Harold Douglas Hopkins (6 March 194411 December 2011) was an Australian film and television actor.

Early life

Hopkins was born in 1944 in

Toowoomba Toowoomba ( , nicknamed 'The Garden City' and 'T-Bar') is a city in the Toowoomba Region of the Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia. It is west of Queensland's capital city Brisbane by road. The urban population of Toowoomba as of the 2021 ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

. He attended Toowoomba Grammar School as a day boy in 1958 and 1959. During the 1960s, he worked as an apprentice carpenter, and was exposed to

asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...

fibres without protective masks or clothing. He and his twin brother John enrolled at the

National Institute of Dramatic Art The National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) is an Australian educational institution for the performing arts is based in Sydney, New South Wales. Founded in 1958, many of Australia's leading actors and directors trained at NIDA, including Cat ...

(NIDA) in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

, with Harold graduating in 1967. Harold Hopkins married twice. His second marriage was to Sue Collie, an actress he met in Melbourne in 1977, while starring in the original stage production of

David Williamson David Keith Williamson AO (born 24 February 1942) is an Australian dramatist and playwright. He has also written screenplays and teleplays. Early life David Williamson was born in Melbourne, Victoria, on 24 February 1942, and was brought ...

's '' The Club'' at the MTC.

Career

Hopkins appeared in 16 films over the course of his career, including classic Australian films '' Don's Party'', ''

The Picture Show Man ''The Picture Show Man'' is a 1977 Australian film about a travelling film exhibitor (John Meillon) in the 1920s. He has to deal with the rebelliousness of his son ( Harold Hopkins) and a rival American exhibitor (Rod Taylor). The film was Rod Ta ...

'' and ''

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles s ...

''. He was nominated for an

Australian Film Institute Award The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards, known as the AACTA Awards, are presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). The awards recognise excellence in the film and television industry ...

in 1981 for his supporting role in '' The Club''. Hopkins also appeared in more than 160 episodes of Australian television series such as ''

Barrier Reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. ...

'', ''

Homicide Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...

'', ''The Godfathers'', ''Twenty Good Years'', ''

Sara Dane ''Sara Dane'' is a 1982 Australian television miniseries about a woman transported from England to Australia for a crime she did not commit.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p231 Original novel ...

'', ''A Nice Little Earner'' and '' Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities''. He also had a major co-starring role opposite

Jeanie Drynan Jeanie Drynan is an Australian film and television actress well known for her roles in the television series '' Class of '74'' and in the 1994 film '' Muriel's Wedding''. She may be best known to international viewers for her role as Muriel's ...

in the 1969 ABC drama "

Pastures of the Blue Crane ''Pastures of the Blue Crane'' is an Australian novel by Hesba Fay Brinsmead, published in 1964. The novel won the Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers in 1965. It was adapted for television in 1969. It has recently been reprinted d ...

". Hopkins' last audition was for a role in

Baz Luhrmann Mark Anthony Luhrmann (born 17 September 1962), known professionally as Baz Luhrmann, is an Australian film director, producer, writer and actor. With projects spanning film, television, opera, theatre, music and recording industries, he is re ...

's ''

The Great Gatsby ''The Great Gatsby'' is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby ...

'', although he knew he would not live to play the role. He won a Penguin Award in 1974 for his portrayal of

Percy Deane Percival Edgar Deane (10 August 1890–17 August 1946) was an Australian public servant. Deane was born in Port Melbourne, the son of a carpenter. He won a scholarship to University High School, Melbourne, and then worked as a typewrite ...

in John Power's

docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television and film, which features dramatized re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of documentary and drama and "a fact-based representation of real event". Docudramas typic ...

Billy and Percy ''Billy and Percy'' is a 1974 Australian docudrama based on the relationship between Prime Minister Billy Hughes and his private secretary Percy Deane during World War I. It was based primarily on Deane's diaries.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on ...

''.

Death

In 2011, Hopkins was diagnosed with

mesothelioma Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that develops from the thin layer of tissue that covers many of the internal organs (known as the mesothelium). The most common area affected is the lining of the lungs and chest wall. Less commonly the lining ...

