Martin Jarvis OBE (born 4 August 1941) is an English actor. Described by the

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 ...

as "one of Britain's most distinguished and versatile actors", he has had a varied career in theatre, film and television, and is particularly noted for radio acting and voicing audiobooks.

Early life and education

Jarvis was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, to Denys Harry Jarvis and Margot Lillian Scottney, and grew up in South Norwood and Sanderstead, north

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

. Jarvis was educated at Whitgift School, an

independent school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

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 ...

, and 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), where he won the Vanbrugh Award and the silver medal.

Career

Theatre work

Jarvis has acted in many stage productions in London and abroad, including alongside

Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 1938 – 10 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series ''The Avengers (TV series), The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Tracy Bond, Teresa di ...

and Natascha McElhone in Joanna Murray-Smith's ''

Honour Honour (Commonwealth English) or honor (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is a quality of a person that is of both social teaching and personal ethos, that manifests itself ...

'' at London's Wyndham's Theatre in 2006. His other stage work includes '' Woman in Mind'' and '' Henceforward...'' by Alan Ayckbourn, ''Other Places'' by

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

, ''Exchange'' by Michael Frayn, and '' The Importance of Being Earnest'' by

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

(opposite Judi Dench). Jarvis appeared on Broadway in 2001 as P. G. Wodehouse's character

Jeeves Jeeves (born Reginald Jeeves, nicknamed Reggie) is a fictional character in a series of comedic short stories and novels by English author P. G. Wodehouse. Jeeves is the highly competent valet of a wealthy and idle young Londoner named Bertie W ...

in the musical '' By Jeeves'', a performance for which he was awarded a Theatre World Award.

Radio work

Jarvis has had a long association with the

, particularly

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

. In the 1980s Michael Frayn's columns for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' and ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'', described by some as models of the comic essay, were adapted and performed in many voices for BBC Radio 4 by Jarvis. He read a four part adaptation of John Gordon's '' The Giant Under the Snow'' in 1981. He performs regularly in radio dramas and readings, both comic and serious. In

David Mamet David Alan Mamet (; born November 30, 1947) is an American playwright, author, and filmmaker. He won a Pulitzer Prize and received Tony Award, Tony nominations for his plays ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' (1984) and ''Speed-the-Plow'' (1988). He first ...

's ''Mind Your Pantheon'' he played the actor Strabo. He is known for his long series of readings of Richmal Crompton's '' Just William'' stories, which show his characteristic and flexible reading voices. He has also narrated the Billy Bunter series by Frank Richards. As a result of this extensive work, Jarvis has been satirised in the radio show '' Dead Ringers'' by Mark Perry, highlighting his seeming ubiquity in Radio 4 programmes. Jarvis has performed the role of Jeeves in multiple radio dramas based on P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves stories, including the 1997 L.A. Theatre Works adaptation of '' The Code of the Woosters'', the 2014 BBC radio adaptation of '' Ring for Jeeves'', and the 2018 BBC radio adaptation of '' Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves''. He performs live dramatic readings of some of the stories in the intermittent radio series ''Jeeves Live!'' (2007–2020). In America, Jarvis and his wife Rosalind Ayres perform frequently in

audio drama Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatised, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...

with the L.A. Theater Works and Hollywood Theater of the Ear. In 2011, Jarvis appeared in a Radio 4 production of Terence Rattigan's '' In Praise of Love''.

Television work

Jarvis's first television appearance was in the BBC

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' as Hilio, captain of the butterfly-like Menoptra, in '' The Web Planet'' (1965). He returned to ''Doctor Who'' as the scientist Dr. Butler in '' Invasion of the Dinosaurs'' (1974) and as the beleaguered governor of the planet Varos in '' Vengeance on Varos'' (1985). He became a familiar face on television when he played Jon in the BBC's landmark 1967 adaptation of '' The Forsyte Saga'', the title role in a BBC serial of '' Nicholas Nickleby'' (1968), '' The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes'' (1970) and Uriah Heep in the 1974 BBC version of ''

David Copperfield ''David Copperfield''Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work; see is a novel by English author Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from infancy to matur ...

