1939-05-25 Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK
Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. He has played roles on the screen and stage in genres ranging from Shakespearean dramas and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. He is regarded as a British cultural icon and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. He has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, six Olivier Awards, and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards and five Emmy Awards. McKellen made his stage debut in 1961 at the Belgrade Theatre as a member of its repertory company, and in 1965 made his first West End appearance. In 1969, he was invited to join the Prospect Theatre Company to play the lead parts in Shakespeare's Richard II and Marlowe's Edward II. In the 1970s, McKellen became a stalwart of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre of Great Britain. He has earned five Olivier Awards for his roles in Pillars of the Community (1977), The Alchemist (1978), Bent (1979), Wild Honey (1984), and Richard III (1995). McKellen made his Broadway debut in The Promise (1965). He received the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus (1980). He was further nominated for Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare (1984). He returned to Broadway in Wild Honey(1986), Dance of Death (1990), No Man's Land (2013), and Waiting for Godot (2013), the latter two being a joint production with Patrick Stewart. McKellen achieved worldwide fame for his film roles, including the titular King in Richard III(1995), James Whale in Gods and Monsters (1998), Magneto in the X-Men films, Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast (2017) and Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003) and The Hobbit (2012–2014) trilogies. Other notable film roles include A Touch of Love (1969), Plenty (1985), Six Degrees of Separation (1993), Restoration (1995), Flushed Away (2006), Mr. Holmes (2015), and The Good Liar (2019). McKellen came out as gay in 1988, and has since championed LGBT social movements worldwide. He was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in October 2014. McKellen is a cofounder of Stonewall, an LGBT rights lobby group in the United Kingdom, named after the Stonewall riots. He is also patron of LGBT History Month, Pride London, Oxford Pride, GayGlos, LGBT Foundation and FFLAG. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ian McKellen, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum | Gandalf | 2027-12-16 |
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Avengers: Doomsday | Magneto | 2026-12-16 |
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Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol | 2026-11-12 | |
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Becoming Victoria Wood | Self (archive footage) | 2026-01-08 |
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A World War II Fairy Tale: The Making of Michael Mann's 'The Keep' | Himself (archive footage) | 2025-09-10 |
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Dragged Through Time | 2025-07-26 | |
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The Christophers | Julian Sklar | 2025-09-07 |
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Ken Dodd: A Legacy of Happiness | 2025-03-23 | |
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The Real Ken Dodd: The Man I Loved | 2024-06-09 | |
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Hamlet | Hamlet | 2024-02-27 |
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The Life and Death of Lily Savage | Self | 2024-03-29 |
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The Critic | Jimmy Erskine | 2024-09-13 |
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Dragfox | Ginger Snap the Fox (Speaking) (voice) | 2024-08-31 |
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The One Note Man | Narrator (voice) | 2023-08-08 |
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Quintessentially British | Self | 2022-10-27 |
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Hamlet Within | 2022-05-21 | |
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Freedom: 50 Years of Pride | Self | 2022-07-02 |
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Infinitum: Subject Unknown | Dr. Charles Marland-White | 2021-03-03 |
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Hating Peter Tatchell | Self | 2021-11-01 |
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Du Fu: China's Greatest Poet | 2020-04-05 | |
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Ian McKellen on Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others and YOU | 2020-06-11 | |
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On Broadway | Self | 2019-10-12 |
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The Good Liar | Roy Courtnay | 2019-11-08 |
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Cats | Gus, the Theatre Cat | 2019-12-19 |
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National Theatre Live: King Lear | King Lear | 2018-09-27 |
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All Is True | Earl of Southampton | 2018-12-21 |
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McKellen: Playing the Part | Himself | 2018-05-25 |
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Animal Crackers | Horatio P. Huntington (voice) | 2017-06-23 |
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The Paul O'Grady Story | Self | 2017-06-23 |
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The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin | Self | 2017-03-11 |
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Beauty and the Beast | Cogsworth | 2017-03-16 |
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How a Kite Flies | Mr. Kite (voice) | 2017-04-28 |
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Edmund the Magnificent | Self - Narrator (voice) | 2017-03-01 |
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Shakespeare Live! From the RSC | Self - Performer | 2016-04-23 |
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Shakespeare on Film | 2016-05-31 | |
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Play the Devil: Making Richard III | 2016-05-31 | |
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Judi Dench: All the World's Her Stage | Self | 2016-12-30 |
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National Theatre Live: No Man's Land | Spooner | 2016-12-15 |
