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Paul Richard Bentley (born 25 July 1942) is a British stage, film and television actor, perhaps best known for playing the High Septon in the television series '' Game of Thrones''. He is also a writer.


Early life

Bentley was born in
Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and ...
and brought up in
Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. W ...
. He attended
Wimbledon College Wimbledon College is a government-maintained, voluntary-aided, Jesuit Roman Catholic secondary school and sixth form for boys aged 11 to 19 in Wimbledon, London. The college was founded in 1892 "for improvement in living and learning for the ...
, a
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...
grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary sch ...
, and
Kingston Polytechnic Kingston University London is a Public university, public research university located within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, in South London, South West London, England. Its roots go back to the Kingston Technical Institute, founded in 1 ...
. He then attended
Birmingham University , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univer ...
, achieving a BA in
English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines ...
and an MA in Drama and
Theatre Arts Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
. His M.A. dissertation, on the stage history of
Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
's ''
Parsifal ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is an opera or a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is loosely based on the 13th-century Middle High German epic poem ''Parzival'' ...
'', involved a research visit to the Wagner Festival Theatre at Bayreuth, Germany.


Career

After university Bentley moved to
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
, hoping to become an opera director. He began acting in English programmes on the Bavarian radio station
Bayerischer Rundfunk Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR; "Bavarian Broadcasting") is a public-service radio and television broadcaster, based in Munich, capital city of the Free State of Bavaria in Germany. BR is a member organization of the ARD consortium of public broadcas ...
. He also appeared in the film '' The Last Escape'', in which he played a British spy in Bavaria in World War Two. He returned to England in 1970 and continued acting, mainly in
repertory theatre A repertory theatre is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom Annie Horniman founded the first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawing ...
, at venues including the Byre Theatre at St. Andrews, the Leicester Haymarket Theatre, the Duke's Playhouse at Lancaster, and the
Newcastle Playhouse Northern Stage is a theatre and producing theatre company based in Newcastle upon Tyne. It is surrounded by Newcastle University's city centre campus on King's Walk, opposite the students' union building. It hosts various local, national and int ...
. In 1973 Bentley wrote the book and lyrics for ''Shylock'', a musical version of ''
The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as a ...
'', performed at the 1974
Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fes ...
. He played the title role; the composer and director was Roger Haines. ''Shylock'' won a Scotsman Fringe First Award. In 1977 an updated version called ''Fire Angel'', set in a 20th century New York City Mafia nightclub, appeared at Her Majesty's Theatre, London. Bentley was the alternate leading man, his first West End part. A revised version of the original ''Shylock'' was produced at the Leicester Haymarket Studio Theatre in 1981 and at the Manchester Library Theatre in 1982. Bentley again played the title role and Haines directed both productions. Bentley's second West End show was in
Tommy Steele Sir Thomas Hicks (born 17 December 1936), known professionally as Tommy Steele, is an English entertainer, regarded as Britain's first teen idol and rock and roll star. After being discovered at the 2i's Coffee Bar in Soho, London, Steele reco ...
's ''
Singin' In The Rain ''Singin' in the Rain'' is a 1952 American musical romantic comedy film directed and choreographed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, starring Kelly, Donald O'Connor, and Debbie Reynolds and featuring Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell and Cyd Chariss ...
'' at the
London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 an ...
. In 1985 he went to
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...
to play Captain Corcoran in ''
H.M.S. Pinafore ''H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which ...
'', which transferred to the
Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...
in 1986 and for which Bentley was nominated for an Olivier Award for the Outstanding Performance of the Year by an Actor in a Musical. This success led to four back-to-back West End shows lasting five years: ''
Lend Me A Tenor ''Lend Me a Tenor'' is a comedy by Ken Ludwig. The play was produced on both the West End (1986) and Broadway (1989). It received nine Tony Award nominations and won for Best Actor (Philip Bosco) and Best Director (Jerry Zaks). A Broadway r ...
'', ''
Follies ''Follies'' is a Musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The plot takes place in a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on t ...
'', ''
Cats The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of t ...
'' and ''
Aspects of Love ''Aspects of Love'' is a musical with music and book by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and lyrics by Don Black and Charles Hart. It is based on the 1955 novella of the same name by David Garnett. The piece focuses on the romantic entanglements of actr ...
''. Next came an off-West-End '' Assassins'' followed by a national tour of ''Aspects of Love'', then ''
Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pier ...
'' in
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
and back to London for ''
Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...
'', ''
Kiss Me Kate ''Kiss Me, Kate'' is a musical written by Bella and Samuel Spewack with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The story involves the production of a musical version of William Shakespeare's ''The Taming of the Shrew'' and the conflict on and off-sta ...
'' and ''Dame Edna – the Spectacle''. Bentley has other radio, television and film credits but most of his work has been in theatre. In 1994 Bentley was asked by the Danish composer Poul Ruders to write the libretto for his opera ''The Handmaid's Tale'' based on Margaret Atwood's novel, which won a Cannes Classical Award and Reumert Prize. In ''A Handmaid's Diary'', Bentley tells the story of the opera from the first phone call to the first night (directed by
Phyllida Lloyd Phyllida Christian Lloyd, (born 17 June 1957) is an English film director and producer, best known for '' Mamma Mia!'' (2008) and '' The Iron Lady'' (2011). Her theatre work includes directing productions at the Royal Court Theatre and Royal N ...
). Ruders' and Bentley's second opera was ''Kafka's Trial''. Librettos for three other composers followed: Ana Sokolovic's ''The Midnight Court'', Dominique Le Gendre's ''Bird of Night'' and
James Rolfe James D. Rolfe (born July 10, 1980) is an American YouTuber, online personality, filmmaker, and actor. He is best known for creating and starring in the comedic retrogaming web series '' The Angry Video Game Nerd'' (2004–present). His spin-o ...
's ''Inês''. Bentley has also written a novel, ''The Man Who Came After Hyacinth Bobo'', about the Fourth Crusade and the
Siege of Constantinople The following is a list of sieges of Constantinople, a historic city located in an area which is today part of Istanbul, Turkey. The city was built on the land that links Europe to Asia through Bosporus and connects the Sea of Marmara and the ...
, published in Greek and English, plus occasional newspaper and magazine articles. Bentley's latest works include
Inquisition
', a play about the famous Jesuit scientist
Teilhard de Chardin Pierre Teilhard de Chardin ( (); 1 May 1881 – 10 April 1955) was a French Jesuit priest, scientist, paleontologist, theologian, philosopher and teacher. He was Darwinian in outlook and the author of several influential theological and philo ...
, and a radio play in which
Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots oft ...
meets
Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...
.


