Sir Basil Hardington Bartlett, 2nd Baronet (15 September 1905 – 2 January 1985) was an actor, screenwriter and writer, and in the 1950s the head of the BBC's script department.
Barlett was a grandson of the building contractor Sir Herbert Bartlett, who he succeeded as a baronet during his adolescence. He had a relatively brief career as a stage actor during the interwar period. He served as a captain in the British Army in the early phases of World War II, but he was wounded in the Battle of Dunkirk (1940). He later published his diary (journal) about his experiences from the battle. During his convalescence, Bartlett worked as screenwriter for several war films. After recovering from his injuries, he was seconded to the Intelligence Corps and served as the leader of an army-operated kinematographic group.
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Life
In 1921, at the age of 16, he succeeded as the second Bartlett baronet of Hardington Mandeville, upon inheriting the title from his grandfather, the building contractor Sir Herbert Bartlett, as his father had died the previous year.
Educated at Repton School in Derbyshire, he went up to Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, graduating as Bachelor of Arts (proceeding MA).
Starting out as a stage actor in the 1930s, Bartlett was commissioned in the British Army at the outbreak of World War II, and served as a captain during the retreat to Dunkirk in 1940: mentioned in despatches, he was wounded during the retreat.