German-born Peter Gilmore came to the UK at the age of six, to be raised by relatives. He quit school at age 14, and pursuing his dream of becoming an actor, attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts for a short time, before being expelled. A stint in the army led to the discovery that he had a talent for singing, and after his discharge from the army he joined a singing group, The George Mitchell Singers. He also appeared in a number of stage plays, but they didn't lead to the success he was looking for. He soon gave up singing and concentrated on his acting career, and began achieving a degree of success in Europe and the U.S. in TV commercials. As a result of these, he started to receive roles in comedies, notably the "Carry On" series. In the early 1970s he finally achieved a great degree of success as star of the long-running British serial, The Onedin Line (1971).When he was young he had the yearning to buy a farm but could never see himself having enough money to do so. At 16 he got the notion of being an actor and went to London where he ended up in a factory making coffee perculator parts then got two terms at RADA and started his theatrical career in 1952 With training his baritone voice was developed and he started doing musicals making his West End debut in 1958. He appeared in 14 musicals up to 1969 when he went off them and returned to acting making films in Spain, Germany, Italy and America and sang jingles for television commercials before getting the part of James Onedin in 'The Onedin Line' when BBC director Bill Slater picked him from his photograph in the Spotlight casting directory.