Benjamin McNair

Benjamin John McNair (born 25 August 1974) is an Australian actor, best known for his role as Malcolm Kennedy in the soap opera Neighbours.

Early life McNair was born on 25 August 1974 in London. He moved to Australia with his family when he was 18 months old. He developed an interest in performing and studied at the Mona Vale Film & TV School, before completing a season at the NIDA Summer School in Sydney. He then joined the Australian Theatre for Young People.

Career

After leaving school in 1992, McNair appeared in several television commercials and had guest roles in television dramas G.P. and Home and Away.

McNair played Malcolm Kennedy in the soap opera Neighbours from 1994 to 1997, returning briefly in 2002, 2004, 2011 and 2014 with a cameo appearance in 2005, and also in 2022.

He left Neighbours in 1997 and travelled to the UK where he performed on stage in several Christmas pantomimes such his role as Prince Charming in Sunderland's Cinderella and at Tunbridge Wells in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Since leaving Neighbours, McNair has continued acting on television and stage. He was cast as Joseph in the original The Secret Life of Us telemovie for Network Ten in Australia in 2001 and later played Joseph, the boyfriend of Deborah Mailman, during the first season of television series of the same name.

He has guest-starred in television series such as All Saints (1999), Something in the Air (2001), and Blue Heelers (2000; 2002; 2005). He also played lead roles in Marshall Law (2002); Nine Network's Stingers (2004); Last Man Standing (2005); and the children's series Wicked Science. He co-starred in the short film Umbrella Men with Damian Walshe-Howling.

McNair continued to perform on stage, returning to England to play the role of Ferdinand in the Stafford Summer Festival's production of Shakespeare's The Tempest in 1999. He has also appeared as Matt in Broken; Darko Reeves in Blowback; Casper St Clair in Next Best Thing, and seven different characters in the black comedy The Steve Promise Story.

McNair is a voice over artist who can be heard on numerous radio and television adverts.

He returned to Neighbours, once again playing Malcolm for short stints in 2002 and 2004. In mid-2005 he made another return to Neighbours as part of the series' 20th anniversary episode. On 9 May 2011, it was announced that McNair would be returning to Neighbours in July 2011 for a four-month guest stint.

Filmography

Television Year Title Role Type 1992 G.P. Morgan TV series, 1 episode 1993 Home and Away Alan TV series, 2 episodes 1994–97; 2002; 2004; 2005; 2011; 2023 Neighbours Malcolm Kennedy TV series, 267 episodes 1999 All Saints Greg Morris TV series, 1 episode 2000; 2002; 2005 Blue Heelers Aaron Bridges / Clint Billings / Craig Simpson TV series, 4 episodes 2001 Something in the Air Ron Thomas TV series, 2 episodes 2001 The Secret Life of Us Joseph TV movie & TV series, season 1, 5 episodes 2002 Marshall Law Tarpey TV miniseries, 1 episode 2004 Stingers David Hartley TV series, 1 episode 2004 Wicked Science Earl Hanley TV series, 1 episode 2005 Last Man Standing Nurse Derek TV series, 1 episode 2007 Satisfaction Truckie TV series, 1 episode 2008 McLeod's Daughters Tim Dolan TV series, 1 episode 2010 Sea Patrol Richard Logan TV series, 1 episode

Film Year Title Role Type 2004 Eavesdrop Interactive feature film 2005 The Umbrella Men Tommy Short film

Stage Year Title Role Venue 1997–98 Cinderella Prince Charming Christmas pantomime at Sunderland Empire Theatre, UK 1999 The Tempest Ferdinand Stafford Summer Festival, UK 1999–2000 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs The Prince Christmas pantomime at Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells, UK 2002 Broken Matt Chapel Off Chapel for Melbourne Fringe Festival Next Best Thing Casper St Clair 2003 The Steve Promise Story Steve & various (7) characters The Store Room for Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2004; 2006 Blowback Darko Reeves St Kilda Army & Navy Club Memorial Hall, Melbourne with NYID, Sydney Opera House 2005 Dude, Where's My Hump? Hunchbax Theatre Restaurant, Melbourne