Lionel Jeffries, Star of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Camelot, Dies at 83

Lionel Jeffries, who played Grandpa Potts in the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and who wrote and directed the film The Railway Children, has died, according to an Associated Press report. He was 83.

On Broadway, the actor played Colonel Pickering to Peter O’Toole’s Henry Higgins in Pygmalion, and in the West End, Jeffries was seen in productions of Hello, Dolly!, The Wild Duck, and See How They Run.

Jeffries played King Pellinore in the movie version of Camelot, and the actor’s numerous other film credits include The Wrong Arm of the Law, The Prisoner of Zenda, and The Black Rider, which was his screen debut.