Anthony Stewart Head usually credited as
Anthony Head, is an
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
actorAn actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and
musicianA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. He rose to fame in the UK following his role in
television advertisementA television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
s for
NescaféNescafé is a brand of instant coffee made by Nestlé. It comes in the form of many different products. The name is a portmanteau of the words "Nestlé" and "café". Nestlé's flagship powdered coffee product was introduced in Switzerland on April 1, 1938 after being developed for seven or eight years...
Gold Blend (Taster's Choice in the U.S.), and is known for his roles as
Rupert GilesRupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure...
in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and as
Uther PendragonUther Pendragon is a legendary king of sub-Roman Britain and the father of King Arthur.A few minor references to Uther appear in Old Welsh poems, but his biography was first written down by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his Historia Regum Britanniae , and Geoffrey's account of the character was used in...
in
MerlinMerlin is a British fantasy-adventure television programme by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Julian Murphy and Johnny Capps. It began broadcasting on BBC One on 20 September 2008. The show is based on the Arthurian legends of the wizard Merlin and his relationship with Prince Arthur but differs from...
.
Early life
Head was born in
Camden Town-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
, London. His father was Seafield Laurence Stewart Murray Head (1919–2009), a documentary filmmaker and the founder of Verity Films, and his mother was actress Helen Shingler (best remembered for her role as Mme.
MaigretJules Maigret, Maigret to most people, including his wife, is a fictional police detective, actually a commissaire or commissioner of the Paris "Brigade Criminelle" , created by writer Georges Simenon.Seventy-five novels and twenty-eight short stories about Maigret were published between 1931 and...
opposite
Rupert DaviesRupert Davies was a British actor. He remains best known for playing the title role in the BBC's 1960s television adaptation of Maigret, based on the Maigret novels written by Georges Simenon....
in the original television series), who married in 1944 in
WatfordWatford is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, situated northwest of central London and within the bounds of the M25 motorway. The borough is separated from Greater London to the south by the urbanised parish of Watford Rural in the Three Rivers District.Watford was created as an urban...
. His older brother is actor and singer
Murray HeadMurray Seafield Saint-George Head is a British actor and singer, most recognised for his international hit songs "Superstar" and "One Night in Bangkok" and his album Say It Ain't So...
. Both brothers have played the part of Freddy Trumper in the musical
ChessChess is a musical with music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, formerly of ABBA, and with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story involves a romantic triangle between two top players, an American and a Russian, in a world chess championship, and a woman who manages one and falls in love with the other;...
at the
Prince Edward TheatreThe Prince Edward Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Old Compton Street, just north of Leicester Square, in the City of Westminster.The theatre was designed in 1930 by Edward A. Stone, with an interior designed by Marc-Henri Levy and Gaston Laverdet...
, London, with Murray a part of the original cast in 1986, whilst Anthony was in the final cast in 1989.
Career
Head was educated at the
London Academy of Music and Dramatic ArtThe London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art is a leading British drama school in west London. LAMDA's president is Timothy West and its new principal is Joanna Read, who recently succeeded Peter James...
(LAMDA). His first role was in the musical
GodspellGodspell is a musical by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. It opened off Broadway on May 17, 1971, and has played in various touring companies and revivals many times since, including a 2011 revival now playing on Broadway...
; this led to roles in television on both
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and
ITVITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
, one of his earliest being an appearance in the series
Enemy at the DoorEnemy At The Door is a British television drama series made by London Weekend Television for ITV. The series was shown between 1978 and 1980 and dealt with the German occupation of Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands, during the Second World War...
(ITV, 1978–1980). In the early 1980s he sang with the band Red Box. In the late 1980s, he appeared in a storyline series of twelve coffee commercials with
Sharon MaughanSharon Maughan is a British actress.-Life and career:Maughan was born in Kirkby, Liverpool, one of five siblings in an Irish Catholic family...
for
NescaféNescafé is a brand of instant coffee made by Nestlé. It comes in the form of many different products. The name is a portmanteau of the words "Nestlé" and "café". Nestlé's flagship powdered coffee product was introduced in Switzerland on April 1, 1938 after being developed for seven or eight years...
Gold Blend. (A version made for the US featured the American brand name Taster's Choice.) The soap opera nature of the commercials brought him wider recognition, along with a part in the
Children's ITVCITV is a British television channel from ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It broadcasts content from the CITV archive, as well as commissions and acquisitions. CITV itself is the programming block on the main ITV Network .The CITV channel broadcasts from 06:00 to 18:00...
comedy drama
Woof!Woof! is a Children's ITV television series produced by Central Independent Television about the adventures of a boy who turns into a dog. It was based on the book by Allan Ahlberg. It was directed by David Cobham. It was written by Richard Fegen and Andrew Norriss.-History:The show was first...
