Colin Friels (born 25 September 1952) is a Scottish-born Australian actor of theatre, TV and film and presenter

Early life

Friels was born in

Kilwinning Kilwinning (, sco, Kilwinnin; gd, Cill D’Fhinnein) is a town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is on the River Garnock, north of Irvine, about southwest of Glasgow. It is known as "The Crossroads of Ayrshire". Kilwinning was also a Civil Pa ...

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of ...

, Scotland.Interview with Colin Friels, ''George Negus Tonight'' (ABC Television), 26 August 2004. http://www.abc.net.au/gnt/profiles/Transcripts/s1186644.htm , retrieved May 2007. His mother was a mill worker and French polisher, and his father a

carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters t ...

. He lived in

Kilbirnie Kilbirnie ( Gaelic: ''Cill Bhraonaigh'') is a small town of 7,280 (as of 2001) inhabitants situated in the Garnock Valley area of North Ayrshire, on the west coast of Scotland. It is around southwest of Glasgow and approximately from Paisl ...

until 1963, when his family moved to Australia, arriving in Darwin, Northern Territory before settling in the Melbourne suburb of Bentleigh. He worked as a bricklayer's labourer before studying 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), graduating in 1976 along with

Linden Wilkinson Linden Wilkinson is an Australian film, television and theatre actress and writer. She is perhaps best known for her recurring role in soap opera ''Home and Away'' playing 'The Believers' cult leader Mumma Rose. Her other roles include appe ...

and

Michael Siberry Michael Siberry (born 1956) is an Australian stage and screen actor. Life and career Siberry was born in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. He graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney, Australia and began his career in Adelai ...

Acting career

Friels career began with work mostly in theatre and television. In 1980 Friels was a presenter on the Australian version of '' Play School'', the series for young children. His first film role was in the unreleased ''

Prisoners A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

'' (1981), appearing with

David Hemmings David Edward Leslie Hemmings (18 November 1941 – 3 December 2003) was an English actor and director. He is best remembered for his roles in British films and television programmes of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the 1966 mystery film ...

and

Tatum O'Neal Tatum Beatrice O'Neal (born November 5, 1963) is an American actress. She is the youngest person ever to win an Academy Award, winning at age 10 for her performance as Addie Loggins in '' Paper Moon'' (1973) opposite her father, Ryan O'Neal. S ...

. His first appearance in a released film was in '' Hoodwink'' (1981), alongside his future wife,

Judy Davis Judith Davis (born 23 April 1955) is an Australian actress in film, television, and on stage. With a career spanning over 40 years, she has been commended for her versatility and regarded as one of the finest actresses of her generation. Frequen ...

. In 1986, he played the title role in '' Malcolm'', about a shy mechanical genius, for which he was awarded the 1986 AFI Award for

Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to the ...

. Friels was also nominated for the Best Actor award the following year, for his role in ''

Ground Zero In relation to nuclear explosions and other large bombs, ground zero (also called surface zero) is the point on the Earth's surface closest to a detonation. In the case of an explosion above the ground, ''ground zero'' is the point on the grou ...

'', but did not win: the film received mixed reviews, with one describing him as "a proficient enough actor, but...miscast".Hinson, Hal (1988)
Ground Zero (review)
''Washington Post'', 30 September 1987. Friels later won another AFI Award in 1995 for his starring role in the 1994 ''

Halifax f.p. ''Halifax f.p.'' is an Australian television crime series produced by Nine Network from 1994 to 2002. The series stars Rebecca Gibney as Doctor Jane Halifax, a forensic psychiatrist investigating cases involving the mental state of suspects or ...

'' telemovie ''Hard Corps''. Friels has played a wide range of other roles. He was a megalomaniac corporate executive in the 1990 feature film ''

Darkman ''Darkman'' is a 1990 American superhero film directed and co-written by Sam Raimi. Based on a short story Raimi wrote that paid homage to Universal's horror films of the 1930s, the film stars Liam Neeson as scientist Peyton Westlake, who i ...

''. From 1996 to 1999, he played Frank Holloway on '' Water Rats'', a role which won him the

Logie Award The Logie Awards (officially the TV Week Logie Awards; colloquially known as The Logies) is an annual gathering to celebrate Australian television, sponsored and organised by the magazine ''TV Week''. The first ceremony was held in 1959 as the ...

for Most Outstanding Actor at the 1997 awards. In his acceptance speech he said, "I'm very flattered for this and it's all rather silly, isn't it? So, thank you very much." Since 2003, Friels has appeared as the main character in the ''

BlackJack Blackjack (formerly Black Jack and Vingt-Un) is a casino banking game. The most widely played casino banking game in the world, it uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as Twenty-One. This fam ...

