Lewis Fiander

Lewis Ernest Fiander (12 January 1938 – 24 May 2016) was an Australian film, stage, and television actor.

Early life Fiander was born in Melbourne to Mona Jane (née King) and Walter Lewis Fiander, and educated at Trinity Grammar School, Kew.

He began his stage career as a schoolboy with the Australian National Theatre Movement in Melbourne.

Career Fiander became a successful radio actor in Sydney and appeared in the first Australian television play, The Sub-Editor’s Room for ABC TV.

Moving to the UK from his native Australia, initially to appear in the play The One Day of the Year, Fiander appeared in such films as I Start Counting (1970), Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (1971), Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972), The Abdication (1974), Who Can Kill a Child? (1976), Not Now, Comrade (1976), Sweeney 2 (1978), The Doctor and the Devils (1985), Georgia (1988) and Paperback Romance (1994). His first major role on television was Mr. Darcy in the BBC's first colour adaptation of Pride and Prejudice (1967).

In 1970, Fiander originated the role of John Adams in the London stage production of 1776, a role he reprised in Australia. Other stage appearances in West End musicals included the roles of Lord Melbourne and Disraeli in I and Albert, Noël Coward in Noel and Gertie and Puccini in Cafe Puccini.

During the 1970s, he was cast as Professor Tryst in the Doctor Who episode "Nightmare of Eden" and after discussion with his friend Tom Baker chose to give the character a hybrid accent as would befit an alien in the future. In 1974, he appeared as Casimir Dudevant playing opposite Rosemary Harris in the BBC series Notorious Woman and performed the role of Thomas Becket on a cast-album of the musical Thomas and The King.

On radio, he played the eponymous lead role in the comedy series Patterson.

He returned to Australia in the early 1980s and continued his acting career.

In 2004 he contributed the voice for airship engineer Kemp in Anthony Lucas's Oscar nominated animation, The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello.

Lewis Fiander's last known film appearance was in the Don Percy short film Two Moments in Time. Fiander's scenes were shot in late September 2015. The film was completed in 2017, and premiered at the St Kilda Film Festival in 2018.

Death Fiander died on 24 May 2016, following a stroke.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes1962 The Password Is Courage Pringle Feature film 1963 The V.I.P.s Third Reporter (uncredited) Feature film1970 I Start Counting Priest at Church Feature film 1971 Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde Howard Spencer Feature film 1972 Dr. Phibes Rises Again Baker Feature film 1974 The Abdication Father Dominic Feature film 1976 Who Can Kill a Child? Tom Feature film 1976 Not Now, Comrade Rudi Petrovyan Feature film 1978 Sweeney 2 Gorran Feature film 1985 The Doctor and the Devils Dr. Thornton Feature film 1986 On Wings of Fire Tansar Feature film 1988 Georgia Scarlatti Feature film 1994 Paperback Romance (aka Lucky Break) Mr. Bruce Wrightman Feature film 2004 The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello Kemp (voice) Animated film 2015 Two Moments in Time Short film (last appearance)