Head played Frank N Furter in the 1990–91 West End revival of
The Rocky Horror ShowThe Rocky Horror Show is a long-running British horror comedy stage musical, which opened in London on 19 June 1973. It was written by Richard O'Brien, produced and directed by Jim Sharman. It came eighth in a BBC Radio 2 listener poll of the "Nation's Number One Essential Musicals"...
at London's
Piccadilly TheatreThe Piccadilly Theatre is a West End theatre located at 16 Denman Street, behind Piccadilly Circus and adjacent to the Regent Palace Hotel, in the City of Westminster, England.-Early years:Built by Bertie Crewe and Edward A...
, with
Craig FergusonCraig Ferguson is a Scottish American television host, stand-up comedian, writer, actor, director, author, and producer. He is the host of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, an Emmy Award-nominated, Peabody Award-winning late-night talk show that airs on CBS...
as Brad Majors. in 1991 Head's rendition of "
Sweet Transvestite"Sweet Transvestite" is a song from 1973 British musical stage production, The Rocky Horror Show and its 1975 film counterpart The Rocky Horror Picture Show, of which the book, music and lyrics by Richard O'Brien, and the musical arrangements by Richard Hartley...
" was released as a single by
Chrysalis RecordsChrysalis Records was a British record label that was created in 1969. The name was both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis...
. Head played the role again in the summer of 1995 at London's
Duke of York's TheatreThe Duke of York's Theatre is a West End Theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre, until her death in 1935. It opened on 10 September 1892 as the Trafalgar Square Theatre, with Wedding...
, a 3 May 2006 tribute show at London's
Royal Court TheatreThe Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
, and a 14 October 2000 production at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino (Las Vegas).
Success on the stage and a number of brief appearances on American television, such as in the short-lived
VR.5VR.5 was an American television program. It was broadcast on the Fox network from March 10 to May 12, 1995. Of the 13 episodes that were produced, only 10 aired during its original run.-Premise:...
, led to accepting the role of
Rupert GilesRupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure...
in Buffy the Vampire Slayer in 1997. For this role he lived full-time in the United States during the late 1990s and early 2000s, although his family continued to live in the UK. Head left the regular cast of Buffy during the show's sixth season and subsequently appeared several times as a guest star through the conclusion of the series. In many interviews at the time, Head said he left the show in order to spend more time with his family, having realised that he had spent most of the year outside England, which added up to more than half his youngest daughter's life. He now lives in Bath, England with Sarah Fisher. They have two children,
Emily RoseEmily Rose Head is an English actress, best known for playing Carli D'Amato in E4's sitcom, The Inbetweeners.-Early life:Head was born in London on December 15, 1988 to parents Anthony Head and Sarah Fisher...
, born in December 1988, and Daisy, born in 1991.
Early to mid-2000s
In 2002, he co-starred in the
BBC TwoBBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
television series Manchild, which concerned four fifty-something men who spend all of their time talking about sex. He also appeared in guest roles in various other dramas, such as
Silent WitnessSilent Witness is a BBC crime thriller series focusing on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. First broadcast in February 1996, the series is still airing to the present day, with a fifteenth series expected to air in January 2012. The series was...
, Murder Investigation Team, and
SpooksSpooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a...
. He appeared in the 4th series of the British hit sitcom My Family in 2003 playing one of the main characters (Abi's) father in the episode "May the Best Man Win". He was featured as the Prime Minister in the popular BBC comedy sketch show
Little BritainLittle Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
from 2003 to 2005, and guest starred in several episodes of the 2004 series of popular drama Monarch of the Glen.
Outside of television work, he has released an
albumAn album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
of songs with musician George Sarah entitled Music for Elevators. Early in his career he provided vocals for some of the tracks on the
Chris de BurghChris de Burgh is a British/Irish singer-songwriter. He is most famous for his 1986 love song "The Lady in Red".-Early life:...
album The Getaway and the reading from
The TempestThe Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...
on Don't Pay The Ferryman.
In 2001, he appeared in a special
webcastA webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand...
version of the popular British science fiction series
Doctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, a story called
Death Comes to TimeDeath Comes to Time is a webcast audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, produced by the BBC and first broadcast in five episodes on the BBCi Cult website from 12 July 2001, accompanied by limited animation.-Synopsis:When two Time Lords are...
, in which he played the
Time LordThe Time Lords are an ancient extraterrestrial race and civilization of humanoids in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' eponymous protagonist, the Doctor, is a member...
Valentine. He also guest starred in the
Excelis TrilogyExcelis Rising is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is part of the Excelis trilogy which commenced in Excelis Dawns and concludes in Excelis Decays...
