Nicky Henson
Encyclopedia
Nicholas Victor Leslie "Nicky" Henson (born 12 May 1945) is an English
actor who has portrayed many roles since 1963. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company
in 1977. He was born in London
.
Leslie Henson
, Nicky Henson attended St. Bede's Prep School
, Eastbourne
and Charterhouse School
in Godalming
. He trained as a stage manager
at RADA
, and first appeared on stage himself as a guitarist. As a member of the Young Vic Company he played Pozzo in Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot
.
episode The Psychiatrist
, as ladies' man Mr. Johnson, playing DS Harry Finlay in A Touch of Frost
and playing George in the episode "Bury my Half at Waltham Green" in Series 1 of the popular drama series Minder
. He also appeared in an episode of Police Drama; Heartbeat; Second Chances in 2002, Playing Alan Jones; The man who had disappeared 20 years previously. In February 2006, Henson joined the cast of the BBC1 soap opera
EastEnders
, playing "Jack Edwards". Henson left the production towards the end of the year due to health problems (see personal life).
Henson appeared in one episode of the sitcom After You've Gone
. Henson starred in two episodes of The Bill
, on 4 October 2007 and again on 10 October. He guest-starred in an episode of the daytime medical drama Doctors. In 2010, he appeared in an episode of the ITV
period drama Downton Abbey
.
(1968), There's a Girl in My Soup
(1970), Psychomania
(1971), Vera Drake
(2004), and George Clooney
's Syriana
(2005).
, Man and Superman
, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, She Stoops to Conquer
, Noises Off
and many other plays. He appeared as Mordred
in the original 1964 London version of Camelot
opposite Laurence Harvey
as King Arthur
. Henson made his Broadway debut in a production of Oscar Wilde
's An Ideal Husband
, opposite Stephanie Beacham
. He was nominated for a 1998 Laurence Olivier Theatre Award
for Best Supporting Performance in a Musical of 1997 for his role in Enter the Guardsman.
He started directing with a Restoration workshop at LAMDA with a production of The Provok'd Wife. In 2009 he directed the Jack Shepherd play Only When I Laugh at the Arcola Theatre
in London and Alan Ayckbourn
's Intimate Exchanges at Sheringham Little Theatre
.
in 2003. Surgeons removed tumours from around his spleen, but a routine check-up in 2006 showed that other tumours had grown and it would be dangerous to remove them. Henson was put on a regimen of chemotherapy
, and now works regularly to raise funds for cancer charities, especially Marie Curie Cancer Care
.
(who incidentally played his sister-in-law Caroline Bishop in EastEnders
). Both his sons are composer
s. He is currently married to Marguerite Porter
, a ballerina
, by whom he has a third son, Keaton. His nephew is Adam Henson
.
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...
actor who has portrayed many roles since 1963. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
in 1977. He was born 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...
.
Early life
A son of the comedianComedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
Leslie Henson
Leslie Henson
Leslie Lincoln Henson was an English comedian, actor, producer for films and theatre, and film director. He initially worked in silent films and Edwardian musical comedy and became a popular music hall comedian who enjoyed a long stage career...
, Nicky Henson attended St. Bede's Prep School
St. Bede's Prep School
St. Bede's Preparatory School is an independent, co-educational, non-selective school in Eastbourne, established in 1895. It teaches children from Year 1, up to Transition studing KS2, until the final year 8, studing KS3 and KS4, and starting the Year 9 Academic courses in the last few terms of...
, Eastbourne
Eastbourne
Eastbourne is a large town and borough in East Sussex, on the south coast of England between Brighton and Hastings. The town is situated at the eastern end of the chalk South Downs alongside the high cliff at Beachy Head...
and Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...
in Godalming
Godalming
Godalming is a town and civil parish in the Waverley district of the county of Surrey, England, south of Guildford. It is built on the banks of the River Wey and is a prosperous part of the London commuter belt. Godalming shares a three-way twinning arrangement with the towns of Joigny in France...
