Frank Barrie

Last updated

Frank Barrie
Frank Barrie (Hamlet).jpg
Born (1936-09-19) 19 September 1936 (age 87)
Occupation Actor
Parent(s)Arthur and Annie Smith

Frank Barrie (born 19 September 1936) is a British actor, director and writer. He made his acting debut in 1959 in a production of Henry IV, Part 2 at the York Theatre Royal. He proved to be a successful Shakespearean actor throughout his career. More recently, he starred in Lunch with Marlene , a 2008 tribute to Noël Coward and Marlene Dietrich and in 2010 was cast as Edward Bishop, a gentleman friend of Dot Cotton in Eastenders.

Contents

Biography

Frank Barrie was born in Scarborough, North Riding of Yorkshire on 19 September 1936, [1] but spent his childhood in York. There he attended Archbishop Holgate's School, prior to Hull University, where he was elected President of the Debating Union . At Hull he met his future wife Maryann Lloyd. They married in 1960 and their daughter is the actress Julia Barrie. [2]

Theatre

After graduating Barrie spent four years acting in weekly and fortnightly repertory, before joining the internationally prestigious Bristol Old Vic company in 1965, where he quickly became established as the leading man - the youngest in the company's history. [1] Amongst his many roles he played Oedipus Rex ; Richard Il; Long John Silver; Alfie; Malvolio; and Lucio in Tyrone Guthrie's production of Measure for Measure. His performance of Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet was highly praised. Harold Hobson wrote in The Sunday Times of the "splendidly manly and romantic Mercutio of Frank Barrie. Few Mercutios can have lived with a more rousing swagger or died with more panache or bitterness than Mr Barrie's". [3]

In 1967 Barrie toured the United States and Europe with the Company, repeating his Mercutio and Lucio on Broadway, New York, and many other major cities.

In 1969 he was invited by Sir Laurence Olivier to join the National Theatre [1] Over the next four years he played many leading roles with Olivier's company, including Mirabell in The Way of the World opposite Geraldine McEwan. His performance as Wendoll in John Dexter's production of A Woman Killed with Kindness opposite Joan Plowright drew favourable reviews. The Stage noted that "Frank Barrie is an excellent Wendoll", and that he gave a "characterisation of richness and power". [4] He also appeared as Brachiano in The White Devil , Barelli in The Rules of the Game with Paul Scofield; Ganya in The Idiot with Derek Jacobi; Desmoulins in Danton's Death with Christopher Plummer; and Bassanio to Olivier's Shylock. [5] He was the first member of the Bristol Old Vic to star at the Young Vic, where he won wide critical acclaim as Byron in The Naked Peacock. The production was described by critic Irving Wardle as having "a notably Byronic performance by Frank Barrie; a romantically virile figure whose wolfish mouth offers a constant threat of blisteringly destructive irony". [6]

Later leading London appearances include A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park, where he played Oberon opposite Linda Thorson as Titania. His performance as Crichton in the 1977 staging of The Admirable Crichton at the Greenwich Theatre drew favourable comment, with the Daily Telegraph commenting that "Frank Barrie as Crichton gives every impression that beneath the stiff butler's uniform, there beats the heart of a true intelligent being". [7] He also appeared as Arthur Kipps in The Woman in Black at The Fortune; Lord Rosebery in Motherdear opposite Margaret Lockwood at The Ambassadors and Janacek at The Royal Festival Hall, in which he achieved his long held ambition of conducting an orchestra. He also played Braham in The Philanthropist at Wyndham's and Major Ross in The Crucifer of Blood at the Haymarket.

Barrie was the author of his one man show, Macready!, the story of the great Victorian actor William Macready, which came to the West End in 1981 after a triumphant run in New York and was filmed by the Bright Thoughts Company for Channel 4. [8] For this performance he was nominated "best actor" in the London Critics Plays and Players Awards. Barrie performed Macready! worldwide, in a record breaking 65 countries, including Australia when in 1982 he represented Great Britain in the Commonwealth Games Arts Festival in Brisbane.

