Skip to content
Frank Finlay

Personal Information

Known ForActing
GenderMale
Born / DiedAug 6, 1926 (Died at 90)
Zodiac Sign♌Leo
Place of BirthFarnworth, Lancashire, England, UK
Career Span1950 – 2016
Known Credits123 Titles
ActingPopularity Score 1.9

Frank Finlay

Also known as:프랭크 핀레이Francis "Frank" FinlayFrancis Finlay
Total Works

123

82 movies • 41 shows

Avg Rating

6.4 / 10

across rated releases

Box Office

—

worldwide gross

Global Reach

#2

TMDB star index

Biography

Frank received Academy Award, Golden Globe and BAFTA Award nominations for his performance as William Shakespeare’s Iago in Stuart Burge’s 1965 film of Laurence Olivier’s staging of Othello. He also won the Best Actor Award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival. He later essayed the definitive screen portrayal of Alexandre Dumas’ musketeer Porthos in three movies for director Richard Lester: The Three Musketeers (1974), The Four Musketeers (1975) and The Return of the Musketeers (1989). Frank’s many other films include The Longest Day; Tony Richardson’s The Lonliness of the Long Distance Runner; Martin Ritt’s The Molly Maguires; Bob Clark’s Murder by Decree; Alan Bridges’ The Return of the Soldier (for which he recieved a BAFTA Award nomination); Franco Zeffrelli’s Sparrow; and Eric Styles’ Dreaming of Joseph Lees; and most recently Roman Polanski’s multi-award winning The Pianist and Norma Jewison’s The Statement. His similarly extensive television projects have earned him two BAFTA Awards, for his performances in The Death of Adolf Hitler (starring as Hitler, with Rex Firkin directing); The Adventures of Don Quixote (as Sancho Panza, opposite Rex Harrison, for director Alvin Rakoff); the ground breaking Bouquet of Barbed Wire and Another Bouquet; 84 Charing Cross Road; and recently the critically acclaimed series The Sins. Born in Farnworth, Lancashire, Finlay had already begun performing on stage when he earned the Sir James Knott Scholarship at London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Since then he has led theatre companies in London and on Broadway. He was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1984 New Year’s Honours List, and was presented with his CBE by the Queen in February1984.

Signature Roles & Milestones

The Pianist
8.4
The Pianist
2002•movie
as Father
Merlin
7.8
Merlin
2008•series
as Anhora
The Longest Day
7.6
The Longest Day
1962•movie
as Pvt. Coke (uncredited)
Lifeforce
6.2
Lifeforce
1985•movie
as Dr. Hans Fallada

Full Filmography & Credits

Showing 123 titles featuring Frank Finlay

The Pianist
8.4
The Pianist
2002•movie

as Father

Merlin
7.8
1 eps
Merlin
2008•series

as Anhora

The Longest Day
7.6
The Longest Day
1962•movie

as Pvt. Coke (uncredited)

Lifeforce
6.2
Lifeforce
1985•movie

as Dr. Hans Fallada

Blackadder
8.0
1 eps
Blackadder
1983•series

as The Witchsmeller Pursuivant

The Key
6.0
The Key
1983•movie

as Nino Rolfe

A Christmas Carol
7.5
A Christmas Carol
1984•movie

as Jacob Marley

The Three Musketeers
6.7

as Porthos / O'Reilly

The Voyeur
6.4
The Voyeur
1994•movie

as Nino Rolfe

The Wild Geese
6.8
The Wild Geese
1978•movie

as Fr. Geoghagen

Sherlock Holmes
8.2
1 eps
Sherlock Holmes
1984•series

as Professor Coram / Sergius

The Four Musketeers
6.5

as Porthos

Murder by Decree
6.3
Murder by Decree
1979•movie

as Inspector Lestrade

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner
7.2

as Booking Office Clerk (uncredited)