. He trained as a stage manager
Stage management
Stage management is the practice of organizing and coordinating a theatrical production. It encompasses a variety of activities, including organizing the production and coordinating communications between various personnel...
at RADA
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art is a drama school located in London, United Kingdom. It is generally regarded as one of the most renowned drama schools in the world, and is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1904.RADA is an affiliate school of the...
, and first appeared on stage himself as a guitarist. As a member of the Young Vic Company he played Pozzo in Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot is an absurdist play by Samuel Beckett, in which two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, wait endlessly and in vain for someone named Godot to arrive. Godot's absence, as well as numerous other aspects of the play, have led to many different interpretations since the play's...
.
Television
Some of Henson's most notable television roles include the Fawlty TowersFawlty Towers
Fawlty Towers is a British sitcom produced by BBC Television and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975. Twelve television program episodes were produced . The show was written by John Cleese and his then wife Connie Booth, both of whom played major characters...
episode The Psychiatrist
The Psychiatrist
"The Psychiatrist" is the second episode of the second series of BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.-Synopsis:Sybil flirts with a young male guest named Mr. Johnson . Meanwhile, two doctors arrive at the hotel, and Basil becomes concerned when he realises one is a psychiatrist...
, as ladies' man Mr. Johnson, playing DS Harry Finlay in A Touch of Frost
A Touch of Frost (TV series)
A Touch of Frost is a television detective series produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV from 1992 until 2010, initially based on the Frost novels by R. D. Wingfield....
and playing George in the episode "Bury my Half at Waltham Green" in Series 1 of the popular drama series Minder
Minder (TV series)
Minder is a British comedy-drama about the London criminal underworld. Initially produced by Verity Lambert, it was made by Euston Films, a subsidiary of Thames Television and shown on ITV...
. He also appeared in an episode of Police Drama; Heartbeat; Second Chances in 2002, Playing Alan Jones; The man who had disappeared 20 years previously. In February 2006, Henson joined the cast of the BBC1 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,...
EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
, playing "Jack Edwards". Henson left the production towards the end of the year due to health problems (see personal life).
Henson appeared in one episode of the sitcom After You've Gone
After You've Gone
After You've Gone was a British comedy that aired on BBC One from 12 January 2007 to 21 December 2008. Starring Nicholas Lyndhurst, Celia Imrie, Dani Harmer and Ryan Sampson, After You've Gone was created by Fred Barron, who also created My Family. The writers include Barron, Ian Brown, Katie...
. Henson starred in two episodes of The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
, on 4 October 2007 and again on 10 October. He guest-starred in an episode of the daytime medical drama Doctors. In 2010, he appeared in an episode of the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
period drama Downton Abbey
Downton Abbey
Downton Abbey is a British television period drama series, produced by NBC Universal-owned British media company Carnival Films for the ITV network. The series is set during the late Edwardian era and the First World War on the fictional estate of Downton Abbey in Yorkshire, and features an...
.
Films
Nicky Henson's film appearances include Witchfinder GeneralWitchfinder General (film)
Witchfinder General is a 1968 British horror film directed by Michael Reeves and starring Vincent Price, Ian Ogilvy, and Hilary Dwyer. The screenplay was by Reeves and Tom Baker based on Ronald Bassett's novel of the same name. Made on a low budget of under £100,000, the movie was coproduced by...
(1968), There's a Girl in My Soup
There's a Girl in My Soup
There's a Girl in My Soup is a 1970 British comedy film, directed by Roy Boulting and starring Peter Sellers and Goldie Hawn. Sellers appears as Robert Danvers, a vain, womanizing and wealthy host of a high-profile cooking show...
(1970), Psychomania
Psychomania
Psychomania is a British horror film and cult film starring Nicky Henson as a devil worshipping gang leader and Robert Hardy as the detective in charge of bringing them in.It is also known as Death Wheelers Are.....
