Rodney Diak
Encyclopedia
Rodney Diak was a British
film
, television
, and theater actor
.
He was well-known for a string of hit performances on the West End
, including Goodnight Mrs. Puffin and Busybody
.
and the Old Vic Company in Shakespeare's "Love's Labours Lost" at the New Theater at the age of 24. He also appeared in She Stoops to Conquer
with the Old Vic Company. In 1951, Diak appeared on stage in Twelfth Night in front of an audience which included Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret. Princess Margaret remarked about Diak after the performance, "That's the most handsome actor in Britain
."
One of Diak's most successful performances was his turn in Goodnight Mrs. Puffin, which ran for 691 performances. His career continued with another success with the play Busybody
, which debuted in 1964. He continued to appear in a number of stage roles later in his career including The Secretary Bird, Private Lives
, The Boy Friend
, and My Cousin Rachel
.
Diak's film career was yielded mixed results at first. He was reportedly horrified to learn that his first feature film debut movie would be Fire Maidens from Outer Space
after signing a contract
with MGM Studios. Diak's career improved after appearing in Dunkirk
opposite actors John Mills
and Richard Attenborough
. Diak also had smaller roles in The Flesh and Blood Show
and Mr. Topaze
with Peter Sellers
. He also starred in several BBC
television series including Z-Cars
, Barlow at Large
, The Troubleshooters and People Like Us
. He had a cameo role in Carry on Admiral
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, and theater actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
He was well-known for a string of hit performances on the West End
West End of London
The West End of London is an area of central London, containing many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings, and entertainment . Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross...
, including Goodnight Mrs. Puffin and Busybody
Busybody
A busybody is someone who meddles or pries into the affairs of others.Busybodies have been the subject of plays, including one by 18th century dramatist Susanna Centlivre, and fictional accounts. "The Busybody" is used for the name of a character in Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. American...
.
Career
Rodney Diak was born as David Rodney Diak in Harrow, England. He made his West End theater debut with Michael RedgraveMichael Redgrave
Sir Michael Scudamore Redgrave, CBE was an English stage and film actor, director, manager and author.-Youth and education:...
and the Old Vic Company in Shakespeare's "Love's Labours Lost" at the New Theater at the age of 24. He also appeared in 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...
with the Old Vic Company. In 1951, Diak appeared on stage in Twelfth Night in front of an audience which included Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret. Princess Margaret remarked about Diak after the performance, "That's the most handsome actor in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
."
One of Diak's most successful performances was his turn in Goodnight Mrs. Puffin, which ran for 691 performances. His career continued with another success with the play Busybody
Busybody
A busybody is someone who meddles or pries into the affairs of others.Busybodies have been the subject of plays, including one by 18th century dramatist Susanna Centlivre, and fictional accounts. "The Busybody" is used for the name of a character in Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. American...
, which debuted in 1964. He continued to appear in a number of stage roles later in his career including The Secretary Bird, Private Lives
Private Lives
Private Lives is a 1930 comedy of manners in three acts by Noël Coward. It focuses on a divorced couple who discover that they are honeymooning with their new spouses in neighbouring rooms at the same hotel. Despite a perpetually stormy relationship, they realise that they still have feelings for...
, The Boy Friend
The Boy Friend
The Boy Friend is a musical by Sandy Wilson. The musical's original 1954 London production ran for 2,078 performances, making it briefly the third-longest running musical in West End or Broadway history until it was surpassed by Salad Days...
, and My Cousin Rachel
My Cousin Rachel
My Cousin Rachel is a novel by British author Daphne du Maurier, published in 1951. Like the earlier Rebecca, it is a mystery-romance, largely set on a large estate in Cornwall.-Plot overview:...
.
Diak's film career was yielded mixed results at first. He was reportedly horrified to learn that his first feature film debut movie would be Fire Maidens from Outer Space
Fire Maidens from Outer Space
Fire Maidens from Outer Space , released in the USA as Fire Maidens of Outer Space, is a 78-minute black-and-white science fiction feature film...
after signing a contract
Contract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
with MGM Studios. Diak's career improved after appearing in Dunkirk
Dunkirk (film)
Dunkirk is a 1958 British war film directed by Leslie Norman and starring John Mills, Richard Attenborough and Bernard Lee. It was based on two novels: Elleston Trevor's The Big Pick-Up and Lt. Col. Ewan Hunter and Maj. J. S...
opposite actors John Mills
John Mills
Sir John Mills CBE , born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills, was an English actor who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:...
and Richard Attenborough
Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough , CBE is a British actor, director, producer and entrepreneur. As director and producer he won two Academy Awards for the 1982 film Gandhi...
. Diak also had smaller roles in The Flesh and Blood Show
The Flesh and Blood Show
The Flesh and Blood Show is a 1972 British thriller film directed by Pete Walker and starring Ray Brooks, Jenny Hanley and Luan Peters. A group of young actors rehearsing a new play in a derelict theatre at the end of a seaside pier begin being murdered one by one.-Cast:* Ray Brooks ... Mike*...
and Mr. Topaze
Mr. Topaze
Mr. Topaze was Peter Sellers' directorial debut in 1961. Starring Sellers, Nadia Gray, and Leo McKern as well as Herbert Lom who quarreled with Seller's Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies...
with Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
. He also starred in several BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television series including Z-Cars
Z-Cars
Z-Cars is a British television drama series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby in the outskirts of Liverpool in Merseyside. Produced by the BBC, it debuted in January 1962 and ran until September 1978.-Origins:The series was developed by...
, Barlow at Large
Barlow at Large
Barlow at Large is a British television programme broadcast in the 1970s, starring Stratford Johns in the title role.Johns had previously played Barlow in the Z-Cars, Softly, Softly and Softly, Softly: Taskforce series on BBC television during the 1960s and early 1970s...
, The Troubleshooters and People Like Us
People Like Us
People Like Us is a British comedy programme, a spoof on-location documentary written by John Morton, and starring Chris Langham as Roy Mallard, an inept interviewer...
. He had a cameo role in Carry on Admiral
Carry on Admiral
Carry on Admiral is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Val Guest and featuring David Tomlinson, Ronald Shiner and Joan Sims. It was not part of the Carry On series, which it predates, though it is similar in tone and style to the earliest films in the series...
.