Ian Hendry
Encyclopedia
Ian Hendry was an English
film and television actor. He is best known for his work on several British TV series of the early 1960s such as The Avengers
, and for his roles in 1970s films such as Get Carter
(1971).
, Suffolk
and educated at Culford School
. His acting career began in 1959 and within a year he had landed the lead role of Dr. Geoffrey Brent in the crime series Police Surgeon. The series only ran for twelve episodes but Hendry was next cast in the very similar role of Dr. David Keel in a new action-adventure series entitled The Avengers
. Initially, Hendry was the star of this series, which co-starred Patrick Macnee
as John Steed
. However, production of the first season was curtailed by a strike and Hendry used the opportunity to depart the series and begin a film career. (The Avengers continued for the rest of the decade with Macnee as its star.)
Hendry had a lead role in films such as The October Wedding (1959), Live Now - Pay Later (1962), Girl In The Headlines
(1963), The Hill
(1965) opposite Sean Connery
and in Roman Polanski
's Repulsion
(also 1965). He appeared in TV series such as Armchair Theatre
, Danger Man
, The Saint
, The Gold Robbers, The Persuaders
, Dial M For Murder
, Churchill's People
, Thriller (UK TV series)
, The New Avengers, Van Der Valk, Supernatural, Crown Court
, For Maddie With Love
, The Enigma Files
, Bergerac
, The Chinese Detective
, Jemima Shore Investigates
and Brookside
. Earlier he had taken the lead role as disbarred solicitor Alex Lambert in the TV series The Informer (1966–67).
In the early 1970s, Hendry took lead roles in several TV series such as The Adventures of Don Quick
(1970) and The Lotus Eaters (1972–73). He guest starred, alongside Brian Blessed
, in the first episode of The Sweeney
, entitled 'Ringer', made in 1974 and broadcast early in 1975. He also appeared in a number of films, including the Hammer
entry Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter (1974). Among the more widely seen films he appeared in during this time were Get Carter
(1971, for which he received a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actor), Theatre of Blood
(1973) opposite Vincent Price
, The Passenger
(1975) and Damien: Omen II
(1978).
He starred in Gerry Anderson's film, Doppelgänger
(1969), also known as Journey to the Far Side of the Sun.
in 1963, they had two daughters, Sally and Corrie, but their turbulent life together ended in divorce in 1971. Munro died a year later in London from a heart condition (myocarditis
). Hendry later married Sandra Jones and had another daughter, Emma.
, although he did not reprise the role of David Keel (but his previous role in the series was acknowledged by Steed's final comment of 'Welcome back, old friend'). Towards the end of his life he had a role in the crime series Jemima Shore Investigates
as the eponymous heroine's literary agent. His final TV role was in the Channel Four soap opera
Brookside
(1984).
On Christmas Eve of 1984, Hendry died of a stomach haemorrhage in London
, aged 53. His last public appearance was as a guest on This Is Your Life
, which profiled his friend Patrick Macnee
. He was cremated and his ashes interred at the Golders Green Crematorium
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
film and television actor. He is best known for his work on several British TV series of the early 1960s such as The Avengers
The Avengers (TV series)
The Avengers is a spy-fi British television series set in the 1960s Britain. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed . Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants...
, and for his roles in 1970s films such as Get Carter
Get Carter
Get Carter is a 1971 British crime film directed by Mike Hodges and starring Michael Caine as Jack Carter, a gangster who sets out to avenge the death of his brother in a series of unrelenting and brutal killings played out against the grim background of derelict urban housing in the city of...
(1971).
Career
Hendry was born in IpswichIpswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
and educated at Culford School
Culford School
Culford School is a coeducational HMC and IAPS public school for pupils age 3–18. Founded in 1881, it is situated in Culford, four miles north of Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, England.-History:...
. His acting career began in 1959 and within a year he had landed the lead role of Dr. Geoffrey Brent in the crime series Police Surgeon. The series only ran for twelve episodes but Hendry was next cast in the very similar role of Dr. David Keel in a new action-adventure series entitled The Avengers
The Avengers (TV series)
The Avengers is a spy-fi British television series set in the 1960s Britain. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed . Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants...
