Michael Elphick

Michael Elphick was born in Chichester, West Sussex in 1946.

After working as a theater electrician in Chichester, he studied acting at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, following in the footsteps of Laurence Olivier, Judi Dench and Vanessa Redgrave.

But he was often seen around Chichester because of his frequent trips back home to visit his mother.

He made his film debut in 1969 in Fraülein Doktor, an offbeat but excellent World War I film with an Italian director, a Yugoslavian setting, and a cast that included Kenneth More, Suzy Kendall and Nigel Green.

In the same year, he performed in the modestly successful Where's Jack? and in the solid Tony Richardson production of Hamlet.

Having established himself, Elphick went on to play in numerous film and TV productions before landing roles in the 1980s in motion pictures of truly outstanding quality, including the The Elephant Man as the Night Porter; Masada as Vettius, and Gorky Park as Pasha.

His Gorky Park work earned him a British Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Between 1986 and 1992, he was best known to TV fans as Boon, but he continued his stage and film work.

In 2000 and 2001, he returned to television to perform in Metropolis and Dead in the Water.

Elphick was always a drinker, but became an alcoholic after his long term lover, Julia Alexander, died from cancer in 1996.

He died on 7th September 2002, leaving a daughter, Katie.