Graham Cole OBE (born Graham Coleman-Smith on 16 March 1952) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

Early life

Cole was born in

Willesden Willesden () is an area of northwest London, situated 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Charing Cross. It is historically a parish in the county of Middlesex that was incorporated as the Municipal Borough of Willesden in 1933, and has forme ...

in 1952 to Victor and Freda Coleman-Smith (née Coleman), the youngest of three children. He was part of the film crew of '' A Clockwork Orange'', although he didn't meet the stars. It was when he took part in a staff pantomime, that his colleagues persuaded him to take up a career in showbusiness.

Career

He appeared in numerous episodes of '' Doctor Who'' in the early 1980s, often in uncredited roles, such as Marshman and then a

Cyberman The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The Cybermen are a species of space-faring cyborgs who often forcefully and painfully convert human beings ( ...

in ''Earthshock''. He has also played Melkur in '' The Keeper of Traken'' and finally a Jacondan in '' The Twin Dilemma''. He also made a guest appearance in the final series of

Sooty and Co ''Sooty & Co.'' is a British children's television series, created and presented by Matthew Corbett, produced by Granada Television, and aired on ITV (TV network), ITV from 6 September 1993 to 14 December 1998. It is the sequel to the child ...

as a detective called Maurice in the episode "Delgrub" and in ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses....'' is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas ...

'' as a Spanish customs official. His first film appearance as a '00' agent in the

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

film ''

The Living Daylights ''The Living Daylights'' is a 1987 spy film, the fifteenth entry in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first of two to star Timothy Dalton as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by John Glen, the film's ...

'' in 1987. Cole then appeared in '' Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade''. As one of Walter Donovan's henchmen, who escort Indiana Jones to their boss's New York apartment. https://twitter.com/grahamcoleact/status/368483388698546177?lang=en-GB He is best known as PC Tony Stamp in the ITV police drama ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused o ...

'', a role he played initially as a recurring character from 1984, and then as a regular from 1988 until 2009. Cole appeared in more episodes of the programme than any other actor, appearing in 1,202 episodes. He had previously spent 12 years in Repertory Theatre, and musicals. He presented and narrated the police video programme '' Police Stop!''. He appeared regularly on ''

Noel's House Party ''Noel's House Party'' is a BBC light entertainment series that was hosted by Noel Edmonds. Set in a large house in the fictional village of Crinkley Bottom, leading to much innuendo, it ran from 23 November 1991 to 26 March 2000 on BBC One, a ...

'' in sketches with Andrew Paul. Cole was gunged on the show, which was arranged by his mother-in-law. He has also made a guest appearance in ITV series '' Law & Order: UK'' as a barman in one episode. GColePanto

Cole is also a singer. In his early career Cole appeared as the Emperor of China in a record-breaking 1978/79 season of ''Aladdin'' at the Grand Theatre in Swansea. Other pantomime appearances have included the role of "Beast" in ''Beauty & The Beast'' at the Woodville Halls in Gravesend,

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. To date he has appeared in 36 pantomimes. He played ''Scrooge'' to critical acclaim at Garrick Theatre Lichfield in 2012 and Abanazer for Theater Royal Norwich, 2013–2014. He Played General Waverley In Irving Berlin's ''White Christmas'' at The Festival Theatre Edinburgh. He then returned to the role in 2015/16 to record breaking houses at The Dominion Theatre London. Cole starred in the gangster-horror film '' Evil Never Dies'' in 2014, as DI David Bracken, a film that also starred

Katy Manning Catherine Ann "Katy" Manning (born 14 October 1946) is an English- Australian actress, television presenter, voice artist and former model. Although she has made many appearances on both screen and stage, Manning is best known for her part as t ...

, P.H. Moriarty and former ''The Bill'' colleague

Tony Scannell Thomas Anthony Scannell (14 August 1945 – 26 May 2020) was an Irish actor, known for his role as DS Ted Roach in ITV's ''The Bill''. Career Scannell's debut on ''The Bill'' was on 23 October 1984, in an episode called "A Friend in Need". In ...