. Initially, Hendry was the star of this series, which co-starred Patrick Macnee
Patrick Macnee
Patrick Macnee is an English actor, best known for his role as the secret agent John Steed in the series The Avengers.-Early life:...
as John Steed
John Steed
John Steed is a fictional character and the central protagonist on the popular British series The Avengers and The New Avengers, played by Patrick Macnee and Ralph Fiennes in the movie....
. However, production of the first season was curtailed by a strike and Hendry used the opportunity to depart the series and begin a film career. (The Avengers continued for the rest of the decade with Macnee as its star.)
Hendry had a lead role in films such as The October Wedding (1959), Live Now - Pay Later (1962), Girl In The Headlines
Girl in the Headlines
Girl in the Headlines is a 1963 British detective film directed by Michael Truman and starring Ian Hendry, Ronald Fraser, Jeremy Brett and Jane Asher.-Cast:* Ian Hendry - Inspector Birkett* Ronald Fraser - Sergeant Saunders* Margaret Johnston - Mrs Gray...
(1963), The Hill
The Hill (film)
The Hill is a 1965 film directed by Sidney Lumet, set in a British army prison in North Africa in World War II. It stars Sean Connery, Harry Andrews, Ian Bannen, Ossie Davis, Ian Hendry, Alfred Lynch, Roy Kinnear and Michael Redgrave.-Plot:...
(1965) opposite Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
and in Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski is a French-Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few "truly international filmmakers."...
's Repulsion
Repulsion
Repulsion is a 1965 British psychological thriller film directed by Roman Polanski, based on a scenario by Gérard Brach and Roman Polanski. It was Polanski's first English language film, and was shot in Britain, as such being his second film made outside his native Poland. The cast includes...
(also 1965). He appeared in TV series such as Armchair Theatre
Armchair Theatre
Armchair Theatre is a British television drama anthology series, which ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by Associated British Corporation, and later by Thames Television after 1968....
, Danger Man
Danger Man
Danger Man is a British television series that was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again between 1964 and 1968. The series featured Patrick McGoohan as secret agent John Drake. Ralph Smart created the program and wrote many of the scripts...
, The Saint
The Saint (TV series)
The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character, Simon Templar, a Robin Hood-like adventurer with a penchant for disguise. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the...
, The Gold Robbers, The Persuaders
The Persuaders
The Persuaders can refer to:* The Persuaders!, a 1970s TV series starring Roger Moore and Tony Curtis* The Persuaders , a 1970s soul music band...
, Dial M For Murder
Dial M for Murder
Dial M for Murder is a 1954 American thriller film adapted from a successful stage play by Frederick Knott, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, and Robert Cummings. The movie was released by the Warner Bros...
, Churchill's People
Churchill's People
Churchill's People is series of 26 historical dramas produced by the BBC, based on Winston Churchill's A History of the English-Speaking Peoples. They were first broadcast on BBC1 in 1974 and 1975....
, Thriller (UK TV series)
Thriller (UK TV series)
Thriller is a British television series, originally broadcast in the UK from 1973 to 1976. It is an anthology series: each episode has a self-contained story and its own cast...
, The New Avengers, Van Der Valk, Supernatural, Crown Court
Crown Court (TV series)
Crown Court was an afternoon television courtroom drama produced by Granada Television for the ITV network that ran from 1972, when the Crown Court system replaced Assize courts and Quarter sessions in the legal system of England and Wales, to 1984....
, For Maddie With Love
For Maddie with Love
For Maddie with Love is a 1980 British television drama serial dealing with Maddie’s discovery that she has a brain tumour and only a few months to live....
, The Enigma Files
The Enigma Files
The Enigma Files is a British television detective drama that ran for one series of fifteen episodes in 1980.-Plot summary:The series was a police procedural drama, written by Derek Ingrey, about a Police Officer who has been sidelined from regular duties and, having been placed in charge of a...
, Bergerac
Bergerac (TV series)
Bergerac was a British television show set on Jersey. Produced by the BBC in association with the Seven Network, and screened on BBC1, it starred John Nettles as the title character Detective Sergeant Jim Bergerac, a detective in "Le Bureau des Étrangers" Bergerac was a British television show...
