[3] Born in Tatabánya, 60 km from Budapest,[1] Éles was orphaned during World War II, and emigrated to Britain during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.

He began his acting career on stage, and went on to appear in a host of television roles, the majority on ITV.

These included the ITC series The Avengers, Danger Man, The Baron, The Saint, Timeslip and Jason King.

He also had major roles in the Hammer Horror movies Countess Dracula (1971) and The Evil of Frankenstein (1964) as well as appearing for four years in the 1980s as the scheming restaurant manager, Paul Ross, in the British TV soap opera Crossroads.

[4] In 1996, Éles returned to his cultural roots, appearing as the narrator in the Bartók opera, Bluebeard's Castle.