where he said that he earned more money from that one role than he earned from all his previous films put together. It also gave him the financial security to take interesting if not well paid roles like George Smiley in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy about three years later. In the 2011 film version, Gary Oldman (who plays George Smiley) actually wore the same glasses that Guinness did in the TV series 30 years earlier. This was intentional as Oldman wanted to acknowledge Guinness in some way. As you say Paul, Sir Alec's filmography should be checked out. He rarely gave a bad performance and aside from Shakespeare and classic literature adaptations he proved himself a master of dark comedy in Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), The Card (1952), The Ladykillers (1955) and The Horses Mouth (1958). He was such a flexible actor he could easily turn his hand to convincing performances in everything from Charles Dickens to War Movies. He also did two years as a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy during the war and participated in the invasion of Sicily in 1943 and was a fan of the TV series The Simpsons. A great actor who led an interesting life.
I think I'm right in saying that Alec Guinness one of the last people to see James Dean alive, he almost fore told his death when he mentioned to Dean that it was a fancy car he was driving and one could get killed in it as it was so fast and gad better be careful. We all know what happened.
How about doing the grave of Sir Philip John Denton Toosey who Sir Alec Guinness Played In The Film The Bridge on the River Kwai i Think It Would Make a good Interesting Story / video love the video's Keep up the good work
Check our two great ulster actors,, Paul,, one was Sam kidd,,, the other was that legionair Stephen Boyd,,, you may recall his performance in that pivotal chariot race with Charlton Heston,,
Sir Alec Guinness Grave Stone Head almost unreadable . A power wash would make a difference. Surprised it hasn't been done. That's not good. Looks so poor looking. A far cry from Hollwood. Thanks for the video. Appreciated👍
In the video at the start I said he passed away in 2020. I meant 2000, I don't know why 2020 popped in my head....
There are always a few inaccuracies in your videos... maybe you should research more
2020 will be etched in all our minds for one dreadful reason.
We are all human ... don't worry ...
Your videos draw me in and love watching them
@@exgren Nobody is word perfect all of the time, I’m sure you will agree. Have a lovely day.
I'm so glad youve put this as I got well confused!!! Also why does it look so awful for only 22 years old. X
Another really enjoyable video thank you.👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👍
Such an amazing actor, I really loved watching some of his old films kind hearts and coronets, The Card, Last holiday and my favourite The lady killers. Such a shame his resting place looks a bit sad. 😞💐💐💐
Sorry Paul forgot to say thank you for this and all the other videos I have viewed, cheers, good health
Kind hearts and Coronets. One of his lesser known films. I could win a pub quiz or two but nothing to write home about. Also The ladykillers with Peter sellers. I'm still at a loss as to what Peter sold.
What I have noticed about a lot of the graves of very popular actors and actresses is the abysmal condition of the actual site itself, overgrown and dirty headstone in a lot of cases. Soon would come clean with a hosepipe., A lot of these graves are in beautiful cemateries and village type graveyards, Disgraceful.
Bridge on the River Kwai, not over. Thanks.
Keep doing these videos.
The need up keeping.
Such a great actor I wonder did he have any family because no one's looking after is headstone
Probably too busy looking after his money.
I'm really shocked to see how badly Sir Alec's headstone has deteriorated and in such a short time too! Thanks for your video's Paul.
Totally agree. For someone who was as well known and respected as Sir Alex you'd think someone would show some care for his and his wife's gravestones.
I was thinking the same!
I agree totally , 22 years old That’s all it is , I feel like he deserves more , I suppose when we die it don’t really matter but even so 😞
@@tuxedot7949 Sad but true. I hope the knighthood doesn't fade like the stone. Sir Alec, a British legend!
I live in Petersfield i went to the graveyard last week Alec and his wife gravestones have been cleaned thay look new again thay r looked after.
A humble headstone for such a brilliant Actor. I would have expected a little more lavish stone & size. I think someone should alert them the words are wearing off, how sad. One of the greatest actors of his era and still as an older man with Star Wars. A brilliant man. RIP. 🌺
Brilliant actor, such a shame his headstone has deteriorated so quickly, I wonder why no one has looked after it, loved him in the, Ealing comedies.