, The Chinese Detective
The Chinese Detective
The Chinese Detective is a British television series, transmitted by the BBC between 1981 and 1982 and created by Ian Kennedy Martin, who had previously devised The Sweeney and Juliet Bravo....
, Jemima Shore Investigates
Jemima Shore
Jemima Shore is a fictional character created by Antonia Fraser, and is portrayed as TV's consummately professional investigative journalist...
and Brookside
Brookside
Brookside is a defunct British soap opera set in Liverpool, England. The series began on the launch night of Channel 4 on 2 November 1982, and ran for 21 years until 4 November 2003...
. Earlier he had taken the lead role as disbarred solicitor Alex Lambert in the TV series The Informer (1966–67).
In the early 1970s, Hendry took lead roles in several TV series such as The Adventures of Don Quick
The Adventures of Don Quick
The Adventures of Don Quick is a science fiction comedy television series that ran from October–December 1970, on ITV. Starring Ian Hendry and Ronald Lacey, six 50 minute episodes were made, shown in a 60 minute time slot. As of 2008, only the first episode exists, the other five are now missing...
(1970) and The Lotus Eaters (1972–73). He guest starred, alongside Brian Blessed
Brian Blessed
Brian Blessed is an English actor, known for his sonorous voice and "hearty, king-sized portrayals".-Early life:The son of William Blessed, a socialist miner, and Hilda Wall, Blessed was born in the town of Goldthorpe, West Riding of Yorkshire, England...
, in the first episode of The Sweeney
The Sweeney
The Sweeney is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London...
, entitled 'Ringer', made in 1974 and broadcast early in 1975. He also appeared in a number of films, including the Hammer
Hammer
A hammer is a tool meant to deliver an impact to an object. The most common uses are for driving nails, fitting parts, forging metal and breaking up objects. Hammers are often designed for a specific purpose, and vary widely in their shape and structure. The usual features are a handle and a head,...
entry Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter (1974). Among the more widely seen films he appeared in during this time were Get Carter
Get Carter
Get Carter is a 1971 British crime film directed by Mike Hodges and starring Michael Caine as Jack Carter, a gangster who sets out to avenge the death of his brother in a series of unrelenting and brutal killings played out against the grim background of derelict urban housing in the city of...
(1971, for which he received a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actor), Theatre of Blood
Theatre of Blood
Theatre of Blood is a horror film starring Vincent Price as vengeful actor Edward Lionheart and Diana Rigg as his daughter Edwina Lionheart. The cast includes such distinguished actors as Harry Andrews, Coral Browne, Robert Coote, Jack Hawkins, Michael Hordern, Arthur Lowe, Joan Hickson, Robert...
(1973) opposite Vincent Price
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
, The Passenger
The Passenger (film)
The Passenger is a film directed and co-written by Michelangelo Antonioni, released in 1975, in which Jack Nicholson stars as a television reporter in Africa who assumes the identity of a dead stranger. The film competed for the "Palme d'Or" award at the 1975 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:*Jack...
(1975) and Damien: Omen II
Damien: Omen II
Damien: Omen II, is a 1978 American horror film directed by Don Taylor, starring William Holden, Lee Grant, and Jonathan Scott-Taylor. The film was the second installment in The Omen series, set seven years after the first film, and was followed by a third installment, Omen III: The Final Conflict,...
(1978).
He starred in Gerry Anderson's film, Doppelgänger
Doppelgänger (1969 film)
Doppelgänger is a 1969 British science-fiction film directed by Robert Parrish and starring Roy Thinnes, Ian Hendry, Lynn Loring and Patrick Wymark. Outside Europe, it is known as Journey to the Far Side of the Sun, which is now the more popular title...
(1969), also known as Journey to the Far Side of the Sun.
Family
He married Janet MunroJanet Munro
-Career:Munro starred in three Disney motion picture releases, Darby O'Gill and the Little People , Third Man on the Mountain and Swiss Family Robinson , as well as The Horsemasters , which aired on Disney's weekly television series...
in 1963, they had two daughters, Sally and Corrie, but their turbulent life together ended in divorce in 1971. Munro died a year later in London from a heart condition (myocarditis
Myocarditis
Myocarditis is inflammation of heart muscle . It resembles a heart attack but coronary arteries are not blocked.Myocarditis is most often due to infection by common viruses, such as parvovirus B19, less commonly non-viral pathogens such as Borrelia burgdorferi or Trypanosoma cruzi, or as a...
