Simon Williams (actor)

Infobox actor


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name = Simon Williams
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birthdate = Birth date and age|1946|6|16|df=y
location = Windsor, Berkshire, England
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notable role = James Bellamy in "Upstairs, Downstairs"
Dr. Charles Cartwright in "Don't Wait Up"
Sir Charles Merrick
in "Holby City"

Simon Williams (born 16 June 1946) is an English actor who is best known for playing James Bellamy in the period drama "Upstairs, Downstairs". Frequently playing upper-class roles, he is also known for playing Dr. Charles Cartwright in the sitcom "Don't Wait Up" and Sir Charles Merrick in medical drama "Holby City".

Early life

Simon Williams was born in Windsor, Berkshire, in 1946 cite news|url=http://www.pfd.co.uk/clients/willias/h-pwr.html|title=Simon Williams CV at PFD|first=|last=|publisher=PFD|date=] and his parents were the actor Hugh Williams and his wife Margaret Vyner. Simon Williams's brother is the poet Hugo Williams, and his sister Polly married his "Don't Wait Up" co-star and friend Nigel Havers. He and his first wife, actress Belinda Carroll, had two children, Tam and Amy, both actors, before divorcing.cite news|url=http://www.thepeerage.com/p18170.htm#i181692|title=Simon Williams at thePeerage.com|first=|last=|publisher=thePeerage.com|date=2007] He married secondly, in 1986, the actress Lucy Fleming. Williams trained in rep at Worthing, Birmingham and Bath, and later joined the Theatre Workshop. Throughout his career, Simon Williams has appeared on stage in many productions, and has also directed a number of plays.

Television fame

Williams first appeared on television in 1967 in "Man in a Suitcase", and in 1969 played the lead role in "Slim John". He got his big break in 1971 when he made his first appearance as James Bellamy in the "Upstairs, Downstairs" episode "Board Wages". Williams would go on to appear in 37 episodes until the penultimate episode "All the King's Horses" in 1975. Following this, he appeared in "Wodehouse Playhouse", the films "The Incredible Sarah", "Jabberwocky" and the TV series "The Prisoner of Zenda". From 1979 to 1981, he played Laurence Lucas in "Agony", a role he reprised in 1995 in "Agony Again".

In 1981, he played Buddo in the TV series "Kinvig". In 1985, Williams replaced Richard Heffer to play Dr. Charles Cartwright in the sitcom "Don't Wait Up", a role Williams continued for three series until 1990. In the meantime, he had also appeared in "Juliet Bravo", the "Doctor Who" serial "Remembrance of the Daleks", "Minder", and the pilot of "The Alleyn Mysteries", in which he played Roderick Alleyn.

ince 1990

Simon Williams since 1990 has appeared in episodes of "Bergerac", "Dangerfield", "dinnerladies", "The Scarlet Pimpernel", "Dalziel and Pascoe", "Bad Girls", "The Inspector Lynley Mysteries", "Starhunter 2300", "Cutting It", "Heartbeat", "Family Affairs", "Doctors", "The Bill" and "Diamond Geezer 2". Williams has also had recurring roles as Gerald Trigg in "Law and Disorder" in 1994 and Sir Charles Merrick in "Holby City" from 2000 to 2003. In 2002 he appeared in the film "The Gathering Storm", and has also appeared in the "Doctor Who" audio drama "Nekromanteia".

Williams has also written two novels, "Talking Oscars" and "Kill the Lights", and has written several plays. In early November 2007, Simon Williams performed in "Curtain up! Lights up! Cock up!" at the Jermyn Street Theatre near Piccadilly Circus in London. [ [http://www.londontheatre.co.uk/londontheatre/news/oct07.htm London Theatre Guide - Online : News October 2007 ] ]

References

External links

*imdb name|id=0931702|name=Simon Williams