Agreed. It's only been there for what, 22 years? Looks like it's been there for 50. There must be someone left that looks after it? Anyway, great video. Love Alec.
chuck a gallon of thick bleach of that white marble headstone it will come up like new
I’m absolutely shocked at how horrendous his gravestone is it really looks like something off skid row for the poor
Well you know what they say, from dust we come ,to dust we return. They only had one son and he doesnt live here, theres nobody else to visit.
@@Diamondmine212 bet his son got quite a financial windfall once his father passed , could have at least spent a bit of it on a decent headstone for his father ,absolute shame
@@Diamondmine212 Where does their son live now, do you know?
His only been Gone 2y shocked
A bit of gold leaf wouldn't hurt.
I love him in lady killers , one of my favourite films by far ❤.
Tunes lot Glory is my favourite film of his.
People may be shocked at such a simple, almost pauper's headstone. Perhaps this is the way Sir Alec wanted it --- he was an unassuming and humble man with a great gift, but he knew that this made him no better than anyone else when it comes time to take the final journey we all must take. Perhaps this is why he has an _everyman's_ grave --- an unassuming and humble grave. Rest in Peace Sir Alec and thank you for _Herbert Pocket, Fagin, The D'Ascoyne family, George Bird, Benjamin Disraeli, Henry Holland, Sidney Stratton, Father Brown, Professor Marcus, Col. Nicholson, Capt. William Horatio Ambrose, Gulley Jimson, Major Jock Sinclair, Prince Faisal, Marcus Aurelius, Lt. Zhivago, Pope Innocent III, George Smiley and Obi-Wan Kenobi_ (among many others!!!)
I really liked his eary movies such as 'Oliver' in which he played Fagan and 'Kind hearts and coronets' in which he played multiple roles. A great actor.
Bridge over the river Kwai brilliant also.
He was just brilliant in "the lady killers" and Scrooge.
Agree, such a great actor
This would have been very much what Sir Alec would have wanted, in life he was never one to seek the limelight and tried very hard to just be the person he was, so it makes sense that his gravestone and that of his wife would be much as anybody elses would be and not overly flash or over the top...it is simple and does the job perfectly just like the man himself.
He actually died in 2000
Yes I know for some reason I said 2020….. 🤦♂️
Wow that headstone!!! To say he was a sir!!! That’s crazy how unassuming it is?! I am really shocked it looks like a poor mans grave and he must have left a fortune behind. Very shocked at his grave very shocked, unkept doesn’t he have any relatives how very sad. In America there graves are amazing for such talented actors!! Such a shame! Thank you for this!! 👍👏👏👏👏❤️
I was thinking exactly the same thing , not very well kept for an actors gave 🥲
Death humbles all; the great leveller.
Goes to show for all the money and fame we all end up the same
Very sad his headstone has been neglected. Brilliant actor, stared in some great films. Loved him in the ladykillers and star wars.
Sir Alec was an icon, so it's quite sad to see the poor state of their headstone.
Surely the Movie Industry could do something given how much revenue he earned them
If it was closer, I'd do it myself.
Thanks for sharing Paul
Great history on Sir Alec Guinness.. May the force be with him
Thanks Derek….. 🙏
Lovely video, Sir Alec was a great actor, such a shame his headstone has been neglected.
He was a very handsome man in his day and a brilliant actor...
Some people must have benefitted from his wealthy legacy (he took a share of the profits of “Star Wars”) but, as is typical
of human nature, where is honour in death !?
Amazing home unkempt his grave is. Given that his estate still earns a fortune. He was on a percentage for Star Wars. A larger one than Mark Hamil (being the more famous actor).
"Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into the force. Mourn them do not. Miss them do not".- Yoda.
Grave stone is in need of a clean up but his legacy lives forever. What a man what an Actor that has been in the most iconic films ever. 🎥
I love Kind Hearts and Coronets in which Sir Alec Guinness played several roles of the same family. It's a shame his gravestone is so deteriorated.
Good shout and thanks for your efforts. Just as others have commented, that's a humble grave for Sir Alec Guinness CH CBE. Probably the world's greatest character actor but definitely one of the most popular stars. The word prolific really seems apt for Sir Alec, and he did his bit in WW2 as well. Just for starters he was George Smiley; Fagin; Colonel Nicholson; Obi Wan Kanobe. There is a Blue Plaque but quite frankly the man deserves a much better monument.
