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- Actor
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Con O'Neill is an English actor, primarily known for theatrical roles in musicals. In 1966, he was born in the seaside town of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. Weston-super-mare is located at the coast of the Bristol Channel, an inlet which separates South Wales from the English counties of Devon and Somerset. The town has been a popular holiday destination since the 19th century, though its tourism industry has experienced a decline since the 1970s.
O'Neill started his acting career at the Everyman Theatre of Liverpool. The theatre opened in 1964, using the Victorian-era main building of the former church of Saint John the Evangelist. O'Neill appeared regularly in theatrical productions during the 1980s, while also cast in small roles in various television series.
In 1988, O'Neill won the "Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical", for his role as Michael "Mickey" Johnstone in the musical "Blood Brothers" by Willy Russell (1947-). The play concerns two fraternal twins (Mickey Johnstone and Edward 'Eddie' Lyons) who were separated at birth, were raised by different families, and belonged to different social classes. Their chance encounters in life start in attempts at friendship and eventually result in the deaths of both brothers. O'Neil later played the same role in Broadway productions of the musical, and was nominated for the "Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical" in 1993. The award for that year was instead won by Canadian actor Brent Carver (1951-).
In 1990, O'Neill had his first film role, playing the role of Peter McGeghan in "Dancin' Thru the Dark". The film was an adaptation of another play by Willy Russell, "Stags and Hens". The play was set in a 1970s nightclub, where a working-class woman is depicted celebrating her hen night (bachelorette party). She is presented with an unexpected choice between marrying her betrothed (known by the nickname "Dickhead") or resuming her romantic relationship with Peter, her ex-boyfriend who is a professional musician.
In the 1990s, O'Neill had his first recurring role in a television series, playing the character Nick in the comedy-drama series "Moving Story" (1994-1995). The series concerned a group of workers hired to transfer furniture from one house to another, and their work-related problems.
In 1998, O'Neill had the role of Terry in the comedy-drama film "Bedrooms and Hallways". In the film Terry is a young man who feels envious of the same-sex relationship between his friends, Brendan (a bisexual Irishman) and Leo (an "openly gay" Englishman, who actually still feels attracted to his former girlfriend). While Terry eventually has a fistfight with Brendan over an argument at a birthday party, he starts dating Brendan shortly after their fight.
In 1999, O' Neill played the role of Troy Fenton in the neo-noir film "The Last Seduction II". In the film, Troy secretly runs a phone sex line in Barcelona, Spain and recruits recent acquaintance Bridget Gregory (played by Joan Severance) to help him. He is unaware that Bridget is a professional con-woman and suspected murderer, who starts forming plans to steal Troy's profits.
O'Neill had the recurring role of Kenny Fletcher in the first season of the medical drama series "Always and Everyone" (1999-2002). The series was set at Accident and Emergency department of Saint Victor's city hospital in Manchester. Kenny was depicted as the husband of the protagonist, Dr. Christine Fletcher (played by Niamh Cusack). During the first episode, Christine learns that her husband was involved in serious road traffic accident, and starts suspecting that he has been lying to her about his activities while she works. By the end of the season, Christine asks for a divorce.
O'Neill also had the recurring role of Jo in the second season of the drama series "Real Women" (1998-1999) and its sequel, "Real Women II". The premise of the series was that five female friends gather for a reunion, and open up about the problems of their personal and professional lives.
In the early 2000s, O'Neill mostly appeared in guest-star roles in television. In 2005, he appeared in the leading role of Sam Clark in the black-and-white drama film "What's Your Name 41?". In the film, Sam is a professional artist who moves to Venice, Italy in hope of finding inspiration for a commissioned work.
In 2008, O'Neill played the role of solicitor (lawyer) Ralph Stone in the first season of the thriller-series "Criminal Justice" (2008-2009). In the first season, Ralph is hired to represent Ben Coulter (played by Ben Whishaw) in court. Ben is a young man accused of murdering his latest lover Melanie Lloyd (played by Ruth Negga) within her own house, though he has only partial memories of his activities during the night of the murder. The season deals with the question of whether Ben is guilty or whether he was framed by someone else. The second season of the series featured a new storyline, with another set of characters.
