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Joseph Tomelty

Joseph Tomelty

Actor · Died June 7, 1995, aged 84 · Portaferry, County Down, Northern Ireland, UK

The distinctively white-haired, bushy-browed Northern Irish novelist, playwright and character actor, Joseph Tomelty was born the eldest of seven children in the small fishing village of Portaferry, County Down. He initially followed in his father's footsteps as a house painter. Early on, life on the stage might have seemed inconceivable because of a noticeable stutter. He thus began his working career employed as a painter at Belfast's Harland and Wolff Shipyards, also attending Belfast Technical College. After being inspired by a performance of "Juno and the Paycock" by the Abbey Theatre Company, he became involved with the St. Peter's Players in 1937, making his first mark on the stage. The following year, he wrote a comedic radio play ("Barnum is Right") and in 1940 became a founding member of the Belfast Group Theatre. While acting as the company's General Manager from 1942 to 1951, he later reflected that his tasks also routinely included those of "booking clerk, ticket collector, cloak room attendant, sweeper up, scene painter, programme seller, chucker out and actor" (Drama, March 1953). In addition to eight plays (of which his "All Souls' Night", a play about greed, ambition and the effects of poverty, is regarded as a classic of Irish literature) and two novels, the versatile Tomelty wrote and acted in "The McCooey's", a weekly radio serial about working class life, broadcast by BBC Northern Ireland between 1948 and 1954. He also sidelined as a busy character actor in British and American films, including such prestige productions as Odd Man Out (1947), Hobson's Choice (1954), Moby Dick (1956) and A Night to Remember (1958). Tomelty's writing career came to an end after he sustained injuries in a car crash in England while filming Bhowani Junction (1956), though he continued to appear in occasional films until 1964 and remained a fixture in Northern Irish theatre.

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Biography from IMDb.

Born
March 5, 1911
Died
June 7, 1995 (aged 84)
From
Portaferry, County Down, Northern Ireland, UK
Works as
Actor
Titles
14 on MovieCove · 31 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Down 12% in 30 days

What are Joseph Tomelty's films like?

Across their 10 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.

Genres

Adventure3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 68th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies
Crime3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 65th percentile
: browse their Crime movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
36%
Bonds
26%
Self
21%
Power
10%
Survival
5%
Ideas
2%
Romantic love3 titles, browse their movies with this themeDuty2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFreedom2 titles, browse their movies with this themeObsession2 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception3 titles, browse their movies with this themeAmbition2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 10 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 5 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 1

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 6 · Intense 2

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 4 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 8 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 7 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 2 · Engaged 8 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 8 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

3 analyzed roles

Usually the Threshold guardian: 2 of 3 analyzed roles.

Threshold guardian
2 of 3
Mentor
1 of 3

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
9
Melancholic
5
Romantic
3
Dread
2
Contemplative
2
Other
6

How their films linger

Bittersweet8 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet6
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Joseph Tomelty's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 6 of their 14 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Joseph Tomelty's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

31 credits, 14 with a MovieCove page.

  • The Black Torment (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    as Sir Giles Fordyke

  • Sword of Lancelot(1963)

    as Sir Kaye

    Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films

  • The Day They Robbed the Bank of England(1960)

    as Cohoun

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Hell Is a City(1960)

    as Furnisher Steele

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • Life Is a Circus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    as Joe Winter

  • Upstairs and Downstairs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Arthur Farringdon

  • Worm in the Bud (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Jimsey Barner

  • The Captain's Table(1959)

    as Dalrymple

    Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films

  • Tread Softly Stranger (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)

    as Joe Ryan

  • A Night to Remember(1958)

    as Dr. William O'Loughlin

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Moby Dick(1956)

    as Peter Coffin

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • The Atomic Man(1955)

    as Detective Inspector Cleary

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films

  • A Prize of Gold(1955)

    as Uncle Dan

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • A Kid for Two Farthings(1955)

    as Vagrant

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • John and Julie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    as Mr. Davidson

  • Bedevilled(1955)

    Actor

    Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all films

  • Simba (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    as Doctor Hughes

  • The Young Lovers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

    as Moffatt

  • Happy Ever After (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

    as Dooley

  • Devil Girl from Mars(1954)

    as Prof. Arnold Hennessy

    Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films

  • Hobson's Choice(1954)

    as Jim Heeler

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Hell Below Zero (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

    as Capt. McPhee

  • Meet Mr. Lucifer (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

    as Mr. Pedelty

  • Melba (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

    as Thomas Mitchell

  • The Oracle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

    as Terry Roche

  • The Gentle Gunman (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)

    as Dr Brannigan

  • The Sound Barrier(1952)

    as Will

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • You're Only Young Twice! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)

    as Connell O'Grady aka Dan McEntee

  • Treasure Hunt (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)

    as Tim O'Leary

  • Shark Island (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)

    as Irish Narrator (voice)

  • Odd Man Out(1947)

    as 'Gin' Jimmy, the cabbie

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

Career shape

Star power in the 88th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 31 titles from 1947 to 1964; peak year 1960.

Biggest box office

Moby Dick (1956)

$353 worldwide

Highest rated

Hobson's Choice (1954)

Midcredits 96th

Most popular right now

Moby Dick (1956)

Film career

19471964

Peak 1960 · steadily prominent in film for years. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting31 of 31: 31 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score65th

By decade

1940s1 · acting1950s25 · acting1960s5 · acting

Billing

usually 9th · top billed in 0% of 9 roles

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do Joseph Tomelty's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 65th percentile, the median of all 14; across their 10 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 50th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

50thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Approval · how many liked their films

48thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Reach · how many have seen their films

52ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Midcredits score across 14 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up5
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th3

Shape of the crowd

None of their 14 titles divides audiences: 6 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed2
  • Mixed3

Most loved · actor

A Night to Remember (1958)

Midcredits 97th · 88% liked

Reviewers score the acting 63/100 in their films, across 10 reviewed titles; fans 73, detractors 42. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Joseph Tomelty work with?

People who share at least 2 of Joseph Tomelty's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Malcolm Arnold shares the most, 3.

Directors

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers