William Nigel Ernle Bruce was born in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. His father was Sir William Waller Bruce, the 10th Baronet of Stenhouse. He and his wife were vacationing in Mexico when Bruce was born.

Bruce grew up in England and attended The Grange School in Stevenage and the Abingdon School in Abingdon-on Thames. After turning seventeen, Bruce left school and assumed a position as a stockbroker’s clerk in London.

In 1914, Bruce enlisted in the British Army’s Territorial Force. His unit was sent to the western front in September. In January 1915, Bruce was shot by a machine gun in the legs. He spent most of 1915 in a wheelchair recovering in an English hospital.

When World War I ended, Bruce began his career as a professional actor. He debuted on stage in 1920 at London’s Comedy Theater. Bruce made his Broadway debut in 1926 in a successful role in Noël Coward’s This Was a Man (1929). He went back and forth between England and America in the years that followed. Another breakthrough performance was in Springtime for Henry (1931) on Broadway.

In 1928, Bruce started to appear in silent films. After Springtime for Henry, Fox offered Bruce a movie contract. In 1934, he moved to Hollywood and appeared as British detective Bertram Lynch in Murder in Trinidad. Bruce later appeared in over seventy-five films, including Treasure Island (1934), The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934), The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), and The Rains Came (1939). In 1935, he acted in Becky Sharp, the first movie filmed in Technicolor. Later films included Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca (1940) and Suspicion (1941).

Between 1939 and 1946, Bruce was cast as Dr. Watson opposite Basil Rathbone’s Sherlock Holmes in a series of films. The films The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939) and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939) were made by 20th Century Fox. Universal produced the remaining twelve Sherlock Holmes films in which they appeared together. Bruce also was the radio voice of Dr. Watson in over 200 radio broadcasts of The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939-1947).

Bruce married British actress Violet Campbell (1921–1953). He was a Los Angeles British film colony leader and the Hollywood Cricket Club captain. Bruce never relinquished his British citizenship.

World for Ransom, Bruce’s final film, was released after his death in 1954.

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Most of Bruce’s memorabilia is associated with his image, especially items related to his Sherlock Holmes role as Dr. Watson. Collectibles with only his name featured may be of less value to fans.

Bruce’s available memorabilia includes advertising, autographs, magazine covers, magazine inside stories, movie lobby cards, movie posters, movie window cards, pressbooks, vinyl broadcasts, and promotional stills. Sherlock Holmes collectibles are the most prevalent and popular. Costumes and props are rarer but sometimes appear in the secondary marketplace.

Because of his theatrical career, collectors can also find programs and other memorabilia from his Broadway and stage appearances.

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Books and Periodicals

Hey! It’s That Guy! The Fametracker.com Guide to Character Actors by T. Ariano and A. Sternbergh.

Names You Never Remember, With Faces You Never Forget: Interviews with the Movies’ Character Actors by J. Humphries.

Nigel Bruce: The One and Only Dr. Watson by David K. Bowman.

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Movie Character Actors by D. Quinlan.

Web Resources

Nigel Bruce tvtropes.org.

Nigel Bruce www.arthur-conan-doyle.com.

Nigel Bruce www.imdb.com.

Related Dictionary Pages: Edward Binns, Actor, Harry Carey Jr., Actor, Spring Byington, Actress.