The Return of the Musketeers
6.2

as Porthos

Cromwell
6.6
Cromwell
1970•movie

as John Carter

Inspector Clouseau
5.0
Inspector Clouseau
1968•movie

as Supt. Weaver

Prime Suspect
7.8
4 eps
Prime Suspect
1991•series

as Arnold Tennison

The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns
7.0
2 eps

as General Bulstrode

The Molly Maguires
6.4
The Molly Maguires
1970•movie

as Davies

The Shoes of the Fisherman
6.8

as Igor Bounin

Shaft in Africa
6.2
Shaft in Africa
1973•movie

as Vincent Amafi

The Statement
5.7
The Statement
2003•movie

as Commissaire Vionnet

A Study in Terror
6.2
A Study in Terror
1965•movie

as Inspector Lestrade

Nothing Like a Dame
6.8

as Self (archive footage)

Twisted Nerve
6.8
Twisted Nerve
1968•movie

as Henry Durnley

Lovejoy
7.4
1 eps
Lovejoy
1986•series

as Harold Plumb

Robbery
6.6
Robbery
1967•movie

as Robinson

Tales of the Unexpected
6.8
1 eps

as Arthur Pearson

Enigma
5.6
Enigma
1982•movie

as Canarsky

The Deadly Bees
4.5
The Deadly Bees
1966•movie

as H.W. Manfred

Gumshoe
6.2
Gumshoe
1971•movie

as William Ginley

Stalin
5.3
Stalin
1992•movie

as Sergei

Count Dracula
7.0
Count Dracula
1977•movie

as Abraham van Helsing

Heartbeat
7.1
1 eps
Heartbeat
1992•series

as Howard Franklin

Sitting Target
6.1
Sitting Target
1972•movie

as Marty Gold

Othello
6.4
Othello
1965•movie

as Iago

Assault
5.5
Assault
1971•movie

as Det. Chief Supt. Velyan

Sparrow
7.4
Sparrow
1994•movie

as Father Nunzio

Cthulhu Mansion
4.6
Cthulhu Mansion
1992•movie

as Chandu

Hot Enough for June
5.7

as British Embassy Porter

Neither the Sea Nor the Sand
5.5

as George Dabernon

The Return of the Soldier
6.2

as William Grey

The Jokers
6.2
The Jokers
1967•movie

as Harrassed Man

The Martins
5.3
The Martins
2001•movie

as Mr Heath

Doctor in Distress
6.3
Doctor in Distress
1963•movie

as Corsetiere

I'll Never Forget What's'isname
5.4

as Chaplain

The Ploughman's Lunch
4.8

as Matthew Fox

The Informers
6.8
The Informers
1963•movie

as Leon Sale

The Lost Prince
7.2
2 eps
The Lost Prince
2003•series

as Asquith

Stiff Upper Lips
5.6
Stiff Upper Lips
1998•movie

as Hudson Junior

Casanova
4.1
Casanova
1987•movie

as Razetta

Eroica
7.5
Eroica
2003•movie

as Josef Haydn

Life for Ruth
7.0
Life for Ruth
1962•movie

as Teddy's Father

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes
8.5
1 eps

as Professor Coram / Sergius

The Waiting Room
5.4
The Waiting Room
2007•movie

as Roger

Arch of Triumph
5.2
Arch of Triumph
1984•movie

as Col. Boris Morosov

Ring of Darkness
4.8
Ring of Darkness
1979•movie

as Paul

Dreaming of Joseph Lees
6.4

as Father

Play for Today
6.6
2 eps
Play for Today
1970•series
The Thief of Baghdad
5.5

as Abu Bakar

The Body
4.6
The Body
1970•movie

as Narrator

The Miracle of Medjugorje
4.4

as Monsignor

How Do You Want Me?
7.8
12 eps
How Do You Want Me?
1998•series
Limited Edition
7.2
Limited Edition
1997•movie

