Gregory de Polnay (born 17 October 1943) is an English-born actor, director and voice teacher who is noted for his work on stage, radio and television.

Career

Born in London, in 1943, the son of Peter de Polnay and Margaret Mitchell Banks, he was probably best remembered for his role as Det. Sgt. Mike Brewer in ''

Dixon of Dock Green ''Dixon of Dock Green'' was a BBC police procedural television series about daily life at a fictional London police station, with the emphasis on petty crime, successfully controlled through common sense and human understanding. It ran from 19 ...

'', de Polnay was also a regular in the Australian

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

series, ''

The Group The Group may refer to: Film and television * ''The Group'' (Australian TV series), 1971 situation comedy produced by Cash Harmon Television for ATN7 * ''The Group'' (Canadian TV series), 1968–70 music variety on CBC Television * ''The Group ...

'' (1971). De Polnay's credits include: '' Space: 1999'', ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' (the serial ''

The Robots of Death ''The Robots of Death'' is the fifth serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 29 January to 19 February 1977. In the serial, the Four ...

''), ''

Poldark ''Poldark'' is a series of historical novels by Winston Graham, published from 1945 to 1953 and continued from 1973 to 2002. The first novel, '' Ross Poldark'', was named for the protagonist of the series. The novel series was adapted twice fo ...

'', '' Enemy at the Door'', '' Tenko'', '' The Fourth Arm'', '' One by One'', ''

Howards' Way ''Howards' Way'' is a television drama series produced by BBC Birmingham and transmitted on BBC1 between 1 September 1985 and 25 November 1990. The series deals with the personal and professional lives of the wealthy yachting and business comm ...

'' and ''

Boon Boon may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Boon (game), a trick-taking card game * ''Boon'' (novel), a 1915 satirical work by H. G. Wells * ''Boon'' (TV series), a British television series starring Michael Elphick * The Ultimate Boo ...

''. De Polnay has been an actor, director and voice teacher for nearly forty years, working in all aspects of the theatre with several West End credits to his name and appearing with the RSC in his own production of ''You Can't Shut Out The Human Voice'' featuring

Peggy Ashcroft Dame Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft (22 December 1907 – 14 June 1991), known professionally as Peggy Ashcroft, was an English actress whose career spanned more than 60 years. Born to a comfortable middle-class family, Ashcroft was deter ...

and

Ben Kingsley Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning five decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, and two ...

. He also has over 100 TV appearances and 350 radio broadcasts to his name. Due to an accident sustained while playing Malvolio in ''Twelfth Night'' at the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, the USA in 1987, de Polnay retrained as a voice specialist at the

Royal Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama was founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as The Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for young actors and other students. It became a ...

, where he gained the Advanced Diploma in Voice Studies and later on an MA at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

in Text and Performance Studies. Whilst being Head of Voice at the Drama Centre, London and at LAMDA, he has been a prominent member of staff at several major drama schools and has lectured on 'Language and Style' in the USA, Canada and South Africa. During the past decade, de Polnay has directed twenty-one Jacobean and Restoration plays for

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Senat ...

. He was a drama advisor for the BBC World Service Classical Drama Series and has adapted several plays for the BBC World Service. When not directing, de Polnay works for several organizations in the field of public speaking and communication skills, including his own business GdeP Associates Ltd in London. He coaches several top TV and sports presenters. de Polnay also works extensively for RADA in Business providing communication and presentation skills training for a wide variety of business organizations. He has been appointed Director of the RADA Shakespeare Certificate Scheme.

References

External links

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Greg de Polnay , GdeP Associates Ltd.Gregory de Polnay
at Theatricalia 1943 births Alumni of King's College London Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama English male television actors Living people Male actors from London {{UK-screen-actor-stub