Career
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Currie was born in Edinburgh , Scotland.[1] He attended George Watson's College and worked as organist and choir director.[4] In 1898 he got his first job in Benjamin Fuller's theatre group, and appeared with them for almost 10 years.[8]
After emigrating to the United States in the late 1890s, Currie and his wife, Maude Courtney, did a song-and-dance act on the stage.[4] He made his first film , The Old Man , in 1931.[3] He appeared as a priest in the 1943 Ealing Second World War film Undercover (1943).[9] His most famous film role was the convict , Abel Magwitch , in David Lean 's Great Expectations (1946).[8] He also earned praise for his portrayal of Queen Victoria 's highland attendant John Brown in The Mudlark (1950).[1]
In the following years he appeared in Hollywood film epics , including such roles as Saint Peter in Quo Vadis (1951), as Balthazar , one of the Three Magi , in the multi-Oscar -winning Ben-Hur (1959); the Pope in Francis of Assisi (1961); and an aged, wise senator in The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964). He appeared in People Will Talk with Cary Grant ; and portrayed Robert Taylor 's embittered father, Sir Cedric, in MGM's Technicolor version of Ivanhoe (1952).[3] But Ivanhoe also gave Currie one of his most delightful roles, highlighting his comic capabilities, as well as a willingness to still do some action scenes, even in his 70s.
Television roles included Sir Gideon Murray in Alexander Reid 's The Lass wi' the Muckle Mou , broadcast by the BBC on 6 October 1953.[10] In 1962, he starred in an episode of NBC 's The DuPont Show of the Week , The Ordeal of Dr. Shannon , an adaptation of A.J. Cronin 's novel, Shannon's Way .
He was the subject of This Is Your Life in February 1963, when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews at the BBC Television Theatre in London.[citation needed ]
In 1966, Currie played Mr. Lundie, the minister, in the television adaptation of the musical Brigadoon .[11] His last performance was for the television series The Saint which starred Roger Moore . Currie played a dying mafioso boss in the two-part episode "Vendetta for the Saint", which was shown posthumously in 1969.[12]
Late in life, he became a much respected antiques dealer , specialising in coins and precious metals . He was also a longtime collector of the works of Robert Burns .[1]
Personal life and death
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Complete filmography
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The Old Man (1931) as Rennett
The Frightened Lady (1932) as Brooks
Rome Express (1932) as Sam (publicist)
The Good Companions (1933) as Monte Mortimer
Excess Baggage (1933) as Inspector Toucan
It's a Boy (1933) (uncredited)
Princess Charming (1934) as Baron Seegman
Orders Is Orders (1934) as Dave
Little Friend (1934) as Grove
Gay Love (1934) as Highams
My Old Dutch (1934) as Mo
Mr. Cinders (1934) as Henry Kemp
The Big Splash (1935) as Hartley Bassett
In Town Tonight (1935) as The Manager
Heat Wave (1935) as Captain (uncredited)
The Improper Duchess (1936) as Milton Lee
The Gay Adventure (1936) as Porter
Wanted! (1937) as Uncle Mart
Glamorous Night (1937) as Angus MacIntosh
Catch as Catch Can (1937) as Al Parsons
The Edge of the World (1937) as James Gray
Command Performance (1937) as Al, Arthur's Manager
Paradise for Two (1937) as Creditor (uncredited)
The Claydon Treasure Mystery (1938) as Rubin
Follow Your Star (1938) as Maxie
Around the Town (1938) as Sam Wyngold
The Royal Family of Broadway (1939, TV movie) as Oscar Wolfe
Leviathan (1939, TV movie)
Sun Up (1939, TV movie) as Pap Todd
The Great Adventure (1939 TV Movie) as Texel
One Night, One Day... (1939, TV Movie) as James
Crook's Tour (1941) as Tourist on Desert Bus (uncredited)
49th Parallel (1941) as The Factor
The Day Will Dawn (1942) as Capt. Alstad
Thunder Rock (1942) as Capt. Joshua Stuart
The Bells Go Down (1943) as District Officer MacFarlane
Warn That Man (1943) as Captain Andrew Fletcher
Theatre Royal (1943) as Clement J. Earle
Undercover (1943) as Father (uncredited)
They Met in the Dark (1943) as Merchant Captain
The Shipbuilders (1943) as McWain
Don Chicago (1945) as Bugs Mulligan
I Know Where I'm Going! (1945) as Ruairidh Mhór
The Trojan Brothers (1946) as W. H. Maxwell
School for Secrets (1946) as Sir Duncan Wills
In the Zone (1946, TV Movie) as Scotty
Spring Song (1946) as Cobb
Great Expectations (1946) as Magwitch
Musical Chairs (1947, TV Movie) as Samuel Plagett
Woman to Woman as Theatre Manager
You Can't Take It with You (1947, TV Movie) as Martin Vanderhof
The Brothers (1947) as Hector Macrae
The Great Adventure (1947, TV Movie) as Texel
So Evil My Love (1948) as Dr Krylie
My Brother Jonathan (1948) as Dr Hammond
Mr. Perrin and Mr. Traill (1948) as Sir Joshua Varley
Sleeping Car to Trieste (1948) as Alastair MacBain
Bonnie Prince Charlie (1948) as the Marquis of Tullibardine
