Tony Bartley

Anthony Charles Bartley, (28 March 1919 – 18 April 2001) was a British film and television executive, and fighter pilot. As a Royal Air Force (RAF) Spitfire pilot, Bartley was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions during the Battle of Britain, during which he became a fighter ace.

Early life
Bartley was born in Dacca, India, on 28 March 1919, the son of an Irish barrister, Sir Charles Bartley, a Calcutta High Court judge.

Bartley attended Stowe School, a boarding independent school for boys in the civil parish of Stowe, in Buckinghamshire.

RAF career
In 1938, Bartley learned to fly. He was commissioned as an acting pilot officer in the Royal Air Force on 18 April 1939; this rank was made permanent, albeit on probation, on 21 October 1939.

He flew with No. 92 Squadron through the Battle of France, seeing action over Dunkirk, and then during Battle of Britain, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) in October 1940, by which time he had been credited with shooting down "at least eight enemy aircraft".

After serving in No. 74 Squadron in early 1941, Bartley undertook an instructional role at several operational training units before undertaking a role as a test pilot at Vickers Supermarine in July 1941. In early 1942, he returned to operational flying, being posted No. 65 Squadron; initially, he filled the role of flight commander, but later took command of the squadron in May 1942. In August 1942, he took command of No. 111 Squadron, and led them during Operation Torch, in North Africa, until January 1943. For his service in North Africa, he received a bar to his DFC in February 1943.

After returning to the United Kingdom, he then served on the staff of No. 83 Group RAF, before departing in October 1944 for the US to attend the Command and General Staff College, and then at the School of Air Tactics. His next posting was as a liaison officer to the 70th Fighter Wing. In October 1944 he joined RAF Transport Command in the Far East.

At the end of the war Bartley's combat total included 12 (and 1 shared) destroyed, 1 unconfirmed destroyed, 5 'probables' and 8 'damaged'.

On 19 November 2021, it was announced that the seven medals Bartley received for his wartime service would be auctioned by Dix Noonan Webb in London in December 2021.

Film industry
Following his demobilisation in 1946, Bartley returned to Vickers-Armstrong, where he worked as both a sales executive and a test pilot. He had married the actress Deborah Kerr in November 1945, and later moved with her to Hollywood. The couple had met in Brussels in March 1945, when she was performing, with Stewart Grainger, in a production of Gaslight for the troops. His post war work in the film industry included roles in the United States, Canada, Barbados and Ireland, and included the establishment of several companies, writing and producing films for television, work in sales and production and executive roles.

Personal life
Bartley and Kerr had two daughters, Francesca and Melanie. Through Francesca they have three grandsons, actors Lex Shrapnel and Tom Shrapnel as well as the writer Joe Shrapnel. Melanie is a medical sociologist and retired academic. Bartley and Kerr divorced in 1959 and he married again in 1965 to Victoria Mann.

Bartley died in 2001. He was survived by Mann and their two daughters, Cindy and Teresa, as well as by Francesa and Melanie. Mann passed away in 2019.