John Slater (22 August 1916 – 9 January 1975) was an English character actor who usually portrayed lugubrious, amiable cockney types. He was a familiar face in British films of the 1940s and appeared in many classic films of the period, including The Day Will Dawn (1942, US title The Avengers), Went the Day Well? (1942), We Dive at Dawn (1943), A Canterbury Tale (1944), The Seventh Veil (1945), It Always Rains on Sunday (1947) and Passport to Pimlico (1949). In later years, Slater moved into television, most notably he starred as Det. Sgt. Stone in Z-Cars from 1967 to 1974 where his episode count was beaten only by that of James Ellis. He died on 9 January 1975 from a heart attack, aged 58.