Reg Varney
Actor · Died November 16, 2008, aged 92 · Canning Town, London, England, UK
Varney was born in Canning Town, then in Essex but now part of the London Borough of Newham. His father worked in a rubber factory in Silvertown and he was one of five children who grew up in Addington Road, Canning Town. Varney was educated at the nearby Star Lane Primary School in West Ham and after leaving school at 14, he worked as a messenger boy and a page boy at the Regent Palace Hotel. He took piano lessons as a child and was good enough to find employment as a part-time piano player. His first paid engagement was at Plumstead Radical Club in Woolwich, for which he was paid eight shillings and sixpence (42½p). He also played in working men's clubs, pubs and ABC cinemas, and later sang with big bands of the time. He and his mother decided that show business was the career for him, and he gave up his day jobs. During the Second World War, Varney joined the Royal Engineers, but continued his performing career as an army entertainer, touring in the Far East for a time. After being demobilised in the late 1940s, he starred on stage in a comic revue entitled Gaytime, with Benny Hill as his partner in a double act.[2] He then became an all-round entertainer, working his way around the music halls. Career[edit] Varney was cast in the role of a foreman in the television sitcom The Rag Trade (1961–63), which made him a household name. He was aware that he was the only performer without West End acting experience and worked hard to make up for it. Slightly later, he starred in a show for BBC TV called The Valiant Varneys (1964–65), performing various characters in front of a live audience. After that followed another comedy role in Beggar My Neighbour (1966–68); this also starred Pat Coombs, June Whitfield, and Peter Jones. Pat Coombs played the wife of Varney's character. Varney featured in The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery (1966) with Frankie Howerd, Dora Bryan and George Cole. Varney's most successful lead role was in the sitcom On the Buses (1969–73) as the bus driver Stan Butler, who never has much luck where romance is concerned. Varney took considerable lengths to research the role, even taking bus-driving lessons and a test to gain a public service vehicle licence so that he could be filmed driving a bus on the open road. Three spin-off films were made — On the Buses (1971), Mutiny on the Buses (1972) and Holiday on the Buses (1973). Varney was 52 when the first series was recorded, although his character, who lived with his mother and was often trying to attract young women, was supposed to be about 35. Varney was only eleven years younger than Doris Hare, the main actress to play his mother in the series. He later worked as an entertainer on cruise ships and toured Australia with his one-man show. He told an interviewer, "Whatever I did after On the Buses, nobody wanted to know about it. But I can't knock the programme because it brought me offers to do concert tours in Australia, New Zealand and Canada."[3] The world's first voucher-based cash dispensing machine was installed at the Enfield Town branch of Barclays Bank. Varney was living in Enfield at the time and for publicity purposes he was photographed making the first withdrawal from the machine on Tuesday 27 June 1967.[4]
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Biography from TMDB.
- July 11, 1916
- November 16, 2008 (aged 92)
- Canning Town, London, England, UK
- Actor
- 5 on MovieCove · 16 credits in all
What are Reg Varney's films like?
Across a limited sample of 4 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Power.
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 1 · Wry 0 · Earnest 2
Light 4 · Serious 0 · Dark 0
A split, not a type: Grounded 2 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 1
Gentle 0 · Charged 3 · Intense 1
A split, not a type: Steady 2 · Shifting 0 · Whiplash 2
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 4
Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 0
Casual 4 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 4 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 0
Resolved 4 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Roles they play
Usually the Hero: 3 of 3 analyzed roles.
- Heroas Stan Butler in On the Buses (1971)
- Heroas Stan Butler in Mutiny on the Buses (1972)
- Heroas Stan Butler in Holiday on the Buses (1973)
Moods and endings
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 Reg Varney's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 1 of their 5 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Reg Varney's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted.
Filmography
16 credits, 5 with a MovieCove page; 4 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
ITV Christmas Comedy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)
The Plank (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
Reg Varney (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)
Holiday on the Buses(1973)
Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films
The Best Pair of Legs in the Business (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)
Go for a Take (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)
Mutiny on the Buses(1972)
Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films
On the Buses(1971)
Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films
Too Close for Comfort (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)
On the Buses (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)
The Best Pair of Legs in the Business (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)
Beggar My Neighbour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)
Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films
Joey Boy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)
The Rag Trade (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)
Miss Robin Hood(1952)
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
Career shape
Star power in the 91st percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 16 titles from 1952 to 1983.
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.
How do Reg Varney's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 50th percentile, the median of all 5; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 55th percentile for acclaim.
- 50th to 74th3
- 25th to 49th2
Shape of the crowd
4 of their 5 titles are Mixed.
- Cult Classic1
- Mixed4
Reviewers score the acting 58/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles; fans 66, detractors 39. 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 Reg Varney work with?
People who share at least 2 of Reg Varney's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Ronald Chesney shares the most, 3.
Directors
- Harry BoothShared titles: Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 2 shared titles with Harry Booth
Writers
- Ronald ChesneyShared titles: Holiday on the Buses (1973), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 3 shared titles with Ronald Chesney
- Ronald WolfeShared titles: Holiday on the Buses (1973), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 3 shared titles with Ronald Wolfe
Actors
- Anna KarenShared titles: Holiday on the Buses (1973), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 3 shared titles with Anna Karen
- Doris HareShared titles: Holiday on the Buses (1973), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 3 shared titles with Doris Hare
- Michael RobbinsShared titles: Holiday on the Buses (1973), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 3 shared titles with Michael Robbins
- Stephen LewisShared titles: Holiday on the Buses (1973), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 3 shared titles with Stephen Lewis
Cinematographers and editors
- Archie LudskiShared titles: Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 2 shared titles with Archie Ludski
- Mark McDonaldShared titles: Mutiny on the Buses (1972), On the Buses (1971)See all 2 shared titles with Mark McDonald