Brian Blessed
Known for: Acting
Brian Blessed OBE (born 9 October 1936)is an English actor. He is known for his distinctive bushy beard, booming voice, and exuberant personality and performances. He portrayed PC "Fancy" Smith in Z-Cars; Augustus in the 1976 BBC television production of I, Claudius; King Richard IV in the first series of Blackadder; Prince Vultan in Flash Gordon; Bustopher Jones and Old Deuteronomy in the 1981 original London production of Cats at the New London Theatre; Thomas Beaufort, Duke of Exeter, in Henry V; Boss Nass in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace; and the voice of Clayton and the Tarzan yell in Disney's Tarzan. In 2016, Blessed was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to the arts and charity. Blessed was born on 9 October 1936 at Montagu Hospital in Mexborough, West Riding of Yorkshire, the son of William Blessed, a socialist coal miner at Hickleton Main Colliery (and himself the son of a coal miner) and cricketer for the Yorkshire second team, and Hilda (née Wall). He had a brother Alan, seven years younger, and the pair "went everywhere together" when they were growing up. Alan Blessed died from leukaemia aged 52; their mother died aged 87, and their father died aged 99. Blessed's great-great-grandfather, Jabez Blessed, was the father of 13 children and worked as a china and glass dealer in Brigg, Lincolnshire; many of Blessed's relatives hail from Brigg. Blessed went to Bolton on Dearne Secondary Modern School, and completed his national service in the RAF, in Bicester, before enrolling at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in 1956.
Filmography
Series
Family Guy
Prince Vultan (voice)
1999
Series
Peppa Pig
Grampy Rabbit (voice)
2004
Series
Doctor Who
King Yrcanos
1963
Series
The Avengers
Sergeant Hearn
1961
Series
The Avengers
Mark Dayton
1961
Series
The Amazing World of Gumball
Santa Claus (voice)
2011
Series
Minder
Freddie Dyer
1979
Series
Have I Got News for You
Self - Host
1990
Series
BBC Play of the Month
Sgt. Kite
1965
Series
QI
Self
2003
Series
Lady Chatterley
Petty Officer
1993
Series
Tales of the Unexpected
Detective Sergeant Jack Nolan
1979
Series
Natural World
1983
Series
Would I Lie to You?
Self
2007
Film
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Boss Nass (voice)
1999
Series
Space: 1999
Mentor
1975
Series
Space: 1999
Cabot Rowland
1975
Series
Blackadder
King Richard IV
1983
Series
The Wednesday Play
Peter
1964
Series
The Wednesday Play
Will
1964
Series
Who Do You Think You Are?
Self
2004
Series
Have I Got a Bit More News for You
Self - Presenter
Series
Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg
Self – Actor
2022
Series
Z-Cars
PC Smith
1962
Series
Z-Cars
PC Fancy Smith
1962
Series
Z-Cars
PC William "Fancy" Smith
1962
Series
GMTV
Self
1993
Series
The Sweeney
Frank Kemble
1975
Series
Celebrity Antiques Road Trip
Self - Participant
2011
Series
ITV Playhouse
Reg Sugden
1967
Series
ITV Playhouse
Jim Carter
1967
Series
The Paul O'Grady Show
2004
Series
Blake's 7
Vargas
1978
Series
Soccer AM
Self
1995
Film
Tarzan
Clayton (voice)
1999
Series
Close Enough
Sir Jack Kleghorn (voice)
2020
Pebble Mill
Self
1991
Film
Alexander
Wrestling Trainer
2004
Series
Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Self
2002
The Heaven and Earth Show
1998
Series
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
Ted Gissing
1969
Film
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
Lord Locksley
1991
Series
Lovejoy
Harry Catapodis
1986
Series
Thriller
Det Sgt George Briggs
1973
Series
Churchill's People
Guthrum
1974
Series
I, Claudius
Augustus
1976
Series
Public Eye
Rev. William Pratt
1965
Series
Crossbow
1987
Series
The Expert
Hubert Innes
1968
Series
Justice
Tiger Lawson
1971
Series
War and Remembrance
Yevlenko
1988
Series
The Troubleshooters
Eddie Barnaby
1965
Series
Danger Mouse
Santa Claus (voice)
2015
Series
Blankety Blank
Self - Panellist
2021
Series
The Russell Howard Hour
Self
2017
Series
Britain's Got More Talent
Self - Narrator
2007
Film
Much Ado About Nothing
Antonio
1993
Series
Sooty
Father Christmas
2011
Film
Flash Gordon
Prince Vultan
1980
Film
Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return
Judge Jawbreaker (voice)
2014
Film
The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!
