Brian Blessed OBE

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English actor, television presenter and writer, known as PC 'Fancy' Smith in TV series Z Cars and Richard IV in Blackadder. He is easily recognised by his booming voice and loud laugh (both frequently impersonated by comedians everywhere).

Biography

Brian Blessed OBE is Notable.

Brian was born in 1936. He is the son of William Blessed and Hilda Wall.^[1] Brian's father was a coal worker, like his father before him but, as Brian found in his Who Do You Think You Are? episode, his ancestors moved about the country, one being a bookbinder in London and Portsmouth, and another a china and glass dealer in Brigg (Lincolnshire). ^{[2] [3]}

Between 1962 and 1966, Brian acted in the role of "PC 'Fancy' Smith" on the popular television series Z Cars. Later, he performed in such diverse roles as "Porthos", "King Mark of Cornwall", "Caesar Augustus" (in I, Claudius) and had roles in series such as The Avengers, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased), Blake's 7, Dr Who, and as "Lord Loxley" (father of Robin Hood) in the Hollywood film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

More unusual parts came as "Old Deuteronomy" and "Bustopher Jones" in the musical Cats.

In 1978, Brian married an English actress. The couple have one daughter (who is also an actress).

In 1993 and 1996, Brian climbed Mount Everest, reaching 28,200 ft and 25,200 ft, but unfortunately not reaching the summit. He has also climbed Aconcagua (the Andes) and Mount Kilimanjaro (the highest mountain in Africa).

Brian has played several roles in Shakespearean plays on stage and screen, together with more comic roles in Flash Gordon, The Black Adder, Minder, and as "Spiro" in My Family and Other Animals. In 1997, Brian played "Squire Western" in the BBC's version of Henry Fielding's Tom Jones.

Brian has also done voice-acting: such as "Boss Nass" in Star Wars Episode I, Disney's feature film Tarzan, and was the voice of Jean Valjean in an audio adaptation of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables. He was the original "Baron Bomburst" in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and is voice for satellite navigation made by TomTom. He was also the voice of "Father Christmas" in several episodes of The World of Gumball.

He has been awarded an honorary title by the Douglas Adams Society: "Shoutsperson". ^[4]

Brian was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2016 "for services to the arts and charity". ^[5]

In 2021, Brian is the voice of "Red Ivan" in the game Evil Genius 2: World Domination.

Brian Blessed lives with his wife, Hildegard, and several rescue dogs in Windlesham, Surrey, England.

Bibliography

• The Turquoise Mountain: Brian Blessed on Everest (1991)
• Dynamite Kid (1992)
• Nothing's Impossible (1994)
• To the Top of the World (1995)
• Quest for the Lost World (1999)
• Sooty (2013)
• Absolute Pandemonium (2015)
• The Panther in My Kitchen: My Wild Life with Animals (2017)

Sources

1. ↑ "England and Wales Birth Registration Index, 1837-2008," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVQ6-FQNM : 1 October 2014), Brian Blessed, 1936; from "England & Wales Births, 1837-2006," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing Birth Registration, Doncaster, Yorkshire, England, citing General Register Office, Southport, England.
2. ↑ "Who do you think you are? Brian Blessed traces Brigg & Winterton relatives on BBC1 tonight" Staff Reporter, Scunthorpe Telegraph, August 14, 2014 accessed 17 August 2021 Internet Archive Wayback Machine
3. ↑ "Brian Blessed", Who Do You Think You Are magazine online, accessed 17 August 2021 Who Do You Think You Are magazine online
4. ↑ University of York Douglas Adams Society, accessed 17 August 2021 University of York Douglas Adams Society Committee
5. ↑ London Gazette 2016

See Also:

• Wikipedia:Brian_Blessed
• WDYTYA Brian Blessed's episode on youtube in several sections

Acknowledgments

Blessed-4 was created by Richard Seddon through the import of Seddon.ged on Mar 10, 2015.