Gary Christopher Friel Popular Books

Gary Christopher Friel Biography & Facts

Colin Friels (born 25 September 1952) is a Scottish-born Australian actor of theatre, TV, film and presenter. Early life Friels was born in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland. His mother was a mill worker and French polisher, and his father a carpenter. He lived in Kilbirnie until 1963, when his family moved to Australia, arriving in Darwin, Northern Territory before settling in the Melbourne suburb of Bentleigh. He worked as a bricklayer's labourer before studying at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), graduating in 1976 along with Linden Wilkinson and Michael Siberry. Career Friels career began with work mostly in theatre and television. In 1980, Friels was a presenter on the Australian version of Play School, the series for young children. His first film role was in the unreleased Prisoners (1981), appearing with David Hemmings and Tatum O'Neal. His first appearance in a released film was in Hoodwink (1981), alongside his future wife, Judy Davis. In 1986, he played the title role in Malcolm, about a shy mechanical genius, for which he was awarded the 1986 AFI Award for Best Actor. Friels was also nominated for the Best Actor award the following year, for his role in Ground Zero, but did not win: the film received mixed reviews, with one describing him as "a proficient enough actor, but...miscast". Friels later won another AFI Award in 1995 for his starring role in the 1994 Halifax f.p. telemovie Hard Corps. Friels has played a wide range of other roles. He was a megalomaniac corporate executive in the 1990 feature film Darkman. From 1996 to 1999, he played Frank Holloway on Water Rats, a role which won him the Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actor at the 1997 awards. In his acceptance speech he said, "I'm very flattered for this and it's all rather silly, isn't it? So, thank you very much." Since 2003, Friels has appeared as the main character in the BlackJack series of telemovies. In 2010 he also starred in Killing Time where he played notorious underworld figure Lewis Moran. In 2018, he played Tony Ballantyne in the TV miniseries Mystery Road, again opposite Judy Davis. In 2021, Friels appeared as Jack Ramsay in the second season of the ABC series Total Control, a Coalition MP facing off against independent candidate Alex Irving. Personal life Friels has been married to actress Judy Davis since 1984; the couple have two children, Jack and Charlotte. Their relationship was briefly in the media when an argument led to a domestic violence court order against Friels: however, they remained together. In late 1997, Friels was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. However, his treatment was successful, and he is one of the very few sufferers of this disease to go into long-term remission. During his treatment he continued to work on the set of Water Rats, until eventually the impact of the chemotherapy stopped him working, and he chose to have his character written out of the series by sending him on a sailing journey around the world. At this time, however, he also continued his stage work, and was performing in Sydney Theatre Company's Macbeth. Political views Friels believes that social and political awareness comes with acting, and is known for his engagement in policy debates, including industrial issues such as workplace relations and free trade. He publicly criticised Bush administration policy in the Middle East, and supported the Sydney Peace Foundation. His engagement with social issues has been evident in his acting work, with two prominent examples being his lead role in Ground Zero, in which he played a cameraman investigating British nuclear testing in South Australia, and his appearance in the ABC television drama Bastard Boys, in which he played union official John Coombs. Filmography Film Big Toys (TV movie) (1980) Hoodwink (1981) – Robert Monkey Grip (1982) – Javo Prisoners (1982) - Nick Buddies (1983) – Mike The Coolangatta Gold (aka The Gold & the Glory) (1984) – Adam Lucas The Man in the Iron Mask (animated) (1985) - Phillipe (voice) Kangaroo (1986) – Richard Somers Malcolm (1986) – Malcolm Hughes Ground Zero (1987) – Harvey Denton Warm Nights on a Slow Moving Train (1988) - The Man Grievous Bodily Harm (1988) - Tom Stewart High Tide (1988) – Mick Darkman (1990) – Louis Strack Jr Weekend with Kate (1990) – Richard Muir Class Action (1991) – Michael Grazier Dingo (1992) – John ‘Dingo’ Anderson The Last Man Hanged (1992) - Ronald Ryan The Nostradamus Kid (1993) - American Preacher The Burning Piano: A Portrait of Patrick White (TV movie) (1993) A Good Man in Africa (1994) – Morgan Leafy Angel Baby (1995) – Morris Back of Beyond (1995) - Connor Cosi (1996) – Errol Grier Mr. Reliable (aka My Entire Life) (1996) – Wally Mellish Dark City (1998) – Eddie Walenski Marriage Acts (TV movie) (2000) - David McKinnon The Man Who Sued God (2001) – David Myers My Husband, My Killer (TV movie) (2001) - Bob Inkster Child Star: The Shirley Temple Story (TV movie) (2001) - George Temple Black and White (2002) – Father Tom Dixon Temptation (TV movie) (2003) - Robert Francobelli Max’s Dreaming (2003) - Mark Bryce BlackJack (2003-2007) – Jack Kempson The Mystery of Natalie Wood (2004) - Nick Gurdin Tom White (2004) – Tom White The Illustrated Family Doctor (2005) - Ray Gill Solo (2006) - Jack Barrett The Book of Revelation (2006) - Olsen Bom Bali (documentary film) (2006) - Narrator The Informant (TV movie) (2008) – Doug Lamont Australia: Land of Parrots (documentary film) (2008) - Narrator Blind Company (2009) - Geoff Brewster Matching Jack (2010) - Professor Nelson The Nothing Men (2010) - Jack Simpson Tomorrow, When The War Began (2010) - Dr Clements A Heartbeat Away (2011) - Mayor Riddick Ned’s Head (TV movie) (2011) - Narrator The Eye of the Storm (2011) – Athol Shreve The Man Who Jumped (2011) - Narrator Mabo (documentary film) (2012) - Justice Moynihan Jack Irish: Bad Debts (2012) - Garth Bruce The Turning (Segment: Ash Wednesday) (2013) - Narrator Schapelle (2013) - Mick Corby Interceptor (2022) - Frank Collins Short films The Cavity Caper (1979) Distinguished Guests (1983) - Christopher Lest We Forget (2010) - Sam Sweat (2013) - Ramon, the farmer The Crossing (2016) - The Captain Snared (2017) Fences (2022)- the farmer Television Play School (1980-81) - Presenter For the Term of His Natural Life (1983) - Rufus Dawes/Richard Devine (3 episodes) Police Rescue (1992) – Lew Campbell (1 episode) Seven Deadly Sins (Episode: Pride) (miniseries) (1993) - Roger Pascoe (1 episode) Stark (1993) – Sly Morgan (3 episodes) Halifax f.p. (1995) – Kevin Tait (1 episode) Space: Above and Beyond (1995) – Lt. Colonel Fouts (1 episode) Water Rats – Frank Holloway (1996-99) (91 episodes) The Farm (miniseries) (2001) - Tom Cooper (3 episodes) Life at 1 (documentary miniseries) (2006) - Narrator (2 episodes) Bastard Boys (2007) – John Coombs Air Australia (miniseries) (2007) - Narrator Gangs of Oz (2009) – Narrator Killing Time (2010) – Lewis Moran (8 episodes) Wi.... Discover the Gary Christopher Friel popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Gary Christopher Friel books.