The Pirate King (voice)
2012
Series
Survivors
Brod
1975
Film
Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans
Charlemagne (voice)
2021
Series
Best & Bester
Shouty Shirt (Voice)
2022
Series
The Kenny Everett Television Show
Self
1982
Series
John Silver's Return to Treasure Island
Long John Silver
1986
Series
All Star Mr & Mrs
2008
Series
Wizards vs Aliens
The Nekross King (voice)
2012
Series
Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)
Jim Lawsey
1969
Series
Sooty & Co.
Santa Claus
1993
Film
Hamlet
Ghost of Hamlet's Father
1996
Film
The Eagle Has Landed
Arthur Seymour (voice) (uncredited)
1976
Film
Henry V
Exeter
1989
Series
The Further Adventures of the Musketeers
Porthos
1967
In Confidence
2010
Series
Shirley's World
1972
Series
The History of Tom Jones: A Foundling
Squire Western
1997
Series
Dennis the Menace and Gnasher
Captain (voice)
1996
Film
The Trojan Women
Talthybius
1971
Series
The Last Days of Pompeii
Olinthus
1984
Series
Arthur of the Britons
Mark of Cornwall
1972
Series
Boy Dominic
William Woodcock
1974
Fantasy World Cup
Self
1998
Series
Take Me Out
Announcer (voice)
2010
Series
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Captain Teach
1951
Film
Robin Hood: The Rebellion
Friar Tuck
2018
Series
Was It Something I Said?
Self - Narrator
2013
Series
The Three Musketeers
Porthos
1966
Film
The Hound of the Baskervilles
Geoffrey Lyons
1983
Film
High Road to China
Suleman Khan
1983
Film
448 BC: Olympiad of Ancient Hellas
Narrator
2004
The Kumars
Self
2014
Saving Planet Earth UK
Himself - Presenter
2007
Fun at the Funeral Parlour
2001
Film
As You Like It
Duke Senior/Duke Frederick
2006
Film
So You Want To Be A Pirate!
The Pirate King
2012
Series
Notorious Woman
Albert Grzymala
1974
Film
Brotherly Love
Jack Baird
1970
The Funny Blokes of British Comedy
King Richard IV (archive footage) (uncredited)
2005
Film
Henry VIII and His Six Wives
Suffolk
1972
Film
Catherine the Great
Bestuzhev
1996
Series
The Nearly Complete and Utter History of Everything
2000
Film
The 50 Greatest Television Dramas
Self
2007
Film
The Greatest Store in the World
Mr. Scottley
1999
Series
Cold Comfort Farm
Reuben Starkadder
1968
Film
LEGO Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out
Boss Nass (voice)
2012
Film
Freddie As F.R.O.7.
El Supremo (voice)
1992
Series
The Gnostics
Guilhabert De Castres
1987
Film
MacGyver: Lost Treasure of Atlantis
Atticus
1994
Series
Johnny and the Dead
William Stickers
1995
The Little World of Don Camillo
Peppone
1981
Series
The Castle of Adventure
Sam
1990
Film
Time Travel Is Dangerous!