Television

Radio Year Title Role Notes 1981 Patterson Patterson BBC Radio 3

Theatre Year Title Role Notes 1953 Accolade Tom National Theatre, Melbourne 1953; 1955 The Merchant of Venice Launcelot Gobbo National Theatre, Melbourne 1953 The New Adventures of Ginger Meggs Bang Bang the Clown National Theatre, Melbourne 1955 The Poltergeist National Theatre, Melbourne 1955 Twelfth Night Feste National Theatre, Melbourne 1955 Shakespeare Festival 1955 National Theatre, Melbourne 1955 Hamlet Player Queen / Horatio National Theatre, Melbourne 1955 The Lady from the Sea National Theatre, Melbourne 1955 Vulture's Eye National Theatre, Melbourne 1959 Moby Dick—Rehearsed Ishmael Elizabethan Theatre, Sydney, University of Melbourne 1959 The Waltz of the Toreadors Gaston University of Melbourne 1959 Arms and the Man Major Plechanoff University of Melbourne 1959 The Party Soya Marshall University of Melbourne 1959 Venus Observed Edgar University of Melbourne 1959 The Rape of the Belt Zeus University of Melbourne 1959 The Ghost Train Richard Winthrop University of Melbourne 1959; 1960 Sweeney Todd Dr Aminadab Lupin University of Melbourne, 1960 Prisoners' Country Cunningham University of Melbourne 1960 The Entertainer Frank Rice University of Melbourne 1960 Ah, Wilderness! Elizabethan Theatre, Sydney 1961 The Mystery of a Hansom Cab Brian Fitzgerald University of Melbourne, Russell Street Theatre, Melbourne 1961 A Taste of Honey Geoff Palace Theatre, Sydney with Elizabethan Theatre Trust, Sydney 1961 The Glass Menagerie Palace Theatre, Sydney 1961 The Merchant of Venice Launcelot Gobbo / Shylock Palace Theatre, Sydney with Elizabethan Theatre Trust, Sydney The Hostage Leslie Elizabethan Theatre Trust, Sydney 1961 The One Day of the Year Hughie Cook Theatre Royal Stratford East with Elizabethan Theatre, Sydney 1962 The School for Scandal 1st Gentleman Theatre Royal, London Haymarket Theatre, London with Tennent Productions 1963 Virtue in Danger Lory Strand Theatre, London & Mermaid Theatre, London with Mermaid Theatre Company 1963 (64?) The Royal Hunt of the Sun Domingo The Old Vic Theatre, London with British National Theatre Company 1963–64 Saint Joan Canon de Courcelles The Old Vic Theatre, London & Chichester Festival Theatre with British National Theatre Company 1963–64 Hamlet Court Ladies, Courtiers, Soldiers, Servants The Old Vic Theatre, London with British National Theatre Company (understudied Peter O’Toole for lead role of Hamlet) 1964 Andorra Extra The Old Vic Theatre, London 1964 Philoctetes Chorus The Old Vic Theatre, London with British National Theatre Company 1966 Stephen D. Stephen Citizens Theatre, Glasgow 1966 The Comedy of Errors Antipholus of Syracuse New Zealand tour with Royal Shakespeare Company 1967 The Pursuit of Love Christian Talbot The Old Vic Theatre, London with Theatre Royal 1967 She Stoops to Conquer Oxford Playhouse 1968 The Silent Woman Truwit Oxford Playhouse 1968 The Duel Deacon Pobyedov Duke of York's Theatre, London 1969 Saint Joan Warwick Oxford Playhouse 1969 The Bootleg Gentleman Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford 1969 A Talent to Amuse Phoenix Theatre, London 1970 Peer Gynt Peer Gynt Nuffield Theatre, Southampton & Oxford Playhouse 1970–71 1776 John Adams New Theatre, London, Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne, Theatre Royal, Sydney 1972 Volpone Mosca Bristol Old Vic with Theatre Royal 1972–73 I and Albert Benjamin Disraeli / Lord Melbourne Piccadilly Theatre, London 1974; 1975 Follow the Star Herod Chichester Festival Theatre & Westminster, UK 1975 Thomas and The King Thomas Becket Her Majesty’’ Theatre, London 1976 Same Time Next Year George Comedy Theatre, Melbourne, Theatre Royal, Sydney, Her Majesty's Theatre, Brisbane, Her Majesty's Theatre, Adelaide 1977–78 Wild Oats Jack Rover Aldwych Theatre, London & Piccadilly Theatre, London with Royal Shakespeare Company 1978 Arms and the Man Bluntschli