, a series of Doctor Who
audio adventuresRadio drama is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance, broadcast on radio or published on audio media, such as tape or CD. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story...
produced by
Big Finish ProductionsBig Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
, and in 2005 narrated the two-part documentary Project: WHO?, detailing the television revival of the series, for
BBC Radio 2BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
(and released to CD in 2006 by BBC Audio). In April 2006 he appeared as an alien school headmaster, Mr. Finch, in an episode of the
second seriesThe second series of British science fiction series Doctor Who began on 25 December 2005 with the Christmas special "The Christmas Invasion". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes was broadcast, starting with "New Earth" on 15 April 2006...
entitled "
School Reunion"School Reunion" is the third episode in the second series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It first aired on 29 April 2006. The episode's narrative takes place some time after the events of "The Christmas Invasion"...
". Soon after, he recorded an abridged audio book of the Doctor Who novel
The Nightmare of Black IslandThe Nightmare of Black Island is a BBC Books original novel written by Mike Tucker and based on the long running science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was published on September 21, 2006, alongside The Art of Destruction and The Price of Paradise...
by
Mike TuckerMike Tucker is a special effects expert who worked for many years at the BBC Television Visual Effects Department, and now works as an Effects Supervisor for his own company, The Model Unit. He is also the author of a variety of spin-offs relating to the television series Doctor Who and...
. He narrated the third and fourth series of
Doctor Who ConfidentialDoctor Who Confidential is a documentary series created by the British Broadcasting Corporation to complement the revival of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Each episode was broadcast on BBC Three on Saturdays, immediately after the broadcast of the weekly...
. He also voiced the character Baltazar, Scourge of the Universe (an evil space pirate searching for the Infinite), in the first ever animated Doctor Who special, "
The Infinite QuestThe Infinite Quest is an animated serial based on the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was made by BBC Television, but does not share the same producers as the live-action series. It was aired in twelve weekly parts starting 2 April 2007 as a segment of the children's...
". Head had previously auditioned for the role of the
Eighth DoctorThe Eighth Doctor is the eighth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Paul McGann...
for the 1996 television movie, but lost out to
Paul McGannPaul McGann is an English actor who made his name on the BBC serial The Monocled Mutineer, in which he played the lead role...
.
In early 2006, he appeared in an episode of
Hotel BabylonHotel Babylon was a BBC television drama series based on the book of the same name by Imogen Edwards-Jones, that aired from 19 January 2006 to 14 August 2009, produced by independent production company Carnival Films for BBC One...
, a BBC One drama set in a hotel, in which he played a suicidal man who recovers and lands a music deal. The same year he filmed a pilot for a new show entitled Him and Us, loosely based on the life of openly gay rock star
Elton JohnSir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, for American TV channel
ABCThe American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, co-starring
Kim CattrallKim Victoria Cattrall is an English actress. She is known for her role as Samantha Jones in the HBO comedy/romance series Sex and the City, and for her leading roles in the 1980s films Police Academy, Big Trouble in Little China, Mannequin, and Porky's...
. In July he appeared as
Captain HookCaptain James Hook is the main antagonist of J. M. Barrie's play Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up and its various adaptations. The character is a villainous pirate captain of the Jolly Roger brig, and lord of the pirate village/harbour in Neverland, where he is widely feared. Most...
at the
Children's Party at the PalaceThe Children's Party at the Palace was an event organized by Peter Orton of Hit Entertainment and David Johnstone of DJI consult, held at Buckingham Palace Garden on 25 June 2006 in honour of the 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. The event, which had the theme British children's literature, was...
, a live
pantomimePantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
staged in the grounds of
Buckingham PalaceBuckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
as part of
Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
's 80th birthday celebrations. In October 2006, he voiced Ponsonby, leader of MI6, in
Destroy All Humans! 2Destroy All Humans! 2 is a video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox consoles and is the sequel to Destroy All Humans!. It was released on October 17, 2006, in North America. It marks the last game in the series to be developed by Pandemic Studios...
.
Late 2000s
At Comic-Con International in 2007,
Joss WhedonJoseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
said talks were almost completed for a 90-minute Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin-off, Ripper, as a
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
special, with both Head and the BBC on board.
He was originally to have a role in Sweeney Todd, as a ballad soloist and one of Todd's murder victims, but, due to the ailing of
Johnny DeppJohn Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
's daughter, the schedule became tight and Head's character, as well as the characters of 13 other actors, one of them Christopher Lee, were dropped from the film. Instead, Head made a cameo appearance as a character who asks whether Sweeney Todd has an establishment of his own.
In 2007, he portrayed
Stockard ChanningStockard Channing is an American stage, film and television actress. She is known for her portrayal of First Lady Abbey Bartlet in the NBC television series The West Wing; for playing Betty Rizzo in the film Grease; and for her role as Ouisa Kittredge in the play Six Degrees of Separation and its...