, believed to be due to his asbestos exposure in the 1960s. He died in a Sydney hospice in Wahroonga on 11 December 2011.

Filmography

Film

* ''

You Can't See 'round Corners ''You Can't See 'round Corners'' is a 1969 Australian drama film directed by David Cahill and starring Ken Shorter and Rowena Wallace. The film is a theatrical version of the 1967 TV show '' You Can't See 'Round Corners''. Both were based on t ...

'' (1969) – Soldier at dance (uncredited) * ''

Age of Consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is unable to legally cla ...

'' (1969) – Ted Farrell * ''

Adam's Woman ''Adam's Woman'' is a 1970 Australian-American historical drama film directed by Philip Leacock and starring Beau Bridges, Jane Merrow and John Mills. It has been called a "convict Western". Plot In the 1840s, an American sailor ashore in Liver ...

'' (1970) – Cosh * '' Demonstrator'' (1971) – Malcolm * '' Don's Party'' (1976) – Cooley / Susan's boyfriend * ''

'' (1977) – Larry Pym * '' The Club'' (1980) – Danny Rowe * ''

'' (1981) – Les McCann * '' The Highest Honor'' (1982) – Cpl. C.M. Stewart * '' Monkey Grip'' (1982) – Willie * ''Ginger Meggs'' (1982) – Mr. Fox * '' Buddies'' (1983) – Johnny * ''

The Winds of Jarrah ''The Winds of Jarrah'' is a 1983 Australian film adapted from a Mills & Boon novel. It was never released to cinemas.David Stratton, ''The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry'', Pan MacMillan, 1990 p117 The film wa ...

'' (1983) – Jack Farrell * ''Stanley: Every Home Should Have One'' (1984) – Harry * '' Fantasy Man'' (1984) – Nick Bailey * '' The Year My Voice Broke'' (1987) – Tom Alcock * '' Resistance'' (1992) * ''Kin chan no Cinema Jack'' (1993) – Peach * ''No Worries'' (1993) – John Burke * '' Children of the Revolution'' (1996) – Police Commissioner * ''

Blackrock BlackRock, Inc. is an American multi-national investment company based in New York City. Founded in 1988, initially as a risk management and fixed income institutional asset manager, BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager, with trill ...

'' (1997) – Principal * ''

Joey Joey may refer to: People *Joey (name) Animals * Joey (marsupial), an infant marsupial * Joey, a Blue-fronted Amazon parrot who was one of the Blue Peter pets Film and television * ''Joey'' (1977 film), an American film directed by Horace ...

'' (1997) – Kanga Catcher * ''

Our Lips Are Sealed "Our Lips Are Sealed" is a song co-written by Jane Wiedlin, guitarist of the Go-Go's, and Terry Hall, singer of the Specials and Fun Boy Three. It was first recorded by the Go-Go's as the opening track on their album '' Beauty and the Beat'' ...

'' (2000) – Shelby Shaw * ''Courts mais GAY: Tome 5'' (2003) – Dan (segment "Saturn's Return") * '' The Clinic'' (2010) – Grave Digger (final film role)

Television

* ''

Motel A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central lobby. Entering dictionarie ...

'' (1968) – Bruce Jackson * ''

'' (1969) – Perry the taxi driver * ''

'' (1971–1972) – Steve Gabo * '' The Young Doctors'' (1978) - Orderly Terry Cooper * ''

'' (1982) – Andrew McLeay The Dirtwater Dynasty (1983) Reverend Mc Bride * '' Fields of Fire'' (1987) – Whacker * '' The True Believers'' (1988) – Edgar Ross * '' Big Ideas'' (1993, TV Movie) – Sam Stevens * ''Heartland'' (1994, TV series) – Jim * ''Blue Heelers'' (season 1) (1994) episode 36, Adverse Possession — Geoff Lovett * '' Outriders'' (2001) – Hayden Simpson * '' Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities'' (2009) – George Joseph

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hopkins, Harold 1944 births 2011 deaths Australian male film actors Australian male television actors National Institute of Dramatic Art alumni People from Toowoomba Deaths from cancer in New South Wales Deaths from mesothelioma