The History of Mr. Polly (1949) as Uncle Jim
Edward, My Son (1949) as Sir Lawrence Smythe (uncredited)
Whisky Galore! (1949) as Narrator (uncredited)
Treasure Island (1950) as Captain Billy Bones
Trio (1950) as Mr McLeod (in segment Sanatorium)
My Daughter Joy (1950) as Sir Thomas McTavish
The Black Rose (1950) as Alfgar
The Mudlark (1950) as John Brown
People Will Talk (1951) as Shunderson
Quo Vadis (1951) as Saint Peter
Walk East on Beacon (1952) as Professor Albert Kafer
Kangaroo (1952) as Michael McGuire
Ivanhoe (1952) as Cedric
Stars and Stripes Forever (1952) as Colonel Randolph
Treasure of the Golden Condor (1953) as MacDougal
The Broken Jug (1953, TV Movie) as Inspector Walter
The Lass Wi' the Muckle Mou (1953, TV Movie) as Sir Gideon Murray
Rob Roy: The Highland Rogue (1953) as Hamish MacPherson
The End of the Road (1954) as Old "Mick-Mack"
Beau Brummell (1954) as McIver, Brummel's Publisher (uncredited)
Third Party Risk (1954) as Mr. Darius
Captain Lightfoot (1955) as Callahan
Make Me an Offer (1955) as Abe Sparta
Thunder Rock (1955, TV Movie) as Capt. Joshua Stuart
Footsteps in the Fog (1955) as Inspector Peters
King's Rhapsody (1955) as King Paul
Around the World in 80 Days (1956) as Andrew Stuart, Reform Club member
Zarak (1957) as the Mullah
Seven Waves Away (1957) as Mr Wheaton
The Little Hut (1957) as the Reverend Bertram Brittingham-Bell
Saint Joan (1957) as Archbishop of Rheims
Campbell's Kingdom (1957) as Old Man
Dangerous Exile (1957) as Mr. Patient
The Naked Earth (1958) as Father Verity
Tempest (1958) as Count Grinov
6.5 Special (1958) as Himself
Corridors of Blood (1958) as Supt Matheson
Solomon and Sheba (1959) as King David
Ben-Hur (1959) as Balthasar / Narrator
Hand in Hand (1960) as Mr Pritchard
Kidnapped (1960) as Cluny MacPherson
The Angel Wore Red (1960) as Bishop
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1960) as Capt. Sellers
Clue of the Silver Key (1961) as Harvey Lane
Edgar Wallace Mysteries – "Clue of the Silver Key" (1961; US TV: The Edgar Wallace Mystery Theatre ) as Harvey Lane
Five Golden Hours (1961) as Father Superior
Francis of Assisi (1961) as the Pope
Joseph and His Brethren (1961) as Jacob
Go to Blazes (1962) as the Judge
The Inspector (1962) as De Kool
The Amorous Prawn (1962) as Lochaye
Cleopatra (1963) as Titus (uncredited)
Murder at the Gallop (1963) as Old Enderby
The Cracksman (1963) as Feathers
Billy Liar (1963) as Duxbury
West 11 (1963) as Mister Cash
The Three Lives of Thomasina (1964) as Grandpa Stirling
The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) as Senator
Who Was Maddox? (1964) as Alec Campbell
The Battle of the Villa Fiorita (1965) as Emcee
Bunny Lake Is Missing (1965) as Dollmaker
Brigadoon (1966, TV Movie) as Mr Lundie
Alice in Wonderland (1966, TV Movie) as Dodo
Vendetta for the Saint (1969) as Don Pasquale
Partial television credits
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The Lass wi' the Muckle Mou (1953) as Sir Gideon Murray
Danger Man – Episodes: "The Gallows Tree" (1961) as Jock "That's Two of Us Sorry" (1965) as Jock (NOTE: apparently both times he appeared in that series, his character was named "Jock"!
Dixon of Dock Green Episode "A Home of One's Own" (1962) as Mr Caldicott
Alice in Wonderland (1966) as the Dodo
Gideon's Way Episode "The Thin Red Line" (1966) as the General
The Prisoner – Episode "The Chimes of Big Ben " (1967) as General
The Saint – Episode "Vendetta for the Saint" (1968) as Don Pasquale (final television appearance)
References
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^ a b c d e f "Currie, (William) Finlay (1878–1968)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi :10.1093/ref:odnb/55968. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^ McFarlane, Brian (28 February 2014). The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition . Oxford University Press. pp. 175-176; ISBN 9781526111968
^ a b c d "Finlay Currie". BFI . Archived from the original on 9 May 2016. Retrieved 1 July 2018 .
^ a b c d "BFI Screenonline: Currie, Finlay (1878–1968) Biography". Screenonline.org.uk .
^ "Ben-Hur (1959) – William Wyler – Review". AllMovie .
^ "1957: Around the World in 80 Days | The Oscars, from Wings to Spotlight: the 88 films to win Best Picture - Film". 24 February 2017. Archived from the original on 24 February 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2021 .
^ "1960: Ben-Hur | The Oscars, from Wings to Spotlight: the 88 films to win Best Picture - Film". 24 February 2017. Archived from the original on 24 February 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2021 .
^ a b "Finlay Currie – Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos". AllMovie .
^ "Undercover (1943) – Sergei Nolbandov – Cast and Crew". AllMovie .
^ The Lass wi' the Muckle Mou , Scotland On-Air
^ "Brigadoon (1966)". BFI . Archived from the original on 3 December 2018.
^ "Finlay Currie – Movies and Filmography". AllMovie .
External links
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