Claude Delaval Disney-Roebuck (1 March 1876 – 10 May 1947) was an English first-class cricketer, British Army officer, and actor.

Claude Disney-Roebuck
Personal information
Full name
Claude Delaval Disney-Roebuck
Born1 March 1876
Morice Town, Devon, England
Died10 May 1947(1947-05-10) (aged 71)
Hindhead, Surrey, England
BattingUnknown
RelationsFrancis Disney-Roebuck (father)
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1903–1906Dorset
1906–1907Marylebone Cricket Club
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 2
Runs scored 20
Batting average 6.66
100s/50s –/–
Top score 8*
Catches/stumpings 1/–
Source: Cricinfo, 3 October 2018

Early service and cricket

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He was born at Morice Town in Plymouth in March 1876 to Anna Marian Kate Bond and her husband, the first-class cricketer and army officer Francis Disney-Roebuck.[1] He served in the British Army with the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry, holding the rank of second lieutenant in 1894.[2] He transferred regiments in May 1897, joining the Northamptonshire Regiment.[3] he was promoted to lieutenant in August 1899,[4] which was followed up four years later with promotion to the rank of captain in June 1903.[5] He made his debut in minor counties cricket for Dorset in 1903, playing twice that year in the Minor Counties Championship.[6] He encountered ill health in 1905 and was placed on half pay,[7] with him retiring from the military in May 1906, retaining the rank of captain.[8] In that same month he made his debut in first-class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) against Leicestershire at Lord's,[9] and in August he played a further six Minor Counties Championship matches for Dorset, which marked his final appearances in minor counties cricket.[6] He played a further first-class match for the MCC in 1907, in a repeat of the previous seasons fixture.[9] Disney-Roebuck married Margaret Wordsworth Charrington in January 1908.[1]

World War I and later life

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During World War I, Disney-Roebuck came out of the retirement to serve in the Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment, gaining the rank of temporary Lieutenant Colonel by February 1916,[10] having held the rank of major prior to this promotion.[11] He relinquished his appointment in March 1918,[12] and his command in January 1922.[13]

He took up acting in the 1930s, starring in the movies The Woman Between in 1931, and The Night of the Party in 1934.[14] He also had an uncredited role in the 1931 movie Other People's Sins.[14] Personal tragedy struck during World War II, when both of his sons were killed; his eldest son, Algernon Guy Spencer, died of natural causes while serving in North Africa on 9 April 1941, while his youngest son, Michael Wyndham, died aboard HMS Diamond eighteen days later.[1] Disney-Roebuck died at Hindhead, Surrey in May 1947. He was survived by his wife, who died in 1966, and his daughter Nancy, who died in 1979.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Disney Roebuck, Col Claude Delaval Spencer". www.combedown.org. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  2. ^ "No. 26555". The London Gazette. 25 September 1894. p. 5463.
  3. ^ "No. 26852". The London Gazette. 14 May 1897. p. 2683.
  4. ^ "No. 27106". The London Gazette. 8 August 1899. p. 4897.
  5. ^ "No. 27620". The London Gazette. 27 November 1903. p. 7748.
  6. ^ a b "Minor Counties Championship Matches played by Claude Disney-Roebuck". CricketArchive. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  7. ^ "No. 27822". The London Gazette. 28 July 1905. p. 5223.
  8. ^ "No. 27915". The London Gazette. 22 May 1906. p. 3571.
  9. ^ a b "First-Class Matches played by Claude Disney-Roebuck". CricketArchive. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  10. ^ "No. 29468". The London Gazette. 9 February 1916. p. 1573.
  11. ^ "No. 29934". The London Gazette. 8 February 1917. p. 1370.
  12. ^ "No. 30969". The London Gazette. 22 October 1918. p. 12551.
  13. ^ "No. 32571". The London Gazette. 9 January 1922. p. 273.
  14. ^ a b "Claude Roebuck – IMDb". IMDb. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
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