In 1991 he appeared at the Theatre Royal, Windsor in The Philanthropist . [9] In 1995 he played the title role in a later production of Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell , with The Stage commenting that "the central performance by Frank Barrie is finely placed and impeccably played". [10]

In 2008, Barrie was cast as Noël Coward in the original London production of Lunch with Marlene , a play about the friendship between Coward and fellow acting legend Marlene Dietrich. The production received "rave reviews", [11] with the casting of Barrie as Coward being described as "impeccable" by The Stage . [12]

Barrie has also had considerable experience as a director, including productions of Shylock; J.M. Barrie: and The Life and Loves of Edith Wharton, all of which toured internationally. Writing credits include Wellington, The Family at Ham; The Devil you Know and The Other Woman which was broadcast by the BBC, starring Dame Thora Hird [13]

In May 2022 he appeared as Flashman at 80 - celebrating the character's fictional bicentennial.

Television

Barrie has also appeared in over 150 British television productions, including such shows as Emergency Ward 10 , No Hiding Place , Softly, Softly , Special Branch , On Giant's Shoulders and Queen of Swords . [14]

In 1983 he played Eglamour in the BBC Television Shakespeare adaptation of The Two Gentlemen of Verona .

He has appeared on BBC's EastEnders as Edward Bishop in 2010 and 2011,a local choir master who becomes Dot Branning's (June Brown) gentleman friend.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laurence Olivier</span> English actor and director (1907–1989)

Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Late in his career he had considerable success in television roles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonathan Pryce</span> Welsh actor (born 1947)

Sir Jonathan Pryce is a Welsh actor who is known for his performances on stage and in film and television. He has received numerous awards, including two Tony Awards and two Laurence Olivier Awards, and a knighthood for services to drama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Gielgud</span> English actor and theatre director (1904–2000)

Sir Arthur John Gielgud, was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. A member of the Terry family theatrical dynasty, he gained his first paid acting work as a junior member of his cousin Phyllis Neilson-Terry's company in 1922. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art he worked in repertory theatre and in the West End before establishing himself at the Old Vic as an exponent of Shakespeare in 1929–31.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate O'Mara</span> English actress (1939–2014)

Kate O'Mara was an English film, stage and television actress, and writer. O'Mara made her stage debut in a 1963 production of The Merchant of Venice. Her other stage roles included Elvira in Blithe Spirit (1974), Lady Macbeth in Macbeth (1982), Cleopatra in Antony & Cleopatra (1982), Goneril in King Lear (1987) and Marlene Dietrich in Lunch with Marlene (2008).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joan Plowright</span> British actress (born 1929)

Joan Ann Plowright, Baroness Olivier,, professionally known as Dame Joan Plowright, is an English retired actress whose career spanned over six decades. She has won two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award and has been nominated for an Academy Award, an Emmy and two BAFTA Awards. She was the second of only four actresses to have won two Golden Globes in the same year. She won the Laurence Olivier Award for Actress of the Year in a New Play in 1978 for Filumena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denis Quilley</span> English actor, singer (1927–2003)

Denis Clifford Quilley, OBE was an English actor and singer. From a family with no theatrical connections, Quilley was determined from an early age to become an actor. He was taken on by the Birmingham Repertory Theatre in his teens, and after a break for compulsory military service he began a West End career in 1950, succeeding Richard Burton in The Lady's Not For Burning. In the 1950s he appeared in revue, musicals, operetta and on television as well as in classic and modern drama in the theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Macready</span> 19th-century English actor

William Charles Macready was an English stage actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noël Coward Theatre</span> West End theatre in St. Martins Lane in London, formerly the Albery Theatre

The Noël Coward Theatre, formerly known as the Albery Theatre, is a West End theatre in St. Martin's Lane in the City of Westminster, London. It opened on 12 March 1903 as the New Theatre and was built by Sir Charles Wyndham behind Wyndham's Theatre which was completed in 1899. The building was designed by the architect W. G. R. Sprague with an exterior in the classical style and an interior in the Rococo style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roger Allam</span> British actor

Roger William Allam is a British actor, who has performed on stage, in film, on television and radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sybil Thorndike</span> English actress (1882–1976)

Dame Agnes Sybil Thorndike, Lady Casson, was an English actress whose stage career lasted from 1904 to 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Rep</span>

The Old Rep is the United Kingdom's first ever purpose-built repertory theatre, constructed in 1913, located on Station Street in Birmingham, England. The theatre was a permanent home for Barry Jackson's Birmingham Repertory Company, formed in 1911 from his amateur theatre group, The Pilgrim Players, founded in 1907. Jackson funded the construction of the theatre and established his professional company there.

