Actor. He is best remembered in the role of 'Ebenezer Scrooge' in the 1951 film "Scrooge," and for his dual portrayal of headmistress 'Millicent Fritton' and 'Clarence Fritton' in "The Belles of St Trinian's" (1954) and "Blue Murder at St Trinian's" (1957). Born Alastair George Bell Sim, his father was a prosperous businessman. He received his education at the independent George Heriot's School in Edinburgh, Scotland, where he was Rector from 1948 until 1951. From 1925 to 1930 he lectured on elocution and drama at the University of Edinburgh, where he performed with the Edinburgh University Drama Society. He made his London stage debut in "Othello" in 1930 and also appeared for a season at the Old Vic Theatre . In 1935 he made his film debut in "The Case of Gabriel Perry," and spent the remainder of the 1930s playing supporting roles in films, often being credited with stealing scenes from the stars. His most notable success in these years was as 'Detective Sergeant Bingham', a light comedy role played opposite Gordon Harker, in the popular Inspector Hornleigh film series "Inspector Hornleigh" (1939), "Inspector Hornleigh on Holiday" (1939), and "Inspector Hornleigh Goes to It" (1941). By the 1940s he had progressed to leading roles and in 1950 he was voted the most popular film actor in Britain in a national cinema poll. His earliest successes as a leading man included the police detective in the thriller "Green for Danger" (1946), the headmaster of Nutbourne College, co-starring with Margaret Rutherford, in the comedy "The Happiest Days of Your Life" (1950), and a writer of lurid crime fiction in the comedy "Laughter in Paradise" (1951). He was then cast in the lead role of "Scrooge" (1951), a film adaptation of Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol." He revisited the character, using his vocal talents, for an Oscar-winning animated film version, which was released in 1971. Between 1941 and 1968 he notably portrayed 'Captain Hook' in six different stage productions of "Peter Pan." His other film credits include "An Inspector Calls" (1954), "The Green Man" (1956), "The Ruling Class" (1972) with Peter O'Toole, a cameo in Richard Lester's "Royal Flash" (1975) with Malcolm McDowell, "Rogue Male" (1976) with Peter O'Toole, and his last film "Escape from the Dark" (1976) with Peter Barkworth. On television, his best remembered performance was probably as 'Mr. Justice Swallow' in the comedy series "Misleading Cases" that aired from 1967 until 1971. During his 46-year career, he appeared in almost 60 films and over 40 stage productions. In 1953 he was made a Commander of the British Empire in 1953, but he later refused a knighthood. He died from lung cancer at the age of 75.