(1971), Vera Drake
Vera Drake
Vera Drake is a 2004 British drama film written and directed by Mike Leigh, telling the story of a working-class woman in London in 1950 who performs illegal abortions...
(2004), and George Clooney
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...
's Syriana
Syriana
Syriana is a 2005 geopolitical thriller film written and directed by Stephen Gaghan, and executive produced by George Clooney, who also stars in the film with an ensemble cast. Gaghan's screenplay is loosely adapted from Robert Baer's memoir See No Evil...
(2005).
Theatre
On stage, Henson has played many Shakespearian characters and has had leading roles in Look Back in AngerLook Back in Anger
Look Back in Anger is a John Osborne play—made into films in 1959, 1980, and 1989 -- about a love triangle involving an intelligent but disaffected young man , his upper-middle-class, impassive wife , and her haughty best friend . Cliff, an amiable Welsh lodger, attempts to keep the peace...
, Man and Superman
Man and Superman
Man and Superman is a four-act drama, written by George Bernard Shaw in 1903. The series was written in response to calls for Shaw to write a play based on the Don Juan theme. Man and Superman opened at The Royal Court Theatre in London on 23 May 1905, but with the omission of the 3rd Act...
, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, She Stoops to Conquer
She Stoops to Conquer
She Stoops to Conquer is a comedy by the Irish author Oliver Goldsmith, son of an Anglo-Irish vicar, first performed in London in 1773. The play is a great favourite for study by English literature and theatre classes in Britain and the United States. It is one of the few plays from the 18th...
, Noises Off
Noises Off
Noises Off is a 1982 play by English playwright Michael Frayn. The idea for it was born in 1970, when Frayn was standing in the wings watching a performance of Chinamen, a farce that he had written for Lynn Redgrave...
and many other plays. He appeared as Mordred
Mordred
Mordred or Modred is a character in the Arthurian legend, known as a notorious traitor who fought King Arthur at the Battle of Camlann, where he was killed and Arthur fatally wounded. Tradition varies on his relationship to Arthur, but he is best known today as Arthur's illegitimate son by his...
in the original 1964 London version of Camelot
Camelot (musical)
Camelot is a musical by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe . It is based on the King Arthur legend as adapted from the T. H. White tetralogy novel The Once and Future King....
opposite Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey was a Lithuanian-born actor who achieved fame in British and American films.- Early life :Harvey maintained throughout his life that his birth name was Laruschka Mischa Skikne. However, his legal name was Zvi Mosheh Skikne. He was the youngest of three boys born to Ber "Boris" and...
as King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
. Henson made his Broadway debut in a production of Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
's An Ideal Husband
An Ideal Husband
An Ideal Husband is an 1895 comedic stage play by Oscar Wilde which revolves around blackmail and political corruption, and touches on the themes of public and private honour...
, opposite Stephanie Beacham
Stephanie Beacham
Stephanie Beacham is a British television, film and theatre actress. Making her film debut in 1971's The Nightcomers opposite Marlon Brando and becoming more well-known on British television in the BBC series Tenko and the ITV series Connie , her worldwide breakthrough came as a result of playing...
. He was nominated for a 1998 Laurence Olivier Theatre Award
Laurence Olivier Awards
The Laurence Olivier Award is presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre. Named after the renowned British actor Laurence Olivier, they are given for West End shows and other productions staged in London...
for Best Supporting Performance in a Musical of 1997 for his role in Enter the Guardsman.
He started directing with a Restoration workshop at LAMDA with a production of The Provok'd Wife. In 2009 he directed the Jack Shepherd play Only When I Laugh at the Arcola Theatre
Arcola Theatre
Arcola Theatre is a studio theatre in Dalston, in the London Borough of Hackney. The theatre's ambition is to create and present high-quality theatre with a social and political relevance to its multicultural local community as well as a wider audience....
in London and Alan Ayckbourn
Alan Ayckbourn
Sir Alan Ayckbourn CBE is a prolific English playwright. He has written and produced seventy-three full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, where all but four of his plays have received their...
