Michael Pennington (born Michael Vivian Fyfe Pennington) was
born on June 17, 1943 in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK. to a Welsh
father and a Scottish mother. They moved to St. John's Wood, London while
he was still a child.
Pennington's father (a lawyer) hoped the he would study to be a lawyer,
but at eleven Pennington knew otherwise with his participation in The National
Youth Theatre, each play convinced him his fate was acting. He studied/read English, at Cambridge University from 1961-1964,
instead and wiled away any extra time performing. Pennington mentioned
that he treated drama at school like repertory experience! Beyond his
performances on, the drama societies, and off, National Youth Theatre,
campus, he had no formal actors training
Pennington was married to actress Katharine Barker (Oct 1964 -1967 div)
they had one child.
Pennington currently lives in North London (St. John's Wood),
where he was raised as a child
-
-
- Film
- Frágiles~2005 - Marcus
- Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi~1983 -
Moff Jerjerrod
- Hamlet~1969 - Laertes
-
-
- TV
- Trial and Retribution XIV: Mirror Image~2007 - White
- Empire Warriors~2004 - Narrator
- Building the Great Pyramid~2003 - Narrator
- Coliseum: A Gladiator's Story~2003 - Narrator
- State of Play~2003 (mini) - Richard Siegler
- Welsh in Shakespeare~2003 -
- Waking the Dead~2000 - Prof Alan Macintosh in Breaking Glass (#
3.3) 9/27/03
- Bill, The~1984 - Judge Howard Sinclair in:
- (# 19.16) 2/26/03
- (# 19.15) 2/13/03
- (# 19.14) 2/12/03
- (# 19.9) 1/29/03
- (# 19.8) 1/23/03
- (# 19.7) 21/22/03
- Silent Witness~1996- Dennis Morgan in Tell No Tales (# 6.3)
10/19/02
- Pyramid~2002 - narrator
- Dinosaur Hunters~2002 - William Buckland
- Making a Crisis out of a Drama:
Troubles at the Royal Shakespeare Company~2002 - himself
- Dr. Terrible's House of Horrible~2001- Priest in Scream
Satan Scream! (# 1.6) 112/17/01
- Echoes of the Raj~2001 - narrator
- Tourists of the Revolution~2001 - narrator
- Secret History: The Cawnpore
Massacres~1997 - narrator
- Auntie – the Inside Story of the
BBC~1997 - narrator
- Dalziel and Pascoe: Ruling Passion~1997- Hartley Culpepper
- Kavanagh QC~1994- Ralph Mershlew in Diplomatic Baggage (#
3.4) 3/24/97
- Cracker~1993 - Commander Gordon Ellison in White Ghost (#
4.1) 10/28/96
- Timewatch: Baiting the Bear~1996 -
narrator
- Timewatch: Cry Hungary~1996 -
narrator
- Timewatch: Russia’s Secret
War~1996 - narrator
- The Tallest Story~1995 - narrator
- Messengers From Moscow~1995 -
narrator
- Arena: The Peter Sellers
Story~1995 - narrator
- Without Walls: Degas and Picasso Fall Out~1994 - Degas
- Operation Epsilon~1993 -
- The Last Bolshevik~1993 - narrator
- Between the Lines~1992- Thomas Wenleigh in The Fifth Estate
(# 2.7) 11/16/93
- In My Defence~1991 - Franz
Jagerstatter
- South Bank Show: Hamlet~1989 -
- Summer's Lease~1989 (mini) - Hugh Pargeter
- Lawrence of Arabia~1988 - Lawrence (reading)