An early couple of his films worth seeking out are "Kind hearts and coronets" in this he plats a multitude of characters, the other is "The card" this was filmed in Stoke on Trent especially Burslem.
Did your know he was charged with cottaging under another name.
He became very well off after starwars as he had a percentage of the merchandise in which he negotiated.
love your videos mate its very depressing but also fascinating I'm not in for looking at grave sites but it's also a morbid curiosity especially the great stars you do a tremendous job and alot of research involved hat off to yer
You call him Sir Alex more than once
Got the year he died wrong
Everyone in the comments moaning about his perfectly normal grave.
A great actor,made some fabulous films,RIP Sir Alec Guinness,thank you 😊 Paul total respect too you xxx❤️😊
Hi, Paul looks cold mate, well one of the great actors of all time, l remember him in the Dickens classic Great Expectations and the Malta Story and many more films when he was interviewed he always came across as a modest man which to me is a mark of greatness you just have to do is see his wife's and his headstones very modest and when he did Star Wars he was perfect for the part you can't see anyone else doing it, he is sadly missed not only for his acting but also as a person.
Great actor.. I never knew he was buried in Petersfield. I was a Police officer some years ago in Petersfield, Whitehill & Bordon. I grew up in South Harting and went to school in Midhurst.. RIP Sir Alec
Cool, thanks for the comment. Yes I was shocked when I started looking into who was where as I live in Portsmouth so didn’t realise he was so close….
@@UnusualThings1 History it seems is all around us.. Small world too, my parents are in Gosport. Good videos though mate, your channel will grow fast 👍🏼
@@woooster17 That’s cool, been to Gosport many times. Thank you, I’m going to keep researching and getting out to as many as I can and also any other unusual things that may be of interest to people. 🙏
The last time I visited a grave yard was at least 20 years ago when I went to see my Nan's resting place, which had also deteriorated, not just from vandals but from a family who didn't care about its upkeep. This is I'm sure the reason for Alec's and his wife's deteriorated headstones, because people simply stop caring and becomes just another 'chore'.
The thing which strikes me though, watching your clips on here yesterday evening and again now, is something which struck me in my early 20's when taking a leisurely stroll around the large grounds of that graveyard, in how many husbands and wives were buried together in the same plots.
For some, myself included, it gives a much needed ponderous assessment of one's life and the reality of it belonging to all life and all those living during our own time of life, beyond the daily quagmire of nonsenses and worries we think are important, because it reminded me how I once contemplated walking around at a time when I was at a deeply complex crossroads in my own life from being lost, unhappy and confused - wondering what was real, what wasn't real, and what true life was really about, what more was there beyond the mundanity, the abuse, the hatred, the loneliness, and what definitive purpose I had from a turbulent start. Being in a graveyard when one is going through that may seem to some to be asking for trouble, but it actually provides a rare opportunity at solemnity to ask oneself some very poignant questions, and find even more worthwhile answers. The dead do not speak nor answer, but the community they come to form offers the living a very worthwhile reflection of one's own mortality, and how despite these people now being just remains, each had their own personality, their own plans, likes and hobbies, idiosyncrasies, their own flaws, their own joys, their many transformations through birth, growth, decay and death which each brought them here, to lay beneath these stones.
It occurred to me then as it did now, especially after watching the Buster Merryfield clip, how those two people side by side were once total strangers who never even knew each other existed; once babies and then children, teenagers and then adults, who'd meet by chance, courted, married, set their life together, had children and retired, then passed away, who now rest beside one another once more not even knowing one another, but what for the love of their life scribed on their stones, for what will be many lifetimes longer than their actual living life.
It also struck me how many were buried with their own children, which again creates the very provocative thought that they were once altogether as a family, kids running about in the garden, parents working or doing households things, eating together at the table, going for walks, going to school, cuddling by the fire in winter, all the things we ourselves do from day to day and take for granted, to then shifting to the next reality of ending up in a row together deep within the ground, each in wooden boxes, identified only by concrete stones with names given to them by their forebears, being read and identified by passers-by.
