Andy Anderson (actor)

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Andy Anderson
Born
Neville Anderson

(1947-07-18) 18 July 1947 (age 78)
Naenae, Lower Hutt, New Zealand
Occupation(s)Musician, actor
Years activeEarly 1960s–present

Neville Anderson (born 18 July 1947) known professionally as Andy Anderson and also billed as Andy James, is a New Zealand musician and actor who worked a lot in Australia.

Contents

As a musician, Anderson is best known as the lead singer of 1960s band The Missing Links, and as an actor he is well known for his roles on both Australian and New Zealand television including still American television itself.

Music career

Anderson was born in Naenae, Lower Hutt, while at Naenae College he started playing in pop and rock and roll bands. [1] Anderson performed in several well-known Australian rock bands of the 1960s, [2] in 1965 he joined the second lineup of famed Sydney garage punk group the Missing Links as lead vocalist, and he performed on the group's only album. After the demise of the Links, he moved to Melbourne and joined another radical punk-R&B outfit, Running Jumping Standing Still, which also included lead guitarist Doug Ford, who subsequently joined the Masters Apprentices. He sang with the avant-garde theatre group Red Mole for a time. [2]

Anderson was well known for his outrageous stage performances but his wild lifestyle at the time took a heavy toll and in late 1966 he was hospitalised after suffering a brain haemorrhage onstage at Melbourne's Thumpin' Tum discothèque. [3] After his recovery, Anderson formed two short-lived Melbourne bands, Andy James Asylum, followed by Mother Superior, before moving back to Sydney, where he joined the cast of the Australian production of Hair for a short time during 1970. This was followed by an 18-month stint with Sydney club band Southern Comfort, with co-vocalist Bobbi Marchini. [3]

In 2019 age 71 he was writing, and making music based in Palmerston North, New Zealand. [4]

Film and television

After moving overseas for some time (reputedly to evade a death threat made by a Sydney underworld figure) Anderson returned to Australia and began performing regularly on Australian TV from the mid-1970s, with appearances in The Sullivans (as Jim Sullivan), Gloss (as Matt Winter), Prisoner (as Rick Manning), Fire (as John Kennedy) and a starring role in the talking-dog sitcom The Bob Morrison Show as Steve Morrison. [2]

Guest appearances on television include: The Flying Doctors , Halifax f.p. , A Country Practice , Xena: Warrior Princess , Hercules: The Legendary Journeys , Heartbreak High , Water Rats , All Saints , Blue Heelers , Neighbours and Stingers . [2]

He had a prominent featured role as detective Lochie Renford in the first season of the acclaimed ABC-TV police series Phoenix (1992–93). In 2012 he had a recurring featured role as Vince, the minder of drug lord Harry Montebello, in the ABC-TV crime drama series The Straits .

On film, he is known for playing the role as John Livingston in the film Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid and also starred in House of Wax and Tracker (2010). [2]

Selected filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNote
1984TrespassesAlbie StoneFilm
1985 Robbery Under Arms GeorgeFeature film
1987The Haunting of Barney PalmerJohn PalmerFilm
1989Il MagistratoTonyFilm
Zilch! LawyerFeature film
2004 Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid John LivingstonFeature film
2005 House of Wax SheriffFeature film
2010 Tracker BryceFeature film
2011 Swerve Ambulance OfficerFilm
2012Honk If You're HornyShort film

Television

YearTitleRoleNote
1976 The Sullivans Jim SullivanTV series
1983 Roche Cowboy TruckerTV series
1984 Prisoner Rick ManningTV series (38 episodes)
A Country Practice Guest roleTV series
1986 The Great Bookie Robbery Tony LoftTV miniseries
1987 Gloss Matt WinterTV series
1989 The Flying Doctors Jim Sexton / PeterTV series (2 episodes)
Marlin Bay TV series
1992-93 Phoenix Lochie Renford TV series
1994 The Bob Morrison Show Steve MorrisonTV series
Blue Heelers Guest roleTV series
Stingers Guest roleTV series
1995 Xena: Warrior Princess Hesiod TV series
1995 Hercules: The Legendary Journeys ZandarTV series
1995-96 Fire John "Repo" KennedyTV series
1997 Heartbreak High Barry Peterson le père de KurtTV series
2000 Halifax f.p. Ex-detectiveTV series (season 5, episode 1: "A Person of Interest")
Neighbours Mick ScullyTV series (7 episodes)
2004 Salem's Lot Charlie RhodesTV miniseries
2005 Home and Away Kevin BakerTV series (2 episodes)
2007 All Saints Lewid DowdTV series (2 episodes)
2012 The Straits VinceTV series (10 episodes)
2013 Packed to the Rafters Jim BartonTV series (4 episodes)
2014 Janet King Anthony SchaefferTV series (1 episode)
2016 Dirty Laundry Live Trevor OlyphantTV series

Music

Anderson returned to music in the 2000s, recording an album called If I'd Known I'd Live This Long..., and he participated in a reunion of Southern Comfort in Sydney in 2003.

Awards

YearWorkAwardCategoryResult
2000 Halifax f.p.- A Person of Interest Australian Film Institute Awards Best Performance by an Actor in a Telefeature or MiniseriesWon [2]
1982 The Sullivans Logie Awards Silver Logie for Best Supporting Actor in a SeriesWon [2]
2012Honk If You're HornySorta Unofficial New Zealand Film Awards (The Moas)Best Actor - Short FilmWon [2]
2013Honk If You're HornyShow Me Shorts Film Festival (New Zealand)Best ActorWon [2]
2013Honk If You're HornyBest Actors Film Festival (United States)Best Actor – ShortWon [2]

References

  1. ↑ Schmidt, Andrew. "Andy Anderson". Audioculture. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Andy Anderson". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Andy Anderson". AudioCulture. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  4. ↑ Hopwood, Malcolm (3 January 2019). "Andy Anderson's rocky road to satisfaction". Stuff. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
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