Valentine Pelka | |
---|---|
Born | Dewsbury, West Riding of Yorkshire, England | 23 February 1956
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1983–present |
Valentine Pelka (born 23 February 1956) is an English actor who has starred in film and on television.
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Pelka was born in Dewsbury, West Riding of Yorkshire, to a Polish engineer father (Tadeusz Pelka) and an Irish actress (Alma Herley). She is the niece of actor Randal Herley, and her maternal grandparents were WWI veteran and ophthalmologist Randal Herley [1] and Irish singer Annie ( née Mahon) Herley. [2] [3] [4] He attended St Michael's College, Leeds (now part of Mount St Mary's Catholic High School, Leeds). His sister, Kazia, is an actress who starred on Brookside , among other television programmes.
He made guest appearances on Highlander: The Series as Kronos, an enemy of Duncan MacLeod (Adrian Paul) and former acolyte of Methos (Peter Wingfield) in the episodes "Comes a Horseman", "Revelations 6:8", "Archangel" and "Not To Be". He starred in the 1986 TV series Crossbow (UK, William Tell) as Roland. He guest-starred in the 1990 TV series Zorro in the episode "All that Glitters" which preceded his starring role as the military governor, Colonel Montoya, in the 2000 syndicated TV series Queen of Swords . Peter Wingfield also co-starred as Dr Robert Helm. The part of Montoya was written for Pelka by executive producer David Abramowitz who in October 1999 offered him the part subject to approval by the other show producers. [5]
In 1999, he appeared in the British TV soap opera Family Affairs as Simon Thornton. His sister, Kazia, was also a leading player in Family Affairs; however, that was after Valentine had appeared in the soap opera. Of the feature films in which Valentine has performed, the best-known was Roman Polanski's 2002 film The Pianist . His supporting comedic role in Under the Tuscan Sun was performed mute. He returned to stage work in 2013 when he reprised his role as John Lennon in Sandy Marshall's biopic And in the End at the Jeremy Street Theatre in London. [6]
Also in 1999, he had a guest starring role in Highlander: The Raven as Andre Korda, an immortal who is a criminal and once trained the main character Amanda. The episodes were 'The French Connection' and 'A Matter of Time'. [7]
He is married and has one child.
Highlander is a media franchise franchise created by Gregory Widen. The series began with Highlander, a 1986 fantasy film starring Christopher Lambert, who played Connor MacLeod, the titular Highlander. There have been four theatrical Highlander films, one made-for-TV film, two live-action television series, an animated television series, an anime film, original novels, comic books, and various licensed merchandise.
Zorro is a fictional character created in 1919 by American pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashing masked vigilante who defends the commoners and Indigenous peoples of California against corrupt, tyrannical officials and other villains. His signature all-black costume includes a cape, a hat known as a sombrero cordobés, and a mask covering the upper half of his face.
Henry Darrow was an American character actor of stage and film known for his role as Manolito "Mano" Montoya on the 1960s television series The High Chaparral. In film, Darrow played the corrupt and vengeful Trooper Hancock in The Hitcher. During the 1970s and 1980s, he was seen in numerous guest starring television roles. Darrow replaced Efrem Zimbalist Jr. as Zorro's father Don Alejandro de la Vega in the 1990s television series Zorro.
Dr Peter Wingfield is a Welsh-born television actor, well known for his television roles as Dan Clifford in Holby City, Dr. Robert Helm in Queen of Swords and Inspector Simon Ross in Cold Squad but he is internationally best known for his role as the 5,000-year-old Immortal Methos in the hit syndicated series Highlander: The Series. He also portrayed Dr. James Watson in Sanctuary.
Highlander: The Series is a science fantasy action-adventure television series featuring Duncan MacLeod of the Scottish Clan MacLeod, as the eponymous "Highlander". It was co-produced by Rysher Distribution in the United States, Gaumont Television in France, Reteitalia in Italy, RTL Plus in Germany, and Amuse Video in Japan. An alternate sequel to the 1986 feature film Highlander, it features a storyline in which the protagonist of that film has not won "the Prize" sought by all Immortals, who still exist post-1985. Christopher Lambert reprised his role as Connor in the pilot episode, which introduced series protagonist Duncan MacLeod, an Immortal who was taken in by the same clan of Scottish Highlanders who had found and raised Connor generations before.
Peter Diamond was an English actor who had trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and is remembered as a stuntman on television or film.
Kazia Pelka is a British actress who has worked primarily in UK television, appearing in the soap opera series Brookside in the early 1990s, the period police drama series Heartbeat in the late 1990s, the police procedural series The Bill, and the BBC medical drama series Doctors, and Casualty.
Thomas Butler is a Canadian television and film actor.
Queen of Swords is a Canadian action–adventure television series set in California during the early 19th century that ran for one season from 2000 to 2001.
The fifth season of the American drama/adventure television series Highlander began airing 23 September 1996 and finished on 19 May 1997. The series continues to follow the adventures of Duncan MacLeod, a 400-year-old Immortal who, just as the Immortals of the movies, can only die if he is beheaded. MacLeod is involved in the Game, an ongoing battle during which all Immortals have to behead each other until only one is left.
The sixth season of the French/Canadian drama/adventure television series Highlander began airing 5 October 1997 and finished on 16 May 1998. It was the final season of the program. The series follows the adventures of Duncan MacLeod, a 400-year-old Immortal who can only die if he is beheaded. The ongoing battle between Immortals is known as the Game.
Zorro is an American Western superhero television series featuring Duncan Regehr as the character of Zorro. Regehr portrayed the fearless Spanish hero and fencer on The Family Channel from 1990 to 1993. The series was shot entirely in Madrid, Spain and produced by New World Television (U.S.), The Family Channel (U.S.), Ellipse Programme of Canal Plus (France), Beta TV (Germany), and RAI (Italy). 88 episodes of the series were produced, Raymond Austin directed 55 episodes and produced 37. There were 10 more episodes made than the first Zorro television series, which was produced by Disney in the late 1950s.
"Destiny" is the first episode and origin story of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords, airing October 7, 2000.
"Death to the Queen" is the second episode of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords, airing October 14, 2000.
"Fever" is the third episode of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords, airing October 21, 2000.
"Vengeance" is the fourth episode of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords, airing October 28, 2000.
"The Witness" is the fifth episode of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords, airing November 4, 2000.
"Duel with a Stranger" is the sixth episode of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords, airing November 11, 2000.
"Running Wild" is the seventh episode of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords, airing November 18, 2000.
"Honor Thy Father" is the eighth episode of the syndicated television series Queen of Swords airing November 25, 2000