John Michael Frederick Castle (born 14 January 1940) is an English actor. He is best known for his film and television work, most notably playing Bill in

Michelangelo Antonioni Michelangelo Antonioni ( ; ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and editor. He is best known for his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents", ''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and '' ...

's '' Blowup'' (1966) and Geoffrey in '' The Lion in Winter'' (1968). Other significant credits include '' Man of La Mancha'' (1972), ''I, Claudius'' (1976) and '' RoboCop 3'' (1993).

Early life

Born in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, Castle was educated at Brighton College and

Trinity College, Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...

, and trained at the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central London ...

(RADA).

Work

Castle's first appearance was as Westmoreland on stage in '' Henry V'' on 5 June 1964, at the Open Air Theatre,

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the London Borough of Camden, Borough of Camden (and historical ...

. He was 24 years old. His first Broadway theatre appearance was in February 1970 as "Jos" in the short-lived musical '' Georgy''. His screen debut was in

's 1966 film '' Blowup'' playing David Hemmings' artist friend, Bill. In 1968, he portrayed the plotting Prince Geoffrey in the

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

of '' The Lion in Winter'', starring Peter O'Toole and

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

. According to Rotten Tomatoes, ''The Lion in Winter'' is Castle's "highest-rated" film. Also in 1967, he appeared in the British TV series ''

The Prisoner ''The Prisoner'' is a British television series created by Patrick McGoohan. McGoohan portrays Number Six (The Prisoner), Number Six, an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a The Village (The Prisoner), mysteri ...

'' as Number 12, a sympathetic guardian in the episode entitled "The General". Castle also played the role of Octavius Caesar in

Charlton Heston Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923 – April 5, 2008) was an American actor. He gained stardom for his leading man roles in numerous Cinema of the United States, Hollywood films including biblical epics, science-fiction f ...

's film version of '' Antony and Cleopatra'' (1972), as well as the role of Postumus Agrippa in the 1976 BBC series ''I, Claudius''. Castle made two appearances in the hard-hitting police drama '' The Professionals.'' In his first appearance he played CI5 Officer Tommy McKay in the episode "Heroes", whilst his subsequent appearance saw him in the role of Peter Crabbe, an

underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. ...

hitman Contract killing (also known as murder-for-hire) is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or people. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of compensation, moneta ...

in the episode "Man Without a Past". Castle appeared as Carruthers, the most honourable of a trio of schemers, in an episode of

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV (TV network), ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire on weekdays only, as ABC Weekend TV, ...

's series ''

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...

'' ("The Solitary Cyclist", 1984). His association with

continued with his role as Nigel St Clair in the film version of '' The Crucifer of Blood'' (1991). He played Inspector Craddock in an adaptation of the

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English people, English author known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving ...

story ''A Murder is Announced'' (1985), a role he recreated in the Miss Marple mystery '' The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side'' (1992). He also played the title role in the 2000 made-for-TV version of Christie's ''Lord Edgware Dies''. In 1990 Castle starred as Superintendent George Thorne in the BBC's radio adaptations of John Penn's novels. Castle appeared in other TV series, including ''Ben Hall'' and ''Lost Empires''. Among Castle's stage performances was his role as Oswald in the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

's revival of Ibsen's ''

Ghosts In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

'' in 1967. He played the title character in the play about

Mohandas Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful campaign for India's independence from British ...

(''Gandhi'', by Guerney Campbell), performed in 1982 at the Tricycle Theatre in London, under the direction of Peter Stevenson.

Personal life

Castle is married to writer Maggie Wadey.

Selected filmography

Film

* '' Blowup'' (1966) – Bill * '' The Lion in Winter'' (1968) – Geoffrey * '' The Promise'' (1969) – Marat Yestigneyev * '' Antony and Cleopatra'' (1972) – Octavius Caesar * '' Made'' (1972) – Father Dyson * '' Man of La Mancha'' (1972) – Sanson Carrasco / The Duke * '' The Incredible Sarah'' (1976) – Damala * ''

Eliza Fraser Eliza Anne Fraser (née Slack; – 1858) was an English woman known for being shipwrecked at K'gari, an island off the coast of Queensland, Australia, on 22 May 1836. After being rescued from the island, she spoke and wrote of her experiences, ...

