Murray Melvin
Murray Melvin ( born November 30, 1932 in London ) is a British stage and character actor in film, television and theater. In 1962, he won the Palme d'Or for Best Actor at the International Film Festival in Cannes for his role in the British film drama A Taste of Honey.
Life and career
Murray Melvin, born 1932, son of Hugh Victor Melvin and Maisie Winifred Driscoll in London, has learned his way as an actor from the bottom up. Melvin yet joined the Joan Littlewood Theatre Workshop company at the Theatre Royal Stratford East in as a student.
He appeared in the first episode of the popular British television series The Avengers and melon in 1960.
He became known in 1961 for his role as Rita Tushinghams friend in Tony Richardson's adaptation of Shelagh Delaney's A Taste of Honey Drama. In 1962 he was awarded in Cannes for this representation, the Palme d'Or for Best Actor at the International Film Festival in Cannes.
Murray Melvin had more film appearances in 1962 in Lewis Gilbert's historical drama The rebellion, in 1966 as a slightly bizarre police assistant Aimes in Jack Smights caper comedy The gentleman Squeaker, next to Warren Beatty, Susannah York, Clive Revill and Eric Porter and regular appearances in the films of director Ken Russell. He had in 1975 an important role as Reverend Samuel Runt in Stanley Kubrick's novel adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray Barry Lyndon. He frequently appeared in literary adaptations, adventure and history materials. - Melvin has also played in three film productions directed by Peter Medak In A Day in the Death of Joe Egg ( 1970), The Krays (1990) and Give it to him, Chris! (1991).
In 1998, he appeared in a Christmas special episode of the BBC's Jonathan Creek The Black Canary.
In 2004, he appeared as Monsieur Reyer in the film adaptation of the musical The Phantom of the Opera directed by Joel Schumacher.
Melvin returned to the Theatre Royal back as a trustee and archivist, and he is known in this role as a learned and popular film historians - for example on the BFI DVD release of the Bill Douglas Trilogy.
Melvin is considered as a versatile character actor and prolific theater actor.
Awards
Filmography (selection)
- 2006: The Art of the Theatre Workshop, compiled and introduced by Murray Melvin, Publisher: Theatre Communications, 140 pages, ISBN 978-1840026917