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All the World's a Screen: Shakespeare on Film | Prospero's Speech Reader (voice) | 2016-04-24 |
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The Roof | And Even Yet Another Fan | 2016-03-31 |
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Shakespeare on Stage, Screen and Elsewhere with Ian McKellen | 2016-05-31 | |
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The Dresser | Norman | 2015-10-31 |
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Mr. Holmes | Sherlock Holmes | 2015-06-19 |
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Knights of Classic Drama at the BBC | Self (archive footage) | 2015-11-01 |
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Nelson Mandela Redrawn | Self | 2014-07-18 |
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X-Men: Days of Future Past | Magneto | 2014-05-15 |
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The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies | Gandalf the Grey | 2014-12-10 |
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Miss in Her Teens | The Prologue | 2014-04-15 |
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Muse of Fire | Self | 2013-09-26 |
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The Egg Trick | Magician | 2013-06-21 |
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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | Gandalf the Grey | 2013-12-11 |
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The Wolverine: Path of a Ronin | Self | 2013-12-03 |
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The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot | Self | 2013-11-23 |
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The Wolverine | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto (uncredited) | 2013-07-21 |
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Doctor Who: The Snowmen | The Great Intelligence (voice) | 2012-12-25 |
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London 2012: Paralympics Opening Ceremony | Self | 2012-08-29 |
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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Gandalf the Grey | 2012-12-12 |
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The Betty Driver Story | Self | 2011-02-01 |
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Looking for Lowry | Himself | 2011-04-24 |
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Lady Grey London | 2010-12-08 | |
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A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation | Narrator (voice) | 2010-06-25 |
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Small-Time Revolutionary | Hamish Miller (voice) | 2010-07-22 |
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Theatreland | Himself | 2009-01-01 |
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King Lear | King Lear | 2008-08-06 |
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Stardust | Narrator (voice) | 2007-08-10 |
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Guerrilla Distribution | Himself | 2007-01-17 |
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The Art of Breaking Character | Self | 2007-03-26 |
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The Golden Compass | Iorek Byrnison (voice) | 2007-12-04 |
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For the Love of God | The Jackdaw | 2007-02-28 |
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The Da Vinci Code | Sir Leigh Teabing | 2006-05-17 |
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X-Men: The Last Stand | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto | 2006-05-24 |
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Doogal | Zebedee (voice) | 2006-02-24 |
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Saint of 9/11 | Narrator | 2006-04-27 |
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Flushed Away | The Toad (voice) | 2006-10-22 |
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Asylum | Dr. Peter Cleave | 2005-09-09 |
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The Hobart Shakespeareans | Himself | 2005-09-06 |
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Neverwas | Gabriel Finch | 2005-09-09 |
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Ringers: Lord of the Fans | Self | 2005-01-21 |
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Eighteen | Jason Anders (voice) | 2005-01-01 |
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Peter Tatchell: Just Who Does He Think He Is? | 2004-03-27 | |
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My First Time | Narrator | 2004-10-12 |
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The Magic Roundabout | Zebedee (voice) | 2004-10-24 |
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The Making of 'The Return of the King' | Self | 2004-04-01 |
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A Filmmaker's Journey: Making 'The Return of the King' | Self | 2004-12-14 |
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Frodo Is Great... Who Is That?!! | Self | 2004-07-23 |
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Emile | Emile | 2003-01-01 |
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The Making of 'The Two Towers' | 2003-04-01 | |
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The Second Uncanny Issue of X-Men! Making X2 | Self | 2003-11-25 |
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X-Men: Premieres Around the World | Self | 2003-02-11 |
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The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Gandalf | 2003-12-17 |
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Evolution X - The Making of X-Men | 2003-02-11 | |
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X2 | Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto | 2003-04-27 |
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The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision | Self | 2003-12-26 |
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Beyond the Movie: The Return of the King | Self | 2003-12-12 |
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The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Gandalf | 2002-12-18 |
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The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Gandalf | 2001-12-18 |
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Beyond the Movie: The Fellowship of the Ring | Self | 2001-12-23 |