- English File: D.H. Lawrence's Strike Pay~1988 - reading
- Return of Sherlock Holmes, The~1987- Sherlock Holmes (see
Actor Connections - TV)
- Marlow Inquest, The~1987 - Thomas Kyd
- General Studies: Updating
Shakespeare~1985 -
- According to Saint Matthew~1985 -
narrator
- Oscar~1985 - narrator
- Theban Plays: Oedipus the King~1984- Oedipus Rex
- Freud~1984 (mini) - Carl Jung
- Waving to a Train~1984 - Man
- Italians, The~1984 - narrator
- Omnibus: Pennington's Chekhov~1984 - himself as Chekhov
- Playing Shakespeare~1984 -
- The South Bank Show: Lyubimov’s
Crime and Punishment~1983 -
- Play of the Month~1965 - Alexei Turbin in The White Guard (#
1.116) 9/20/82
- A Wife Like the Moon~1982 - Chekhov
- Great White Guard, The~1982 - Alexei
- Cymbeline~1982 - Posthumus
- Outside Edge~1982 - Bob
- D. H. Lawrence: A Portrait~1980 - D. H. Lawrence
- South Bank Show: Word of Mouth~1979 - himself
- Mr. & Ms. Bureaucrat~1978
- Danton's Death~1978
- Witches of Pendle, The~1977
- No Exit~1972- Ian Strawson in Last Land (# 1.4) 8/2/72
- Callan~1967- Lafarge in The Contract (# 4.10) 5/3/72
- Affair of Honour, An~1972
- Dolly Scene, The~1970- Tom
- Mad Jack~1970 -
- Dolly Scene, The~1979 -
- Unconquered, The~1970- Hans
- Anyone for Tennis~1968 -
- Middlemarch~1968
- Will Ladislaw
- Tycoon,
The~1968 -
- No Easy
Walk~1968 -
- Single
Passion, The~1967
- Thirteen
Against Fate~1966
- Drama 67~1966
- Conquest~1966
-
- Theatre
- Note: Anton Chekhov is a one-man
play that Pennington wrote, directed and starred. He also penned a book of
his experiences over the 20+ years he brought Anton Chekhov to life
- Sweet William~2007 - (one man show)
(Arcola, London, UK)
- Little Nell~2007 - Charles Dickens
(Theatre Royal, Bath, UK)
- Sweet William~2007 - one-man show on
Shakespeare (national tour UK)
- The Bargain~2007 - Robert Maxwell (The
Royal Theatre, Brighton , UK)
- Great Eccentrics~2006 - (Theatre Royal,
Winchester, UK)
- Oedipus Rex~2006 - narrator (City
of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Birmingham, UK)
- The Best Of Friends~2006 - Sir
Sydney Cockerell (Richmond Theatre, The Green, Richmond, UK)
- The Cosmonaut’s Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved
in the Former Soviet Union~2005 - Keith (Donmar Warehouse, London, UK)
- Nathan the Wise~2005 - Nathan (Hampstead
Theatre, London, UK)
- Colder Than Here~2005 - Alec (Soho
Theatre, London, UK)
- When the Night Begins~2004 -
(Hampstead Theatre, London, UK)
- Madness of George III~2003 - The
King
(Hampstead Theatre, London, UK )
- Seagull, The~2003 - Dorn (King's
Theatre, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK)
- Anton Chekhov~2003 - Chekhov (Cottesloe;
One performance: Theatre Royal, Winchester Festival, Winchester, UK)
- John Gabriel Borkman~2003 -
Borkman (English Touring Theatre, UK)
- Front Page, The~2002 - Walter
Burns (Chichester Festival Theatre, Chichester, UK)
- Anton Chekhov~2002 - Chekhov (Minerva
Theater, Chichester, UK)
- What the Butler Saw~2001 - Dr.