I think everybody should visit graveyards privately as a reason to rekindle the touch on life with all its meaning, and take in the entirety of who is there and who they were and how long they carved their presence into the history of our world, to jolt them back to a sense of reality itself and realise that one day, despite people's beliefs and fears, will each end up being a scribed memory on a piece of rock, being read by the respectful and reflective walkers by looking more introspectively at their own lives and their own purpose, or fearing they have wasted too much time, or, running out of it.
This to me is what's missing in this modern world, the living life in blindness to death, which ignores the mortality within us all, for if we truly gave death its worthy time and attention, the value of life would be so much greater.
Alec giunness was one of my favourite actors of all time specially the lady killers
His name is Alec…
You didn’t seem yourself today Paul…hope your ok. I agree with other people here, who were surprised at how unkempt both gravestones and even flowers appeared. Such a shame. I did search to see if he had any children, he had three marriages and three children, the eldest of which is Matthew who is 82, and two daughters, one it said played a part in Star Wars too! Sir Alec also has a grandson who is a
Professional football player..I don’t know who he plays for, but has the unusual name “Nesta Guinness-Walker!! So that’s my little contribution to Unusual Things Paul. Thanks for doing this search….I’m glad Sir Alec and wife are together , as you said she died not long after him, but I noticed on her stone she died just two days after her birthday!…such a brilliant and adaptable Actor! You forgot to mention his playing the part of Head Mistress in the Belles of St Trinians film, which was so good, and also Lady Agatha in “Kind Hearts and Coronets”…..another great film. If you havnt seen Belles of St Trinians Paul, do try and watch it….very funny film.
Thanks again Paul! Best wishes! 🙋♀️😘🥰👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
A true talent & a gentleman.
My favourite film of all time is The lady killer’s.
Thank for showing us this. ❤
Alec Guiness also starred in numerous Ealing comedy films from the late 1940's and fifties.My absolute favourite being 'The Lady Killers' 1955.Great actor.
Beautiful place , great actor , his headstone very badly looked after
Hello Paul. Also, Sir Alec Guinness acted in an earier film, the black and white film called The Lady Killers. He starred alongside actor Peter Sellers. It is my favourite film!
Myself and my friend where travelling to Portsmouth from Tyne and Wear last year to travel to Spain on a motorbike holiday and the plan was to visit on the way but unfortunately the weather turned bad which was a shame because sir Alex was a part of our childhood growing up but hopefully in the future I’ll be able to see for myself RIP sir Alex
Everybody commenting on his headstone and how it seems very mundane. Just remember some people request this before they die. Maybe this is what Sir Alex wanted. Nothing lavish.
Why on earth do you need a big flash headstone? All of our War Veterans simply have a small plaque & they are totally respected. He’s not worrying about it he’s in a better place now. I see some of the big flash ones at different cemeteries I visit & I simply wonder why? Surely the main reason is a marker of where they were laid to rest for their family to visit rather than a shrine to their bank balance 😂😂
The headstones and plots are always so sad, run down and untended. the reason I want to be cremated
American Celebrities are put into special like tomb. Yet the British don't have a similar one. I wonder why?
Alec was a great wise actor of obi wan in Star Wars if George Lucas went to Alec's grave George will say to him is maybe the force be with you all of us will be missing Alec in Star Wars films as Obi wan that's the end of Obi wan now if Alec was alive right now he could be in another Star Wars film and nobody won't ever replace another Obi wan
Paul Alec Guinness was another legend of acting loved all of what he did . RIP 😇🙏❤️
I remember Alec in star wars and I got it on DVD!!! Rest in peace Alec 😇 thank you Paul!!!
You said he passed in August 2020 at the start of your video however the gravestone states August 2000. Maybe you should correct your video.
Hi yes it was a slip of the tongue on the description of the video there is a statement at the start that says at the start of the video I say he passed in 2020 Ali died in 2000.
@@UnusualThings1 who TF is ali?
Grrrrr! Again I can’t believe how these treasures of British acting lay there forgotten about, I’m not saying he should have neon flashing round his stone but please someone clean it 😡
Golders Green Crematorium could well be worth a visit. Obviously there are no graves to visit but the cloister walls have many memorials to the famous, just a thought.