Personal life

Paul Bentley married Annie Healey in 1979. They met at the Byre Theatre, St. Andrews, where Annie was an assistant stage manager. They have two daughters, Emma and Rebecca, who both work in the theatre. Bentley's sister, the novelist Ursula Bentley, died in 2004. Bentley took part in ''
Mastermind Mastermind, Master Mind or The Mastermind may refer to: Fictional characters * Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde), a fictional supervillain in Marvel Comics, a title also held by his daughters: ** Martinique Jason, the first daughter and successor of the ...
'' on BBC TV (15 March 1992) where his specialist subject was The Life and Works of
King Ludwig II of Bavaria King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ti ...
. He lost in this first round with a score of 29. He is a member of the Wagner Society and the Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies. He was the Founder Chairman of the British Association for Modern Mosaic from 1999 to 2005 and remains a member. He is the editor of the website ''Mosaic Matters'', a website about mosaics, and he also edits th
British Teilhard Network


Awards and nominations


Stage and screen credits


Theatre


Television


Film


Radio


Recordings as singer


Recordings as librettist


Operas as librettist

*''The Handmaid's Tale'' – composer Poul Ruders, director John Fulljames – Royal Danish Opera, Copenhagen, 2022 *''The Handmaid's Tale'' – composer Poul Ruders, director Annilese Miskimmon – English National Opera, London, 2022 *''The Handmaid’s Tale'' – composer Poul Ruders, director Anne Bogart – Boston Lyric Opera, Boston, 2019 *''The Handmaid’s Tale'' – composer Poul Ruders, director Linda Thompson – Gertrude Opera, Yarra Valley Opera Festival, Melbourne, 2018 *''Ines'' – composer James Rolfe, director Jennifer Tarver – Queen of Puddings Music Theatre, Enwave Theatre, Toronto, 2009 * ''Bird of Night –'' composer Dominique Le Gendre, director Irina Brown – Royal Opera Covent Garden, Linbury Studio, London, 2006 * ''The Midnight Court'' – composer Ana Sokolovic, director Michael Cavanagh – Queen of Puddings Music Theatre, Harbourfront Centre, Toronto 2005; Royal Opera Covent Garden, Linbury Studio, London, 2006 * ''Kafka's Trial'' – composer Poul Ruders, director Francisco Negrin – Opera House, Copenhagen, 2005 * ''The Handmaid's Tale'' – composer Poul Ruders, director Eric Simonson – Minnesota Opera, Minneapolis, 2003 * ''The Handmaid's Tale'' – composer Poul Ruders, director Phyllida Lloyd – Royal Danish Opera, Copenhagen, 2000; English National Opera, London, 2003; Canadian Opera Company, Toronto, 2004


Bibliography

*''A playwright's quest for a missing Pierre Teilhard de Chardin file'', ''The Christian Century'', 10 July 2018 *''The Sixth Proposition'', ''The Tablet'', 2 June 2018 *''Teilhard de Chardin, Original Sin, and The Six Propositions'', with David Grumett, ''Zygon'', 16 April 2018 *''The Mosaicing of Westminster Cathedral'', in ''New Light on Old Glass,'' British Museum 2013 * ''The Man Who Came After Hyacinth Bobo,'' Fourth Crusade novel, Amazon 2011 * ''Ines,'' libretto based on the Inês de Castro legend, 2009 * ''Bird of Night,'' libretto set in Trinidad, 2006 * ''Thrills not theology'', article on ''The Da Vinci Code'' for the ''Daily Telegraph'', 6 May 2006 * ''Kafka the comedian,'' article for the ''Daily Telegraph,'' 28 February 2005 * ''The Midnight Court'', libretto based on the poem by Brian Merriman, 2005 * ''What Islam took from Byzantium'', article for the ''Catholic Herald'', 14 May 2004 * ''A Handmaid's Diary,'' how ''The Handmaid's Tale'' became an opera'','' Wilhelm Hansen 2004 * ''Ο άνθρωπος που διαδέχθηκε τον Υάκινθο Βωβό'', Fourth Crusade novel, Enalios 2004 * ''Lost for Words'', article on Berlioz and Wagner, ''Opera Now'', Jan/Feb 2003 * ''The Handmaid's Tale vocal score'', Wilhelm Hansen 2002 * ''Time to cover a ton of bricks'', article for the ''Daily Telegraph'', 24 July 1999


References


External links

* *''Rogues and Vagabonds'' interview 2002 *''Daily Telegraph'' interview 2003 {{DEFAULTSORT:Bentley, Paul 21st-century English male actors 20th-century English male actors 1942 births Living people Male actors from Sheffield 20th-century English singers English male musical theatre actors English male television actors 20th-century British male singers