Tony Osoba (born 15 March 1947) is a Scottish actor best known for his role as Jim 'Jock' McClaren in the 1970s British sitcom ''

Porridge Porridge is a food made by heating or boiling ground, crushed or chopped starchy plants, typically grain, in milk or water. It is often cooked or served with added flavourings such as sugar, honey, (dried) fruit or syrup to make a sweet cereal, ...

'' alongside

Ronnie Barker Ronald William George Barker (25 September 1929 – 3 October 2005) was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as '' Porridge'', ''The Two Ronnies'', and ''Open All Hours''. ...

. He also guest starred in the first episode of the spin-off ''

Going Straight ''Going Straight'' is a BBC sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and starring Ronnie Barker and Richard Beckinsale. The programme was a direct spin-off to the sitcom ''Porridge'', which all four were involved in, with ...

''. Osoba was the first mixed-race Scottish actor to appear on primetime television when he appeared in the series. Since then, he has appeared twice in ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

'', first as Wesley McGregor in 1982, and secondly as Mike Baldwin's boss Peter Ingram for a few episodes in 1990, before the character was killed off. He also starred as Chas Jarvis in ''

Dempsey and Makepeace ''Dempsey and Makepeace'' is a British television crime drama made by LWT for ITV, created and produced by Ranald Graham. Lead roles were played by Michael Brandon (Lieutenant Dempsey) and Glynis Barber (Detective Makepeace), who later married e ...

''.

Early life

Born in

Maryhill Maryhill ( gd, Cnoc Màiri) is an area of the City of Glasgow in Scotland. Maryhill is a former burgh. Maryhill stretches over along Maryhill Road. The far north west of the area is served by Maryhill railway station. History Hew Hill, t ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, he had an early ambition to design cars but when he realised that the employment opportunities in that field were limited, he decided to become an actor after his

Highers In the Scottish secondary education system, the Higher () is one of the national school-leaving certificate exams and university entrance qualifications of the Scottish Qualifications Certificate (SQC) offered by the Scottish Qualifications ...

and trained at the

Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland ( gd, Conservatoire Rìoghail na h-Alba), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama ( gd, Acadamaidh Rìoghail Ciùil is Dràma na h-Alba) is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and ...

. He then joined a theatre company in Richmond, toured abroad and was a member of the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

Career

His other television roles include Det. Sgt. Charles 'Chas' Jarvis in ''

'' (1984–1986)Tony's on right side of the law
''Glasgow Evening Times'', 13 September 1986 and both Wesley McGregor and Peter Ingram in ''

'' (1982 and 1990). He has also appeared in '' Space: 1999'' (1976), '' The Professionals'' (1978), ''

Charles Endell Esq ''Charles Endell Esquire'' is a British comedy-drama series that is a spin-off of the series '' Budgie'', with the role of Endell continuing to be played by Iain Cuthbertson. Due to an ITV technicians' strike which took the network completely ...

'' (1979), ''

Minder A minder is the person assigned to guide or escort a visitor, or to provide protection to somebody, or to otherwise assist or take care of something, i.e. a person who " minds". Government-appointed persons to accompany foreign visitors are of ...

'' (1980), ''

The Flame Trees of Thika ''The Flame Trees of Thika'' is a British television serial of seven 50-minute episodes made by Euston Films for Thames Television in 1981. It was adapted by John Hawkesworth from the 1959 book of the same title by Elspeth Huxley, and is set i ...

'' (1981), '' Tales of the Unexpected'' (1982), '' Bergerac'' (1983), '' Between the Lines'' (1994), ''

Taggart ''Taggart'' is a Scottish detective fiction television programme created by Glenn Chandler, who wrote many of the episodes, and made by STV Studios for the ITV network. It originally ran as the miniseries "Killer" from 6 until 20 September 19 ...

'' (1999) and ''

Dinotopia ''Dinotopia'' is a series of illustrated fantasy books, created by author and illustrator James Gurney. It is set in the titular Dinotopia, an isolated island inhabited by shipwrecked humans and Sapience, sapient dinosaurs who have learned to H ...

'' (2002) as well as three appearances in ''

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 ...

'' in the stories "

Destiny of the Daleks ''Destiny of the Daleks'' is the first serial of the 17th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 1 September to 22 September 1979. The story introduces ...

" (1979), " Dragonfire" (1987) and "

Kill the Moon "Kill the Moon" is the seventh episode of the eighth series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 4 October 2014. The episode was written by Peter Harness and directed by Paul W ...

" (2014). His film career includes roles in ''

Pure as a Lily ''Pure as a Lily'' ( it, Come una rosa al naso) is a 1976 Italian comedy film directed by Franco Rossi and starring Vittorio Gassman. Cast * Vittorio Gassman - Anthony M. Wilson * Ornella Muti - Lucia Mantuso * Madeleine Hinde - Vanessa Hampto ...

'' (1976), the film version of ''

'' (US: ''Doing Time'', 1979), ''

Game for Vultures ''Game for Vultures'' is a 1979 British thriller film starring Richard Harris, Joan Collins and Richard Roundtree. It was directed by James Fargo and based on a novel by Michael Hartmann (judge), Michael Hartmann set during the Rhodesian Bush War ...

'' (1979), and ''

Who Dares Wins ''Who Dares Wins'' (Latin: ''Qui audet adipiscitur''; el, Ο Τολμών Νικά, ''O tolmón niká''; french: Qui ose gagne; it, Chi osa vince; Portuguese: ''Quem ousa vence''; German: ''Wer wagt, gewinnt'') is a motto made popular in the ...

'' (1982). In 2005, Osoba starred as the Kralahome in a UK touring production of ''

The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the childre ...

''. Later credits include the 2007 film Tanner, as Superintendent Smith in ''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera ''Brookside (TV series), Brookside''. Since 2005, episodes have been aired on ...

'' and Charlie Dokes in ''

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 on ...

''. In 2011 Osoba made a brief appearance in an episode of ''

The Shadow Line ''The Shadow-Line'' is a short novel based at sea by Joseph Conrad; it is one of his later works, being written from February to December 1915. It was first published in 1916 as a serial in New York's ''Metropolitan Magazine'' (September—Oct ...

''.BBC Two Programmes – The Shadow Line, Episode 2
/ref> Osoba has also appeared in one radio series, ''

Space Force A space force is a military branch of a nation's armed forces that conducts military operations in outer space and space warfare. The world's first space force was the Russian Space Forces, established in 1992 as an independent military service. ...

'' (1984–1985), as Loderick Sincere.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Osoba, Tony 1947 births Living people Black British male actors Scottish male television actors Scottish male soap opera actors Scottish male musical theatre actors Male actors from Glasgow People educated at Eastwood High School, Newton Mearns Alumni of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland People from Maryhill Scottish people of Nigerian descent