. Cole made appearances in '' Doctors'' (2015) and '' Holby City'' (2018), before starring in the romantic-drama film ''

23 Walks ''23 Walks'' is a 2020 British romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Morrison. It stars Alison Steadman, Dave Johns and Graham Cole. It was released on 30 July 2020 in New Zealand and is scheduled to release on 25 September 20 ...

'' in 2020 with

Alison Steadman Alison Steadman (born 26 August 1946) is an English actress. She received the 1991 National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress for the Mike Leigh film '' Life Is Sweet'' and the 1993 Olivier Award for Best Actress for her role as M ...

Personal life

Cole is a member of the showbusiness charity the

Grand Order of Water Rats The Grand Order of Water Rats is a British entertainment industry fraternity and charitable organisation based in London. Founded in 1889 by the music hall comedians Joe Elvin and Jack Lotto, the order is known for its high-profile membership an ...

and held the title ''King Rat'' in 2009. He is President of the National Holiday Fund, which takes sick and disabled children to

Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, th ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. He has been a patron of ChildLine for over 25 years and is the president of Greater London South East Scout County. Cole supports emergency service charities with his patronage. He is a patron of the Orphans' Gift Fund South East London Boroughs of the Constables Branch Board of the Metropolitan Police and of the charit
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He is a Voluntary Police Cadets ambassador. Cole was awarded an OBE in 2010 for his continuing work with charities. Cole is married and has two children. He was the subject of '' This Is Your Life'' in 1997 when he was surprised by

Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television newsreader and host of programmes such as '' Crackerjack'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', ''This is Your Life'', '' Strange but True?'' and ''Antiques Ro ...

Filmography

Film

Television

*'' The Canal Children'' - ''Poor Man's Morris'' (1976) as Mick Murphy *'' Secret Army'' - ''Ring of Rosies'' (1979) as German Soldier in cafe (uncredited) *'' Secret Army'' - ''Just Light the Blue Touch-Paper'' (1979) as Guerilla (uncredited) *''

Citizen Smith ''Citizen Smith'' is a British television sitcom written by John Sullivan, first broadcast from 1977 to 1980. It starred Robert Lindsay as Walter Henry "Wolfie" Smith, a young Marxist "urban guerrilla" in Tooting, south London, who is attempti ...

'' - ''Prisoners'' (1980) (uncredited) *'' Kessler'' (1981) as Hotel surveillance man (uncredited) *

(Long Running TV Drama) PC Tony Stamp (1984-2009)

Doctor Who

*''

The Leisure Hive ''The Leisure Hive'' is the first serial of the 18th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 August to 20 September 1980. It marks the return of John ...

'' (1980) - Squash Player (uncredited) *'' Full Circle'' (1980) - Marshman (uncredited) *'' The Keeper of Traken'' (1981) - Melkur (uncredited) *'' Kinda'' (1982) - Kinda (uncredited) *''

Earthshock ''Earthshock'' is the sixth serial of the 19th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts on BBC1 from 8 to 16 March 1982. This serial marks the final regular appe ...

'' (1982) - Cyberman (uncredited) *''

Time-Flight ''Time-Flight'' is the seventh and final serial of the 19th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts on BBC1 from 22 to 30 March 1982. The serial is set at the ...

'' (1982) - Melkur (uncredited) *''

The Five Doctors ''The Five Doctors'' is a special feature-length episode of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', produced in celebration of the programme's 20th anniversary. It had its world premiere in the United States, on the Chicago ...

'' (1983) - Cyberman (uncredited) *''

Resurrection of the Daleks ''Resurrection of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the 21st season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in two weekly parts on BBC1 between 8 February and 15 February 1984. The serial ...

'' (1984) - Crewmember (uncredited) *'' The Twin Dilemma'' (1984) - Jacondan (uncredited)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, Graham English male film actors English male soap opera actors People from Willesden 1952 births Living people Officers of the Order of the British Empire