'', and when he was the male lead in the

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

'' Rings on Their Fingers'' (1978–80) with Diane Keen. In 1993, he starred with Ewan McGregor and Rachel Weisz in a BBC adaptation of '' Scarlet and Black''. He also appeared in the 2002 BBC children's miniseries '' Bootleg''. Jarvis appeared as a guest on 161 episodes of

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 ...

's '' Countdown'' between 1990 and 2008. Jarvis's appearances on American television include such series as ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

'', ''

Walker, Texas Ranger ''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action fiction, action Crime drama, crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film ''Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both the film and the series starring Chuck Norr ...

'', and more recently ''

Stargate Atlantis ''Stargate Atlantis'' (usually stylized in all caps and often abbreviated ''SGA'') is an Adventure film, adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show was created by Brad W ...

'' and '' Numb3rs''. He also made a brief appearance as

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

in the ABC television miniseries '' Ike: The War Years''. Jarvis was the subject of BBC television's '' This Is Your Life'' in 1999. Jarvis appeared in ITV 1's ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'' in July 2008. In March 2010, it was announced that he would appear in the BBC soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'' playing journalist Harvey Freeman. Jarvis appeared in a 2014 episode of '' Law & Order: UK'' as Eddie Stewart, a man arrested and charged with murder. In September 2022, Jarvis appeared alongside his wife in an episode of the BBC soap opera '' Doctors'' as John Chilton.

Voice work

Among his work, Jarvis did the voiceovers for the 2010 BBC series '' Just William'' and voices the animal characters, as well as Voltaire the wise Weather-Cock (who acts as the narrator), in the 1993

children's television series Children's television series (or children's television shows) are Television show, television programs designed specifically for Child, children. They are typically characterised by easy-going content devoid of sensitive or adult themes and are ...

'' Fourways Farm''. He has also voiced various characters in animated series such as '' The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy'' and '' The Life and Times of Juniper Lee''. In the former, he inherited the role of the character Nergal from his ''Titanic'' co-star David Warner. In 2000, Jarvis voiced John Dread in the TV series '' Max Steel''. He has also voiced all the characters in the children's stop-motion animated series '' Huxley Pig'' and narrated "

The Tempest ''The Tempest'' is a Shakespeare's plays, play by William Shakespeare, probably written in 1610–1611, and thought to be one of the last plays that he wrote alone. After the first scene, which takes place on a ship at sea during a tempest, th ...

" in '' Shakespeare: The Animated Tales''. Jarvis has also undertaken audiobooks of P. G. Wodehouse's works, and won the Audie Award for these. He is the narrator of the 2011

audiobook An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements. Spoken audio has been available in sch ...

of '' The Selfish Giant'' by

. Further work in 2011 includes an audiobook of the

Wilbur Smith Wilbur Addison Smith (9 January 1933 – 13 November 2021) was a Northern Rhodesian-born British-South African novelist specializing in historical fiction about international involvement in Southern Africa across four centuries. He gained a f ...

novel '' The Leopard Hunts in Darkness''. He has also appeared in '' Jubilee'', a ''Doctor Who'' spin-off audio drama by

Big Finish Productions Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and radio drama, audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'' ...

, alongside his wife.

Focus on the Family Focus on the Family (FOTF or FotF) is an American Christian fundamentalism, Evangelical Protestant organization founded in 1977 in Southern California by James Dobson, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The group is one of a number of Evangel ...

used Jarvis' voice for two of their audio dramas, '' Ben-Hur'' and a Father Gilbert Mystery entitled ''The Play's the Thing''. In film, Jarvis appeared in

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

's 2012 film ''

Wreck-It Ralph ''Wreck-It Ralph'' is a 2012 American animated comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It was directed by Rich Moore and produced by Clark Spencer, from a screenplay by Phil Johnston (filmmaker), Phil Johnston and Jennifer Lee ( ...