Gavin the Octopus (voice)
2025
Exam Conditions
Mr. Carksdale
1992
Film
The Bruce
Edward I
1996
Series
My Family and Other Animals
Spiro
1987
Film
The Legend of the Tamworth Two
Wild Boar (voice)
2004
Film
The Last Valley
Korski
1971
Film
Day of Wrath
Lord Francisco del Ruiz
2006
European Heritage
Narrator (voice)
1973
Film
Man of La Mancha
Pedro
1972
Film
David Macaulay: Cathedral
Master Guillaume (voice)
1986
Film
I, Claudius: A Television Epic
Self
2002
Series
Nobody's House
Jack Treadful
1976
Film
Peppa Pig: The Golden Boots
Grampy Rabbit (voice)
2015
Film
Peppa's Cinema Party
Grampy Rabbit (voice)
2024
The Underdog Show
2008
Film
Life After Flash
Self
2017
Film
David Macaulay: Pyramid
Ankhaf (voice)
1989
Series
The Big Knights
Sir Morris
1999
Series
The Aphrodite Inheritance
Basileos
1979
Film
Doctor Who: Mindwarp
King Yrcanos
1986
Film
The Day After Tomorrow: Into Infinity
Dr. Tom Bowen
1975
Film
Blackadder's Most Cunning Moments
Self
2008
Film
King Arthur, the Young Warlord
Mark of Cornwall
1975
Film
Dudley & the Invasion of the Space Slugs
Arthur (voice)
2026
Film
Prisoner of Honor
Gen. Gonse
1991
Film
The Master of Ballantrae
Captain Teach
1984
Film
Devil's Harvest
Father Gabriel Norton
2003
A Question of Entertainment
1988
Film
Kidnapped
Cluny MacPherson
1995
Film
Blake's 7: The Beginning
Vargas
1985
Film
Shed of the Dead
Narrator (voice)
2019
Film
The Christmas Tree
1966
Film
Mist: The Tale of a Sheepdog Puppy
Sir Gregory(voice)
2005
Film
Back in the USSR
Chazov
1992
Film
Agent Crush
Boris Goudphater (voice)
2008
Film
Hey, Mr. Producer! The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh
Old Deuteronomy
1998
Film
The Conclave
Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomin
2006
Film
Mist: The Tale of a Sheepdog Puppy
Sir Gregory (voice)
2006
Film
Cosmic Princess
Mentor
1982
The Day After Tomorrow
Dr. Tom Bowen
1975
Series
The Royal
Sir Edward Fawcett
2003
Film
The Dark Side of Everest
Self
2003
Film
Peter O'Toole: Along the Sky Road to Aqaba
Self
2022
Film
Till Death Us Do Part
Sergeant
1969
Film
Peppa Pig: Wedding Party!
Grampy Rabbit (voice)
2024
Film
Son of Man
Peter
1969
Film
The Seventeenth Kind
The Voice (voice)
2014
Film
Chasing the Deer
Maj. Elliot
1994
Film
Tales of Television Centre
Self
2012
Film
The Making of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Self - Actor
2002
Film
A Midsummer Nightmare
Det Sgt George Briggs
1975
Film
The Doctors: 30 Years of Time Travel and Beyond
1995
Film
David Macaulay: Roman City
Gaius Valerius (voice)
1994
Film
The Queen: 70 Glorious Years
Self
2022
Wine of India
Will
1970
Film
Brian Cox: Space, Time & Videotape
Self
2014
Wojtek: The Bear That Went to War
Narrator
2011
Film
Tales of the Unexpected: Lamb to the Slaughter
Detective Jack Noonan
1979
Film
Blood and Dust
Chatillon
1992
Film
Back in Business
Trevor Pilkington
2007
Film
The Making of The Trial of a Time Lord
2008
Film
A Christmas Carol
Narrator (voice)
1977
The Old Man Of The Mountain
Narrator
1989
Film
Macbeth
Edward the Confessor
1997
The Bristol Entertainment
Cabot / Wolstan / Pocock / Colston / Pope Gregory / Dr. Beddoes
1971
Old Rococo: The Life of Gioacchino Rossini
Voice of Rossini
1992
Film
David Macaulay: Castle
Voice
1983
Film
King Lear
King Lear
1999
Film
Eugenius!
Space Lord
2020
Film
Dear Mr. Burton
Narrator
2020
Fee Fi Fo Yum
GTV Announcer
2010
Film
The Mumbo Jumbo
Lucifer Bounder
2000
The Castle of Adventure
Sam
1990
Mr. Bojagi
Mr. Bojagi
2010
Film
Bug-Eyed Monsters Invade the Earth!
Narrator
2022
Film
Galahad of Everest
George Mallory/Self
1991
The Double Agent
Reg Sugden
1969
Film
Genius: Pythagoras
Self
1996