'' series of telemovies. In 2010 he also starred in '' Killing Time'' where he played notorious underworld figure Lewis Moran. In 2018 he played Tony Ballantyne in the TV miniseries '' Mystery Road'', again opposite Judy Davis. In 2021, Friels appeared as Jack Ramsay in the second season of the ABC series ''Total Control'', a Coalition MP facing off against independent candidate Alex Irving.

Personal life

Friels has been married to actress

since 1984; the couple have two children, Jack and Charlotte. Their relationship was briefly in the media when an argument led to a domestic violence court order against Friels: however, they remained together. In late 1997, Friels was diagnosed with

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a mass. These cancerous cells have the ability to invade other parts of the body. A number of types of pancr ...

. However, his treatment was successful, and he is one of the very few sufferers of this disease to go into long-term remission. During his treatment he continued to work on the set of ''Water Rats'', until eventually the impact of the

chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemother ...

stopped him working, and he chose to have his character written out of the series by sending him on a sailing journey around the world. At this time, however, he also continued his stage work, and was performing in

Sydney Theatre Company Sydney Theatre Company (STC) is an Australian theatre company based in Sydney, New South Wales. The company performs in The Wharf Theatre at Dawes Point in The Rocks area of Sydney, as well as the Roslyn Packer Theatre (formerly Sydney Thea ...

's ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

''.

Political views

Friels believes that social and political awareness comes with acting, and is known for his engagement in policy debates, including industrial issues such as workplace relations and free trade. He publicly criticised Bush administration policy in the Middle East, and supported the Sydney Peace Foundation. His engagement with social issues has been evident in his acting work, with two prominent examples being his lead role in ''Ground Zero'', in which he played a cameraman investigating British nuclear testing in South Australia, and his appearance in the ABC television drama ''

Bastard Boys ''Bastard Boys'' is an Australian television miniseries broadcast on the ABC in 2007. It tells the story of the 1998 Australian waterfront dispute. The script, published by Currency Press, won the 2007 Queensland Premier's Literary Award for B ...

'', in which he played union official John Coombs.

Filmography

* '' Hoodwink'' (1981) – Robert * '' Monkey Grip'' (1982) – Javo * '' Buddies'' (1983) – Mike * ''

For the Term of His Natural Life ''For the Term of His Natural Life'' is a story written by Marcus Clarke and published in ''The Australian Journal'' between 1870 and 1872 (as ''His Natural Life''). It was published as a novel in 1874 and is the best known novelisation of life ...

'' (1983) - Rufus Dawes/Richard Devine * '' The Coolangatta Gold'' (1984) – Adam Lucas * ''

Kangaroo Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern ...

'' (1986) – Richard Somers * '' Malcolm'' (1986) – Malcolm Hughes * ''

'' (1987) – Harvey Denton * ''

High Tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...

'' (1988) – Mick * ''

'' (1990) – Louis Strack Jr * ''

Weekend with Kate ''Weekend with Kate'' is a 1990 Australian film directed by Arch Nicholson and starring Colin Friels and Catherine McClements Catherine McClements is an Australian stage, film and television actress and television presenter. She is known for ...

'' (1990) – Richard Muir * ''

Class Action A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class actio ...

'' (1991) – Michael Grazier * ''

Dingo The dingo (''Canis familiaris'', ''Canis familiaris dingo'', ''Canis dingo'', or ''Canis lupus dingo'') is an ancient ( basal) lineage of dog found in Australia. Its taxonomic classification is debated as indicated by the variety of scienti ...

'' (1992) – John Anderson * '' Police Rescue'' (1992) – Lew * '' Stark'' (1993) – Sly Morgan * '' A Good Man in Africa'' (1994) – Morgan Leafy * '' Angel Baby'' (1995) – Morris * '' Back of Beyond'' (1995) * ''

'' episode "Hard Corps" (1995) - Det Snr Sgt Kevin Tait * '' Cosi'' (1996) – Errol * ''

Mr. Reliable ''Mr. Reliable'' is a 1996 film directed by Nadia Tass. It stars Colin Friels and Jacqueline McKenzie. Plot It tells the true story of Wally Mellish, an ex-convict in 1960s Australia. Just released from prison, all he wants to do is live a quiet ...

