Powerful stage and screen actor often cast as an aristocrat, king or moustachioed villain
When the whisky flowed, according to the writer John Heilpern, the actor Nigel Davenport looked "as if he might knock you through the wall for sport". However, words such as "imposing" and "heavyweight", both often applied to his performances on stage and screen across more than 40 years, do not do sufficient justice to his lightness of touch and comic energy.
Davenport, who has died aged 85, was a founder member of the English Stage Company (Esc) at the Royal Court – in the first season, he was in every production except Look Back in Anger – and a distinguished president of Equity, the actors' union; he played leads in Restoration comedy and absurdist drama as well as King Lear.
In a recent rerun of the BBC's Keeping Up Appearances, he loomed as a lubricious old navy commodore coming on...
When the whisky flowed, according to the writer John Heilpern, the actor Nigel Davenport looked "as if he might knock you through the wall for sport". However, words such as "imposing" and "heavyweight", both often applied to his performances on stage and screen across more than 40 years, do not do sufficient justice to his lightness of touch and comic energy.
Davenport, who has died aged 85, was a founder member of the English Stage Company (Esc) at the Royal Court – in the first season, he was in every production except Look Back in Anger – and a distinguished president of Equity, the actors' union; he played leads in Restoration comedy and absurdist drama as well as King Lear.
In a recent rerun of the BBC's Keeping Up Appearances, he loomed as a lubricious old navy commodore coming on...
- 10/30/2013
- by Michael Coveney
- The Guardian - Film News
Nigel Davenport, veteran British character actor and father of actor Jack, has died. He was 85.In a career that spanned half of a century, the imposing Davenport was perhaps best known for his work in Fred Zinnemann’s A Man for All Seasons and as aristocratic Olympic official Lord Birkenhead in the Oscar-triumphing Chariots Of Fire. He was a stalwart on the small screen, too, with appearances in shows as diverse as The Saint, The Avengers, Howards' Way, South Riding and, more recently, Midsomer Murders.An Oxford graduate, he earned his spurs on the West End stage. He understudied in a Savoy Theatre run of Noel Coward's Relative Values before joining the English Stage Company and appearing in plays on both sides of the Atlantic.Davenport started small on the big screen with a walk-on in Tony Richardson's new wave classic Look Back In Anger and a cameo as...
- 10/30/2013
- EmpireOnline
Subject: Colin Firth, 50-year old English actor
Date of Assessment: March 30, 2011
Positive Buzzwords: Underrated, mainstream
Negative Buzzwords: Stiff, posh, bore
The Case: The good news, as accurately declared by Colin Firth in his recent (Best Actor) Oscar acceptance speech, is that his career really has just peaked. The bad news, however, is that in the event of a career peak, a downward slide might be inevitable. In the best case scenario, it is entirely possible Firth could parlay his Oscar win into more exposure for the sorts of roles that he's played before and for which he hasn't yet received proper recognition.
Most of us know Firth as the quintessential Englishman and for good reason. He's quite notorious for his straight-out-of-the-novel portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the six-episode miniseries Pride and Prejudice, in which he performed the classic Regency version of a one-man wet t-shirt contest. Indeed, there's something strange...
Date of Assessment: March 30, 2011
Positive Buzzwords: Underrated, mainstream
Negative Buzzwords: Stiff, posh, bore
The Case: The good news, as accurately declared by Colin Firth in his recent (Best Actor) Oscar acceptance speech, is that his career really has just peaked. The bad news, however, is that in the event of a career peak, a downward slide might be inevitable. In the best case scenario, it is entirely possible Firth could parlay his Oscar win into more exposure for the sorts of roles that he's played before and for which he hasn't yet received proper recognition.
Most of us know Firth as the quintessential Englishman and for good reason. He's quite notorious for his straight-out-of-the-novel portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the six-episode miniseries Pride and Prejudice, in which he performed the classic Regency version of a one-man wet t-shirt contest. Indeed, there's something strange...
- 3/30/2011
- by Agent Bedhead
The King's Speech continues to bask in Oscars glory, with a huge surge of interest in the film and in all previous titles featuring Best Actor award winner Colin Firth.
The historical drama, which won four Oscars, has experienced a 281 per cent increase in rental pre-orders and is predicted to become the biggest rental title of 2011.
There has also been a major boost for Firth's earlier releases, including a rise of more than 1000 per cent in viewers watching 2008's The Accidental Husband via online streaming.
According to subscription service LOVEFiLM, DVD rentals of Relative Values, a film adaption of the 1950s play, have jumped by 400 per cent, and those for romantic comedy Fever Pitch are up 340 per cent.
LOVEFiLM's Watch Online streaming service has also experienced a boost: The Accidental Husband directed by Griffin Dunne is up by a staggering 1145 per cent and A Single Man based on Christopher Isherwood...
The historical drama, which won four Oscars, has experienced a 281 per cent increase in rental pre-orders and is predicted to become the biggest rental title of 2011.
There has also been a major boost for Firth's earlier releases, including a rise of more than 1000 per cent in viewers watching 2008's The Accidental Husband via online streaming.
According to subscription service LOVEFiLM, DVD rentals of Relative Values, a film adaption of the 1950s play, have jumped by 400 per cent, and those for romantic comedy Fever Pitch are up 340 per cent.
LOVEFiLM's Watch Online streaming service has also experienced a boost: The Accidental Husband directed by Griffin Dunne is up by a staggering 1145 per cent and A Single Man based on Christopher Isherwood...
- 3/1/2011
- by David Bentley
- The Geek Files
Movie star Dame Julie Andrews has spoken of the pain of losing her singing voice - but is still optimistic that her doctors will be proved wrong. Sound of Music, The (1965) star, who is returning to the big screen after eight years with new movie Relative Values (2000), is currently preparing her suit for damages against the doctors who allegedly botched an operation to remove non-cancerous polyps from her vocal chords. She says, "Somehow the operation went wrong. It's affected the middle register singing voice. My speaking voice is coming back, but I still can't sing a song." But the Dame still lives in hope that her legendary singing ability will return. She explains, "I'm still hoping it will reverse itself, but it's been a long time now. My doctors don't hold out much hope, but say that I should continue practicing."...
- 7/11/2000
- WENN
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