Jeffrey Thomas (born 1945) is a Welsh-born
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
actor and writer, best known for his film, television and stage roles.
Early life
Thomas was born in
Llanelli
; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...
, Wales,
[Higgins, M.]
Jeffrey Thomas
, ''nzonscreen.com''. Retrieved 12 May 2017. to a fluent Welsh-speaking family. His grandmother's interest in drama awakened an early interest in acting. After leaving school he trained as a quantity surveyor, but grew bored with office work. He attended
Liverpool University
The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University, it received Royal Charter by King Edward VII in 1903 attaining the de ...
, completing a
BA in English Literature and in
Celtic Studies
Celtic studies or Celtology is the academic discipline occupied with the study of any sort of cultural output relating to the Celts, Celtic-speaking peoples (i.e. speakers of Celtic languages). This ranges from linguistics, literature and art h ...
and English Literature. While at university he began writing and acting in university revues. He continued his studies at
Oxford University
The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
, gaining a Master of Letters (M.Litt) degree.
While at Oxford, Thomas met and married a New Zealander, and after completing his studies they moved initially to Australia (where he lectured at
La Trobe University
La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 1 ...
) and then, in 1976, to
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
. Here he taught romantic and Victorian poetry at
Victoria University Victoria University may refer to:
* Victoria University (Australia), a public research university in Melbourne, Australia
* Victoria University, Toronto, a constituent college of the federal University of Toronto in Canada
* Victoria University of ...
, before becoming a fulltime actor and writer the following year.
Acting career
Thomas's first stage work was in university revues while at Oxford. He took up acting again after moving to New Zealand, where he appeared in various productions at
Unity Theatre,
Downstage, and
Circa Theatre
Circa Theatre is a professional theatre company in Wellington, New Zealand, that was established in 1976. They present a number of plays each year in their two auditoriums, and have a unique partnership and funding model with incoming shows unde ...
s, before gaining a television role in early New Zealand soap opera ''
Close to Home'', in which he played Gerry, an ex-patriate London barman for 18 months.
Thomas rose to prominence in New Zealand in the late 1980s with the lead role of Inspector "Sharky" Finn in the
TVNZ
Television New Zealand (, "Te Reo Tātaki" meaning "The Leading Voice"),
more commonly referred to as TVNZ, is a New Zealand state-owned media company and Crown entity. The company operates a television network, streaming service, and news se ...
police drama series ''
Shark in the Park
''Shark in the Park'' is a New Zealand police procedural. It revolved around the professional and private lives of a group of officers at a Wellington police station under the command of Inspector Brian "Sharky" Finn. The title came from the in ...
'', and is also well known for his roles in two long-running New Zealand
soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
s, ''
Mercy Peak
''Mercy Peak'' was a New Zealand television series that ran for three seasons on local network TV One, between 2001 and 2004. The series rated well in New Zealand (especially in its second series) and won multiple awards for its cast. Though an ...
'' and ''
Shortland Street
''Shortland Street'' is a New Zealand Prime time, prime-time soap opera centring on the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital. The show was first broadcast on TVNZ 2 on 25 May 1992 and is New Zealand's longest-running drama and soap opera, be ...
'', and his distinctive voice can be heard narrating a large number of documentaries. His central role of Dr William Kingsley in ''Mercy Peak'' led to him winning the Best Actor award at the 2003 New Zealand Film and Television Awards.
Internationally, Thomas is known for his starring roles of
Jason
Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...
in ''
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'' and narrator in Costa Botes's and
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand filmmaker. He is best known as the director, writer, and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy (2012–2014), both of which ar ...
's mockumentary ''
Forgotten Silver
''Forgotten Silver'' is a 1995 New Zealand mockumentary film that purports to tell the story of a pioneering New Zealand filmmaker. It was written and directed by Peter Jackson and Costa Botes, both of whom appear in the film in their roles as m ...
''.
Thomas also starred as Titus Lentulus Batiatus on the
Starz
Starz (stylized in all caps as STARZ; pronounced "stars") is an American pay television network owned by Starz Entertainment, and is the flagship property of Starz Inc. Launched in 1994 as a multiplex service of what is now Starz Encore, ...
series ''
Spartacus: Gods of the Arena''. Thomas reunited with Peter Jackson in ''
The Hobbit
''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ...
'', in which he played the Dwarf King Thrór. In 2015 Thomas starred in ''
The Dead Room'' as Scott Cameron, a sceptical scientist investigating paranormal activity in a New Zealand farmhouse.
Plays that Thomas has appeared in include
The Balcony
''The Balcony'' () is a Play (theatre), play by the French people, French dramatist Jean Genet. It is set in an unnamed city that is experiencing a revolutionary uprising in the streets; most of the action takes place in an upmarket brothel that ...
by Jean Genet for Downstage Theatre (1977) and ''Mauritius'' by
Theresa Rebeck
Theresa Rebeck (born February 19, 1958) is an American playwright, television writer, and novelist. Her work has appeared on the Broadway and Off-Broadway stage, in film, and on television. Among her awards are the Mystery Writers of America's ...
at Circa Theatre (2010).
Writing
Thomas has written several plays, both in English and in Welsh. His first success came with ''Playing the Game'', which premiered at Circa Theatre and was eventually throughout Wales and in London's West End. Thomas was the co-winner of the 1981 Play for Wales competition, run by the
Welsh Academy
Literature Wales, formerly named the Academi, is the Welsh national literature promotion agency and society of writers, existing to promote Welsh-language literature, Welsh-language and Welsh literature in English, English-language literature i ...
, with ''Men of Steel''.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Jeffrey
Alumni of the University of Oxford
Living people
20th-century New Zealand male actors
20th-century Welsh male actors
21st-century Welsh male actors
21st-century New Zealand male actors
New Zealand male television actors
New Zealand male soap opera actors
Welsh emigrants to New Zealand
Welsh male television actors
Alumni of the University of Liverpool
1945 births
Actors from Llanelli
Male actors from Carmarthenshire