Nigel Davenport

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Nigel Davenport
Born	23 May 1928 (age 80) Shelford, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire

Nigel Davenport (born 23 May 1928) is an English actor.

1 Biography
- 1.1 Early life
- 1.2 Career
2 Filmography
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life

Davenport was born in Shelford, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, the son of Katherine Lucy (née Meiklejohn) and Arthur Henry Davenport.^[1] he grew up in an academic family. He was educated at Cheltenham College and Trinity College, Oxford, originally to study Philosophy, Politics and Economics but switching to English on the advice of his tutors.

[edit] Career

Davenport joined the English Stage Company at the Royal Court Theatre in the 1960s. He began to appear in British film and television productions in supporting roles. He made an impression as the Duke of Norfolk in 1967's A Man for All Seasons and had the major role of Lord Bothwell in Mary, Queen of Scots. For the production of 2001: A Space Odyssey, Davenport read the dialogue of HAL on set for the other actors. In 1972, he appeared as George Adamson, opposite Susan Hampshire in Living Free, the sequel to Born Free, Davenport took the leading role in the off-beat Phase IV, which failed to find an audience. Since then he has continued to work in supporting roles in film and television as a succession of lords, police inspectors and military officers with a twinkle in their eye, most characteristically as General Lord Ismay opposite Nicol Williamson's Lord Mountbatten in 'The last Viceroy', a classic TV drama series aired in 1986. In the 1974 BBC production of Shaw's "Apple Cart" he excelled as the very shavian King Magnus, along with Prunella Scales and a very young Helen Mirren in supporting roles.

In 2000, he played William Smithers in the Midsomer Murders episode Blue Herrings.

Davenport has been twice married:

Helena White; one daughter Laura and one son Hugo.
The actress Maria Aitken (1972–80); one son Jack Davenport who is also an actor. According to Jerry Bruckheimer, producer of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, Nigel's son Jack Davenport was cast as the James Norrington character in part due to Nigel's involvement in A High Wind in Jamaica.