Mervyn Johns started his career in the theatre in the 1920s, and then made his first film in 1935. Among his dozens of film roles were the church warden in Went the Day Well? (1942), the fearful Architect Walter Craig in the mystery film Dead of Night (1945) and Bob Cratchit in Scrooge (1951) with Alastair Sim. Johns also made many television appearances, in series such as The Avengers, Danger Man and Dixon of Dock Green. He was well known for his "mostly mild-mannered, lugubrious, amusing, sometimes moving 'little men'" in over 100 film and television series.