Keith Alexander | |
|---|---|
| Born | Keith Alexander Buckley (1930-02-03) 3 February 1930 |
| Education | University of Adelaide |
| Occupations | Actor, voiceover artist |
| Years active | 1949–present |
Keith Alexander (born Keith Buckley; sometimes credited as Keith Alexander Buckley)[1] is an Australian actor and voiceover artist.[2]
Early life
Originally from Sydney,[3] Alexander studied engineering and law at the University of Adelaide before deciding to pursue acting as a career.[4]
Career
Initially, Alexander worked extensively in theatre.[5] Disillusioned with the state of Australian politics, in 1965 he moved to London,[6] where he took the professional name "Keith Alexander" as there was already an actor called "Keith Buckley" in the UK.[7]
Due to his specialty in reproducing accents, Alexander is best known for his voice work, especially his work in the UK.[3] His British television credits include Softly, Softly (1966), The New Avengers (1976), Minder (1979) and The Day of the Triffids (1981). On the big screen, he had roles in Submarine X-1 (1968), Superman (1978), Hanover Street (1979) and All About a Prima Ballerina (1980).
Alexander was also featured in productions by Gerry Anderson, beginning with the 1968 puppet film Thunderbird 6 (voicing John Tracy as well as providing the opening narration).[8] He went on to voice the regular role of Sam Loover as well as many guest characters in the TV series Joe 90 (1968–1969). His other Anderson credits were the film Doppelgänger (1969) and the TV series The Secret Service and UFO – the latter, as recurring character Lieutenant Keith Ford.
Alexander also spent time the United States, where he worked on The Ed Sullivan Show providing the English-language dub of the Italian puppet mouse Topo Gigio.[9] The role of Gigio gave Alexander transatlantic recognition.[6] He also voiced Gigio on Sunday Night at the London Palladium in the UK.[6]
In the early 1990s he moved back to Australia, where he continues to act.[4] He appeared as a doctor in Home and Away.[6] In 2023, he self-published a "love-crime-war-drama" novel called Not Just Another Love Story.[10]
Theatre roles
| Year | Title | Role | Venue / Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1949 | Varsity Revue: Keep it Clean | Vocalist | Tivoli Theatre, Adelaide |
| 1953 | A New Verse Play | University of Adelaide | |
| 1953 | Sparkling Burgundy '53 | University of Adelaide | |
| 1954 | Romeo and Juliet | University of Adelaide | |
| 1954 | Traveller Without Baggage | University of Adelaide | |
| 1954 | The Circle | Arnold Champion-Cheney | University of Adelaide |
| 1954 | Sydney 1954 N.U.A.U.S. Drama Festival | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | The Philadelphia Story | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | A Phoenix Too Frequent | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | The Relapse | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | The Typewriter | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | Ring Around the Moon | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | The Third Person | University of Sydney, University of Adelaide | |
| 1954 | Miss Julie | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | Anna Christie | University of Sydney | |
| 1954 | Crime and Punishment | Studio Theatre, Adelaide | |
| 1956 | Summer of the Seventeenth Doll | Rialto Theatre, Brisbane | |
| 1957 | Lower Education | University of Sydney | |
| 1957 | Macbeth | Malcolm | Independent Theatre, Sydney |
| 1957 | The Big Knife | Independent Theatre, Sydney | |
| 1957 | The Lark | The Promoter | Independent Theatre, Sydney |
| 1950s | My Three Angels | J. C. Williamson's[6] | |
| 1960 | The Tragedy of King Richard II | Henry Bolingbroke | Independent Theatre, Sydney |
| 1963 | The Season at Sarsaparilla | Harry Knott | Theatre Royal Sydney |
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | In the Zone | Scotty | TV film |
| 1957 | Ending It | Waiter | TV film |
| 1960 | Shadow of the Boomerang | Stockman | Feature film |