's gay brother in the English film
SparkleSparkle is a 2007 movie written and directed by Tom Hunsinger and Neil Hunter and was shot on location in London, Liverpool and the Isle of Man.- Cast :...
and appeared as Mr Colubrine in the
ITV1ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
comedy drama
SoldSold is a British comedy drama television series produced by Touchpaper Television for ITV. The series stars Kris Marshall and Bryan Dick as Matt and Danny, employees of Colubrines Estate Agents. It is written by Steve Coombes and was broadcast between 15 November and 20 December 2007.- Characters...
. Head also appeared as Sir Walter Elliot in Persuasion. Head also narrated a BBC behind-the-scenes programme for the American television series
HeroesHeroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
,
Heroes UnmaskedHeroes Unmasked is a behind-the-scenes documentary television series of the American television series Heroes, made by the BBC and narrated by Anthony Head in series 1-2, and in series 3 by former Heroes actor Santiago Cabrera...
. He has also been seen as Maurice Riley in the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Drama
The InvisiblesThe Invisibles is a British 2008 comedy drama series created and written by William Ivory for the BBC. It was produced by Company Pictures, shot in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.-Premise:...
alongside
Warren Clarke-Biography:Clarke was born in Oldham, Lancashire. His first television appearance was in the long running Granada soap opera Coronation Street, initially as Kenny Pickup in 1966 and then as Gary Bailey in 1968. His first major film appearance was in Stanley Kubrick's controversial A Clockwork...
.
After seeing Anthony Head in the Buffy musical episode, "Once More With Feeling",
SawSaw is a horror franchise distributed by Lions Gate Entertainment and produced by Twisted Pictures that consists of seven films and two video games, published by Konami. The franchise began with the 2003 short film which was created by Australian director James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell...
director
Darren Lynn BousmanDarren Lynn Bousman is an American film director and screenwriter.-Personal life:Bousman was born in Overland Park, Kansas, the son of Nancy and Lynn Bousman. He is a graduate of the Film School at Full Sail University. He attended high school at Shawnee Mission North High School in Overland Park,...
cast him in his 21st century
rock operaA rock opera is a work of rock music that presents a storyline told over multiple parts, songs or sections in the manner of opera. A rock opera differs from a conventional rock album, which usually includes songs that are not unified by a common theme or narrative. More recent developments include...
,
Repo! The Genetic OperaRepo! The Genetic Opera is a 2008 horror-rock opera musical film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman. The film is based on a play written and composed by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich....
. Head plays the film's grim reaper, an organ repossession man doing the bidding of an out of control biotech company called GeneCo. "Anthony Head was my number one choice for Repo Man from the very beginning, " said Bousman in an interview shortly before the film's release on 7 November 2008. The film also stars musical legend
Sarah BrightmanSarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves and singing in the whistle register...
and paparazzi favourite
Paris HiltonParis Whitney Hilton is an American businesswoman, heiress, and socialite. She is a great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton . Hilton is known for her controversial participation in a sex tape in 2003, and appearance on the television series The Simple Life alongside fellow socialite and childhood...
.
Head has also performed for radio, taking two of the lead roles – arch-villain, Mr Gently Benevolent, and his descendant, journalist, Jeremy Sourquill – in the
BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
comedy series,
Bleak ExpectationsBleak Expectations is a Radio 4 comedy series, whose first series premiered in August 2007. It is a pastiche of the works of Charles Dickens – such as Bleak House and Great Expectations, from which it derives its name – and costume dramas set in the same period, and parodies several of their plot...
(four series, 2007–2010).
Head was part of the regular cast of the BBC drama series
MerlinMerlin is a British fantasy-adventure television programme by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Julian Murphy and Johnny Capps. It began broadcasting on BBC One on 20 September 2008. The show is based on the Arthurian legends of the wizard Merlin and his relationship with Prince Arthur but differs from...
, which derives its title from the
mythical wizardMerlin is a legendary figure best known as the wizard featured in the Arthurian legend. The standard depiction of the character first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, written c. 1136, and is based on an amalgamation of previous historical and legendary figures...
of the same name. Head played King Uther Pendragon, the father of Prince Arthur. The programme completed its third series in December 2010.
Head also provides voice-over work in the Nintendo Wii video game,
Flip's Twisted WorldFlip's Twisted World is a platformer video game published by Majesco Entertainment and developed by Frozen North Productions for the Wii. The game was announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo on June 2009 and was originally previewed under the name "up&dn" on the Xbox...
, developed by Frozen North Productions.
