KC
Photo of Kenneth Colley

Kenneth Colley

Actor, Director, Producer, Writer
Born December 7, 1937 (86 years)
Kenneth Colley (born 7 December 1937) is an English actor. A long-time character actor, he came to wider prominence through his role as Admiral Piett in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.

Colley was born in Manchester. He played Jesus (very briefly indeed) in The Life of Brian, having also appeared in the earlier Monty Python-related production Ripping Yarns episode "The Testing of Eric Olthwaite" alongside Michael Palin. As a Shakespearean actor he played the Duke of Vienna in the BBC Television Shakespeare production of Measure for Measure in 1979.

Colley also held an important role in the Clint Eastwood movie Firefox, where he played a Soviet Colonel tasked with the protection of the Firefox and its secrets.

Colley went on to play SS-Standartenführer Paul Blobel in the World War II drama War and Remembrance. His character was charged with hiding the evidence of the Holocaust, and putting dead victims through "Economic Processing".

According to comments Terry Gilliam (who directed him in Jabberwocky and co-starred with him in Life of Brian) made in the DVD audio commentaries for both films, Colley is a terrible stutterer in real life. When he had a role in a film, however, he could recite the lines perfectly. Stuttering is a character trait, however, in his role as the "Accordion Man" in the 1978 BBC television drama, Pennies from Heaven. He has also recently starred in BBC's HolbyBlue as a drunk and violent father, grandfather and father-in-law.

He currently lives at Hythe in Kent.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Kenneth Colley, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Movies & Shows on Plex
  • Jabberwocky
  • Relic Hunter
  • Coronation Street
  • Heartbeat
  • The Scarlet and the Black
  • The Blood Beast Terror
  • Les Miserables
  • Prisoner of Honor
  • Wycliffe
  • Mussolini: The Untold Story
  • Between the Lines
  • Peak Practice
  • The Last Island
Known For
  • Monty Python's Life of Brian
  • Firefox
  • I Hired a Contract Killer
  • The Scarlet and the Black
  • The Music Lovers
  • The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes
  • The Whistle Blower
  • A Summer Story
  • Pennies from Heaven
  • Return to Waterloo
  • Prisoner of Honor
  • The Rainbow
  • Wallenberg: A Hero's Story
  • Lego Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out
  • Shadow Run
  • The Triple Echo
  • The Plot to Kill Hitler
  • Return to Treasure Island
  • Unnatural Causes
  • Greetings
  • El último viaje de Robert Rylands
  • Slade in Flame
  • I Remember Nelson
  • The Last Island