's Intimate Exchanges at Sheringham Little Theatre
Sheringham Little Theatre
Sheringham Little Theatre is in Sheringham, Norfolk. It is in the centre of the town and offers a large range of entertainment throughout the year, notably its summer repertory season which runs from July to September every year.-External links:...
.
Health
Nicky Henson was diagnosed with cancerCancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in 2003. Surgeons removed tumours from around his spleen, but a routine check-up in 2006 showed that other tumours had grown and it would be dangerous to remove them. Henson was put on a regimen of chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
, and now works regularly to raise funds for cancer charities, especially Marie Curie Cancer Care
Marie Curie Cancer Care
Marie Curie Cancer Care is a charitable organisation in the United Kingdom which provides nursing care, free of charge, to terminally ill people, giving them the chance to choose to be cared for at home...
.
Family
Henson has two sons, Joe and Christian, by his first wife, actress Una StubbsUna Stubbs
Una Stubbs is an English actress and former dancer who has appeared extensively on British television and in the theatre, and less frequently in films. She is particularly known for her roles in the sitcom Till Death Us Do Part and Aunt Sally in the children's series Worzel Gummidge.-Film and...
(who incidentally played his sister-in-law Caroline Bishop in EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
). Both his sons are composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
s. He is currently married to Marguerite Porter
Marguerite Porter
Marguerite Porter is an English former principal ballet dancer, turned actress and choreographer.Born in Doncaster, Porter trained in Yorkshire and at the Royal Ballet School in London, where she was taught by Dame Ninette De Valois.After two years training she joined The Royal Ballet, where she...
, a ballerina
Ballerina
A ballerina is a title used to describe a principal female professional ballet dancer in a large company; the male equivalent to this title is danseur or ballerino...
, by whom he has a third son, Keaton. His nephew is Adam Henson
Adam Henson
Adam Henson is an English farmer and television presenter.Henson's grandfather Leslie, was a comedian and actor. His farmer father Joe Henson, presented a countryside TV programme with Angela Rippon and Phil Drabble; while his actor uncle Nicky Henson has appeared in films and TV programmes...
.
Filmography
- Father Came Too!Father Came Too!Father Came Too! is a 1963 British comedy film directed by Peter Graham Scott. It is a sequel to The Fast Lady.-Plot:Dexter and Juliet Munro are a married couple who move to a run-down cottage in hopes of escaping from Juliet's overbearing father. However, the couple are soon confronted by their...
(1964) - Every Day's a HolidayEvery Day's a Holiday (1965 film)Every Day's a Holiday is a 1965 British musical comedy film directed by James Hill and starring John Leyton, Michael Sarne and Peter Birrell. A group of teenagers take up jobs working in a seaside resort for the summer. It is also known as Seaside Swingers.-Cast:* John Leyton ... Gerry Pullman*...
(1965) - Doctor in CloverDoctor in CloverDoctor in Clover is a British comedy film released in 1966, starring Leslie Phillips. The film is based on the novel by Richard Gordon.The film was shot in Carnaby Street, Wormwood Scrubs and Pinewood Studios.-Synopsis:...
(1966) - Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush (1967)
- The JokersThe JokersThe Jokers is a 1967 comedy film written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and directed by Michael Winner. The film stars Michael Crawford and Oliver Reed as brothers who hatch a plot to steal the Crown Jewels....
(1967) - 30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia (1968)
- Witchfinder GeneralWitchfinder General (film)Witchfinder General is a 1968 British horror film directed by Michael Reeves and starring Vincent Price, Ian Ogilvy, and Hilary Dwyer. The screenplay was by Reeves and Tom Baker based on Ronald Bassett's novel of the same name. Made on a low budget of under £100,000, the movie was coproduced by...