Prentice (tour)
- Shawl, The~2001 - John (Crucible Theatre,
Sheffield, UK)
- Timon of Athems~2000 - Timon (RSC,
Barbican Theatre, London, UK)
- Guardsman, The~2000 - Nandor
(tour; Albery Theatre, London, UK)
- Gross Indecency: The Three Trials
of Oscar Wilde~1999 - Oscar Wilde (Gielgud Theater, London, UK)
- Timon of Athems~1999 - Timon (RSC
Stratford and Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK)
- Misanthrope, The~1998 - Alceste
(Piccadilly, London, UK)
- Major Barbara~1998 - Peter
Shirley (Piccadilly, London, UK)
- Filumena~1998 - Domenico Sorriano
(Piccadilly, London, UK)
- Waste~1997 - Henry Trebell (Old
Vic, London, UK)
- Seagull, The~1997 - Trigorin (Old
Vic, London, UK)
- Provok'd Wife, The~1997 - Sir
John Brute (Old Vic, London, UK)
- Anton Chekhov~1997 - Chekhov (Old
Vic, London, UK)
- Entertainer, The~1996 - Archie
Rice (Watermill Theatre, Newbury; Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham; Hampstead
Theatre Club, UK)
- Taking Sides~1995 - Major Steve
Arnold (Minerva Theatre, Chichester; Criterion Theatre, London, UK)
- Old Times~1994 - Deely (The Gate Theater,
Dublin, Ireland, UK)
- One For the Road~1994 - Nicolas
(The Gate Theater, Dublin, Ireland, UK)
- Hamlet~1994 - The Ghost and
Claudius (tour; Gielgud Theatre, London, UK)
- Gift of the Gorgon~1993 - Edward
Damson (Wyndham's Theatre, London, UK)
- Macbeth~1992 - Macbeth
- Gift of Gorgon, The~1992 - Edward
Damson (RSC - The Pit; Wyndham's Theatre, London, UK)
- Winter's Tale, The~1991 - Leontes
(tour)
- Coriolanus~1991 - Leontes (tour)
- Three Sisters~1990 - Vesshinin
(The Gate Theatre, Dublin, Ireland, UK)
- Anton Chekhov~1990 - Leontes (The
Gate Theatre, Dublin, Ireland, UK)
- Winter's Tale~1990 - Leontes (ESC
tour; Aldwych Theatre, London, UK)
- Coriolanus~1990 - Coriolanus (ESC
tour; Aldwych Theatre, London, UK)
- Wars of the Roses: Richard II,
Henry VI; Richard III~1998 - Richard III, Jack Cade and Buckingham and other
characters (this was an ongoing tour and a series)
- Anton Chekhov~1985 - Chekhov (Cheltenham
Festival, Cheltenham, UK)
- Strider, The Story of a
Horse~1984 - Strider (National Theatre Cottesloe, London, UK)
- Venice Preserv'd~1984 - Jaffier
(National Theatre, Lyttelton, London, UK)
- Anton Chekhov~1984 - Chekhov
(Cheltenham Festival, Cheltenham, UK)
- Real Thing, The~1984 - Henry (The
Strand Theatre, London, UK)
- Crime and Punishment~1983 -
Rasholnikov (Lyric Hammersmith Theatre, London, UK)
- Shadow of a Gunman, The~1981 -
Donal Davoren (Newcastle Upon Tyne; London, UK)
- Hamlet~1981 (Newcastle Upon Tyne;
London, UK)
- Thirteenth Night~1981 Jack
Beaty (RSC - The Warehouse, London, UK)
- Shadow of a Gunman~1980 - Donal
Davoren (The Other Place, Stratford Upon Avon, UK)
- Hamlet~1980 - Hamlet (Royal Shakespeare
Theatre, Stratford Upon Avon, UK)
-
b
- White Guard, The~1979 - Shervinsky
(Aldwych Theatre, London, UK)
- Way of the World, The~1978 - Mirabell
(Aldwych Theatre, London, UK)
- Measure for Measure~1979 - The Duke
(Stratford Theatre, London, UK)
- Love's Labours Lost~1978 - Berowne
(Stratford Theatre, London, UK)
- Hippolytus~1978 - Hippolytus (The Other
Place, Stratford Upon Avon, UK)
- Diary of a Madman~1977 (one man show) -
(Newcastle, UK)
- Romeo and Juliet~1976 - Mercutio
(Stratford Theatre, London, UK) (see
Actor Connections - Theatre)
- Winter's Tale, The~1976 - Time (Stratford
Theatre, London, UK)
- Troilus and Cressida~1976 - Hector
(Stratford Theatre, London, UK)
- Destiny~1976 - Major Rolfe (Stratford
Theatre, London, UK)
- King Lear~1976 - Edgar (Stratford
Theatre, London, UK)
- Arms and the Man~1975 - Bluntcshli
(Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Birmingham, UK; Frankfort, GER)
- Measure for Measure~1974 - Angelo
(Stratford Theatre, London, UK)
- Tempest, The~1974 - Ferdinand (Stratford
Theatre, London, UK)
- Afore Night Come~1974 - Johnnie Hobnails
(Stratford Theatre, London, UK)
- Portrait of a Planet - Cain (Prospect
Theatre Company tour)
- Savages~1973 - Crawshaw (Royal Court;
Comedy Theatres, London, UK)
- Pretty Boy~1972 - (Royal Court, London,
UK)
- Chicago~1972 - (King's Head, London, UK)
- Captain Jack's Revenge~1971 - Jack (Royal Court Theatre
Upstairs, London, UK)
- Three Sisters~1971 - Andrei (Arts Theatre, Cambridge, UK)
- Trelawney of the Wells~1971 - Ferdinand Gadd (Arts
Theatre, Cambridge, UK)
- Promise, The~1970 - Leonidik (Playhouse, Sheffield, UK)
- Hamlet~1969 - Laertes (Round House, London, UK;
Lunt-Fontanne, New York, NY, US)
- Judge, The~1967 - Trapp (Cambridge Theatre, Cambridge,
UK)
- Woman of No Importance, A~1967 - Gerald Arbuthnot
(Vaudeville Theatre, London, UK)
- Ballad of the False Barman, The~1966 - Bimbo (Hampstead
Theatre Club, Hampstead, London, UK)
- Merchant of Venice, The~1966
- Jew of Malta~1966 - Mathias
- Hamlet~1966 - Fortinbras
- Timon of Athens~1966 - Titus
- Love's Labours Lost~1966 - Dumaine (Berowne understudy)
- Wars
of the Roses cycle: Henry VI, Edward IV, Richard III~1964 -various parts
-
- Theatre Director
- Midsummer Night's Dream, A~2003 - (Open
Air Theatre, London, UK)
- Twelfth Night~1996 - (Ruth Page Theatre,
Chicago, Illinois, US)
- Twelfth Night~1993 - (Japan)
- Twelfth Night~1991 - (ESC tour)
- Kafka - A Report to
the Academy~1987 - (Young Vic, London, UK)
- Alone Together~1985
- (King's Head, London, UK)
-
- Live Appearances/Performances
- Hamlet Lecture~2007 - (Ben Travers Theatre at
Charterhouse, Godalming, Surrey, UK)
- Chester Literature Festival~2006 - speaker
- An Evening with Michael Pennington~2006 - Himself
(Hampstead Theatre, London, UK)
-
- Audio Books
- Antony and Cleopatra~2000
- The Bible: Kings and Chronicles~1999 -
narrator
- Mr. Punch Travellers Gazette~1999 -
narrator
- Mr. Punch Sporting Gazette~1999 -
narrator
- Mr. Punch Military Gazette~1999 -
narrator
- Long Finish, A~1999 - narrator
- Jesus the Son of Man~1997 - narrator
- Felix in the Underworld~1997 - narrator
- Victory~1997 - narrator
- Nostromo~1996 - narrator
- Jude the Obcure~1996 - narrator
- Name of the Rose, The~1995 - narrator
- Moonstone, The~1995 - narrator
- Penguin English Verse~1995 - narrator
- Secret of Annexe 3, The~1994 - narrator
- Hard Times~1994 - narrator
- King Solomon's Carpet~1993 - narrator
- Last Seen Wearing~1993 - narrator
- Way Through The Woods, The~1993 -
narrator
- Riddle of the Third Mile, The~1992 -
narrator
- Jewel That Was Ours~1992 - narrator
- By Gloucester Docks I Sat and Wept~ -
narrator
-
- Radio
- Arden of Faversham~2004 - Arden
- Other People's Voices~2002 -
- Kill the Cameraman~2002 - The Voice
- Timbuktu~2001 - reader
- Black Monk, The~2000 - reader
- Losing Rosalind~2000 - Edmund
- With Great Pleasure: Andrew Motion~1999 - himself
- Foot of the Cross or Muzzle of the Gun~1999 - Francis Poulenc
- Work in Progress~1999 - himself (Timon of Athens)
- Molière, or the League of Hypocrites~1999 - Molière
- A Good Read~1998 - himself
- Old Times~1998 - Deeley
- With Great Pleasure: Michael Bogdanov~1998
- Stafford on Humour: Patrick Campbell~1998 - himself
- Role Play: Richard II~1997 - himself
- With Great Pleasure: Jenny Agutter~1997 - himself
- Judith Shakespeare~1996 - William
- Merely Players~1996 - Shakespeare
- Role Play: Hamlet~1996 - himself
- Morning Has Broken~1995 - John
