First time on stage:
It was at a Brisbane primary school in 1980: an Indonesian children's folk play where I played one of three wise village elders. Thinking back, it must have been this that gave me the initial bug to show-off and make a fool of myself. My parents may disagree though....
First television appearance:
I was interviewed for some TV documentary in Brisbane around 1975.
First film appearance:
A footman in The Madness of King George, directed by Nicholas Hytner.
First directorial experience:
No Sex Please, We're British, by Alistair Foot and Anthony Marriott (Witney Dramatic Society, 1990).
Favourite acting experience:
Difficult. Hmmm. Perhaps Nicely Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls. It was such a fun show, and Nicely has some fantastic songs and great comic scenes. The actor playing Benny (the other half of the comic duo) was great. We would psych each other up before the first entrance each night and push the boundaries. He went on to be a pro.
Performance most proud of:
There are two clear ones in my head. P.T. Barnum in Barnum and Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady. Both had their own completely different challenges. Very taxing preparation, very difficult roles and, in one instance, overcoming personal fears. My Fair Lady was also doubly special because our much beloved stage manager suffered a burst heart aneurysm and died in the middle of a rehearsal. The entire cast was bound together to make the show a bigger success in his memory. The Woman in Black deserves a mention for testing my will-power against Multiple Personality Disorder! This will be tested further for Greater Tuna...
First role in Britain:
The Spirit of Christmas Present, A Christmas Carol.
First role in Finland:
Azolan in Les Liaison Dangereuses.
Most embarrassing moment:
Working as stage crew for South Horrific...sorry...Pacific in Salisbury. Setting the beach hut in the middle of the stage for the intimate love scene between Liat and Cable. Two of us where placing stage weights on the movable hut, stood, looked through the hut's windows and saw that the stage manager had started opening the curtains! We both ducked back down behind the hut and looked for an exit route. Unfortunately, the hut was completely isolated in the middle of the stage! We had to wait out the entire 'intimate love scene' crouched behind that damned hut! The longest scene in musical history....
Most memorable celebrity moment:
Working in the same scenes as Nigel Hawthorn, Helen Mirren, Rupert Everett, Geoffrey Palmer, Ian Holm, Rupert Graves, Julian Rhind-Tutt and Amanda Donohoe during The Madness of King George. This was accompanied by a wonderful moment discussing dim sums with Rupert Everett in the catering bus.
Largest live audience:
60000 at the opening ceremony of the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane. Plus however many watched it on TV... It's on YouTube somewhere. I'm the one in blue with a blue hat.
Other crazy stuff:
Throughout my acting life, I have played: a Munchkin, a wolf (big, bad variety), a rat, several army officers, a naval admiral, an RAF officer, a prime minister, a president, a lord, a pirate, a king, Jesus, a god, and Jack the Ripper. I died when the Titanic sank, but also gave evidence at the inquest into its sinking.
I have lived in Australia for eleven years, Britain for thirty-one years and Finland for four. Do the maths and you'll have another answer.
Professionally, as well as doing freelance acting and voice-over work, I also create web sites.
I'm a Whovian and proud of it!
I own and run a car-owners club and forum for the Nissan Silvia (S15).
I can walk tight-wire, do Spanish web, and juggle. Well, I could walk tight-wire. My centre of gravity may have changed in the past ten years...
I hosted karaoke for a time in the 1990s.