). Hendry later married Sandra Jones and had another daughter, Emma.
Later years
He was reunited with Patrick Macnee as a guest star on The New AvengersThe New Avengers (TV series)
The New Avengers is a British secret agent fantasy adventure television series produced during 1976 and 1977. It is a sequel to the 1960s series, The Avengers which was created by Sydney Newman, and the new version was developed by original series producers Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell.The...
, although he did not reprise the role of David Keel (but his previous role in the series was acknowledged by Steed's final comment of 'Welcome back, old friend'). Towards the end of his life he had a role in the crime series Jemima Shore Investigates
Jemima Shore
Jemima Shore is a fictional character created by Antonia Fraser, and is portrayed as TV's consummately professional investigative journalist...
as the eponymous heroine's literary agent. His final TV role was in the Channel Four soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Brookside
Brookside
Brookside is a defunct British soap opera set in Liverpool, England. The series began on the launch night of Channel 4 on 2 November 1982, and ran for 21 years until 4 November 2003...
(1984).
On Christmas Eve of 1984, Hendry died of a stomach haemorrhage in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, aged 53. His last public appearance was as a guest on This Is Your Life
This Is Your Life
This Is Your Life is an American television documentary series broadcast on NBC, originally hosted by its producer, Ralph Edwards from 1952 to 1961. In the show, the host surprises a guest, and proceeds to take them through their life in front of an audience including friends and family.Edwards...
, which profiled his friend Patrick Macnee
Patrick Macnee
Patrick Macnee is an English actor, best known for his role as the secret agent John Steed in the series The Avengers.-Early life:...
. He was cremated and his ashes interred at the Golders Green Crematorium
Golders Green Crematorium
Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000, and was opened in 1902 by Sir Henry Thompson....
.
Filmography
- Room at the Top (1959)
- Sink the Bismarck!Sink the Bismarck!Sink the Bismarck! is a 1960 black-and-white British war film based on the book, the "Last Nine Days of the Bismarck" by C. S. Forester. It stars Kenneth More and Dana Wynter and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. To date, it is the only movie made that deals directly with the operations, chase, and...
(1960) - In the NickIn the NickIn the Nick is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Ken Hughes and starring Anthony Newley, Anne Aubrey, Bernie Winters, James Booth and Harry Andrews. A gang of incompetent criminals are placed in a special type of new prison.-Cast:...
(1960) - Live Now - Pay Later (1962)
- Girl in the HeadlinesGirl in the HeadlinesGirl in the Headlines is a 1963 British detective film directed by Michael Truman and starring Ian Hendry, Ronald Fraser, Jeremy Brett and Jane Asher.-Cast:* Ian Hendry - Inspector Birkett* Ronald Fraser - Sergeant Saunders* Margaret Johnston - Mrs Gray...
(1963) - This Is My StreetThis Is My StreetThis Is My Street is a 1964 British drama film directed by Sidney Hayers and starring Ian Hendry, June Ritchie, Avice Landone, John Hurt and Meredith Edwards. A bored housewife living in a suburban house begins an affair with the lodger, a salesman...
(1964) - Children of the DamnedChildren of the DamnedChildren of the Damned is a 1963 science fiction film, a thematic sequel to the 1960 version of Village of the Damned. It is about a group of children, with similar psi-powers to the original seeding, but without the obvious 'alien' differences in the earlier film.-Plot:Six children are identified...
(1964) - The Beauty JungleThe Beauty Jungle-Plot:While on a seaside holiday a young typist is persuaded by a local journalist to enter a beauty contest. When she wins, she decides to give up her previous career and life and take up entering the contests full-time.-Cast:*Ian Hendry as Don Mackenzie...
(1964) - Repulsion (1965)
- The HillThe Hill (film)The Hill is a 1965 film directed by Sidney Lumet, set in a British army prison in North Africa in World War II. It stars Sean Connery, Harry Andrews, Ian Bannen, Ossie Davis, Ian Hendry, Alfred Lynch, Roy Kinnear and Michael Redgrave.-Plot:...