'' (1996) – Wally Mellish *'' Water Rats'' – Frank Holloway (91 episodes, 1996–1999) * '' Dark City'' (1998) – Eddie Walenski * ''

The Man Who Sued God ''The Man Who Sued God'' is a 2001 Australian comedy film starring Billy Connolly and Judy Davis, and directed by Mark Joffe. The film was a financial success, debuting at number one at the Australian box office in the week of its launch. Pl ...

'' (2001) – David Myers * ''

Black and White Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

'' (2002) – Father Tom Dixon * ''

'' (2003-2007) – Jack Kempson * ''

The Mystery of Natalie Wood ''The Mystery of Natalie Wood'' is a two-part 2004 made-for-TV biographical film directed by Peter Bogdanovich. Partly based on the biographies ''Natasha: the Biography of Natalie Wood'' written by Suzanne Finstad and ''Natalie & R.J.'' written by ...

'' (2004) - Nick Gurdin * ''

Tom White Thomas, Tom or Tommy White may refer to: Entertainment * Thomas White (musician) (born 1984), British musician * Tom White (film), ''Tom White'' (film), 2004 Australian drama film * Tommy White (artist), see List of Guggenheim Fellowships awarded ...

'' (2004) – Tom White * ''

'' (2007) – John Coombs * ''The Informant'' (2008) – Doug Lamont * '' Gangs of Oz'' (2009) – Narrator * '' Blind Company'' (2009) - Geoff Brewster * '' Killing Time'' (2010) – Lewis Moran * ''

Matching Jack ''Matching Jack'' is a 2010 Australian drama film directed by Nadia Tass from a screenplay by Lynne Renew and David Parker, based on an unfilmed script by Renew entitled ''Love and Mortar''. Plot Life seems idyllic for Marisa (Jacinda Barrett ...

'' (2010) - Professor Nelson * ''The Nothing Men'' (2010) - Jack Simpson * '' Tomorrow, When The War Began'' (2010) - Dr Clements * '' The Eye of the Storm'' (2011) – Athol Shreve * ''The Man Who Jumped'' (2011) - Narrator * '' Schapelle'' (2013) - Mick Corby * '' Sydney Sailboat'' (2015) - Terry (Voice) * ''

The Secret Daughter ''The Secret Daughter'' is an Australian television drama series which premiered on the Seven Network on 3 October 2016. The series is written by Justin Monjo, Greg Haddrick, Louise Bowes and Keith Thompson and directed by Leah Purcell, Geoff ...

'' (2016) - Jack Norton * '' Mystery Road'' (2018) – Tony Ballantyne * '' Total Control'' (2019) - Jack Ramsay MP * '' Interceptor'' (2022) - Frank Collins

Awards

Australian Film Institute Awards

, - , 1986 , Colin Friels , Best Actor in a Lead Role , , - , 1987 , Colin Friels (for ''

'') , Best Actor in a Lead Role , , - , 1991 , Colin Friels (for ''

'') , Best Actor in a Lead Role , , - , 1995 , Colin Friels (for ''

: Hard Corps'') , Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Drama , , - , 2004 , Colin Friels (for ''

'') , Best Actor in a Lead Role , , -

Film Critics Circle

, - , 2004 , Colin Friels (for ''Tom White'') , Best Actor – Male , , - , rowspan="2", 2006 , Colin Friels (for ''

Solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series * Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''S ...

'') , Best Actor – Male , , - , Colin Friels (for '' The Book of Revelation'') , Best Supporting Actor , , -

Helpmann Award

, - , 2003 , Colin Friels (for ''

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan a ...

'') , Best Male Actor , , -

Logie Awards

, - , 1997 , Colin Friels (for '' Water Rats'') , Most Outstanding Actor , , - , 2000 , Colin Friels (for ''Water Rats'') , Most Outstanding Actor , , - , 2022 , Colin Friels (for ''

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

'') , Most Outstanding Supporting Actor , , -

Mo Awards

The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the

Mo Awards The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards) were an annual Australian entertainment industry award, that where established in 1975, to recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia. They were l ...

), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Colin Friels won one award in that time. (wins only) , - , 2002 , Colin Friels , Male Actor in a Play , , -

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Friels, Colin 1952 births Australian male film actors Australian people of Irish descent Australian people of Scottish descent Best Actor AACTA Award winners Australian children's television presenters Helpmann Award winners Living people Logie Award winners National Institute of Dramatic Art alumni People from Kilwinning Scottish male film actors