William A. Murphy (born 14 February 1963), better known as Bill Murphy, is an Irish theatre and screen actor, writer and producer. He is known in 2022 for his role as Øgda in '' Vikings: Valhalla''. He has appeared in films such as '' Ordinary Decent Criminal'' (2000), ''

My Brother's War ''My Brother's War'' (also known as ''Flashpoint'') is a 1997 American film directed by and starring James Brolin. It was filmed in Ireland for Concorde Anois. Plot In Northern Ireland, brothers Gerry and Liam are members of the Provisional Ir ...

'' (1997), ''

Criminal Affairs ''Criminal Affairs'' is a 1997 American thriller film. It was shot in Ireland at Roger Corman's studios near Galway. Cast *Louis Mandylor as Clint Barker * James Marshall as Mark * Renee Allman as Robin * Bill Murphy as Sheriff Madsen Production ...

'' (1997) and '' Moving Target'' (2000). He has also had roles in TV series such as ''Jack Taylor'' (2010) and '' Titanic: Blood and Steel'' (2012), and he also portrayed Nick Barret on the

RTÉ One RTÉ One ( ga, RTÉ a hAon) is an Irish free-to-air flagship television channel owned and operated by Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). It is the most-popular and most-watched television channel in the country and was launched as ''Telefís ...

soap opera ''

Fair City ''Fair City'' is an Irish television soap opera which has been broadcast on RTÉ One since 1989. Produced by the public service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), it first aired on Monday, 18 September 1989. It has won several awa ...

'' in 2003. He has had roles in theatre productions of ''Once'' (2015–2017), '' The Country Girls'' (2019), and ''Joyce's Women'' (2022). In 2022 he wrote, produced and starred in the short film ''Lily's Theme.''

Early life and education

Murphy was born William A. Murphy in

Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the c ...

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns ar ...

. He began his career in Cork while training with the Irish Opera Repertory Company before moving to

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

to continue his training with the Focus Theatre.

Career

Feature films

Murphy's feature film credits include ''

'' (1997) starring

Louis Mandylor Louis Mandylor (born Elias Theodosopoulos; 13 September 1966) is an Australian film and television actor. Mandylor played Nick Portokalos in '' My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' (2002), a role he reprised in the sequel '' My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2'' ...

and James Marshall, ''

'' (1997) starring

Josh Josh is a masculine given name, frequently a diminutive ( hypocorism) of the given names Joshua or Joseph, though since the 1970s, it has increasingly become a full name on its own. It may refer to: People A–J * "Josh", an early pseudonym o ...

and

James Brolin James Brolin (, born Craig Kenneth Bruderlin; July 18, 1940) is an American actor. Brolin has won two Golden Globes and an Emmy. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on August 27, 1998. He is the father of actor Josh Brolin. He ...

, '' Ordinary Decent Criminal'' (2000) starring

Kevin Spacey Kevin Spacey Fowler (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, obtaining supporting roles before gaining a leading man status in film and television. Spacey has received various accolade ...

Linda Fiorentino Clorinda "Linda" Fiorentino (born March 9, 1958 or 1960) is an American former actress. Fiorentino made her screen debut with a leading role in the 1985 coming-of-age drama film '' Vision Quest'', followed that same year with a lead role in the ...

and

Colin Farrell Colin James Farrell (; born 31 May 1976) is an Irish actor. A leading man in projects across various genres in both blockbuster and independent films since the 2000s, he has received numerous accolades including a Golden Globe Award. ''The ...

, ''Moving Target'' (2000) starring

Don "The Dragon" Wilson Donald Glen Wilson (born September 10, 1954), nicknamed "The Dragon", is an American martial artist, film actor, and former professional kickboxer. An 11-time world champion who scored 47 knockouts in four decades, he has been called by the STAR ...

