Oliver Tobias
Oliver Tobias | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Oliver Tobias (1969) | |
| Born | Oliver Tobias Freitag 6 August 1947 Zürich, Switzerland |
| Years active | 1968 – present |
| Spouse | Arabella Zamoyska (2001 – present) |
Oliver Tobias Freitag (born 6 August 1947), known professionally as Oliver Tobias, is a Swiss-born UK-based film, stage, and television actor and director.[1]
Biography
Born in Zürich, Switzerland, he is the son of the Austrian-Swiss actor Robert Freitag and the German actress Maria Becker. He came to the United Kingdom at the age of eight and trained at East 15 Acting School, London. In 1968, he appeared in the original London production of Hair, playing the prime rebel role of Berger.[2] The following year, he starred in, directed, and choreographed the rock opera in Amsterdam and, in 1970, directed a production in Tel Aviv.
Film career
Tobias's first role was in the feature film Romance of a Horsethief, co-starring with Yul Brynner, Serge Gainsbourg and Eli Wallach.[3] He then co-starred with Charlotte Rampling in the Jacobean tragedy 'Tis Pity She's a Whore, a film directed by Giuseppe Patroni Griffi. He became popular as Arthur in the TV series Arthur of the Britons (1972). Peter Weir then directed him in the TV series Luke's Kingdom.[4]
Many other successful films followed, including The Stud in 1978 in which he co-starred with Joan Collins, helping to rekindle her career. In 1981, he starred in the British television series Dick Turpin's Greatest Adventure, where he played the character Noll Bridger, a Colonial North American. Tobias also starred in Smuggler (1981) a children's drama series, set in Cornwall in 1801. Oliver also appeared as The Devil in the promotional video for Ultravox's 1982 hit "Hymn".
In 1991, Tobias starred alongside Charles Gray in the sci-fi movie "Firestar – First Contact" for Ice International Films. In 1996, Tobias played Rebecque, an aide to the Prince of Orange (Paul Bettany), in Sharpe's Waterloo. In 1998, he played Bassa Selim in Mozart in Turkey. In 2000, he starred in the West End musical La Cava. Three years later, he portrayed Percival Brown in the 50th-anniversary production of The Boy Friend and the next year toured in the rock musical Footloose. In 2005, he finished shooting the film An Airfield in England. He has been acting in a variety of roles for German and Swiss TV and has recently reprised the role of Bassa Selim in Mozart's Seraglio at the Teatro Lirico in Cagliari, Italy. Tobias is famous for his voiceover work and was the narrator on the opening track of DJ Shadow's 2006 album The Outsider.
Personal life
In 2001, he married Arabella Zamoyska, with whom he has two boys.
Film and television
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Arthur? Arthur! | Peter 'Bobo' Jackson |
| 1970 | Romance of a Horsethief | Zanvill Kradnik |
| 1971 | 'Tis Pity She's a Whore | Giovanni |
| 1973 | The God King | General Miara |
| 1978 | The Stud | Tony Blake |
| 1979 | Arabian Adventure | Prince Hasan |
| 1979 | A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square | Foxy |
| 1983 | The Wicked Lady | Kit Locksby |
| 1986 | Operation Nam (Cobra Mission) | Richard Wagner |
| 1986 | Johann Strauss: The King Without a Crown | Johann Strauss |
| 1993 | Nexus | |
| 1994 | Broken Lullaby | |
| 1994 | Vendetta | Colonel de Piemonte |
| 1994 | Savage Hearts | Country Gent |
| 1997 | Breeders | Police Lt. Moore |
| 1997 | Darkness Falls | The Money Dealer |
| 1998 | The Brylcreem Boys | Hans Jorg Wolff |
| 1998 | Mozart in Turkey | Bassa Selim |
| 1999 | Grizzly Falls | Genet |
| 2003 | Half-Empty | Lead |
| 2003 | Method | Teddy |
| 2005 | An Airfield in England | Writer/Director |
| 2015 | Dad's Army | Wilhelm Canaris |
| Year | Television Series | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1972–1973 | Arthur of the Britons | King Arthur |
| 1974 | Luke's Kingdom | Luke Firbeck |
| 1977 | Jesus of Nazareth | Joel |
| 1980 | Smuggler | Jack Vincent |
| 1985 | Robin of Sherwood | Bertrand de Nivelle |
| 1985 | The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | Captain Croker |
| 1986 | Mountain Men: A Dangerous Kind of Love | Melchior Anderegg |
| 1986 | Adventurer | Jack Vincent |
| 1988 | Boon | |
| 1989 | Der Schattenspieler | |
| 1992–1993 | Flash - Der Fotoreporter | Flash |
| 1992 | Glückliche Reise | Guest Star |
| 1992 | Donauprinzessin | Rick Reimers |
| 1993 | Das Traumschiff | Guest Star |
| 1993 | Eurocops | Crook |
| 1995 | The Knock II | Alan Montfort |
| 1996 | Sharpe's Waterloo | Colonel Rebecque |
| 1997 | Real Women | Guest Star |
| 1998 | Klinik unter Palmen | Mexican Surgeon |
| 1999 | Der Bestseller | Miguel Gonzales |
| 2002 | Holby City | |
| 2005 | Unter weißen Segeln | Yussuf Arazi |
| 2006 | Mord in bester Gesellschaft | Comissario Santa Cruz |
| 2006 | Abschiedsmorgen | Father |
| 2008 | Hunkeler macht Sachen | Thomas Garzoni |
References
- ^ Editorial Staff (4 February 2002). "20 Questions with Oliver Tobias". WhatsOnStage.com, Inc. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
- ^ Tobias, Oliver (7 January 2011). "Stage". Oliver Tobias – The Official Website. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
- ^ "Romance of a Horsethief (1971)". Turner Classic Movies. Time Warner Company. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
- ^ Luke's Kingdom. Australian Women's Weekly. 22 May 1974. p. 24. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
- 1947 births
- Living people
- English male film actors
- English male stage actors
- English male television actors
- Swiss male film actors
- Swiss male stage actors
- Swiss male television actors
- Swiss emigrants to the United Kingdom
- People from Zürich
- Waldorf school alumni
- Swiss people of Austrian descent
- Swiss people of German descent
- English people of Austrian descent
- English people of German descent
- Male actors from London
- 20th-century English actors