I will always think of him as George Smiley.
I've seen every film he ever made several times and the ones I simple detest are the ones where he plays Obi Won Kenobi as much as he did acting in them !Yes,they certainly made money for him so that was a motive, but they are not for me.
Sir Alec Guinness play Jacob Marley in Scrooge one of my all time favourite films, he was an outstanding actor, I loved the old black and white films with him in it, even St Trinians he was awesome. Brilliant actor and very humble guy, every Christmas I watch his version of Scrooge it’s awesome, I never get bored of watching him. Great actor and extremely funny. Miss him very much 🙏🏻🙏🏻😂😂😂👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Was easiest best actor in tinker tailor soldier spy in the seventies version playing George smiley.
Needs some soda water pouring over the headstone. It will eat away all the lichen and bring it back to its original glory as befitting this screen giant.
Brilliant actor rip ❤️❤️❤️❤️ loved is film’s
“This is not the grave you are looking for” sorry couldn’t resist
He was a great British actor, in Bridge over the river Kwai after he was locked in a cooler for weeks he simulated having bad legs, his son had polio which he said had enabled him to do this accurately
That did make me laugh 😂 yes he was awesome in that film. 🙏
On, not over.
I'm friends with Alex Guinness granddaughter. In fact she looked after my dog this Easter bank holiday while I went away 😃
That’s awesome Dan.
Very poor grade headstone fabulous actor👍
John inman. No one talks about this guy anymore.
Brings it home when we go we take nothing with us and we all end up either in a plot in a grave yard of in a crematorium
My favorite movies with Sir Alec Guinness are ''Great Expectations'', ''The Ladykillers'', ''Bridge on the River Kwai'', ''Tunes of Glory'', ''Murder By Death'' and of course the Star Wars trilogy.
I mean no disrespect to sir Alec, What a fantastic actor & so versatile. Many many years ago I worked at the US embassy & sir Alec came to the embassy to apply for a us visa. I have to say I have never met such an arrogant, pompous man before or since. I explained the visa proccess & to him & I could tell he had not listened to a word I said. Later that day he returned to collect his passport with the refused visa due to the application being incorrectly filled in. Of course it was all my fault, this is what you would expect from somebody so far up there own arse. I still think he was a fantastic actor & I still enjoy his films though.
That's fine. That was your experience of meeting him.
Although he was a great actor, I always thought there was something slightly creepy about him
be nice if you could find the great comic icon will hay
Desmond lewlyn who played Q in James bond please
Would it be possible to do freddie mercury tribute
Shocked that his family have allowed his gravestone to deteriate.they look ancient and unloved.he did great things in his life and obviously earned huge amounts of money.
Those who benefit from it should show respect and tend to the graves.
My opinion anyway but people today aren't nice sadly.
@juliefarmsworth,
I would be surprised his son turned up at his funeral ! His mothers, yes he would turn up at that one.
Anyway, Matthew certainly became a millionaire from his father's Will and also selling the house and all the private diaries to the British Museum with certain stipulations.....certainly made him money. Plus he made a lot from his mother's Will.
Says a lot about fami!y secrets,too.
amazing 🙌
A wonderful actor...one of the best ever. R.i.p
That's bad that the tombstone is in that state.
If you can could you visit David rocastles resting place ex Arsenal Chelsea Norwich hull city footballer
The state of the stones : maybe that was his wish !
His son and grandchildren would have looked after Merula's gravestone though....maybe he influenced her final wish too. Yes, she died not long after him but why separate gravestones ? Just wondering.
Mysteries longer on....even after death.
She is in a separate grave alongside his, and deserves a headstone of her own, not just as an addendum to his.
Janet,
Merula always ' obeyed ' her husband and it has recently been revealed that he was a control freak....so who knows!
@@apollonia6656 Well they bought 2 grave sites, and they died within months of each other, so used them both. I do not know much about her except that she wrote some children's books and was an accomplished painter.
Janet,
I do not want to harp on about her submissive nature but here is another example of how she always did as her husband demanded. She was an actress and loved the theatre but her husband told her that if she returned to acting he would divorce her !
