Thane Bettany

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Thane Bettany is an English actor.

Married for many years to secretary Anne Kettle, he has two children, one of whom is actor Paul Bettany. He has two grand-children, Emaly (by his daughter Sarah) and Stellan (the son of Paul Bettany and his wife Jennifer Connelly). He is also the godfather of Sophie Rhys-Jones, Countess of Wessex and wife of Prince Edward. Bettany and his wife divorced in 1993, and he currently lives with his partner, Andy Little.

Apart from several television roles, including a famous appearance on Doctor Who, Bettany has made his career primarily on the stage. At age fourteen, he entered ballet school and trained for some years with Ninette de Valois. After some time in the National Service, he was back in theaters. Because he had a bad stammer, Bettany went to study mime in Paris with Charles Antonetti, who ultimately helped him overcome the problem.

Bettany returned to England and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company, with which he played in Michael Redgrave's Hamlet and The Tempest with John Gielgud. In the 1950s, Bettany made films with Robert Mitchum and Laurence Olivier.

Stage work continued to be his focus - at least until the late sixties and early seventies, when his first children were born. For some time, he worked as a drama school teacher, at Queenswood School in Hertfordshire.

Bettany's most recent stage appearances were in The Duchess of Malfi (2002), Twelfth Night (2003), and Scenes from an Execution (2004).

[edit] Filmography

Year Title Role Other notes
1985 Maelstrom Mr. Tovan TV Miniseries
1980 The Talisman Theodoric TV Series
1980 Doctor Who: State of Decay Tarak TV Episode
1980 North Sea Hijack Heyerdahl  
1957 Fire Down Below    

[edit] External links