Personal life
Head lives near Bath, Somerset with his partner Sarah Fisher and has two daughters,
EmilyEmily Rose Head is an English actress, best known for playing Carli D'Amato in E4's sitcom, The Inbetweeners.-Early life:Head was born in London on December 15, 1988 to parents Anthony Head and Sarah Fisher...
and
DaisyDaisy Head is an English actress. She appeared in the film The Last Seven as Chloe Chambers, as Miri Gellert in two episodes of the BBC series Holby City and 'Daisy' in the 2010 musical film Rules of Love -Early life:...
who are both actresses. On
Saturday KitchenSaturday Kitchen Live is a 90 minute cookery programme, which is broadcast live on BBC One on Saturday mornings. It is currently presented by James Martin; previous presenters have included Antony Worrall Thompson and Gregg Wallace. The programme is currently produced by Cactus TV...
, in September 2010, Head declared he is a pescetarian.
Filmography
| Film |
| Year |
Film |
Role |
Other notes |
| 1981 |
Lady Chatterley's LoverLady Chatterley's Lover is a 1981 film directed by Just Jaeckin, and starring Sylvia Kristel and Nicholas Clay.-Cast:*Sylvia Kristel as Lady Constance Chatterley*Shane Briant as Sir Clifford Chatterley*Nicholas Clay as Oliver Mellors...
|
Anton |
|
| 1987 |
A Prayer for the Dying A Prayer for the Dying is a 1987 thriller film about a former IRA member trying to escape his past. The film was directed by Mike Hodges, and stars Mickey Rourke, Liam Neeson, Bob Hoskins, and Alan Bates...
|
Rupert |
|
| 1988 |
La Collina del diavolo |
Michael Toyle |
|
| 1992 |
Woof Again! Why Me? |
|
Direct-to-Video Release |
| 2003 |
I'll Be There |
Sam Gervasi |
|
| 2004 |
Fat Slags |
Victor |
|
| 2005 |
Framing Frankie |
Dennis Folley |
|
Imagine Me & YouImagine Me & You is a 2005 British-American comedy-romance film written and directed by Ol Parker. It centres on the relationship between Rachel, played by Piper Perabo and Luce, played by Lena Headey, who meet on Rachel's wedding day. The movie takes its title from a line in the song "Happy...
|
Ned |
|
| 2006 |
ScoopScoop is a 2006 American-British romantic comedy/murder mystery written and directed by Woody Allen and starring Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson, Ian McShane, and Allen himself...
|
Detective |
|
| Little Britain Live Little Britain Live is a stage show based on the TV sketch series Little Britain, performed by its stars, Matt Lucas and David Walliams, and directed by Jeremy Sams. Supporting characters are played by Paul Putner and Samantha Power . As in the TV show, Tom Baker is the narrator, although his lines...
|
Prime Minister |
Direct-to-Video Release |
| 2007 |
Sparkle Sparkle is a 2007 movie written and directed by Tom Hunsinger and Neil Hunter and was shot on location in London, Liverpool and the Isle of Man.- Cast :...
|
Tony |
|
| The Magic Door |
George |
Direct-to-Video Release |
| Amelia and Michael Amelia and Michael is a 2007 British drama short film directed by Daniel Cormack, starring Anthony Head and Natasha Powell and executive produced by Richard Johns....
|
Michael |
|
| Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street |
Ballad Ghost |
Uncredited Role
Cameo Appearance |
| 2008 |
Repo! The Genetic OperaRepo! The Genetic Opera is a 2008 horror-rock opera musical film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman. The film is based on a play written and composed by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich....
|
Nathan Wallace/Repo Man |
|
| 2011 |
The Inbetweeners Movie |
Will's Father |
| The Iron Lady The Iron Lady is an upcoming biographical film about former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, portrayed by Meryl Streep. Thatcher's husband, Denis Thatcher, will be portrayed by Jim Broadbent, and Thatcher's longest-serving cabinet member and eventual deputy, Geoffrey Howe, will be...
|
Geoffrey Howe Richard Edward Geoffrey Howe, Baron Howe of Aberavon, CH, QC, PC is a former British Conservative politician. He was Margaret Thatcher's longest-serving Cabinet minister, successively holding the posts of Chancellor of the Exchequer, Foreign Secretary, and finally Leader of the House of Commons...
|
|
| Television |
| Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
| 1978 |
Enemy at the Door Enemy At The Door is a British television drama series made by London Weekend Television for ITV. The series was shown between 1978 and 1980 and dealt with the German occupation of Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands, during the Second World War...
|
Clive Martel |
Episode: Steel Hand from the Sea |
| Lillie Lillie is a British television serial made by London Weekend Television for ITV and broadcast in 1978.This period serial starred Francesca Annis in the title role of Lillie Langtry...