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Passage to Middle-Earth: The Making of 'The Lord of the Rings' | Self | 2001-12-09 |
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Quest for the Ring | Self | 2001-11-29 |
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Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love | Narrator (voice) | 2001-09-13 |
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X-Men | Magneto | 2000-07-13 |
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X-Men: The Mutant Watch | Self - 'Magneto' | 2000-07-02 |
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Now You See Him: 'The Invisible Man' Revealed! | Self | 2000-08-29 |
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Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man | Narrator (voice) | 2000-05-05 |
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After Stonewall | Self | 1999-06-06 |
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The World of Gods and Monsters: A Journey with James Whale | Self | 1999-06-08 |
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Apt Pupil | Kurt Dussander | 1998-10-23 |
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Swept from the Sea | Dr. James Kennedy | 1998-01-23 |
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Gods and Monsters | James Whale | 1998-09-12 |
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Bent | Uncle Freddie | 1997-11-26 |
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A Bit Of Scarlet | Narrator | 1997-06-20 |
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Surviving Friendly Fire | 1997-06-21 | |
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Rasputin | Tsar Nicholas II | 1996-03-23 |
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An Evening with Lily Savage | Self | 1996-11-11 |
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Jack & Sarah | William | 1995-06-02 |
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Cold Comfort Farm | Amos Starkadder | 1995-01-01 |
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Richard III | Richard III | 1995-12-29 |
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Restoration | Will Gates | 1995-12-29 |
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Stonewall 25: Global Voices of Pride and Protest | Self | 1994-09-23 |
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The Shadow | Dr. Reinhardt Lane | 1994-07-01 |
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David Macaulay: Roman City | Augustus Caesar (voice) | 1994-02-15 |
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To Die For | Quilt Documentary Narrator (voice) | 1994-12-02 |
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I'll Do Anything | John Earl McAlpine | 1994-02-04 |
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And the Band Played On | Bill Kraus | 1993-09-11 |
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Camp Christmas | 1993-12-24 | |
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Last Action Hero | Death | 1993-06-18 |
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Six Degrees of Separation | Geoffrey | 1993-12-08 |
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The Ballad of Little Jo | Percy Corcoran | 1993-08-20 |
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Armistead Maupin Is a Man I Dreamt Up | Narration (voice) | 1993-06-23 |
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Gladio | Aldo Moro (voice) | 1992-07-10 |
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Othello | Iago | 1990-06-23 |
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Scandal | John Profumo | 1989-03-03 |
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Countdown to War | Adolf Hitler | 1989-04-07 |
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Scarfe's Follies | 1988-01-28 | |
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Süleyman the Magnificent | Narrator | 1987-01-01 |
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Plenty | Sir Andrew Charleson | 1985-09-20 |
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Zina | Kronfeld | 1985-11-01 |
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The Keep | Dr. Theodore Cuza | 1983-12-16 |
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Walter and June | Walter | 1983-04-30 |
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Walter | Walter | 1982-11-02 |
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The Scarlet Pimpernel | Chauvelin | 1982-11-09 |
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Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare | 1982-04-25 | |
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Priest of Love | D.H. Lawrence | 1981-10-11 |
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Dying Day | Antony Skipling | 1980-02-12 |
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A Performance of Macbeth | Macbeth | 1979-02-02 |
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Every Good Boy Deserves Favour | Alexander Ivanov | 1979-11-14 |
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Graceless Go I | Tony | 1974-10-08 |
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Hedda Gabler | George Tesman | 1972-10-20 |
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Hamlet | Hamlet | 1970-11-07 |
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The Tragedy of King Richard II | King Richard II | 1970-07-30 |
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Edward II | King Edward | 1970-08-06 |
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Alfred the Great | Roger | 1969-10-08 |
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The Promise | 1969-12-01 | |
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A Touch of Love | George | 1969-09-01 |
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The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne | Wolf | 1965-11-10 |
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Frank and Percy | Percy | |
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The Hobbit: The M4 Book Edit | Gandalf The Grey | |
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Untitled Anthony Hopkins Documentary | Self | |
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Richard II | Richard II | |
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Schadenfreude | Continuity Announcer | |
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No Man's Land | Spooner |
