Michael Bryant

Michael Bryant

Born

April 5, 1928

Died

April 25, 2002 (74 years old)

Known For

Acting

Place of Birth

London, England, UK

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Michael Dennis Bryant (5 April 1928 – 25 April 2002) was a British stage and television actor.

Bryant attended Battersea Grammar School and after service in the Merchant Navy and Army, he attended drama school and appeared in many productions on the London stage. He made his film debut in 1955. His greatest role was Mathieu in BBC2's 1970 adaptation of Jean-Paul Sartre's Roads to Freedom trilogy. His guest star appearance as Wing Commander Marsh, who feigns insanity in the 'Tweedledum' episode of the BBC drama series, Colditz (1972), is still widely remembered.

Bryant was chosen by Orson Welles to play the lead role in The Deep, Welles's adaptation of the Charles Williams novel Dead Calm. The production frequently ran out of money, and following the death of actor Laurence Harvey in 1973, Welles stopped production and announced the movie - which had been completed except for one special effects shot of a ship exploding - would not be released. (The novel was finally adapted to film in 1989.)

In 1969 Bryant took his love of the stage on a strange trip into the realm of cult films, playing a clever male prostitute who outwits a delusional family of killers in the dark comedy Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly, an adaptation of a play by Maisie Mosco. Due to poor marketing and a lack of faith in the film by the distributor, the film quickly sank into obscurity even before it could develop a cult following.

One of Bryant's most memorable performances was in the classic BBC television play The Stone Tape (1972), in which he plays the leader of a team of scientists who investigate ghost sightings in a brooding gothic mansion.

Bryant also had a supporting role as a sadistic psychiatrist in the cult classic black comedy The Ruling Class, with Peter O'Toole and Alastair Sim. He also appeared in Richard Attenborough's Gandhi (1982) as a British diplomat.

Having played Lenin in the film Nicholas and Alexandria, Bryant would later reprise the role in Robert Bolt's play State of Revolution (1977). He had previously co-starred in Bolt's unsuccessful Gentle Jack. The 1977 production of a Bolt play though was significant for featuring the first role he performed at the National Theatre where he was a constant presence for a quarter of a century. Bryant, described by Michael Billington as "rock-solid company man", had earlier performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company from 1964, including the premiere production of Harold Pinter's The Homecoming (1965), in which he played Teddy, the returning academic.

In 1980, Michael Bryant won the London Drama Critics Circle Theatre Award for Best Actor, and his other theatrical performances were equally well thought of. Bryant won Laurence Olivier Awards in 1988 and 1990 and was nominated twice more.

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The Curse Of Denton Rose

The Curse Of Denton Rose

Self

0.0

2020

The Deep

The Deep

John Ingram

0.0

2007

The Miracle Maker

The Miracle Maker

God/ The Doctor (voice)

5.9

2000

King Lear

King Lear

Fool

8.0

1998

Hamlet

Hamlet

Priest

7.3

1996

Orson Welles: The One-Man Band

Orson Welles: The One-Man Band

Self (segment "The deep") (archive footage)

6.4

1995

Anna Lee: Headcase

Commander Martin Brierly

5.2

1993

Performance

Performance

Fool · (1 episode)

6.0

1991

Heading Home

Heading Home

Derek Green

5.5

1991

Franz Kafka's 'The Trial'

Franz Kafka's 'The Trial'

Advocate

0.0

1988

The Modern World: Ten Great Writers

The Modern World: Ten Great Writers

Advocate · (1 episode)

0.0

1988

Sakharov

Sakharov

Syshchikov

7.0

1984

Reilly: Ace of Spies

Reilly: Ace of Spies

Narrator (voice) · (12 episodes)

7.0

1983

The Merry Wives of Windsor

The Merry Wives of Windsor

Doctor Caius

8.0

1982

Gandhi

Gandhi

Principal Secretary

7.6

1982

A Genius Like Us: A Portrait of Joe Orton

A Genius Like Us: A Portrait of Joe Orton

Mike

0.0

1982

The BBC Television Shakespeare

The BBC Television Shakespeare

Doctor Caius · (1 episode)