Also in 2008, O'Neill played the leading role of the songwriter and record producer Joe Meek (1929-1967) in the biographical film "Telstar: The Joe Meek Story". The real Joe Meek was an innovative sound engineer and pioneer in the genre of experimental pop, credited for assisting the development of recording practices like overdubbing, sampling, and reverb. However he suffered from both bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, which led to a decline in his professional life. In 1967, Meek was the perpetrator in a murder-suicide crime.
In 2010, O'Neill played a supporting role in the biographical film "The Kid". The film was an adaptation of Kevin Lewis' autobiography. Lewis was raised in the crime-infested area of New Addington, located in the London Borough of Croydon, South London. He was abused by his family as a child, and joined a gang in his adult years. The film depicts his life of abuse, though the screenwriters (and Lewis himself) decided to tone down the level of violence in the film.
In 2013, O'Neill played the role of the apostle Paul of Tarsus in the mini-series "The Bible". The series adapted various tales from both the Old Testament and the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The series was considered a ratings-hit in the United States, though it was criticized for deviating away from its source material in the depictions of several characters. The series was nominated for a "Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series", but the award was instead won by a television version of the film "Behind the Candelabra", which depicted the life of the famous pianist Liberace (1919-1987).
In 2014, O'Neill voiced the character Titchy Gren in the video game "Dark Souls II". While nominally a sequel to the video-game "Dark Souls" (2011), the game features different characters and a different setting than its predecessor. Titchy Gren is depicted as an overseer of the cult-religion Brotherhood of Blood, and as a servant of the war god Nahr Alma. Gren's purpose is to ensure war and bloodshed sufficient to please his deity, and to recruit new members for his cult. While capable of fighting in his own right, Titchy Gren is depicted as a mediocre fighter and can be killed when outright attacking players.He can be resurrected with a sufficient offering of stolen souls at his gravestone.
From 2014 to 2017, O'Neill portrayed the supporting role of Val in the sitcom "Uncle" (2014-2017). Val is the cross-dressing owner of a rock-and-roll themed gay bar, and the father of Gwen (played by Sydney Rae White), the ex-girlfriend of protagonist Andy King. Andy is depicted as an alcoholic musician with suicidal tendencies, who is heavily indebted to Val.
In 2015, O'Neill played the role of Queen's Counsel Cliff Costello in the comedy-drama series "Cucumber". Cliff serves as a lawyer for the prosecution in the murder trial of the character Daniel Coltrane (played by James Murray). However, Daniel's victim was Lance Sullivan (played by Cyril Nri), a longtime friend of Cliff. So Cliff is tempted to personally murder Daniel, even if the man is acquitted in court. O'Neill also played the character of Cliff for a guest appearance in the anthology series "Banana" (2015).
In 2016, O'Neill was cast in the recurring role of Neil Ackroyd in the second season of the crime-drama series "Happy Valley" (2014-2016). Neil is depicted as an old friend of the series' co-protagonist Clare Cartwright (played by Siobhan Finneran). Clare is depicted as a recovering heroin and alcohol addict, who is trying to raise a young son with the assistance of her sister and roommate, the police sergeant Catherine Cawood (played by Sarah Lancashire).
Also in 2016, O'Neill played the recurring role of Neil Grey in the second season of the crime-drama series "The Tunnel" (2013-2018) The series is a British-French co-production, depicting crimes which affect both sides of the Channel Tunnel. The series was itself a loose adaptation of the Danish-Swedish co-production "The Bridge" (2011-2018), which depicted crimes taking place in the border zone between Denmark and Sweden.
O'Neill played the guest role of folk singer Huw MacLean in the short-lived science-fiction series "Class" (2016), a spin-off of "Doctor Who". Huw is depicted as a man with suicidal and homicidal thoughts, who was imprisoned for several years after attempting to kill his wife and daughter in a murder-suicide plot. After being released from prison, Huw tries to re-establish a relationship with his daughter April MacLean (played by Sophie Hopkins). However, at the time April shared the powers and thought processes of the villain Corakinus, the Shadow King (played by Paul Marc Davis), struggling with murderous impulses of her own. So April repeatedly feels tempted to commit patricide.
O'Neill played one of the main characters in the second and last season of the drama series "Ordinary Lies" (2015-2016). His role was that of Joe Brierley, the Head of Sales of a Welsh company. Joe is preoccupied with suspicions that his wife Belinda Brierley (played by Jill Halfpenny) is cheating on him, and starts obsessively spying on her to gain evidence. He discovers that she has a secret life of her own, and that she is obsessed with a personal crusade against online predators.
