Who Are Those Guys? ~ Michael Elphick

 

Michael John Elphick was born on September 19, 1946, in Chichester, Sussex, England, U.K. He was an English film and television actor.

Elphick grew up in Chichester, Sussex, where his family had a butcher's shop. He was educated at Lancastrian Secondary Modern Boys School in Chichester, where he took part in several school productions including Noah and A Midsummer Night's Dream. He initially considered joining the Merchant Navy and helped out in his local boatyard during school holidays. It has been reported that he stumbled upon acting by chance when, at the age of 15, he took a job as an apprentice electrician at the Chichester Festival Theatre while it was being built. After graduating from drama school Elphick was offered roles primarily as menacing heavies. He made his debut in “Fraulein Doktor” in 1968.

He played the eponymous private investigator in the ITV series ‘Boon and Harry Slater’ in BBC's ‘EastEnders’. He was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the 1983 film Gorky Park. With his gruff Sussex accent and lip-curling sneer, he often played menacing hard men.

Elphick struggled with an addiction to alcohol; at the height of his problem, he admitted to consuming two litres (½ gallon) of spirits a day, which contributed to his death from a heart attack in 2002. He had collapsed at his home in Willesden Green, London, after complaining of pains. He was rushed to hospital where he died shortly before his 56th birthday on September 7, 2002.

Elphick met his long-term partner, schoolteacher Julia Alexander, in 1963 and remained with her until her death from cancer in 1996. The couple had a daughter Kate born in 1976.

ELPHICK, Michael (Michael John Elphick) [9/19/1946, Chichester, Sussex, England, U.K. – 9/7/2002, Willesden, London, England, U.K. (heart attack)] – theater, film, TV actor, brother of actor Robin Elphick, father of Kate Elphick [1976-    ] with school teacher Julia Alexander [19??-1996].

The Ballad of Kid Divine – 1991 (Dr. Nathaniel Bonner)