Jimmy Hanley

Who was Jimmy Hanley?

Jimmy Hanley was an English actor.

Born in Norwich, Norfolk, Hanley began his career as a child actor before becoming popular in juvenile roles. He was groomed by the Rank Studio system during his teenage years and earned film stardom as a "boy-next-door" type.

The young star-struck actor attended the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts and whilst he was studying there, made his stage debut at age 12 at the London Palladium, as John Darling in Peter Pan. He began to make films in his teens.

During the Second World War he served as an officer with the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, and in a commando raid in Norway he was wounded in the leg and was invalided out of the service. He returned to films, including Salute John Citizen, Henry V with Laurence Olivier, For You Alone and the Huggetts films.

He later worked on radio and TV, appearing in several television series and hosting the ITV series Jim's Inn from 1957–1963, which combined advertising messages with the plot of a soap opera.

Hanley was married twice:

Dinah Sheridan