- Underworld, The~1994 - Milton
- Playing a Part: Coriolanus~1994 - himself
- Parrots and Owls~1994 - John Ruskin
- Tamburlaine the Great~1993 - Tamburlaine
- Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, The~1992 - Moriarty
- Return of Sherlock Holmes~1992 - Moriarty
- Other Side of the Hill~1991 - Wellington
- Conversation Piece~1991 - himself
- King Priam~1988 - Achilles
- Most Valuable Acquisition, The~1988 - Captain Arthur Phillip
- Oedipus Stalin~1987 - reader
- Kaleidoscope: If It’s Monday, It Must Be Croydon~1987 - reader
- Jude the Obscure~1986 - Jude
- Chekhov in Siberia~1986 - Chekhov
- Last Renaissance Man, The~1986 - Bill Mottram
- Homo Faber~1986 - Faber
- Ariel to Miranda~1985 - Shelley
- A Celebration of England~1985 - reader
- Woman’s Hour – what did Hamlet write in his private notebook?~1985 -
reader
- The Making of ‘Morning Heroes’ - Arthur Bliss
- Maiden and the Beast, The~1985 - reader
- Unhappy Disturber of Our Peace~1985 - Sir Thomas Lawrence
- Pierre et Jean~1984 - reader
- The Angel on the Train~1984 - reader
- Sword of Honour~1984 - Ivor Clare
- Pasternak Papers, The~1984 - Alexander Pasternak
- The Actors Are Come Hither - a Celebration of Shakespeare’s
Birthday~1984
- The Way of the Cross, the Story of the Crusades~1984 - reader
- Luther~1983 - Luther
- Belman, The~1982 - The Belman
- Fahrenheit 451~1982 - Montag
- Torquato Tasso~1982 - Tasso
- Tonic Water and Ice~1981
- Troilus and Cressida~1980 - Troilus (see
Actor Connections - Radio)
- Electra~1980 - Orestes
- Monk, The~1980 - Ambrosio
- Days in the Trees
-
- Books (by, on, or referring to
Pennington)
- Wall to Wall~2004 - Pennington
- A Pocket Guide to Ibsen, Chekhov & Strindberg~2004 -
Pennington
- User's Guide: A Midsummer Night's Dream~2004/5 -
Pennington
- Players of Shakespeare 5~2003 (Cambridge
University Press) – Timon of Athens (contributor)
- Are You There Crocodile? Inventing Anton
Chekhov~2003
- User's Guide: Twelfth Night~2000 - Pennington
- Shakespeare in Production: Hamlet~1999
(reference to Pennington)
- Judi Dench With a Crack in Her Voice~1999
(reference to Pennington)
- English Shakespeares. Shakespeare on the
English stage in the 1900s~1997 (reference to Pennington)
- The Actors’ Choosing~1997 -
(contributor)
- User's Guide: Hamlet~1996 - Pennington
- Shakespeare in Performance - Hamlet~1995
(reference to Pennington)
- Shakespeare in Performance: Love’s
Labour’s Lost~1993 (reference to Pennington)
- Shakespeare Observed~1992 (reference to
Pennington)
- Players of Shakespeare~1985 - Hamlet
(contributor)
- Playing Shakespeare~1984 (reference to
Pennington)
- Shakespeare’s Players~1983 (reference to
Pennington)
- This
Is All For You~1972 - Words and Pictures
-
- Articles (written)
- Adventures With Anton~2003 - The Guardian
- If You Ask Me...~2003 - The Guardian
- As he Likes It~2002 - The Lady
- My Beautiful Carbuncle~2002 - The Guardian
(letter to)
- Changing of the Guard~2000 - The Guardian
- In the Shadows of the New City of
Light~1998 - The Independent
- Cue for Passion~1981 - The Guardian
- Keeping Up the Suspense in Hamlet~1981 -
Drama
- First Wicket Down~1978 (Royal Shakespeare
Company Yearbook)
- One Man's Week~1976
-
- Awards, Honors and Nominations
- London Critics
Circle Theatre Award
- Rec'd 1987 Special Award for The Henry Trilogy
(The Wars of the Roses)
- Theatre
Book Prize
- Nom
(Shortlist) 2003 for Are You There Crocodile? Inventing Anton
Chekhov
-
- Miscellany
- He and Michael Bogdanov founded the English
Shakespeare Company in 1986
-
- April 2004 Pennington was the first actor ever to
be asked to lecture on Shakespeare at the British Academy of London.