|
William Le Breton |
ITV ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
|
| Accident |
Simon Lovell |
Episode: The Figures Man |
| 1979 |
The Mallens The Mallens was a popular Granada Television adaptation of Catherine Cookson novels that ran for 13 episodes from 1979-1980.- Plot summary :Based on the novels The Mallen Streak,The Mallen Girl and the Mallen Litter...
|
Weir |
Episode: 1.1
Episode: 1.2 |
Secret ArmySecret Army is a television drama series made by the BBC and the Belgian national broadcaster BRT created by Gerard Glaister. The series chronicled the history of a Belgian resistance movement during the Second World War dedicated to returning Allied airmen, usually having been shot down by the...
|
Hanslick |
Episode: A Safe Place |
| 1980 |
Love in a Cold Climate |
Tony Kroesig |
Thames Television Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
|
| 1981 |
Crown Court Crown Court was an afternoon television courtroom drama produced by Granada Television for the ITV network that ran from 1972, when the Crown Court system replaced Assize courts and Quarter sessions in the legal system of England and Wales, to 1984....
|
Timothy Preston-Berry |
Episode: Hen Party |
BergeracBergerac was a British television show set on Jersey. Produced by the BBC in association with the Seven Network, and screened on BBC1, it starred John Nettles as the title character Detective Sergeant Jim Bergerac, a detective in "Le Bureau des Étrangers" Bergerac was a British television show...
|
Bill |
Episode: See You in Moscow |
| 1984, 1988 |
The Comic Strip Presents... |
Ricki
Recording Studio Engineer |
Episode: Slags
Episode: More Bad News |
| 1985 |
C.A.T.S. EyesC.A.T.S. Eyes is a British television series made by TVS for ITV between 1985 and 1987.-Premise:The series was a spin-off from The Gentle Touch and saw Jill Gascoine reprise her role as Det. Insp. Maggie Forbes, having left the police force to join a private detective agency called "Eyes" that is...
|
James Sinden |
Episode: Goodbye, Jenny Wren |
Howards' WayHowards' Way is a television drama series produced by BBC Birmingham and transmitted on BBC One between 1 September 1985 and 25 November 1990. The series deals with the personal and professional lives of the yachting and business communities in the fictional town of Tarrant on the South Coast of...
|
Phil Norton |
5 episodes |
| 1987 |
BoonBoon is a British television drama and modern-day western series starring Michael Elphick, David Daker, and later Neil Morrissey. It was created by Jim Hill and Bill Stair and filmed by Central Television for ITV...
|
Richard Rathbone |
Episode: Day of the Yoke |
| Pulaski |
Dudley Fielding |
Episode: The Price of Fame |
| 1988 |
Rockliffe's Babies Rockliffe's Babies was a British television drama produced by the BBC which ran for two series between 1987 and 1988. The series was devised by Richard O`Keeffe and produced by Leonard Lewis. Writers included Richard O`Keeffe, Don Webb, Charlie Humphreys and Nick Perry...
|
Chris Patterson |
Episode: A Trip to the Zoo |
| 1991 |
Woof! Woof! is a Children's ITV television series produced by Central Independent Television about the adventures of a boy who turns into a dog. It was based on the book by Allan Ahlberg. It was directed by David Cobham. It was written by Richard Fegen and Andrew Norriss.-History:The show was first...
|
Bentley |
Episode: 3.7
Episode: 3.8 |
| 1993 |
The Detectives The Detectives is a British comedy television series, starring Jasper Carrott, Robert Powell, and George Sewell. It was a spoof of police dramas, which were numerous in the 1990s, and it was aired on BBC One...
|
Simon |
Episode: Acting Constables |
| Highlander: The Series Highlander: The Series is a fantasy-adventure television series featuring Duncan MacLeod of the Scottish Clan MacLeod, as the Highlander. It was an offshoot and another alternate sequel of the 1986 feature film with a twist: Connor MacLeod did not win the prize and Immortals still exist post-1985...
|
Allan Rothwood |
Episode: "Nowhere To Run" |
| 1994 |
Royce |
Pitlock |
Showtime TV-Movie A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
|
| 1995 |
VR.5 VR.5 was an American television program. It was broadcast on the Fox network from March 10 to May 12, 1995. Of the 13 episodes that were produced, only 10 aired during its original run.-Premise:...
|
Oliver Sampson |
Episodes: 5–13 |
| Ghostbusters of East Finchley |
Terry |
Episode: 1.5 |
NYPD BlueNYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan...
|
Nigel Gibson |
Episode: Cold Heaters |
| 1996 |
Roger Roger Roger Roger is a BBC television comedy-drama written by John Sullivan. The series was about a mini-cab firm called Cresta Cabs. The pilot aired in 1996 and there were three subsequent series on BBC1 in 1998, 1999 and 2003.-Pilot: 1996:...
