Burt Kwouk

This is a Chinese name; the family name is Guo.

Burt Kwouk (Chinese: 郭弼; pinyin: Guō Bì) (born 18 July 1930 in Manchester, England, United Kingdom) is an English-born actor who was raised in Shanghai until he was about 17 years old.

He has appeared in numerous films and television programmes. He may be most famous for playing Cato, Inspector Clouseau's man-servant in the Pink Panther films. The running gag was that Cato was ordered to attack Clouseau when he least expected it to keep him alert, usually resulting in Clouseau's apartment being wrecked. Amid the chaos, the phone would ring and Cato answered it with "Hello: Inspector Clouseau's residence" before dutifully handing the phone to his employer.

His sharp features also meant that he has played his fair share of villain, and he has the distinction of appearing in more James Bond films in differing roles than any other actor.

In Goldfinger (1964) he was an eastern agent counterpart of Bond's; in the spoof Casino Royale (1967) he was a General and in You Only Live Twice (1967) he played the part of a Japanese operative of Ernst Stavro Blofeld. He also appeared as the honourable, but misguided Major Yamauchi in the 1980s World War II drama, Tenko.

In another notable film role, The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958) Burt was the leader of a prison revolt who later aids the main character in heroically leading orphans to safety but dies in the attempt.

During the 1970s, Kwouk featured in many UK television productions that called for a man of East Asian appearance. As a result, he became something of a cult figure in the United Kingdom and appeared as himself in The Harry Hill Show. He currently^[when?] stars in the long-running series Last of the Summer Wine. He provided voiceovers on the spoof Japanese betting show Banzai and subsequently appeared in adverts for betting company, Bet365.^[1]

Selected filmography

Film

• The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958), Li
• Goldfinger (1964), Mr Ling
• A Shot in the Dark (1964), Cato - Clouseau's man-servant
• Curse of the Fly (1965), Tai
• You Only Live Twice (1967)
• Casino Royale (1967), Chinese general
• The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968), Peng
• The Return of the Pink Panther (1975), Cato
• The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976), Cato
• The Last Remake of Beau Geste (1977), Father Shapiro
• Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978), Cato
• Trail of the Pink Panther (1982), Cato
• Curse of the Pink Panther (1983), Cato
• Empire of the Sun (1987), Mr Chen
• I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle (1990), Fu King Owner
• Air America (1990), General Lu Soong
• Carry On Columbus (1992)
• Son of the Pink Panther (1993), Cato
• Kiss of the Dragon (2001), Uncle Tai
• Beyond Borders (2003), Colonel Gao

TV

• Danger Man (1968) Tanaka
• Lucky Feller (1976) Chinese waiter
• Warship (1977) Foreign Minister Zee Khay Lim
• It Ain't Half Hot Mum (1977 - 1978), Me Thant
• "Shoestring (TV series)" (1980) Mr Wing
• Minder (1980), Sojo
• Tenko (1981), Major Yamauchi
• Doctor Who: Four to Doomsday (1982), Lin Futu
• Tickle on the Tum (1984), Willie Wok
• Noble House (1988), Phillip Chen
• The House of Eliott (1991), Peter Lo Ching
• Lovejoy - The Peking Gun (1993)
• The Harry Hill Show (1997 - 2000)
• Queen Of Swords Episode The Dragon (2001)
• Banzai (2001 - 2004), voiceover
• Last of the Summer Wine (2003-present), Entwistle
• Judge John Deed Series 4, Separation of powers (2005)
• Silent Witness Series 10, Cargo (2006)
• Honest (2008), Mr Hong

Voiceover roles

• Doctor Who: Loups-Garoux (audio drama) (2001), Doctor Hayashi
• Fire Warrior (video game) (2003), El'Lusha
• Eyetoy: Play (video game) (2003), Announcer

References

External links

• Burt Kwouk at the Internet Movie Database
• Burt Kwouk at TV.com
• Burt Kwouk Q&A