'' as Saitine, one of the video game villains who attends the Bad Anon self-help groups with Ralph ( John C. Reilly). Jarvis has also performed voiceovers for video games, beginning in 2007 as the role of The Chronicler in the '' Spyro the Dragon'' video game series. He also provided the voice of Admiral Zaal'Koris vas Qwib Qwib in '' Mass Effect 2'' (2010) and ''

Mass Effect 3 ''Mass Effect 3'' is a 2012 action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. The third major entry in the ''Mass Effect'' series and the final installment of the original trilogy, it was released in March 2012 for ...

'' (2012). Also in 2011, Jarvis also performed a voice-over part for the MMORPG '' Star Wars: The Old Republic''. Jarvis also voiced Alfred Pennyworth in the '' Batman: Arkham'' series of video games. He first voiced the character in the 2011 video game '' Batman: Arkham City'' and returned for the 2013 video game '' Batman: Arkham Origins'', the 2014 DC Universe animated movie '' Batman: Assault on Arkham'', and the 2015 video game '' Batman: Arkham Knight''. Jarvis read

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

' ''

A Tale of Two Cities ''A Tale of Two Cities'' is a historical novel published in 1859 by English author Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. The novel tells the story of the French Doctor Manette, his 18-year-long impr ...

'' for the Chivers Audio Books production on cassette, later released on CD by Barnes & Noble Audio Classics.

Personal life

Jarvis married Rosalind Ayres on 23 November 1974 in

Ealing Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...

; he has two sons by a previous marriage. He met Ayres when they played in ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' together; she played Ophelia. Together with his wife, Jarvis runs the radio production company "Jarvis & Ayres Productions", frequently used by BBC Radio 4. Jarvis was awarded the OBE in 2000. He has also published a book of memoirs titled ''Acting Strangely: A Funny Kind of Life'' ( hardback, paperback). Jarvis has homes in West Hollywood and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Other credits

*'' The War of the Worlds'' ( BBC Audiobooks) (1967) - Ogilvy (voice) *'' Star Wars: Return of the Jedi - The Original Radio Drama'' (radio series) (Episode: "Fast Friends") (1996) - Barada (voice) *'' Doctor Who: The Monthly Adventures'' - ''Jubilee'' (2003) - Nigel Rochester (voice) *'' Muffin the Mule'' (

s) (2005) -

Narrator Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deliver information to the ...

(voice) *'' Doctor Who: Target Novelisation Audiobooks'' (audiobooks) - '' Doctor Who and the Dinosaur Invasion'' (2007) - Narrator (voice) *'' Dr. No'' (radio play) (2008) -

Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer, best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., and his ...

(voice) *'' The Twilight Zone Radio Dramas'' (radio drama) (Episode: "Passage on the Lady Anne") (2009) - Alan Ransome (voice) *'' Goldfinger'' (radio play) (2010) - Ian Fleming (voice) *'' From Russia with Love'' (radio play) (2012) - Ian Fleming (voice) *'' On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (radio play) (2014) - Ian Fleming (voice) *'' Diamonds Are Forever'' (radio play) (2015) - Ian Fleming (voice) *'' Thunderball'' (radio play) (2016) - Ian Fleming (voice) *'' Moonraker'' (radio play) (2018) - Ian Fleming (voice) *'' Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves: The Radio Play'' (radio play) (2018–2020) -

(voice) *'' Live and Let Die'' (radio play) (2019) - Ian Fleming (voice) *'' Doctor Who: Target Novelisation Audiobooks'' (audiobooks) - '' Vengeance on Varos'' (2019) - Narrator (voice) *'' The Man with the Golden Gun'' (radio play) (2020) - Ian Fleming (voice) *''Dust'' (podcast series) (Episode: "Homecoming: Seat 29F") (2020) *''Sweeney Todd and the String of Pearls'' (podcast series) (2021) - Sweeney Todd

References

External links

*
''Guardian'' Q & A September 2007

''The Times'' May 2004
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jarvis, Martin 1941 births Living people Male actors from Cheltenham Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Audiobook narrators English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors English male video game actors English male voice actors Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Whitgift School Actors from the London Borough of Croydon Theatre World Award winners 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors People from South Norwood Male actors from Surrey