John Grieve

Who was John Grieve?

John Grieve was a Scottish actor, best known as the engineer Macphail in the 1970s BBC adaptation of Neil Munro's Para Handy stories, The Vital Spark.

Born in Maryhill, Glasgow, Grieve attended the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, before joining the Citizen's Theatre in 1951. Grieve worked in variety alongside many familiar Scottish comedians, including Stanley Baxter and Jimmy Logan. Although principally known for his comic roles, he appeared in drama films such as The Thirty-Nine Steps, Eye of the Needle and the BBC docudrama Square Mile of Murder. His stage roles include the part of the King's Jester in the premier of The Burning by Stewart Conn.

He had a brief recurring role as Frank Marker's probation officer in the Thames Television series Public Eye. He played Sandy Duncanson in BBC's adaptation of Neil Munro's The New Road, in a BBC drama about the Union of the Parliaments in 1707 he played John Hamilton, 2nd Lord Belhaven and Stenton who delivered a controversial speech against the Union, and appeared on BBC Scotland's Hogmanay celebrations.

He appeared in two episodes in the television series All Creatures Great and Small as Dr. Harry Allinson.