(1968) - Mosquito SquadronMosquito Squadron#Mosquito Squadron is a 1969 British war film made by Oakmont Productions, directed by Boris Sagal and starring David McCallum, with a memorable music score , which was composed and conducted by Frank Cordell.-Plot:During a Second World War Royal Air Force attack against German V-1...
(1968) - Crooks and CoronetsCrooks and CoronetsCrooks and Coronets is a 1969 British crime comedy film and/or heist movie written and directed by Jim O'Connolly. It starred Telly Savalas, Edith Evans, Warren Oates, Cesar Romero and Harry H...
(1969) - There's a Girl in My SoupThere's a Girl in My Soup There's a Girl in My Soup is a 1970 British comedy film, directed by Roy Boulting and starring Peter Sellers and Goldie Hawn. Sellers appears as Robert Danvers, a vain, womanizing and wealthy host of a high-profile cooking show...
(1970) - All Coppers Are... (1972)
- The Love BanThe Love BanThe Love Ban is a 1973 British comedy film directed by Ralph Thomas and starring Hywel Bennett, Nanette Newman and Milo O'Shea. A couple experience marital difficulties. It was based on a play by Kevin Laffan...
(1973) - Penny GoldPenny GoldPenny Gold is a 1973 British drama film directed by Jack Cardiff and starring James Booth, Francesca Annis, Nicky Henson and Joss Ackland. Two policemen investigate a series of murders, discovering the motivation was an extremely valuable stamp.-Cast:...
(1973) - PsychomaniaPsychomaniaPsychomania is a British horror film and cult film starring Nicky Henson as a devil worshipping gang leader and Robert Hardy as the detective in charge of bringing them in.It is also known as Death Wheelers Are.....
(1971) - VampiraVampira (film)Vampira is a 1974 comedy/horror film spoofing the vampire genre. It stars David Niven and Teresa Graves. Following the success of Young Frankenstein, Vampira was renamed Old Dracula for release in the United States in an attempt to cash in on Young Frankenstein's success.-Plot:Count Dracula is an...
(1974) - Bedtime with RosieBedtime with RosieBedtime with Rosie is a 1975 British comedy-drama film directed by Wolf Rilla and starring Una Stubbs, Ivor Burgoyne and Diana Dors. A pregnant single woman on her way to the Netherlands stays with her Aunt, while there she begins to strike up a relationship with her aunt's lodger, a reclusive...
(1974) - The Bawdy Adventures of Tom JonesThe Bawdy Adventures of Tom JonesThe Bawdy Adventures of Tom Jones is a 1976 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Nicky Henson, Trevor Howard and Terry-Thomas. It is an adaptation of the eighteenth century novel Tom Jones by Henry Fielding, which follows the main character in a new series of...
(1976) - No. 1 of the Secret Service (1977)
- Anyone for Denis? (1982, TV film)
- Parting ShotsParting ShotsParting Shots is a 1999 film starring Chris Rea, Felicity Kendal, Oliver Reed and Joanna Lumley. It was the last film directed by Michael Winner to date....
(1998) - Me Without YouMe Without You (film)Me Without You is a 2001 British film, starring Anna Friel, Michelle Williams and Oliver Milburn, and written and directed by Sandra Goldbacher.- Plot :...
(2001) - Death, Deceit & Destiny Aboard the Orient Express (2001)
- Flyfishing (2002)
- Vera DrakeVera DrakeVera Drake is a 2004 British drama film written and directed by Mike Leigh, telling the story of a working-class woman in London in 1950 who performs illegal abortions...
(2004) - The Fete (2004)
- SyrianaSyrianaSyriana is a 2005 geopolitical thriller film written and directed by Stephen Gaghan, and executive produced by George Clooney, who also stars in the film with an ensemble cast. Gaghan's screenplay is loosely adapted from Robert Baer's memoir See No Evil...
(2005) - A Quiet Drink (2006)
- Blitz (2009)