Already middle-aged when films began production, he enjoyed increasing renown from World War II onwards as one of the British cinema's most famous crotchety, and sometimes rascally, old men.

Matthews's other best-known films include The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, The Million Pound Note (with Gregory Peck), Inn for Trouble, The Magic Box, The Ghosts of Berkeley Square and Just William's Luck.

In 1951 Matthews was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire by King George VI,[2] and on 15 August 1951 when aged 81 he was interviewed by Roy Plomley as the guest "castaway" on BBC Radio's long-running Desert Island Discs programme.

[4] In his 89th year, Matthews made national headlines by sitting for several days and nights on the pavement outside his beautiful Georgian home near London, his purpose being to prevent the council from installing a new streetlight, the design of which he felt was totally out of keeping with the neighbourhood and which badly needed improvement.

Shortly afterwards, on 5 May 1958, Matthews appeared on the live BBC TV programme This Is Your Life, a notable feature of which occurred at the end when he was faded out just as he began to speak directly to the television theatre audience.

Host Eamonn Andrews recalled in his autobiography that "Matty had been a bit of a hellion all his life, a loveable, unpredictable rebel whose sense of fun was monumental.