| 1961 | The Big Client | Geoff Manning | TV film |
| 1965 | Moby Dick – Rehearsed | Starbuck | TV film |
| 1966 | Topo Gigio Comes to Town | Topo Gigio (voice) | TV film[7] |
| 1967 | Toppo Jîjo no botan sensô | Narrator | |
| 1969 | Submarine X-1[6] | Sub. Lt. X-3 | Feature film |
| 1968 | Thunderbird 6 | John Tracy / Carter / Narrator | Puppet feature film[1][6] |
| 1969 | Doppelgänger (aka Journey to the Far Side of the Sun) | EUROSEC Launch Controller (uncredited) | Feature film[6] |
| 1978 | Superman[6] | Newscaster | Feature film[10] |
| 1979 | Hanover Street[6] | Soldier in Barn | Feature film |
| 1980 | All About a Prima Ballerina | Peter – The Agent | |
| 2009 | The Dark Side of War | Journalist | Short film |
| 2013 | Finding Bennelong | Voice | Short film |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Killer in Close-Up | TV series, 1 episode | |
| 1964 | The Stranger | John Robinson | TV miniseries |
| 1964 | Tribunal | Andrew Volstead | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1966 | Mrs Thursday | PC Matthews | TV series, episode "Family Reunion"[6] |
| 1966 | Softly, Softly | PC Downer | TV series, episode "Blind Man's Bluff"[6] |
| 1967 | No Hiding Place | 1st Customs Officer | TV series, episode "A Through and Through with Powder"[6] |
| 1967 | Vendetta | Sergeant Bristow | TV series, episode "The Desperate Man"[6] |
| 1968 | Merry-Go-Round | Reader | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1968–69 | Joe 90 | Sam Loover, and 49 supporting characters[6] | TV series, 30 episodes[1] |
| 1969 | Heritage | Alcinous | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1969 | The Secret Service | Various characters (voices) | TV series, 13 episodes |
| 1970–71 | UFO | Lieutenant Keith Ford | TV series, 16 episodes[6] |
| 1976 | The New Avengers | Malloy | TV series, episode "Gnaws"[6] |
| 1978 | Life at Stake | Fred Haise | TV series, 1 episode[10] |
| 1979 | Minder | Andy | TV series, episode "The Bounty Hunter"[6] |
| 1981 | The Day of the Triffids | Newsreel voice | TV miniseries, episode 1[6] |
| 1993 | Home and Away | Male Pensioner | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1993 | G.P. | Harold King | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1996 | Water Rats | Mr Scali | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1997 | The Adventures of Sam | Voice role | Animated TV series |
| 2005–06 | The Adventures of Bottle Top Bill and His Best Friend Corky | Various characters | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Trial by Kyle | Narrator | TV series[2] |
| 2019 | The Andersons | Narrator | BBC UK[2] |
| The History of the Chinese | SBS TV series[2] |
Radio
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | The Last Cargo of the Cathay Queen | Ship owner (top billing) | [4] |
References
- ^ a b c d Anderson Entertainment (2 May 2022). "Pod 203: Behind the Mic with Keith Alexander". Event occurs at 36:16. Retrieved 23 April 2023 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b c d "Keith Buckley".
- ^ a b Frampton, Andrew (9 April 2009). "ITC Promotional Booklet". bigrat.co.uk. Archived from the original on 14 February 2006. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
- ^ a b c Rorabaugh, Deborah. "Keith Alexander". SHADO Library and Archives.
- ^ "AusStage". ausstage.edu.au.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Bentley, Chris (2016) [2003]. The Complete Book of Gerry Anderson's UFO (3rd ed.). Cambridge, UK: Signum Books. p. 78. ISBN 978-0-9955191-0-7.
- ^ a b "Pod 203: Behind the mic with Supermarionation voice Keith Alexander!". 2 May 2022.
- ^ Archer, Simon; Hearn, Marcus (2002). What Made Thunderbirds Go! The Authorised Biography of Gerry Anderson. London, UK: BBC Books. p. 163. ISBN 978-0-563-53481-5.
- ^ Tibballs, Geoff (1991). The Golden Age of Children's Television. Titan Books. pp. 48–49. ISBN 978-1-85286-407-1.
- ^ a b c "NOT JUST ANOTHER LOVE STORY eBook : BUCKLEY, KEITH ALEXANDER: Amazon.com.au: Kindle Store". www.amazon.com.au.
External links
- Keith Alexander at IMDb