(1965) - The Sandwich ManThe Sandwich ManThe Sandwich Man is a 1966 British comedy film starring Michael Bentine, Dora Bryan, Harry H. Corbett, Bernard Cribbins, Diana Dors, Norman Wisdom, Terry-Thomas and Ian Hendry. It was written by Bentine in conjunction with Robert Hartford-Davis...
(1966) - Traitors of San Angel (1967)
- Cry Wolf (1968)
- The Southern StarThe Southern Star (film)The Southern Star is a 1969 British-French comedy crime film directed by Sidney Hayers and starring George Segal, Ursula Andress and Orson Welles. In French West Africa in 1912, an extremely valuable diamond is stolen...
(1969) - DoppelgängerDoppelgängerIn fiction and folklore, a doppelgänger is a paranormal double of a living person, typically representing evil or misfortune...
(1969) - The McKenzie BreakThe McKenzie BreakThe McKenzie Break is a 1970 British war drama film directed by Lamont Johnson, starring Brian Keith as Jack Connor, an intelligence officer investigating recent disturbances at a German prisoner of war camp in Scotland...
(1970) - Get CarterGet CarterGet Carter is a 1971 British crime film directed by Mike Hodges and starring Michael Caine as Jack Carter, a gangster who sets out to avenge the death of his brother in a series of unrelenting and brutal killings played out against the grim background of derelict urban housing in the city of...
(1971) - The Jerusalem File (1972)
- All Coppers Are... (1972)
- Tales from The CryptTales from the Crypt (film)Tales from the Crypt is a British horror movie, made in 1972 by Amicus Productions. It is an anthology film consisting of five separate segments, based on stories from EC Comics. Only two of the stories, however, are actually from EC's Tales from the Crypt...
(1972) - Theatre of BloodTheatre of BloodTheatre of Blood is a horror film starring Vincent Price as vengeful actor Edward Lionheart and Diana Rigg as his daughter Edwina Lionheart. The cast includes such distinguished actors as Harry Andrews, Coral Browne, Robert Coote, Jack Hawkins, Michael Hordern, Arthur Lowe, Joan Hickson, Robert...
(1973) - AssassinAssassin (1973 film)Assassin is a 1973 British thriller film directed by Peter Crane and starring Ian Hendry, Edward Judd and Frank Windsor. The British government hires in an assassin to kill a Ministry of Defence official suspected of leaking secrets.-Cast:...
(1973) - Captain Kronos - Vampire HunterCaptain Kronos - Vampire HunterCaptain Kronos - Vampire Hunter is a 1974 British horror film written, produced and directed by Brian Clemens for Hammer Film Productions that was originally the pilot for a planned series. It stars Horst Janson in the title role, along with John Carson, Shane Briant and Caroline Munro...
(1974) - The Internecine ProjectThe Internecine ProjectThe Internecine Project is a 1974 British espionage thriller film written by Mort W. Elkind, Barry Levinson, and Jonathan Lynn, directed by Ken Hughes and starring James Coburn and Lee Grant. Set in London in the early 1970s, it tells the story of former secret agent Robert Elliot who is being...
(1974) - The PassengerThe Passenger (film)The Passenger is a film directed and co-written by Michelangelo Antonioni, released in 1975, in which Jack Nicholson stars as a television reporter in Africa who assumes the identity of a dead stranger. The film competed for the "Palme d'Or" award at the 1975 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:*Jack...
(1975) - Intimate Games (1976)
- Damien: Omen IIDamien: Omen IIDamien: Omen II, is a 1978 American horror film directed by Don Taylor, starring William Holden, Lee Grant, and Jonathan Scott-Taylor. The film was the second installment in The Omen series, set seven years after the first film, and was followed by a third installment, Omen III: The Final Conflict,...
(1978) uncredited - The BitchThe Bitch (film)The Bitch is a British film released in 1979. It is a sequel to The Stud , and both films were based on novels by British author Jackie Collins. Like its predecessor, the film starred her sister, Joan Collins, as Fontaine Khaled.-Plot:...
(1979) - McVicarMcVicar (film)McVicar is a British drama film released in 1980 by The Who Films, Ltd., starring Roger Daltrey of The Who in the title role of John McVicar...
(film) (1980)