Peter Robert McEnery (born 21 February 1940) is a retired English stage and film actor.

Early life

McEnery was born in

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield. Walsall is th ...

, Staffordshire, to Charles and Ada Mary (née Brinson) McEnery. He was educated at

Ellesmere College (''Striving for one's country'') , established = 1879 , song = ''Jerusalem'' , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding schoolDay School , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

. His younger brothers are actor

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

and the photographer David.

Career

McEnery was notably featured in ''

Victim Victim(s) or The Victim may refer to: People * Crime victim * Victim, in psychotherapy, a posited role in the Karpman drama triangle model of transactional analysis Films and television * ''The Victim'' (1916 film), an American silent film by ...

'', a 1961 British neo noir suspense film directed by Basil Dearden in which McEnery plays Barrett, a young working-class gay man who falls prey to blackmailers after he and the title character are photographed in an intimate embrace he film's makers claim the older man was merely comforting the younger one who was in tears; the whole premise of the film was that there was no actual intimacy McEnery was also recognized for having given Hayley Mills her first grown-up screen kiss in the 1964 film ''

The Moon-Spinners ''The Moon-Spinners'' is a 1964 American mystery film starring Hayley Mills, Eli Wallach and Peter McEnery in a story about a jewel thief hiding on the island of Crete. Produced by Walt Disney Productions, the film was based upon a 1962 suspense ...

''. In 1966 he took the lead in the

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

live action adventure film, '' The Fighting Prince of Donegal''. He played Edwin Clayhanger in the television dramatisation of the novels by

Arnold Bennett Enoch Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 – 27 March 1931) was an English author, best known as a novelist. He wrote prolifically: between the 1890s and the 1930s he completed 34 novels, seven volumes of short stories, 13 plays (some in collaboratio ...

with support from

Janet Suzman Dame Janet Suzman, (born 9 February 1939) is a South African-born British actress who enjoyed a successful early career in the Royal Shakespeare Company, later replaying many Shakespearean roles, among others, on TV. In her first film, ''Nichol ...

Harry Andrews Harry Stewart Fleetwood Andrews, CBE (10 November 1911 – 6 March 1989) was an English actor known for his film portrayals of tough military officers. His performance as Regimental Sergeant Major Wilson in ''The Hill'' (1965) alongside Sean ...

and

Clive Swift Clive Walter Swift (9 February 1936 – 1 February 2019) was an English actor and songwriter. A classically trained actor, his stage work included performances with the Royal Shakespeare Company, but he was best known to television viewers for h ...

. As an actor for the Royal Shakespeare Company he played the title role in Ron Daniel's 1979 production of ''

Pericles, Prince of Tyre ''Pericles, Prince of Tyre'' is a Jacobean play written at least in part by William Shakespeare and included in modern editions of his collected works despite questions over its authorship, as it was not included in the First Folio. It was p ...

'' at The Other Place and played several roles in the 1982 epic production of ''

Nicholas Nickleby ''Nicholas Nickleby'' or ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby'' (or also ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, Containing a Faithful Account of the Fortunes, Misfortunes, Uprisings, Downfallings, and Complete Career of the ...

'' for the same company. In 1981 he played

Oberon Oberon () is a king of the fairies in medieval and Renaissance literature. He is best known as a character in William Shakespeare's play ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'', in which he is King of the Fairies and spouse of Titania, Queen of the Fairi ...

in the

BBC Television Shakespeare The ''BBC Television Shakespeare'' is a series of British television adaptations of the plays of William Shakespeare, created by Cedric Messina and broadcast by BBC Television. Transmitted in the UK from 3 December 1978 to 27 April 1985, it ...

production of '' A Midsummer Night's Dream''. Another notable stage role was that of the surgeon Treves in the National Theatre's 1980 production of ''

The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890), often erroneously called John Merrick, was an English man known for having severe deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "the Elephant Man" and then we ...

''.

Personal life

McEnery married Julie Peasgood in 1978. They met in 1975 when she played a maid called Ada in the ''Clayhanger'' television series in which McEnery starred. They later divorced. Their daughter

Kate Kate name may refer to: People and fictional characters * Kate (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname * Gyula Káté (born 1982), Hungarian amateur boxer * Lauren Kate (born 1981), American autho ...

, born in 1981, is also an actress.

Filmography

* '' Beat Girl'' (1960) - Tony * ''

Tunes of Glory ''Tunes of Glory'' is a 1960 British drama film directed by Ronald Neame, based on the 1956 novel and screenplay by James Kennaway. The film is a "dark psychological drama" focusing on events in a wintry Scottish Highland regimental barracks i ...

'' (1960) - 2nd Lieutenant David MacKinnon * ''

'' (1961) - Jack 'Boy' Barrett * ''

'' (1964) - Mark Camford * '' The Game Is Over'' (1966) - Maxime Saccard * '' The Fighting Prince of Donegal'' (1966) - "Red" Hugh O'Donnell * ''

I Killed Rasputin ''I Killed Rasputin'' (french: J'ai tué Raspoutine) is a 1967 Italo- Franco biographical film directed by Robert Hossein. Gert Fröbe stars as the main subject, Grigori Rasputin. It is based on the work ''Lost Splendor'' by Felix Yusupov, a nobl ...

'' (1967) -

Felix Yusupov Prince Felix Felixovich Yusupov, Count Sumarokov-Elston (russian: Князь Фе́ликс Фе́ликсович Юсу́пов, Граф Сумаро́ков-Эльстон, Knyaz' Féliks Féliksovich Yusúpov, Graf Sumarókov-El'ston; – ...

* '' The Other People'' (1968) - Peter * '' Negatives'' (1968) - Theo * '' Better a Widow'' (1968) - Tom Proby * '' The Adventures of Gerard'' (1970) - Col. Etienne Gerard (Hussars of Conflans) * ''

Entertaining Mr Sloane ''Entertaining Mr Sloane'' is a three-act play written in 1963 by the English playwright Joe Orton. It was first produced in London at the New Arts Theatre on 6 May 1964 and transferred to the West End's Wyndham's Theatre on 29 June 1964. Plo ...

'' (1970) - Mr Sloane * '' Atlantic Wall'' (1970) - Jeff * '' Tales That Witness Madness'' (1973) - Timothy (segment "Penny Farthing") * '' Footprints on the Moon'' (1975) - Henry * '' The Cat and the Canary'' (1978) - Charlie Wilder * ''Lucky Punch'' (1996) - Flaherty

Television

* '' The Clayhanger Family'' (1976) - Edwin Clayhanger * '' The Aphrodite Inheritance'' (1979, TV Mini-Series, BBC) - David Collier * ''The Hammer House of Horror'' (1980, Episode: "The Mark of Satan") - Edwyn * '' A Midsummer Night's Dream'' (1981, TV Movie, Oberon, BBC) - Oberon * '' The Mistress'' (1985, BBC) - Luke #2 (1987) * '' The Collectors'' (1986, BBC) - Harry Caines * ''

Inspector Morse Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse, GM, is the eponymous fictional character in the series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter. On television, he appears in the 33-episode drama series '' Inspector Morse'' (1987–2000), ...

'' (1988, ITV) - Donald Phillipson

References

External links

* 1940 births Living people People from Walsall Actors from Staffordshire English male film actors English male television actors Royal Shakespeare Company members {{UK-screen-actor-stub