Peter Cushing Biography

Fast Facts

• Honored with O․B․E․ distinctions in 1989 by Queen Elizabeth II
• Left a blue-collar job in his late teens to accept a scholarship to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama
• Following the death of his wife Violet Beck in 1971, he admitted to attempting suicide by running vigorously hoping to induce a heart attack, as he couldn't imagine living without her
• Diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1982, but would go on to live with the disease for 12 more years without treatment before succumbing to the diagnosis in 1994 at the age of 81
• Quote: "You have to have a sense of humor, darling, to be alive․ Even a bit mad․ It helps to be mad․"
• After establishing himself in England in the earliest stages of his career, he would set off for Hollywood in 1939 where he would make his feature film debut in before eventually capitalizing on his film burgeoning career and returning home in 1941
• Began work on television in the 1950s, with BBC's "Nineteen Eighty-Four" adaptation in 1954 being named one of his greatest works, although very few copies of the live performance exist today
• Reportedly preferred as the first choice to portray the original Dr․ Who because he was more well-known to American audiences than William Hartnell
• While looking for work as a struggling actor, he once sold hand-painted scarves to supplement his income