Norman Eshley

Norman Eshley
Born 30 May 1945
Bristol, England
Years active 1968 - present
Spouse(s) Millicent Martin (1969 - 1973)
Lynette Braid (1980 - 1981)

Norman Eshley (born 30 May 1945) is an English actor best known for his television roles.

Biography

Eshley attended Bristol Grammar School and worked in a bank, before training as an actor at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He then played many Shakespearean roles on stage. His first screen role was in the 1968 film The Immortal Story, directed by Orson Welles. He played a lead character, Steve, in Blind Terror (1971) with Mia Farrow, and also appeared in the Pete Walker horror film House of Mortal Sin in 1975.

He is possibly best known for his role in the sitcom George and Mildred (1976–79) as the snobbish, right-wing real estate agent Jeffrey Fourmile, the foil to George. He had previously played characters in its direct predecessor, Man About the House (1976), as Robin Tripp's brother Norman who married Chrissy, but in an earlier episode in 1974 he had played a sleazy married executive named Ian Cross who tried to seduce Chrissy.

Eshley's other TV credits include: Department S (1969), Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (1970), Thriller ("The Colour of Blood"/US title: "The Carnation Killer", 1973) as an escaped serial killer, Warship (1973–74), The Onedin Line (1974), The Duchess of Duke Street, I, Claudius, The Sweeney (all 1976), Secret Army (1977), Return of the Saint (1978), The Professionals (1980), Minder (1985), Brookside (1986), Taggart (1990), Cadfael (1994), One Foot in the Grave (1997), Dangerfield (1998), Murder Most Horrid (1999), and The Bill (1999-2000).

In 1988 he appeared in a public information film about road safety called "Accident in Park Road". His character is seen driving a Ford Escort before running over a child who dashes out between cars in front of him. He is questioned by Graham Cole who plays a policeman, a role he played as PC Tony Stamp in The Bill.

Along with Douglas Fielding, he provided the narration for the Blind Guardian album Nightfall In Middle Earth.[1] He had roles in the BBC TV series New Tricks (2007) and A Christmas Campaign (short, 2011).

Personal life

Eshley was previously married to actress Millicent Martin and Lynette Braid.

References

  1. "Discography - Nightfall in Middle-Earth". Blind Guardian Website. Archived from the original on 2008-04-10. Retrieved 2008-05-11.

Selected television roles

Year Title Role
1973 Warship Lieutenant Bob Last
1974 Man About the House Ian Cross
1976 Man About the House Norman Tripp
1976 The Duchess of Duke Street Wilson
1976 I, Claudius (TV series) Marcus Vinicius
1976 to 1980 George and Mildred Jeffrey Fourmile
1997 One Foot in the Grave Inspector Rickles
1999 Goodnight Sweetheart Priestley

Selected filmography

External links