Greenwich Theatre, London 1979 Clouds Owen Shorter Criterion Theatre, London 1980 Old Heads and Young Hearts Littleton Coke Chichester Festival Theatre 1981 The Killing Game Lt. Colonel Guy Holden Apollo Theatre, London 1985 Cavalcade Robert Marryot Chichester Festival Theatre 1986 Cafe Puccini Puccini Wyndham’s Theatre, London 1986 Noël and Gertie Noël Coward Donmar Warehouse Theatre, London 1986–87 Aren’t We All? Willie Tatham His Majesty's Theatre, Perth, Comedy Theatre, Melbourne, Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney with Remarkable Enterprises 1988 My Fair Lady Henry Higgins State Theatre, Melbourne, Festival Theatre, Adelaide with Victorian Stare Opera 1988 The Browning Version and Harlequinade Jack Wakefield / Frank Hunter Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney, Comedy Theatre, Melbourne, Canberra Theatre, His Majesty's Theatre, Perth 1980s Perchance to Dream Ivor Novello Northcott Theatre, Exeter 1990 Rumors Lenny Ganz Australian tour 1990 Love Letters Andrew Makepeace Ladd III Playhouse, Melbourne 1991 The Woman in Black The Actor Sydney Opera House, Manning Entertainment Centre, Laycock Street Theatre, Illawarra Performing Arts Centre, Suncorp Theatre, Brisbane 1991 The Phantom of the Opera Princess Theatre Melbourne with The Really Useful Theatre Company 1992 Dear Liar Geelong Arts Centre, Monash University 1993 Follies State Theatre, Melbourne 1994 A Flea in Her Ear Carlos Homenides / Histangua Playhouse, Melbourne with Melbourne Theatre Company for Melbourne International Comedy Festival A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Solo recital Enoch Arden Solo recital Townhall Cavalcade Solo recital Mietta's, Melbourne The Long Farewell Solo recital Mietta's, Melbourne 1994 There's One In Every Marriage Mietta's, Melbourne 1994 Kismet in Concert The Wazir of Police Arts Centre, Melbourne 1995–96 Arcadia Bernard Playhouse, Melbourne, Suncorp Piazza, Brisbane 1995 Ruddigore Sir Despard Murgatroyd State Theatre, Melbourne 1996 Private Lives Elyot Chase Fairfax Studio, Melbourne with Melbourne Theatre Company 1997 Sweet Charity Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne 1999 A Return to the Brink Colonel Campbell Malthouse, Theatre, Melbourne 2000; 2001 Australian Philharmonic Orchestra Compère Sydney Opera House 2000 The Best of British MC Melbourne Concert Hall 2000 New Years Eve Extravaganza Melbourne Concert Hall 2001 God Only Knows Marian Street Theatre 2001 An Evening In Paris Melbourne Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House 2002 Pop Goes Gilbert & Sullivan Narrator Melbourne Concert Hall 2002 The Night They Invented Champagne Sydney Opera House, Costa Hall, Geelong, Melbourne Concert Hall, Festival Theatre, Adelaide 2002 Vienna Waits for You MC Melbourne Concert Hall, Adelaide Convention Centre 2002 Keene / Taylor Theatre Project (Two Shanks) Fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne 2003 The Visit The Burgomeister Playhouse, Melbourne with Melbourne Theatre Company 2003 Hats Off! National Theatre, Melbourne 2004 Afterplay Fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne 2004 I'm In Love With Vienna Sydney Opera House 2004 Morning Melodies: The Piccadilly Music Hall Nambour Civic Centre 2006 Silver Jubilee Concert Hamer Hall, Melbourne 2006 Not New Year's Eve Sydney Opera House 2007 Musically Speaking Fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne 2007 He's Never Done This Before Phee Broadway Theatre, Melbourne 2007 Enlightenment Gordon Fairfax Studio, Melbourne 2008–09 Travelling North Saul Morgenstein Randall Theatre, Melbourne, Playhouse, Brisbane with Queensland Theatre Company, Star Court Theatre, Lismore, Z-Pac Theatre, Hervey Bay, Tuggeranong Arts Centre, Westside Performing Arts Centre, Mooroopna, Riverside Theatres Parramatta, Mildura Arts Centre 2011 Be Watched by Gary Files (preliminary readings 1) Denzil Majestic Cinemas, Sydney