Ray Barrett
Raymond Charles Barrett was an Australian actor. During the 1960s, he was a leading actor on British television, where he was best known for his appearances in The Troubleshooters. From the 1970s, he appeared in lead and character roles in Australian films and TV series.
Early life
Barrett was born in Brisbane, Queensland and was educated at Windsor State Primary School and at Brisbane State High School. Fascinated by radio from an early age, he won an on-air talent competition in 1939, at the age of 12: an eisteddfod that was broadcast on 4BH radio, with a musical monologue about a dog called "Paddy". This was to place him on a path different from his dream of becoming a boat-builder. In 1949, Barrett was initiated into Freemasonry as an initiate and member of Empire Lodge #197 of the United Grand Lodge of Queensland.Acting career
United Kingdom
Ray Barrett first appeared on radio in Brisbane, and later in Sydney, to where he moved in 1954. In 1957, he moved to Britain, where his background as a singer earned him a part in a revue alongside Beryl Reid, Patrick Wymark and Sheila Hancock.Due to his "tough looks", Barrett was given character and "tough guy" roles from an unusually young age. In Britain, he played one of the lead roles in the TV series Emergency – Ward 10 and later one of the main characters, the hard-nosed oil worker Peter Thornton, in the long-running BBC series The Troubleshooters. He mostly appeared in television but also made several films including Hammer's The Reptile.
He also voiced characters in Gerry Anderson-produced "Supermarionation" series of the 1960s: Stingray, as Commander Shore and Titan, and Thunderbirds as John Tracy, the Hood and various extras. Also in 1965, he appeared as Bennett/Koquillion in the Doctor Who serial The Rescue.
Australia
In later years, Barrett starred in film and TV roles in his native Australia, living on Stradbroke Island, Queensland during the 1970s. He appeared as the Prime Minister in Burn the Butterflies, and as a miner in Golden Soak. In 1980, he played the part of the controversial Australian historical figure Governor Bligh in the ABC Television production The Timeless Land. He had secondary roles in many other productions, including Something in the Air.Barrett also appeared in such films as Don's Party and The Carmakers. In 2005, he received an Australian Film Institute Longford Life Achievement Award.
Death
Barrett died on 8 September 2009 at the Gold Coast Hospital in Southport, Queensland, aged 82, after suffering a brain haemorrhage. His final acting appearance had been in the 2008 film Australia. He was married three times, and left three children.Filmography
Film
- The Desperate Women as Agent
- The Sundowners
- Touch of Death as Maxwell
- Edgar Wallace Mysteries: "Time to Remember" as Sammy
- Mix Me a Person as Insp. Wagstaffe
- Jigsaw as Sgt. Gorman
- Moment of Decision
- Edgar Wallace Mysteries: "To Have and to Hold" as Henry Fraser
- 80,000 Suspects as Health Inspector Bennett
- Valley of the Kings as Mr. Marsh
- The Reptile as Harry George Spalding
- Thunderbirds Are GO as John Tracy / The Hood
- Just Like a Woman as Australian
- Revenge as Harry
- Peer Gynt as Button moulder
- Little Laura and Big John as Cates
- The Amorous Milkman as John
- The Hostages as Joe Blake
- Arena as Col Burrows
- Don's Party as Mal
- Let the Balloon Go as Dr. McLeod
- No Room to Run as Jack Deakin
- The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith as Farrell
- Tim as Man outside hotel
- The Earthling as Parnell
- Departmental
- A Shifting Dreaming
- A Dangerous Summer as F.C.O. Webster
- Goodbye Paradise as Michael Stacy
- Where the Green Ants Dream as Cole
- Conferenceville
- The Empty Beach as MacLeary
- Rebel as Bubbles
- Relatives as Geoffrey
- Frenchman's Farm as Harry Benson
- Contagion as Bael
- As Time Goes By as J.L. Weston
- Prisoners of the Sun as President of the Bench
- Waiting as Frank
- No Worries as Old Burkey
- Hotel Sorrento as Wal Moynihan
- ' as Dwyer
- '
- Brilliant Lies as Brian Connor
- Hotel de Love as Jack Dunne
- Heaven's Burning as Cam
- In the Winter Dark as Maurice Stubbs
- Deluge
- Dalkeith as Tarquin St John Smythe
- Visitors as Bill Perry
- Australia as Ramsden
Television
- The Adventures of Long John Silver as Paul
- Educating Archie as Ray
- Armchair Mystery Theatre as Detectve-Sergeant Cullen
- Armchair Theatre as Alan Whint / Donnie / Ben
- Emergency – Ward 10 as Dr. Don Nolan
- Out of This World as Dr. Alan Whint
- Man of the World as Charlie West
- The Avengers as Strong
- Z Cars as Len Wilson
- ITV Playhouse as Larry Ransome
- First Night as Frank Angelo
- ITV Play of the Week as Sergeant Weston / Jack Bailey
- Ghost Squad as Peter Clarke / Mr. Hicks
- The Saint as Willie Kinsall
- The Brothers Karamazov as Mitya Karamazov
- Doctor Who as Bennett / Koquillion
- Thursday Theatre as Jacko
- Stingray as Commander Sam Shore / Sub-Lieutenant John Horatio Fisher / King Titan
- Drama 61–67 as Captain Murchison
- BBC Play of the Month as Knight
- Blackmail as Patek
- Gideon C.I.D.
- No Hiding Place as Johnny Crown / Larry Hobbs
- The Spies as Walker
- The Man in Room 17 as Al Gover
- Thunderbirds as John Tracy / The Hood / Lieutenant Burroughs / Various Characters
- Till Death Us Do Part
- The Corbett Follies
- Mogul as Peter Thornton
- Public Eye as Melville Hayden-Peters
- Barlow at Large as Johnny Duchene
- The Adventures of Black Beauty as T. Otis Waygood
- Dixon of Dock Green as Phil Burgh / Nat Singer
- Colditz as Flt. Lt. Jack Collins
- The Double Dealers as Geoffrey Burch
- Churchill's People as Leo Hennessey
- The Outsiders as Harry
- Run from the Morning
- Golden Soak as Alec Hamilton
- Burn the Butterflies as Prime Minister
- The Timeless Land as Gov. Bligh
- Levkas Man
- Sporting Chance as Robbo
- The Last Bastion as Gen. Tom Blamey
- Five Mile Creek as Harry
- Waterfront as Sam Elliott
- The Flying Doctors as Frank Watson
- Tusitala as Harry Moors
- The Challenge as Robert McCullough
- G.P. as Rex Mitchell
- The Paper Man as Maurice Grimm
- Correlli as Harry Powell
- Bordertown as Colonel Forsythe
- Fire as Charles
- Adrenaline Junkies
- Something in the Air as Len Taylor
- Stingers as Mr. Rafferty
- White Collar Blue as Barry Hill
- After the Deluge as Old Cliff Kirby
- All Saints as Doc Connelly