Niamh Cusack is an Irish actress. Born to a family with deep roots in the performing arts, Cusack has been involved as a performer since a young age. She has served with the UK's two leading theatre companies, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre and has performed in a long line of major stage productions since the mid-1980s. She has made numerous appearances on television including a long-running role as Dr. Kate Rowan in the UK series Heartbeat (1992–1995) which made her a household name and favourite. She has often worked as a voice actress on radio, and her film credits include a starring role in In Love with Alma Cogan (2011).

John Woodvine is an English actor who has appeared in more than 70 theatre productions, as well as a similar number of television and film roles.

David John Threlfall is an English stage, film and television actor and director. He is best known for playing Frank Gallagher in Channel 4's series Shameless. He has also directed several episodes of the show. In April 2014, he portrayed comedian Tommy Cooper in a television film entitled Tommy Cooper: Not Like That, Like This. In 2014, he starred alongside Jude Law in the thriller Black Sea. In 2022, he was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play for his performance in the Martin McDonagh play Hangmen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyric Theatre, London</span> Theatre in the West End of London, England

The Lyric Theatre is a West End theatre in Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster. It was built for the producer Henry Leslie, who financed it from the profits of the light opera hit, Dorothy, which he transferred from its original venue to open the new theatre on 17 December 1888.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Moffatt (actor)</span>

Albert John Moffatt was an English character actor and playwright, known for his portrayal of Hercule Poirot on BBC Radio in twenty-five productions and for a wide range of stage roles in the West End from the 1950s to the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rupert Goold</span> English theatre director

Rupert Goold is an English director who works primarily in theatre. He is the artistic director of the Almeida Theatre, and was the artistic director of Headlong Theatre Company (2005–2013).

Lunch with Marlene is a stage comedy written by Chris Burgess. It is based on the friendship of acting legends Marlene Dietrich and Noël Coward. The two were respectively portrayed by Kate O'Mara and Frank Barrie in the play's original London production, which ran at the New End Theatre from 28 March 2008 through 27 April 2008. Musical direction and arrangements by Neil MacDonald who also played the role of the waiter and pianist. Reviews for the production were generally positive, with The New York Times commenting that the play is "far from perfect, yet it is hugely likeable."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orson Welles theatre credits</span>

This is a comprehensive listing of the theatre work of Orson Welles.

There isn't one person, I suppose, in a million, who knows that I was ever in the theatre.

<i>National Theatre Live: 50 Years On Stage</i> 2013 documentary directed by Nicholas Hytner

National Theatre Live: 50 Years On Stage is a 2013 live staged event film directed by Nicholas Hytner. Shown in theatres and on PBS and National Theatre Live. The program is presented by The Royal National Theatre which celebrates 50 years of theatre, with some extracts of the best productions from the last five decades including Alan Bennett, Noël Coward, David Hare, Tony Kushner, Eugene O'Neill, Harold Pinter, William Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw, Tom Stoppard, and Tennessee Williams performed by the countries best performers including Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Helen Mirren, Benedict Cumberbatch, Andrew Scott, Penelope Wilton, Simon Russell Beale, Frances de la Tour, Ian Holm, Derek Jacobi, and Joan Plowright.

References

  1. 1 2 3 An Interview with Frank Barrie by Abe J. Bassett
  2. Ian Herbert, ed. (1981). "BARRIE, Frank". Who's Who in the Theatre. Vol. 1. Gale Research Company. p. 46. ISSN   0083-9833.
  3. Hobson, Harold (13 November 1966). "The Face in the Bedroom Mirror". The Sunday Times . p. 25.
  4. Marriott, R.B. (15 April 1971). "'A Woman Killed With Kindness' is revived by the National". The Stage .
  5. Macready! Theatre programme 1982
  6. Wardle, Irving (7 January 1971). "Byron - The Naked Peacock". The Times. p. 9.
  7. "Revival underlines Barrie's poignancy". Daily Telegraph. 15 April 1977.
  8. "Macready". THE BRIGHT THOUGHTS COMPANY. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  9. Theatricalia - The Philanthropist
  10. "Theatre Review: Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell". The Stage. 2 November 1995.
  11. Hammond, Elaine (8 October 2009). "REVIEW: Lunch with Marlene and Noël – at The Connaught Theatre, Worthing". Littlehampton Gazette. Archived from the original on 3 September 2012. Retrieved 29 March 2010.
  12. Vale, Paul (9 April 2008). "Lunch with Marlene". The Stage. Retrieved 29 March 2010.
  13. "Tales of Innocence and Experience - The Other Woman". BBC Genome. 8 April 1988.
  14. Frank Barrie at IMDb