as John Rathbone

The Sandwich Man
6.5
The Sandwich Man
1966•movie

as Second Fish Porter

The Comedy Man
7.1
The Comedy Man
1964•movie

as Prout

Wogan
5.6
1 eps
Wogan
1982•series

as Self

BBC Play of the Month
5.2
1 eps

as Marcus Brutus

Johnny and the Bomb
6.4
3 eps
Johnny and the Bomb
2006•series

as Tom Maxwell

Thirty-Minute Theatre
4.2
1 eps

as The Man

The Wild Affair
5.3
The Wild Affair
1965•movie

as Drunk

Z-Cars
7.3
1 eps
Z-Cars
1962•series
The Grand
5.1
1 eps
The Grand
1997•series

as Edward Lawrence

Screen Two
7.1
1 eps
Screen Two
1985•series

as Frank Strange

King of the Wind
7.0
King of the Wind
1990•movie

as Edward Coke

Mountain of Diamonds
6.2

as Garrick

Casanova
4.5
6 eps
Casanova
1971•series

as Giovanni Jacopo Casanova

Armchair Theatre
6.0
1 eps
Armchair Theatre
1956•series

as Franco Angelo

A Mind to Murder
6.3
A Mind to Murder
1995•movie

as Professor Etherege

The Death of Adolf Hitler
6.6

as Adolf Hitler

Count Dracula
9.0
2 eps
Count Dracula
1977•series

as Professor Van Helsing

Charlemagne, le prince à cheval
8.8
3 eps

as Alcuin

Longitude
7.0
1 eps
Longitude
2000•series

as Admiral Wagner

Theatre 625
7.2
1 eps
Theatre 625
1964•series

as Dr Dee

The Wednesday Play
5.2
1 eps
The Wednesday Play
1964•series

as Albert

For My Baby
3.8
For My Baby
2000•movie

as Rudi Wittfogel

Lighthouse Hill
7.4
Lighthouse Hill
2004•movie

as Alfred

Private Potter
5.5
Private Potter
1962•movie

as Capt. Patterson

Les Misérables
5.5
10 eps
Les Misérables
1967•series

as Jean Valjean

Much Ado About Nothing
6.3

as Dogberry

Bouquet of Barbed Wire
8.3
7 eps

as Peter Manson

Rosamunde Pilcher's Four Seasons
7.5
3 eps

as Alexander 'Alex' Combe

ITV Saturday Night Theatre
7.0
1 eps

as Wilfred Tilley

NET Playhouse
7.3
1 eps
NET Playhouse
1966•series

as Marcus Brutus

84 Charing Cross Road
7.0

as Frank Doel

Sakharov
7.5
Sakharov
1984•movie

as Kravtsov

The Lie
6.5
The Lie
1970•movie

as Andrew Firth

Julius Caesar
7.5
Julius Caesar
1969•movie

as Brutus

The Merchant of Venice
8.5

as Shylock

Station Jim
7.5
Station Jim
2001•movie

as Riorden Snr

Nineteen Nineteen
4.5
Nineteen Nineteen
1985•movie

as Sigmund Freud (voice)

Fifty Shades of Erotica
7.0

as (archive footage)

Life Begins
8.0
20 eps
Life Begins
2004•series

as Eric Thornhill

The Sins
5.2
7 eps
The Sins
2000•series

as Uncle Irwin Green

7.5
6 eps
Target Luna
1960•series

as Conway Henderson

Erebus: The Aftermath
8.0
4 eps

as Justice Peter Mahon

Sunday Night Theatre
3.5
1 eps

as Louis

In the Secret State
7.0

as Frank Strange

Van der Valk and the Rich
8.0

as Commissaris Simon "Piet" van der Valk

8.0
Betzi
1978•movie

as Napoleon

The Adventures Of Don Quixote
10.0

as Sancho Panza

Saturday, Sunday, Monday
7.0

as Peppino

Van der Valk: Gun Before Butter
10.0

as Commissaris Simon "Piet" van der Valk

Van der Valk and the Scapegoat
10.0

as Commissaris Simon "Piet" van der Valk

Another Bouquet
6.0
9 eps
Another Bouquet
1977•series
Laurence Olivier Presents
7.0
1 eps

as Peppino

Mona
Mona
1982•movie

as Captain Manson

The Burning Shore
4 eps
The Burning Shore
1991•series

as Garrick

The Spanish Civil War
6 eps

as Self - Narrator

Mountain of Diamonds
4 eps

as Garrick