In 2017, O'Neill started appearing in the period drama series "Harlots" (2017-), playing the recurring role of 18th-century plantation owner Nathaniel Lennox. Nathaniel is depicted as an ex-lover of the series' protagonist, the brothel-madam Margaret Wells (played by Samantha Morton).
In 2019, O'Neill played the historical figure of Viktor Bryukhanov in the period mini-series "Chernobyl". The real-life Bryukhanov was the plant-director of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, in the vicinity of the city of Pripyat, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1986, Bryukhanov reported a serious radiation accident to his superiors, but his report underestimated the levels of radiation involved and claimed that the situation was under control. He was sentenced to ten years of imprisonment for his role in the accident, but was released prematurely in 1991.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
John Cleese was born on October 27, 1939, in Weston-Super-Mare, England, to Muriel Evelyn (Cross) and Reginald Francis Cleese. He was born into a family of modest means, his father being an insurance salesman; but he was nonetheless sent off to private schools to obtain a good education. Here he was often tormented for his height, having reached a height of six feet by the age of twelve, and eventually discovered that being humorous could deflect aggressive behavior in others. He loved humor in and of itself, collected jokes, and, like many young Britons who would grow up to be comedians, was devoted to the radio comedy show, "The Goon Show," starring the legendary Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, and Harry Secombe.
Cleese did well in both sports and academics, but his real love was comedy. He attended Cambridge to read (study) Law, but devoted a great deal of time to the university's legendary Footlights group, writing and performing in comedy reviews, often in collaboration with future fellow Python Graham Chapman. Several of these comedy reviews met with great success, including one in particular which toured under the name "Cambridge Circus." When Cleese graduated, he went on to write for the BBC, then rejoined Cambridge Circus in 1964, which toured New Zealand and America. He remained in America after leaving Cambridge Circus, performing and doing a little journalism, and here met Terry Gilliam, another future Python.
Returning to England, he began appearing in a BBC radio series, "I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again", based on Cambridge Circus. It ran for several years and also starred future Goodies Tim Brooke-Taylor, Bill Oddie and Graeme Garden. He also appeared, briefly, with Brooke-Taylor, Graham Chapman and Marty Feldman in At Last the 1948 Show (1967), for television, and a series of collaborations with some of the finest comedy-writing talent in England at the time, some of whom - Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Chapman - eventually joined him in Monty Python. These programs included The Frost Report (1966) and Marty Feldman's program Marty (1968). Eventually, however, the writers were themselves collected to be the talent for their own program, Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969), which displayed a strange and completely absorbing blend of low farce and high-concept absurdist humor, and remains influential to this day.
After three seasons of the intensity of Monty Python, Cleese left the show, though he collaborated with one or more of the other Pythons for decades to come, including the Python movies released in the mid-70s to early 80s - Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979), Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl (1982), and The Meaning of Life (1983). Cleese and then-wife Connie Booth collaborated in the legendary television series Fawlty Towers (1975), as the sharp-tongued, rude, bumbling yet somehow lovable proprietor of an English seaside hotel. Cleese based this character on a proprietor he had met while staying with the other Pythons at a hotel in Torquay, England. Only a dozen episodes were made, but each is truly hilarious, and he is still closely associated with the program to this day.
Meanwhile Cleese had established a production company, Video Arts, for clever business training videos in which he generally starred, which were and continue to be enormously successful in the English-speaking world. He continues to act prolifically in movies, including in the hit comedy A Fish Called Wanda (1988), in the Harry Potter series, and in the James Bond series as the new Q, starting with The World Is Not Enough (1999), in which he began as R before graduating to Q. Cleese also supplies his voice to numerous animated and video projects, and frequently does commercials.
Besides the infamous Basil Fawlty character, Cleese's other well-known trademark is his rendition of an English upper-class toff. He has a daughter with Connie Booth and a daughter with his second wife, Barbara Trentham.
Education and learning are important elements of his life - he was Rector of the University of Saint Andrews from 1973 until 1976, and continues to be a professor-at-large of Cornell University in New York. Cleese lives in Santa Barbara, California.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Britain's Rupert Graves made his professional stage debut in 1983 in The Killing of Mr. Toad and went on to co-star with Harvey Fierstein in the London production of Torch Song Trilogy. By the mid-80s he was a presence in quality films and TV, including Merchant Ivory films Room With A View where he played Freddy Honeychurch and Maurice where he played Alec Scudder.