|
Jimmy Price |
|
| 1997 |
Jonathan Creek Jonathan Creek is a British mystery series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. Primarily a crime drama, the show is also peppered with broadly comic touches...
|
Adam Klaus |
Episode: The Wrestler's Tomb |
| 1997–2003 |
Buffy the Vampire Slayer |
Rupert GilesRupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure...
|
121 episodes; Saturn Award The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
(nominated), (main 1997–2001, Special Guest 2002, 2003) |
| 1999 |
Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place |
Dr. Staretski |
Episode: Two Guys, a Girl and a Mother's Day |
| 2000 |
Best Actress |
Colin Truemans |
E! E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
TV-MovieA television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
|
| 2001 |
Silent WitnessSilent Witness is a BBC crime thriller series focusing on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. First broadcast in February 1996, the series is still airing to the present day, with a fifteenth series expected to air in January 2012. The series was...
|
Henry Hutton |
Episode: Two Below Zero |
| 2002 |
Spooks Spooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a...
|
Peter Salter |
Episode: Traitor's Gate |
Fillmore!Fillmore! is an American animated television series which was produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. The series was created by Scott M. Gimple...
|
Professor Third |
Episode: Red Robins Don't Fly
Episode: A Cold Day at X |
| 2002–2003 |
Manchild |
James |
15 episodes |
| 2003 |
My Family |
Richard Harper |
Episode: May the Best Man Win |
| And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself is a 2003 television film starring Antonio Banderas as Pancho Villa.At the time of production, this was the most expensive 2-hour television/cable movie ever made, with a budget of over $30 million....
|
William Benton |
HBO TV-Movie A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
|
| Reversals |
Mr. Andrew Barton |
ITV ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
TV-MovieA television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
|
| 2003–2006 |
Little Britain Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
|
Michael Stevens |
|
| 2004 |
True Horror with Anthony Head |
Presenter |
Episodes: 1–5 |
| New Tricks |
Sir Tim |
Episode: 1.2 |
| Monarch of the Glen |
Chester Grant |
Episodes: 6.7–6.10 |
| 2005 |
M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team MIT: Murder Investigation Team was a British police procedural drama series produced by the ITV network as a spin-off from the long running series, The Bill. The series is based around the investigations of a London Murder Investigation Team, and is closely styled after the American series CSI:...
|
Stewart Masters |
Episode: 2.2 |
| Rose and Maloney Rose and Maloney is a British television crime drama starring Sarah Lancashire and Phil Davis as Rose Linden and Maloney, two investigators working for the fictional Criminal Justice Review Agency. This agency takes on claims of miscarriages of justice, assessing whether there are grounds to...
|
Dr. David Terry |
Episode: 2.2 |
| 2006 |
Hotel Babylon Hotel Babylon was a BBC television drama series based on the book of the same name by Imogen Edwards-Jones, that aired from 19 January 2006 to 14 August 2009, produced by independent production company Carnival Films for BBC One...
|
Mr. Machin |
Episode: 1.2 |
Doctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
|
Mr. Finch |
"Episode: School Reunion"School Reunion" is the third episode in the second series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It first aired on 29 April 2006. The episode's narrative takes place some time after the events of "The Christmas Invasion"...
" |
| Children's Party at the Palace The Children's Party at the Palace was an event organized by Peter Orton of Hit Entertainment and David Johnstone of DJI consult, held at Buckingham Palace Garden on 25 June 2006 in honour of the 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. The event, which had the theme British children's literature, was...
|
Captain Hook Captain James Hook is the main antagonist of J. M. Barrie's play Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up and its various adaptations. The character is a villainous pirate captain of the Jolly Roger brig, and lord of the pirate village/harbour in Neverland, where he is widely feared. Most...
|
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV-SpecialA television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
|
| Him and Us |
Max Flash |
Unsold TV-Pilot A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
|
| 2007 |
Comic Relief 2007: The Big OneRed Nose Day 2007, was a fund raising event organized by Comic Relief, broadcast live on BBC One and BBC Two from the evening of 16 March 2007 to early the following morning. It was part of "The Big One" campaign...
|
Various |
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV-SpecialA television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
|
| Persuasion Persuasion is an adaptation of the classic Jane Austen novel of the same name published in 1818. The TV-film premiered on 1 April 2007 on the UK channel ITV at 9pm, as part of their Jane Austen Season...
|
Sir Walter Elliot |
ITV ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
TV-MovieA television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
|
Totally Doctor WhoTotally Doctor Who is a children's television series produced by the BBC that was originally broadcast between 13 April 2006 and 29 June 2007, accompanying the second and third revived series of Doctor Who. No episodes have been produced following the third series...
