Brian Hannan

Last updated

Brian Hannan
Brian Hannan.jpg
Born1942 August 19
Stirling, Scotland
OccupationActor
Years active1958 - 2017
Notable workBellbird, Prisoner Cell Block H
PartnerSusan Hannan (nee Hathaway) Renalda Whitteridge ( nee Green) [ citation needed ]
Children2

Brian Hannan (born August 19, 1942) is a retired Australian actor, born in Stirling, Scotland.

Contents

Early life

Brian Hannan was born to Barry Hannan and Myna Hannan (nee Mills) on August 19, 1942.[ citation needed ] When Brian was nine, his family migrated to Australia on the Assisted Passage Migration Scheme, otherwise known as the Ten Pound Pom deal, initiated by the Australian government under the Populate or Perish policy. They arrived in Western Australia and lived in Perth. When Brian was eighteen, he moved to Melbourne to pursue acting.

Career

Brian Hannan and Anne Charelston in A Man of Destiny 1967.jpg
Brian Hannan in Prisoner Cell Block H as Terry Harrison 1980's.jpg
Take Five Cabaret Group 1968.jpg
Take Five Cabaret Group in Performance 1968.jpg
Brian Hannan in Bellbird as Roger Green 1970's.jpg
Brian Hannan performing.

Brian began his acting career by appearing in theatre productions in Western Australia including George Washington Slept Here (1958) and The No Hopers (1961). [1] , both at the Playhouse Theatre in Perth, before moving to Melbourne.

Hannan performed in stage musicals with the J. C. Williamson Theatres in the 1960s, [2] including Camelot (1963) [3] Hello, Dolly! (1965) [4] [5] [6] The Boys from Syracuse (1966) [7] [8] The Fantasticks (1966) [9] [10] and Half a Sixpence (1967). [11] [12] Stage shows include [13] The Bones of My Toe (1963) [14] [15] and Bread and Butter (1970). [16] [17]

He appeared in filmed for TV plays such as The Sweet Sad Story of Elmo and Me, playing the titular role of Elmo in 1965. [18] [19] and Man of Destiny in 1967 in which he played the young Napoleon Bonaparte. [20]

In 1968, Brian along with Judee Horin, Wally Ruffe and Brian's future wife Susan Hathaway toured Europe and the Middle East as cabaret act Take Five.

Perhaps best known for his recurring television roles, he rose to fame in the 1970's on Bellbird as main character Roger Green, [21] and later went on to play Terry Harrison in Prisoner during the 1980's. [2] He also starred in the comedy sketch series Don't Ask Us . [22] [23] During the 1970's and 1980's Brian had character roles on Ted Hamilton's Musical World, Hey Hey It's Saturday, and small roles on Cop Shop and Blue Heelers.

During the 1980's and 1990's Brian performed in theatre restaurant shows including Tikki and Johns, The MalvernTivoli,Nero'sFiddle,Flicks Theatre Restaurant and Dracula's Theatre Restaurant both in Melbourne and on the Gold Coast. He understudied Daryl Somers in the role of Sancho Panza in the 1989 Australian revival of Man Of La Mancha.

Brian was also a voice over artist providing voices for radio, television and animated films such as The Phantom Treehouse . [24] and also sang the theme tune for the animated direct-to-video Disney sequel Aladin The Return of Jafar.

In 1997 Brian began performing with Promac Productions. He toured Australia performing in Gilbert and Sullivan shows, Morning Melodies and The Peter Allen Show, finishing in 2017.

References

  1. The No-Hopers, AusStage
  2. 1 2 Murphy, Jim (3 June 1981), "Brian knows his work inside out", The Australian Women's Weekly
  3. Camelot, AusStage
  4. Hello, Dolly!, AusStage
  5. "Hello, Dolly!", The Australian Women's Weekly, 5 May 1965
  6. Rolfe, Patricia (10 April 1965), "A Tasteless Confection", The Bulletin
  7. The Boys From Syracuse, AusStage
  8. Costantino, Romola (7 February 1966), "Lively romp at the Royal", The Sydney Morning Herald
  9. The Fantasticks, AusStage
  10. Rolfe, Patricia (17 September 1966), "Not our cup of tea", The Bulletin
  11. Half a Sixpence, AusStage
  12. Hewitt, Hope (16 November 1967), "Good work Mr Kipps", The Canberra Times
  13. Bisset, Winifred (6 September 1961), "'The No Hopers'", The Australian Women's Weekly
  14. The Bishop's Candlestick / The Bones of My Toe / The Oak Settle, AusStage
  15. Armstrong, Madeline (31 August 1963), "Unlucky Partners", The Bulletin
  16. Bread and Butter, AusStage
  17. Hutton, Geoffrey (9 July 1970), "The X-ray on man", The Age
  18. The Sweet Sad Story of Elmo and Me, AusStage
  19. Howard, John (30 July 1965), "Budding Pinter in our midst", The Canberra Times
  20. "Plays with themes of love and war", The Canberra Times, 4 September 1967
  21. Musgrove, Nan (22 May 1974), "Some surprises in store for "Bellbird"", The Australian Women's Weekly
  22. Niell, Kristine (4 June 1979), "Comedy has some promise", The Sydney Morning Herald
  23. Marshall, Ian (21 November 1980), "Comedy has some promise", The Age
  24. Morris, Jill (8 January 1985), "Film animation not so easy", The Age