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David Battley (5 November 1935 – 20 January 2003) was a British actor known for his laconic, lugubrious comedic roles. The elder son of John Battley, a post-WWII Labour MP, he was born in Battersea, London. Born with a heart defect, he was initially homeschooled before attending a special school. He later enrolled at Camberwell Art School but left before completing his studies. He worked for the family printing business, Battley Brothers, before applying to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA).
Battley secured steady work as a character actor and comic stooge. His television credits included the satire show BBC-3, the military police drama Redcap (1964), the 1975 adaptation of Moll Flanders, the 1977 Christmas Special of The Good Life, and appearances in series such as The Bill, Lovejoy, The Climber, Comrade Dad, Don't Rock the Boat, Roger Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Thicker Than Water, Crown Court, Annie's Bar, and As Time Goes By.
In the mid-1970s, Battley was best known as the comic foil to Monty Python member Eric Idle on the BBC series Rutland Weekend Television (1975). Idle praised his dry, poker-faced delivery. Battley portrayed the Paul McCartney character in the original Rutland Weekend Television sketch of The Rutles, a Beatles parody, though he did not appear in The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash (1978), the American adaptation.
His film and television movie appearances included Alice in Wonderland (1966), Hotel Paradiso (1966), Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971), S.O.S. Titanic (1979), Mrs. Wilson's Diary (1969), Up the Front (1972), The Chastity Belt (1972), The London Connection (1979), and Krull (1983). Among his final roles were a golf course employee in the "Tee Off, Mr. Bean" episode (1995) of the Mr. Bean series (1990) and a doctor examining new recruits in Sharpe (1993).
David Battley passed away from a heart attack on 20 January 2003 at the age of 67 in Epsom, Surrey, England.