Rupert has appeared in dozens of films and TV shows including Emma (2020), Riviera S3 (2020), Swimming With Men (2018), The Family (2016), however most recently Rupert is best known for playing DI Greg Lestrade in BBC's Sherlock.
Rupert has over 20 stage credits to his name, including The Elephant Man and Closer on Broadway, and he was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Actor in 1998 for his performance in Hurlyburly.- Actress
- Writer
- Producer
Michelle was born in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset and attended local schools, where she first became interested in acting, joining amateur drama groups and taking LAMDA exams before, at age fourteen, joining the National Youth Theatre. After graduating with a degree in English at Cardiff University she enrolled at RADA, graduating in 2004 and a year later made her West End debut in a small role in the revival of 'Blithe Spirit'. Consequently she has distinguished herself in a variety of classical roles - 'London Assurance', 'England People Very Nice' and 'All's Well That Ends Well' for the National Theatre, 'Love's Labours lost', Much Ado About Nothing for the RSC and Titania in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' at the Globe. In 2011 she won the Olivier award for best supporting actress in 'Tribes' and in 2016 played the title role in the all-female 'Henry V' at the Regent Park Open Air Theatre. Also a writer she co-scripted 'Sudden Loss of Dignity' for the Bush Theatre, London and in 2011 collaborated with Ralf Little on the television sitcom 'The Cafe', set in her native Weston-Super-Mare.- Barbara Morrison was born on 1 October 1907 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. She was an actress, known for From Here to Eternity (1953), Papillon (1973) and Darktown Strutters (1975). She died on 12 March 1992 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
The sensitive-looking British child star of the fifties was born Carmen Isabella Miller in 1944 but affectionately called "Mandy" practically from birth. Her father, a BBC Radio producer, took Mandy (then age 6) and her older sister, Jan Miller to watch a film being made at Ealing Studios. Instead of her sister, it was Mandy who impressed the powers-that-be at the studio commissary that day and was offered a small role in the Alec Guinness film The Man in the White Suit (1951). The little girl took gingerly to acting and signed up for classes along with dancing lessons, finding some work in commercial modeling. She achieved in the 1950s what popular child star Hayley Mills would accomplish a decade later, except in a dramatic vein for Mandy's strong suit was no-holds-barred tearjerkers. Her finest hour in film came with the movie Crash of Silence (1952), in which she portrayed a disturbed deaf girl called "Mandy". Other moving performances came in Edge of Divorce (1953), as the young product of a bitter divorce, The Secret (1955), which was a covert thriller, and Child in the House (1956), which proved to be another sob story suited to her talents. In her final film, The Snorkel (1958), Mandy played a young teen who leads police to her mother's murderer. After guest shots on TV's The Avengers (1961) and The Saint (1962), she left the limelight, forever. At the age of 18, she moved to New York to become an au pair. Mandy married an architect in 1965, had three children (two girls and a boy), and settled down to a life of domesticity.- Vivienne Burgess was born on 24 April 1914 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Gazette (1968), Maroc 7 (1967) and Fox Mystery Theater (1984). She was married to Edward Dorian, Stanley Van Beers and Raymond Capel. She died on 26 August 1999 in Richmond upon Thames, Surrey, England, UK.
- Composer
- Actor
- Writer
Ritchie Blackmore was born on 14 April 1945 in Weston Super Mare, England, UK. He is a composer and actor, known for Point Break (1991), Twister (1996) and Almost Famous (2000). He has been married to Candice Night since October 2008. They have one child. He was previously married to Amy Rothman, Margrit Volkmar and Barbie Hardie.- Jill Dando was born on 9 November 1961 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. She died on 26 April 1999 in Fulham, London, England, UK.
- Constance Chapman was born on 29 March 1912 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. She was an actress, known for A Kind of Loving (1982), Born and Bred (1978) and The Avengers (1961). She was married to Travers Cousins. She died on 10 August 2003 in Bristol, England, UK.
- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Henry Edwards was born on 18 September 1882 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He was an actor and director, known for A Welsh Singer (1915), Scrooge (1935) and The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss (1920). He was married to Chrissie White. He died on 2 November 1952 in Chobham, Surrey, England, UK.- Michael Godfrey was born on 20 August 1918 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Message (1976), The Message (1976) and The 2nd Best Secret Agent in the Whole Wide World (1965). He died on 19 September 1977 in St. Pancras, London, England, UK.
