Frank Finlay

Frank received Academy Award Golden Globe and BAFTA Award nominations for his performance as William Shakespeares Iago in Stuart Burges 1965 film of Laurence Oliviers staging of Othello He also won the Best Actor Award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival He later essayed the definitive screen portrayal of Alexandre Dumas musketeer Porthos in three movies for director Richard Lester The Three Musketeers 1974 The Four Musketeers 1975 and The Return of the Musketeers 1989 Franks many other films include The Longest Day Tony Richardsons The Lonliness of the Long Distance Runner Martin Ritts The Molly Maguires Bob Clarks Murder by Decree Alan Bridges The Return of the Soldier for which he recieved a BAFTA Award nomination Franco Zeffrellis Sparrow and Eric Styles Dreaming of Joseph Lees and most recently Roman Polanskis multiaward winning The Pianist and Norma Jewisons The Statement His similarly extensive television projects have earned him two BAFTA Awards for his performances in The Death of Adolf Hitler starring as Hitler with Rex Firkin directing The Adventures of Don Quixote as Sancho Panza opposite Rex Harrison for director Alvin Rakoff the ground breaking Bouquet of Barbed Wire and Another Bouquet 84 Charing Cross Road and recently the critically acclaimed series The Sins Born in Farnworth Lancashire Finlay had already begun performing on stage when he earned the Sir James Knott Scholarship at Londons Royal Academy of Dramatic Art RADA Since then he has led theatre companies in London and on Broadway He was made a Commander of the British Empire CBE in the 1984 New Years Honours List and was presented with his CBE by the Queen in February1984