, and ''The Cabin'' (2011) starring

Steven Brand Steven Brand (born 26 June 1969) is a Scottish actor. His feature debut was ''The Scorpion King'' (2002), where he portrayed Memnon. He has had many guest appearances on television series, and in 2015, Brand was nominated Best Guest Starring R ...

and

Lea Thompson Lea Katherine Thompson (born May 31, 1961) is an American actress and director. She is best known for her role as Lorraine Baines-McFly in the ''Back to the Future'' film trilogy (1985–1990) and Beverly Switzler in '' Howard the Duck'' (19 ...

TV series

In 2003, Murphy portrayed the character Nick Barret in the

soap opera ''

''. Murphy is also credited with roles in ''Jack Taylor'' (2010) starring

Iain Glen Iain Alan Sutherland Glen (born 24 June 1961) is a Scottish actor. Glen is best known for his roles as Dr. Alexander Isaacs/Tyrant in three films of the ''Resident Evil'' film series (2004–2016) and as Ser Jorah Mormont in the HBO fantasy t ...

and in '' Titanic: Blood and Steel'' (2012) with

Kevin Zegers Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant '' Kevan'' is anglicized from , a ...

and

Derek Jacobi Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. He has appeared in various stage productions of William Shakespeare such as ''Hamlet'', ''Much Ado About Nothing'', ''Macbeth'', ''Twelfth Night'', '' The Tempest'', ''King ...

. In 2022, Murphy featured as the character Øgda in Season 1 of the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

series '' Vikings: Valhalla'', a spin-off of the popular TV Series ''Vikings'' by Michael Hirst.

Theatre

Murphy has worked in numerous Irish theatres, notably The Gate Theatre, The Gaiety Theatre, The Olympia Theatre and

The Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre ( ga, Amharclann na Mainistreach), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland ( ga, Amharclann Náisiúnta na hÉireann), in Dublin, Ireland, is one of the country's leading cultural institutions. First opening to the pu ...

. He has had roles in stage productions of ''Jack and the Beanstalk'' (2000), ''Annie'' (2001),'', The Chastitute'' (2001), ''The Plough and the Stars'' (2003), ''Sweeney Todd'' (2007), ''Beauty and the Beast'' (2008), ''Macbeth'' (2012) and ''Threepenny Opera'' (2013). From 2015 to 2017, Murphy portrayed the character 'Da' in the Dublin and Seoul productions of ''Once (The Musical)'' directed by

John Tiffany John Richard Tiffany (born c. 1971) is an English theatre director. He directed the internationally successful productions ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'', ''Black Watch'' and ''Once''. He has won 2 Tony Awards, an Olivier Award, a Drama ...

. In 2019, Murphy appeared in the national theatre production of Edna O'Brien's '' The Country Girls''. In 2020, he featured in the Abbey Theatre productions ''Dear Ireland Continues''. In September 2022, Murphy portrayed the character of Zozimus in the Abbey Theatre coproduction of ''Joyce's Women'', written by Edna O'Brien.

Short films

In 2019, Murphy featured in the short film ''Close to Nothing at All'' directed by Lisa Maria Brockli. In 2022, Murphy wrote, produced and starred in the short film ''Lily's Theme'', directed by Frank W. Kelly, which premiered at the Boyne Valley International Film Festival 2022.

Personal life

Murphy is married to actress and singer Eileen O'Sullivan. They have two children.

Selected filmography

* "

" (1997) as Sherriff Madsen * "

Spacejacked ''Spacejacked'' is a 1997 American Irish film. It was made for Concorde Anois, a studio Roger Corman ran in Galway.Spacejacked Slifkin, Irv. Video Business; Radnor Vol. 18, Iss. 32, (Aug 10, 1998): 17. Plot In the near future, a spaceship on a lu ...

" (1997) as Jack * "

" (1997) as Paddy * " Ordinary Decent Criminal" (2000) as Barry * " Moving Target" (2000) as Mickey * " Jack Taylor" (2010, TV Series) as Ford * " Titanic: Blood and Steel" (2012, TV Mini Series) as Bremner * " Vikings: Valhalla" (2022, TV Series) as Øgda

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Bill 1963 births Living people Male actors from Cork (city)