- Director
- Additional Crew
- Actor
Trained at RADA and became Stage Director at Theatre Royal, York before joining BBCtv in Drama series & serials. Became freelance Director in 1978. Awarded BAFTA nominations for Swallows & Amazons, Prince & the Pauper and Worst Witch. Gold Medal, New York Film & TV Festival for White Peak Farm. RTS Nominations for Worst Witch and Knight School. Emmy for Little Lord Fauntleroy (also First Prize, Banff Festival).
Credits include Sutherland's Law, Softly Softly, Who Pays the Ferryman, Blakes Seven, Secret Army, Onedin Line, Juliet Bravo, Swallows & Amazons Forever, One by One, Knights of God, Dr Who, King's Royal, White Peak Farm, Casualty, Eastenders, Little Lord Fauntleroy. Die Wache, The Famous Five, Knight School, Children of the New Forest, The Worst Witch, Harry and the Wrinklies, In 2 Minds, Heartbeat.
Also several commercials, Corporates and Voice Overs for Animations- Actor
- Additional Crew
Robert Harris was born on 28 March 1900 in Weston-super-Mare, England, UK. He was an actor, known for That Lady (1955), Canterbury Tales (1969) and The Life and Death of Sir John Falstaff (1959). He died on 18 May 1995 in Hillingdon, London, England, UK.- Additional Crew
Richard Wyatt was born on 25 July 1949 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He is known for Boris v Dave: The Battle for Europe (2016), The Clifton House Mystery (1978) and TV Nightmares (1999).- Brian Haines was born on 9 May 1921 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Adventures of Robin Hood (1955), The Avengers (1961) and ITV Play of the Week (1955). He was married to Joy Adamson. He died on 25 July 1991 in Brighton, Sussex, England, UK.
- Director
- Producer
- Actor
Pennant Roberts was born on 15 December 1940 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He was a director and producer, known for The Sherman Plays (1993), The Snow Spider (1988) and Blake's 7 (1978). He was married to Betsan Jones. He died on 22 June 2010 in the UK.- Alan was born in Weston-super-Mare and studied at a Hedley Goodall School in Bristol. He did radio as a youngster for the BBC in Bristol and spent 4 years in the Navy, making his professional debut in 1946 as a schoolboy in Exercise Bowler at The Arts Theatre, London with Willam Fox, Geoffrey Keene and Mark Dignam. Over a long theatrical career including 10 shows in the West End and many touring productions he worked with most of the prominent UK artists (except Olivier and Gielgud). His film and TV career began with a short for Edgar Lusgarden and included Softly Softly (1966),
Dad's Army (1971), Van der Valk (1972) and No Hiding Place (1959). In 2001 he was Michael Gambon's grandfather in _Perfect Strangers (2001)_. - Julian L'Estrange was born on 6 August 1880 in Weston-super-Mare, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Bella Donna (1915), The Girl with the Green Eyes (1916) and The Morals of Marcus (1915). He was married to Constance Collier. He died on 22 October 1918 in New York City, New York, USA.
- Director
- Producer
- Cinematographer
Sean Martin was born on 22 December 1966 in Weston-super-Mare, England, UK. He is a director and producer, known for Batman Forever (1995), Mystery Play (2001) and Folie à deux (2012).- Marilyn Taylerson was born in 1943 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Country Matters (1972), Blandings Castle (1967) and Middlemarch (1968).
- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Colin Luke was born on 24 January 1946 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He is a producer and director, known for Mein Gott, Europa (2000), The Face of Trespass (1988) and The Arabs - A Living History (1979).- Camera and Electrical Department
- Cinematographer
Richard Ganniclifft was born on 16 September 1949 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He is a cinematographer, known for The Private Life of Plants (1995), Big Jim and the Figaro Club (1979) and The Discovery of Animal Behaviour (1982).- Additional Crew
Patrick Isherwood was born in October 1944 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. He is known for RocknRolla (2008), Sherlock Holmes (2009) and Revolver (2005).- Director
- Cinematographer
Esme Collings was born in 1859 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, UK. Esme was a director and cinematographer, known for The Broken Melody (1896), A Victorian Lady in Her Boudoir (1896) and Crowded Streets in London (1896). Esme died on 28 March 1936 in Eastbourne, East Sussex, England, UK.