Bernard Braden

Born in Vancouver, Bernard Braden was an actor and comedian who worked mainly in British radio and television. During the late 1930s and early 1940s he produced plays for a Vancouver radio station. His BBC radio work began with Breakfast with Braden in January 1950, followed by Bedtime with Braden and other series. In 1960 he interviewed Orson Welles for a Canadian documentary. He presented the ITV consumer affairs program On the Braden Beat from 1962 to 1967, then the similarly formatted Braden's Week for the BBC from 1967 to 1972, and later hosted a Canadian version in 1974, and The Sweepstakes Game in 1976. His film work included All Night Long (1962), The War Lover (1962), The Full Treatment (1960) and The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961). On stage he played Mitch in A Streetcar Named Desire for its London premiere and later the lead in Period of Adjustment. He wrote an autobiography, The Kindness of Strangers.