Filmography

2024
Dan Hawk Psychic Detective · as Thaddeus Moncrief
2013
Scar Tissue · as Weaver
2013
Peaky Blinders (TV Series) · as Vicente Changretta
2012
Lego Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out · as Admiral Piett (voice)
2011
Vera (TV Series) · as Ronald Devreux
2009
The Queen (TV Series)
2009
Misfits (TV Series) · as Old Rudy
2007
Greetings · as Ken
2007
Holby Blue (TV Series) · as John Snr
2007
2006
Doctor Who: The Eighth Doctor Adventures (TV Series) · as Zarodnix
2005
Like Father Like Son · as Rawsthorne
2003
Comedy Connections (TV Series) · as Robber
2003
New Tricks (TV Series)
2003
The Royal (TV Series) · as Bernard Hussey
2002
Foyle's War (TV Series)
2000
Doctors (TV Series) · as Frank Tyler
1999
Hold Back the Night · as Uncle Bob
1999
Relic Hunter (TV Series) · as Professor Lamenza
1999
Always And Everyone (TV Series) · as Joseph
1999
The Last Train (TV Series)
1999
Holby City (TV Series) · as Don Lawson
1998
The Mrs Bradley Mysteries (TV Series) · as Archie Burlington
1998
Shadow Run · as Larcombe
1997
Midsomer Murders (TV Series) · as Lloyd Kirby
1996
Brassed Off · as Greasley
1996
1995
Solomon & Sheba · as Nathan
1995
Dangerfield (TV Series) · as Bill Hunter
1994
Moving Story (TV Series) · as Ken Uttley
1993
Wycliffe (TV Series) · as Sam Peploe
1993
Peak Practice (TV Series) · as Stan Jordan
1993
Unnatural Causes · as Inspector Gerry Reckless
1992
1992
Between the Lines (TV Series) · as Chief Supt. Tattersall
1992
Heartbeat (TV Series) · as Clive Harris
1992
The Bohemian Life · as Street Sweeper
1991
Prisoner of Honor · as Capt. Dreyfus
1990
1990
I Hired a Contract Killer · as The Killer
1990
The Plot to Kill Hitler · as Wilhelm Keitel
1989
The Rainbow · as Mr. Brunt
1989
Agatha Christie's Poirot (TV Series) · as Mathew Davenheim
1988
War and Remembrance (TV Series) · as Ss Col. Paul Blobel
1988
A Summer Story · as Jim
1988
The Play on One (TV Series) · as Inspector Tennyson
1987
Casanova · as Le Duc
1987
Inspector Morse (TV Series) · as Dci Patrick Dawson
1986
The Whistle Blower · as Bill Pickett
1986
Casualty (TV Series) · as Paddy
1986
Return to Treasure Island (TV Series) · as Ben Gunn
1985
Mussolini: The Untold Story (TV Series) · as King Vittorio Emmanuele
1985
Wallenberg: A Hero's Story · as Adolph Eichmann
1985
Wallenberg: A Hero's Story (TV Series) · as Adolf Eichmann
1985
EastEnders (TV Series) · as Brian
1984
Screen Two (TV Series) · as Sergej
1984
Return to Waterloo · as The Traveller
1984
The Bill (TV Series) · as Acting Supt. Shannon
1983
1983
1982
Giro City · as Martin
1982
Timewatch (TV Series) · as Napoleon Bonaparte
1982
Firefox · as Colonel Kontarsky
1982
I Remember Nelson (TV Series) · as Ice-Adm. Horatio Viscount Nelson
1981
Peter and Paul (TV Series) · as Theodotus
1981
Peter and Paul · as Theodotus
1980
1979
Minder (TV Series) · as Ron
1979
1979
Measure for Measure · as Duke Vincentio
1978
Les Miserables · as Police Prefect
1978
1978
Pennies from Heaven (TV Series) · as The Accordion Man
1978
Hazell (TV Series)
1977
Target (TV Series) · as Jessal
1977
Jabberwocky · as 1st Fanatic
1976
Dickens of London (TV Series) · as Robert Seymour
1976
Ripping Yarns (TV Series) · as Robber
1975
Lisztomania · as Frederic Chopin
1975
Slade in Flame · as Tony Devlin
1975
The Love School (TV Series) · as Edward Burne-Jones
1975
The Sweeney (TV Series) · as Noah Riley
1974
Juggernaut · as Detective Brown
1974
Mahler · as Krenek
1974
The Nine Tailors (TV Series) · as Potty Peake
1974
Fall of Eagles (TV Series) · as Father Gapon
1973
Black and Blue (TV Series) · as Schultz
1973
Jack the Ripper (TV Series) · as Police Constable
1973
1972
Arthur of the Britons (TV Series) · as Erig
1972
The Triple Echo · as Provo Corporal
1972
Crown Court (TV Series) · as Stanley Meredith
1972
The Protectors (TV Series) · as Devlin
1972
New Scotland Yard (TV Series) · as Peter Elliot
1971
The Boy Friend · as King In Fantasy Sequence (uncredited)
1971
The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes (TV Series) · as Farrish
1971
The Devils · as Legrand
1971
The Music Lovers · as Modeste Tchaikovsky
1970
Play for Today (TV Series) · as Bruce Tetley
1970
Performance · as Tony Farrell (as Ken Colley)
1970
A Family At War (TV Series) · as Sergeant Jago
1969
Special Branch (TV Series) · as Oliver
1969
1969
Oh! What a Lovely War · as Irish Soldier
1968
1967
How I Won the War · as 2nd Replacement
1967
Omnibus (1967) (TV Series) · as Hitler
1967
The Jokers · as De Winter
1967
Look and Read (TV Series) · as Mr. Moon
1966
The Baron (TV Series) · as Dinny Brand
1966
Softly Softly (TV Series) · as Robins
1966
Macbeth · as Macbeth's Servant
1965
Play of the Month (TV Series) · as Yolinichev
1965
1965
1964
R3 (TV Series) · as George Barratt
1964
Redcap (1964) (TV Series) · as Private Bolt
1964
The Wednesday Play (TV Series) · as Bethold Florenberg
1964
Horizon (TV Series) · as Wren
1964
Seventy Deadly Pills · as Covent Garden Porter
1962
Z Cars (TV Series) · as Fenton
1961
A for Andromeda (TV Series) · as Dead Body (uncredited)
1961
Ghost Squad (TV Series) · as Bank Teller
1961
The Avengers (TV Series)
1960
Coronation Street (TV Series) · as Lionel
1959
No Hiding Place (TV Series)
1957
Emergency-Ward 10 (TV Series) · as Arthur Pastor
1956
Armchair Theatre (TV Series) · as Jimmy
1955
ITV Play of the Week (TV Series) · as Colin

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