Michael Sheard

Michael Sheard
Sheard in 2003
Born	Michael Lawson Perkins (1938-06-18)18 June 1938 Aberdeen, Scotland
Died	31 August 2005(2005-08-31) (aged 67) Isle of Wight, England
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1971-2005
Spouse	Rosalind Moir ​ (m. 1961)​
Children	3

Michael Sheard (18 June 1938 – 31 August 2005) was a Scottish character actor who featured in many films and television programmes, and was known for playing villains. His most prominent television role was as strict deputy headmaster Maurice Bronson in the children's series Grange Hill, which he played between 1985 and 1989. He appeared as Admiral Ozzel in The Empire Strikes Back (1980).

Early life

Sheard was born Michael Lawson Perkins in Aberdeen, Scotland, the son of Donald Marriot Perkins, a church minister. He was educated at Aberdeen Grammar School. He trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and took his mother's maiden name as his stage name. During his national service Sheard was a Royal Air Force aircraftman.

Career

Sheard had a lengthy affiliation with science fiction, and appeared in six televised stories of the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, appearing with the First Doctor in The Ark (1966), the Third Doctor in The Mind of Evil (1971), the Fourth Doctor in both Pyramids of Mars (1975) (for which he later recorded a DVD commentary) and The Invisible Enemy (1977), the Fifth Doctor in Castrovalva (1982) and the Seventh Doctor in Remembrance of the Daleks (1988). He also worked with the Eighth Doctor in The Stones of Venice, a Doctor Who audio drama produced by Big Finish Productions. He was a regular guest at both Doctor Who and Star Wars conventions over the years in the U.S. and the UK.

Further to this, he had guest roles in Colditz (1972), On The Buses (1973), Cloud Burst (1974), Space: 1999 and the BBC's adaptation of the Lord Peter Wimsey story The Five Red Herrings (1975) and as Dr. Arnold Anderson in Crown Court (1976).

In 1978, he appeared in one episode ("Sleeping Partners", as the character Adderley) of the television series All Creatures Great and Small. Also in 1978 Sheard appeared as Merton, a forensics expert in an episode of the hard-hitting British police drama The Professionals, the episode entitled "When the Heat Cools Off".

In 1980 he appeared as Federation officer Klegg in "Powerplay" in episode 2 of series 3 of Blakes 7. In 1983, he played Herr Grunwald, the German manager of a building site, in the first series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.

Sheard portrayed Adolf Hitler five times in his career: in Rogue Male (1976), The Tomorrow People (1978), The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission (1985), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) and the documentary Secret History: Hitler of the Andes (2003). He also portrayed Heinrich Himmler three times, in The Death of Adolf Hitler (1973), The Bunker (1981) and Space (1985). Although Sheard never played Hermann Göring, he did play Göring's double in the 'Allo 'Allo! episode Hitler's Last Heil.

In 1980, he had a supporting role in Stephen Poliakoff's BBC television play Caught on a Train.

He appeared as Imperial Navy Admiral Ozzel in The Empire Strikes Back (1980), where George Lucas cited Ozzel's death by the force-choke stare by Darth Vader as his favourite movie death scene. Lucas told Sheard at the time that it was "the best screen death I've ever seen". Although Sheard initially regarded Star Wars as "just another part in a very busy actor's career", the role gained him wide recognition among fans and he appeared frequently at Star Wars conventions while an Admiral Ozzel action figure was released.

In February 2005, he played a small cameo role as the narrator in Star Wars the UK fan film Order of the Sith: Vengeance and its sequel Downfall - Order of the Sith, alongside Jeremy Bulloch and David Prowse. These British fan films were made in support of Save the Children.

Personal life

Sheard died of cancer on 31 August 2005, aged 67, at his home on the Isle of Wight, leaving his wife, Rosalind Moir, whom he married in 1961, and three children; two sons: Simon and Rupert and a daughter Susannah A few weeks earlier, on 9 August, he took part in a phone-in on LBCs Iain Lee show, and talked about his career in film and television.

Filmography

Main article: Michael Sheard filmography

• The McKenzie Break (1970) as Ingenieur-Offizier Unger
• Universal Soldier (1971) as Man (uncredited)
• Frenzy (1972) as Jim (uncredited)
• The Darwin Adventure (1972) as Man #1
• Super Bitch (1973) as Williamson (uncredited)
• England Made Me (1973) as Fromm
• Holiday on the Buses (1973) as Depot Manager
• Soft Beds, Hard Battles (1974) as New Military Governor (uncredited)
• The Hiding Place (1975) as Kapteyn
• The Sweeney - Hit and Run (1975) as Mr Penketh (headmaster)
• Erotic Inferno (1975) as Eric Gold
• Rogue Male (BBC Film) (1976) as Adolf Hitler
• Force 10 from Navarone (1978) as Sgt. Bauer
• Escape to Athena (1979) as Sergeant Mann
• The Riddle of the Sands (1979) as Böehme
• All Quiet on the Western Front (1979) as Paul's father
• The Empire Strikes Back (1980) as Admiral Ozzel
• Rough Cut (1980) as Man at Airport (uncredited)
• Green Ice (1981) as Jaap
• The Bunker (1981) as Himmler
• Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) as U-Boat Captain (uncredited)
• High Road to China (1983) as Charlie
• The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission (1985, TV film) as Adolf Hitler
• Murder Rap (1988) as Defense Counsel (uncredited)
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) as Adolf Hitler (uncredited)
• Doombeach (1989) as Headmaster
• The Darling Buds of May as Building Inspector (1992)
• Another Life (2001) as Mr. Justice Shearman

Bibliography

• Yes, Mr Bronson: Memoirs of a Bum Actor (ISBN 1-84024-007-5) published in 1997
• Yes, Admiral (ISBN 1-84024-103-9) published in 1999
• Yes, School's Out! (ISBN 90-76953-42-2) published in 2001
• Yes, It's Photographic! published in 2004

External links

• Michael Sheard at IMDb
• Bio at Ancestry.com - shows birth year as 1938
• Obit from The Independent also shows birth year as 1938
• Obituary: The Guardian shows incorrect birth year