Tom courtenay

Born on February 25, 1937, in Hull (Yorkshire), Thomas Daniel Courtenay comes from a very humble family, since his father was dedicated to painting boats. He moved to the British capital to study Dramatic Art at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA).

Already as a student he drew attention for his strength on stage. In fact, he made his debut at one of the great venues in London’s East End, the Old Vic, where he inherited from Albert Finney the leading role of Billy, the liar , a text by Keith Waterhouse . He became a provincial office worker who dreams of becoming a screenwriter. Many years later, John Schlesinger recruited him to star in the film adaptation, opposite Julie Christie .

The key role in Tom Courtenay’s filmography was undoubtedly the juvenile delinquent, who has developed an excellent ability to run away from the police, in Tony Richardson ‘s The Loneliness of the Long-distance Runner , one of the most representative titles of Free Cinema. He got the BAFTA for Most Promising Actor.

There is no doubt that Courtenay was in his golden moment then, since he then played Pasha Antipov, the revolutionary leader who married Lara –again Julie Christie–, in Doctor Zhivago . The truth is that Courtenay embroidered the complex character, who went from idealist to insensitive servant of the Bolsheviks. Not in vain, he obtained an Oscar nomination for best secondary.

With the protagonist of that film, Omar Sharif , he repeated in the successful The Night of the Generals , where Courtenay played a corporal, Hartmann, who had an affair with the daughter of the general in command.

From that moment on, the actor insisted on giving priority to his theatrical career, as a member of the Royal Exchange Theater in Manchester, directed by the prestigious Caspar Wrede. He had weight in this decision the fact that in that same company he found love, since he got together with the set designer Isabel Crossley, after having divorced from the actress Cheryl Kennedy, in 1982.

Over the next several decades, Tom Courtenay has had few truly memorable screen appearances. He is saved in The Actor’s Shadow , where he plays a theater enthusiast, assistant to a mature actor –the aforementioned Finney–, during the Nazi bombings. He and Finney were both Oscar nominated, but it was ultimately snatched away by another heavyweight, Robert Duvall , for Thanks and Favors .

After many years without moviegoers knowing much about him, Courtenay returned in a very minor role, as second in command of the ‘Gyptians’, in the failed The Golden Compass , as a retired opera singer in The Quartet –alongside his friend and fellow RADA student Alan Rickman – and as ‘the major’, Colin Firth ‘s sidekick in The Perfect Plan . He is also part of the large cast of Night Train to Lisbon , along with Jeremy Irons .

He has held the title of sir since 2001, and an honorary doctorate from the University of Hull, his hometown. In addition, Tom Courtenay found success in the UK with “Dear Tom: Letters From Home”, a memoir made up of a selection of the letters he exchanged with his mother.