'' (1976) – Captain Rory McBride * '' Eagle's Wing'' (1979) – The Priest * '' Never Never Land'' (1980) – Jim * '' King David'' (1985) – Abner * '' Dealers'' (1989) – Frank Mallory * '' RoboCop 3'' (1993) – Paul McDaggett * '' Sparrow'' (1993) – Giuseppe * '' Little Lord Fauntleroy '' (1995) – Mr. Havisham * '' Merisairas'' (1996) – Chief Engineer Josif Mantz * '' Gods and Generals'' (2003) – Brig. Gen. William N. Pendleton * ''I Against I'' (2012) – Tommy Carmichael

Television

* ''

'' (1967) – Number Twelve in the episode " The General" * '' The Shadow of the Tower'' (1972) – Thomas Flamank * '' Softly, Softly'' (1973) – Billy Mason * '' Ben Hall (TV series)'' (1975, ABC, BBC, 20th Century Fox) – Frank Gardiner * ''

Warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is used for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the navy branch of the armed forces of a nation, though they have also been operated by individuals, cooperatives and corporations. As well as b ...

'' (1975) – Lieutenant-Commander Peter Tremayne, officer commanding the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

submarine HMS

Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...

in the episode "Under the Surface" * '' I, Claudius'' (1976) – Agrippa Postumus * '' The New Avengers'' (1976) – Colonel Miller in the episode "Dirtier by the dozen" * '' The Three Hostages'' (1977) – Dominick Medina * '' 1990'' (1977) – Philip Carter * '' The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'' (1978) – Teddy Lloyd * '' Lillie'' (1978) – Prince Louis of Battenberg * '' The Professionals'' (1978) — CI5 Agent Tommy McKay ('Shotgun Tommy') in A05 "Heroes"; Peter Crabbe in B04 "Man Without a Past" * '' Tales of the Unexpected'' - "Fat Chance" (1980) - John Burge * '' Strangers'' (1982) – Martin Hargreaves * '' Reilly, Ace of Spies'' (1983) – Count Massino * '' The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' "The Solitary Cyclist" (1984) - Carruthers * '' Miss Marple'' Series 1 Episode 1: "A Murder is Announced" (1985) – Detective Inspector Craddock * '' Lost Empires'' with Laurence Olivier and Colin Firth (1986) * '' Tales of the Unexpected'' * '' The Crucifer of Blood'' (1991) – Neville St Clair * ''

Inspector Morse Endeavour Morse, GM, is the namesake character of the series of "Morse" detective novels by British author Colin Dexter, a Detective Chief Inspector in the Thames Valley Police in Oxford, England. On television he was portrayed by John ...

'' Series 5 Episode 3: "Who Killed Harry Field?" (1991) – Tony Doyle * '' Miss Marple'' "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side" (1992) – Detective Inspector Craddock * ''

Lovejoy ''Lovejoy'' is a British television comedy-drama mystery fiction, mystery series, based on the Lovejoy (novel series), novels by John Grant (Lovejoy), John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. The show, which ran to 71 episodes over six ser ...

'' (1994) Series 6, Episode 2: Day of Reckoning – Max Hunter * '' Bramwell '' (1994) - Guy Le Saux * '' Pie in the Sky'' (1996) – Charles Rider * '' The Ruth Rendell Mysteries'' (1997) – Mark in the episode "A Dark Blue Perfume" * '' Wycliffe'' (

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, HTV for ITV) - Land's End - Peter Selby * ''Catherine Cookson's A Dinner of Herbs'' (2000) - Alfred Cottle * '' Agatha Christie's Poirot'' Season 8 Episode 2: "Lord Edgware Dies" (2000) – Lord Edgware * '' Nova'' (2000,

Public Broadcasting Service The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the ...

) – David Irving * '' Casualty'' (2004) – Brian 'Bullet' Taylor * '' The Princes in The Tower'' (2005,

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

production) – Dr John Argentine * '' Spooks'' (2006) – Jocelyn Myers * '' Midsomer Murders'' Series 10 Episode 3: King's Crystal (2007) – Charles King * '' A Touch of Frost'' (2008) Mind Games - Charlie Collingham * '' The Tractate Middoth'' (2013,

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

) – John Eldred

References

External links

* *
Unofficial John Castle website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castle, John 1940 births Living people English male film actors English male television actors Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Actors educated at Brighton College Actors from the London Borough of Croydon People from Croydon