Their son called Matthew sold his father's private diaries which reveal a lot of unpleasantness.....some are available, others in decades to come: all at the British Library.
Kind regards.
Looking back he was in some fantastic films,a truly great actor for me.
Do you think you might be able to find Derek’s mums grave ,the one he painted with fluorescent paint in an episode of Only fools and horses ?.
What about Edward Woodward I think he’s buried in Cornwall 👍
He’s on my to do list
Great man rip Sir Alec xx
Malta story was very good
O yes great man fantastic
come to Tanworth in Arden........ Nick Drake & Mike Hailwood - both Legends also... ‘The Catacombs Birmingham jewellry quarter’ ......if you.ve never been - dusk would be good.
Surprized at how small the headstones are, & what looks like rather low-quality stone that won't last weathering very long. He didn't like the Star Wars films apparently, his best cinema film performance was in 'Kind Hearts & Coronets' to my mind.
Yes it’s a shame that the headstone looks very tattered and worn…. Thanks for watching🙏
May the 4th be with you…
Well I'm so shocked... I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the headstone of both of them...there's just no words.. but Paul.. you do an amazing job of keeping the public aware of these awesome actors have ended up xx always with the respect they all deserve xx
August 2020, he would have been 106.
to all the comments about the condition of the memorial ... pretty sure it is made of Purbeck stone, which in certain conditions will 'weather' naturally, but also quickly due to the surface finish, which seems to attract lichens and detritus ..... reasonably easy to clean tho ... and yes it is a shame things get left ....... (ps. been in the trade 35+ years)
His great grandson plays for afc Wimbledon
You mean Otis ?
Cheers mate, cracking actor. I liked him in Scrooge. 👍👍
Alec Guinness died 2000, not 2020. I stopped watching after this bit of misinformation.
Wow, considering what an acting giant he was that is such a modest grave. His and his wife's headstones are only 23 years old but they look so much older.
When he was asked to be in Star Wars (1977) he was offered a 1.5% cut of the profits as a sweetener by George Lucas to get him onboard. Twentieth Century Fox involved thought the film would die a quick death but as we now know it was a monster hit and although Guinness thought the dialogue and the script was rubbish, he was amazed at how popular the film would become and how successful. There's a great interview with Michael Parkinson where he said that he earned more money from that one role than he earned from all his previous films put together. It also gave him the financial security to take interesting if not well paid roles like George Smiley in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy about three years later. In the 2011 film version, Gary Oldman (who plays George Smiley) actually wore the same glasses that Guinness did in the TV series 30 years earlier. This was intentional as Oldman wanted to acknowledge Guinness in some way.
As you say Paul, Sir Alec's filmography should be checked out. He rarely gave a bad performance and aside from Shakespeare and classic literature adaptations he proved himself a master of dark comedy in Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), The Card (1952), The Ladykillers (1955) and The Horses Mouth (1958). He was such a flexible actor he could easily turn his hand to convincing performances in everything from Charles Dickens to War Movies. He also did two years as a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy during the war and participated in the invasion of Sicily in 1943 and was a fan of the TV series The Simpsons. A great actor who led an interesting life.
I think I'm right in saying that Alec Guinness one of the last people to see James Dean alive, he almost fore told his death when he mentioned to Dean that it was a fancy car he was driving and one could get killed in it as it was so fast and gad better be careful. We all know what happened.
I forgot all about Alex, a prolific actor. I have a suggestion: How about the late actor and wildlife conservationist Bill Travers?
How about doing the grave of Sir Philip John Denton Toosey who Sir Alec Guinness Played In The Film The Bridge on the River Kwai i Think It Would Make a good Interesting Story / video
love the video's Keep up the good work
Check our two great ulster actors,, Paul,, one was Sam kidd,,, the other was that legionair Stephen Boyd,,, you may recall his performance in that pivotal chariot race with Charlton Heston,,
It's a shame the letters are not painted in.. you would never know Sir Alex Guinness is buried there... RIP Sir Alex
Sir Alec Guinness Grave Stone Head almost unreadable . A power wash would make a difference. Surprised it hasn't been done. That's not good. Looks so poor looking. A far cry from Hollwood. Thanks for the video. Appreciated👍