|
Baltazar |
Voice Role in The Infinite QuestThe Infinite Quest is an animated serial based on the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was made by BBC Television, but does not share the same producers as the live-action series. It was aired in twelve weekly parts starting 2 April 2007 as a segment of the children's...
|
Sensitive SkinSensitive Skin is a British black comedy/drama, produced by Baby Cow Productions for BBC Two. It stars Joanna Lumley and first aired in 2005, with a second series following in 2007. Series 1 and 2 have aired on CBC Country Canada. Series 1 aired in Australia on ABC TV in mid 2007 .On 16 April 2008,...
|
Tom Paine |
Episodes: The Signals
Here I Am |
SoldSold is a British comedy drama television series produced by Touchpaper Television for ITV. The series stars Kris Marshall and Bryan Dick as Matt and Danny, employees of Colubrines Estate Agents. It is written by Steve Coombes and was broadcast between 15 November and 20 December 2007.- Characters...
|
Mr. Colubrine |
6 episodes |
| 2007–2008 |
Heroes Unmasked Heroes Unmasked is a behind-the-scenes documentary television series of the American television series Heroes, made by the BBC and narrated by Anthony Head in series 1-2, and in series 3 by former Heroes actor Santiago Cabrera...
|
Narrator |
Series 1 & 2 |
| 2007–2009 |
Doctor Who ConfidentialDoctor Who Confidential is a documentary series created by the British Broadcasting Corporation to complement the revival of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Each episode was broadcast on BBC Three on Saturdays, immediately after the broadcast of the weekly...
|
Narrator |
30 episodes |
| Little Britain Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
|
Prime MinisterA prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
|
23 episodes |
| 2008–2011 |
Merlin Merlin is a British fantasy-adventure television programme by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Julian Murphy and Johnny Capps. It began broadcasting on BBC One on 20 September 2008. The show is based on the Arthurian legends of the wizard Merlin and his relationship with Prince Arthur but differs from...
|
Uther PendragonUther Pendragon is a legendary king of sub-Roman Britain and the father of King Arthur.A few minor references to Uther appear in Old Welsh poems, but his biography was first written down by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his Historia Regum Britanniae , and Geoffrey's account of the character was used in...
|
42 episodes |
| 2008 |
The Invisibles The Invisibles is a British 2008 comedy drama series created and written by William Ivory for the BBC. It was produced by Company Pictures, shot in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.-Premise:...
|
Maurice Riley |
BBC OneBBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
series |
| 2009 |
Free AgentsFree Agents is a romantic black comedy starring Stephen Mangan, Sharon Horgan and Anthony Head. Originally a pilot for Channel 4 in November 2007, the series began on 13 February 2009. It spawned a short lived US remake, which was cancelled after just 4 episodes aired.-Plot:Alex works for CMA, a...
|
Stephen |
Channel 4Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
TV series |
| 2011 |
Free Agents Free Agents is an American re-make of a British workplace sitcom that premiered on NBC September 14, 2011, in the 10:30 pm Eastern/9:30 pm Central time slot, before assuming its regular time slot on September 21, 2011, where it aired at 8:30 pm Eastern/7:30 pm Central on Wednesday nights...
|
Stephen |
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
TV series (US Remake of the Channel 4 series of the same name) |
Music
- "Sweet Transvestite
"Sweet Transvestite" is a song from 1973 British musical stage production, The Rocky Horror Show and its 1975 film counterpart The Rocky Horror Picture Show, of which the book, music and lyrics by Richard O'Brien, and the musical arrangements by Richard Hartley...
" (1991 single) Chrysalis RecordsChrysalis Records was a British record label that was created in 1969. The name was both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis...
, 7″ single, 12″ single, CD single, and shaped picture CD
- Music for Elevators
Music for Elevators is a music album written and performed by Anthony Stewart Head and George Sarah. The label Beautiful Is As Beautiful Does knew that Head and Sarah had worked together on the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and suggested that they should do something together...
(2002 album) in collaboration with George Sarah
External links
Articles and interviews
- Who's Head of the class, BBC Where I Live: Somerset
BBC Online is the brand name and home for the BBC's UK online service. It is a large network of websites including such high profile sites as BBC News and Sport, the on-demand video and radio services co-branded BBC iPlayer, the pre-school site Cbeebies, and learning services such as Bitesize...
(December 2006)
- Interview: Anthony Head, Helen Otter, BBC Where I Live: Somerset
BBC Online is the brand name and home for the BBC's UK online service. It is a large network of websites including such high profile sites as BBC News and Sport, the on-demand video and radio services co-branded BBC iPlayer, the pre-school site Cbeebies, and learning services such as Bitesize...
(April 2006)
- Anthony Head Interview: King Arthur Screwed Up My Nintendo, TheTorchOnline.com (June 2009)
- Biographies of Giles and Head at "Buffyguide"