6.0

1978

Short Back and Sides

John Hardy

0.0

1977

My Homeland

My Homeland

Reader

0.0

1976

The Daedalus Equations

The Daedalus Equations

Sam McInstrey

0.0

1976

Late Call

Late Call

Howard Calvert · (4 episodes)

0.0

1975

The Treasure of Abbot Thomas

The Treasure of Abbot Thomas

The Rev. Justin Somerton

6.3

1974

Caravan to Vaccarès

Caravan to Vaccarès

Zuger

5.4

1974

Is It Something I Said?

Is It Something I Said?

Arthur

0.0

1974

Mr. Axelford's Angel

Mr. Axelford's Angel

Mr Axelford

8.5

1974

Fall of Eagles

Fall of Eagles

Ratchkowsky · (1 episode)

6.9

1974

Playhouse

Playhouse

Sam McInstrey · (1 episode)

7.0

1974

If There Weren't Any Blacks You'd Have to Invent Them

1.0

1974

The Professional

Duckworth

0.0

1973

The Stone Tape

The Stone Tape

Peter Brock

5.9

1972

Colditz

Colditz

W / Cdr George Marsh · (1 episode)

7.3

1972

The Duchess of Malfi

The Duchess of Malfi

Bosola

0.0

1972

The Ruling Class

The Ruling Class

Dr. Herder

6.4

1972

The Greeks and Their Gifts

Stuart Lindsay

0.0

1972

A Ghost Story for Christmas

A Ghost Story for Christmas

The Rev. Justin Somerton · (1 episode)

7.6

1971

Nicholas and Alexandra

Nicholas and Alexandra

Lenin

6.9

1971

The Switch

Henry Martin

0.0

1971

The Roads to Freedom

The Roads to Freedom

Mathieu Delarue · (13 episodes)

3.8

1970

Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny & Girly

Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny & Girly

New Friend

6.1

1970

The Three Sisters

The Three Sisters

Vershinin

6.0

1970

Goodbye, Mr. Chips

Goodbye, Mr. Chips

Max Staefel

6.7

1969

The Explorer

Erik Petterson

0.0

1968

Mille Miglia

Stirling Moss

0.0

1968

Torture Garden

Torture Garden

Colin Williams (segment 1 "Enoch")

6.1

1967

The Big M

Johnny Treherne · (6 episodes)

6.0

1967

Easier in the Dark

The Man

0.0

1967

The Deadly Affair

The Deadly Affair

Gaveston (in Edward II)

6.2

1967

Talking to a Stranger

Talking to a Stranger

(4 episodes)

8.5

1966

BBC Play of the Month

BBC Play of the Month

Vershinin · (1 episode)

5.0

1965

The Mind Benders

The Mind Benders

Dr. Danny Tate

6.4

1963

Life for Ruth

Life for Ruth

John's Counsel

6.4

1962

A Night to Remember

A Night to Remember

Sixth Officer James Moody

7.6

1958

Harbor Command

Harbor Command

(1 episode)

4.0

1957

Telephone Time

Telephone Time

(1 episode)

6.3

1956

Uranium Boom

Uranium Boom

Peterson

6.0

1956

ITV Play of the Week

ITV Play of the Week

Walter Luke · (1 episode)

4.0

1955

The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp

The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp

(1 episode)

6.8

1955

Passage Home

Passage Home

Stebbings

5.6

1955

Buffalo Bill Jr.

Buffalo Bill Jr.

(2 episodes)

5.0

1955

The Millionaire

The Millionaire

McGinnis · (1 episode)

5.0

1955

Hallmark Hall of Fame

Hallmark Hall of Fame

Britannus · (1 episode)

8.6

1951

The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok

The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok

(1 episode)

4.5

1951