Frank Finlay

Frank Finlay

1926-08-06 – 2016-01-30 (age 89) Farnworth, Lancashire, England, UK
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Biography

Frank received Academy Award, Golden Globe and BAFTA Award nominations for his performance as William Shakespeare’s Iago in Stuart Burge’s 1965 film of Laurence Olivier’s staging of Othello. He also won the Best Actor Award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival.

He later essayed the definitive screen portrayal of Alexandre Dumas’ musketeer Porthos in three movies for director Richard Lester: The Three Musketeers (1974), The Four Musketeers (1975) and The Return of the Musketeers (1989). Frank’s many other films include The Longest Day; Tony Richardson’s The Lonliness of the Long Distance Runner; Martin Ritt’s The Molly Maguires; Bob Clark’s Murder by Decree; Alan Bridges’ The Return of the Soldier (for which he recieved a BAFTA Award nomination); Franco Zeffrelli’s Sparrow; and Eric Styles’ Dreaming of Joseph Lees; and most recently Roman Polanski’s multi-award winning The Pianist and Norma Jewison’s The Statement.

His similarly extensive television projects have earned him two BAFTA Awards, for his performances in The Death of Adolf Hitler (starring as Hitler, with Rex Firkin directing); The Adventures of Don Quixote (as Sancho Panza, opposite Rex Harrison, for director Alvin Rakoff); the ground breaking Bouquet of Barbed Wire and Another Bouquet; 84 Charing Cross Road; and recently the critically acclaimed series The Sins. Born in Farnworth, Lancashire, Finlay had already begun performing on stage when he earned the Sir James Knott Scholarship at London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Since then he has led theatre companies in London and on Broadway.

He was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1984 New Year’s Honours List, and was presented with his CBE by the Queen in February1984.

Photos

Known For

The Voyeur
The Voyeur

1994

as Nino Rolfe

The Pianist
The Pianist

2002

as Father

The Key
The Key

1983

as Nino Rolfe

Fifty Shades of Erotica
Fifty Shades of Erotica

2015

as (archive footage)

The Longest Day
The Longest Day

1962

as Pvt. Coke (uncredited)

Lifeforce
Lifeforce

1985

as Dr. Hans Fallada

The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers

1973

as Porthos / O'Reilly

The Wild Geese
The Wild Geese

1978

as Fr. Geoghagen

Inspector Clouseau
Inspector Clouseau

1968

as Supt. Weaver

Enigma
Enigma

1982

as Canarsky

Robbery
Robbery

1967

as Robinson

A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol

1984

as Jacob Marley

Casanova
Casanova

1987

as Razetta

The Four Musketeers
The Four Musketeers

1974

as Porthos

Eroica
Eroica

2003

as Josef Haydn

Count Dracula
Count Dracula

1977

as Abraham van Helsing

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Station Jim

2001

as Riorden Snr

Cromwell
Cromwell

1970

as John Carter

Stalin
Stalin

1992

as Sergei

The Statement
The Statement

2003

as Commissaire Vionnet