The ever-impressive, chameleon-like British character actor Roy Dotrice
was born on the Island of Guernsey, which is part of the United Kingdom, one of the Channel Islands off the
coast of France. He was the
first-born child of Louis and Neva Dotrice who prospered as bakers. The
Germans occupied the island in 1940 and he and his mother and brother
escaped to England.
Advancing his real age, Roy joined the Royal Air Force at age 16 and
was trained as a wireless operator and air gunner. In 1942 his plane
was shot down and he was captured where he served out the remainder of
WWII (over three years) as a prisoner of war in Germany. He was
introduced to the idea of performing when he took part in various
makeshift concerts in order to raise the spirits of his fellow
captives.
Following WWII and his release, Roy decided to pursue his acting
ambitions. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he
began appearing in English repertory where he met and married (1947)
actress Kay Dotrice who at the time was
performing under her given name of Katherine (Kay) Newman. Throughout
the early post-war years, the couple performed together in repertory
with Charles Denville and the Denville Players. At different times he
was a member of the Liverpool, Manchester and Oldham repertory
theatres. Also during this great time of productivity, Roy produced and
directed some three hundred stage plays. He formed his own troupe, the
Guernsey Theatre Company, in 1955. The highlight of his theatrical
career, however, began in 1957 when Roy became a member of the
Shakespeare Memorial Theatre at Stratford, England, (later the Royal
Shakespeare Company). For the next nine years he performed in a lengthy
succession of the Bard's works, first in small parts as various
players, officers and gentlemen. He subsequently went on to become a
notable Iago, Falstaff and Julius Caesar, among others. A popular
performer, he had an uncanny ability to play much older than he was. He
later went on to perform with the American Shakespearean Festival.
The notoriety he received from his abundant classical theatre
experience led directly to radio, film, television and Broadway offers.
Roy has appeared in a number of Broadway productions over the years,
receiving a Tony nomination for his work in "A Life" and finally
winning the trophy for his heralded performance in the 2000 revival of
"A Moon for the Misbegotten" starring
Cherry Jones and
Gabriel Byrne. Known for his considerable
success in one-man shows such as Abraham Lincoln, Charles Dickens, Will
Rogers and Winston Churchill, his superb one-person show "Brief Lives",
drawn from the Elizabethan diaries of John Aubrey, played for over
1,700 performances over a period of nearly a decade. At one time this
set a record for a solo performance and was listed in the "Guinness
Book of World Records".
Dotrice made his credited feature movie debut supporting
Kirk Douglas and
Richard Harris in
Kennwort 'Schweres Wasser' (1965),
and has since lent class and distinction to a spattering of films.
Among his list of credits include the bawdy comedy
Leigh mcnally (1969);
the sumptuous biopic
Nikolaus und Alexandra (1971);
the Oscar-winning Amadeus (1984),
Milos Forman's adaptation of composer
Mozart's life in which Roy portrayed Mozart's stern and domineering
father Leopold; and
Liebe und Eis (1992) as an
Olympic skating coach.
Perhaps better remembered on the small screen, he appeared
magnanimously as a host of monarchs including his Edward IV in
The Wars of the Roses (1965)
and King George IV in the syndicated miniseries
Shaka Zulu (1986).
To American audiences he is probably best known as Jacob Wells, the
Beast's surrogate father, in the dramatic series
Die Schöne und das Biest (1987).
Dotrice was also cast in the recurring role of Father Barrett, a
Catholic priest and confidante of Judge Henry Bone (played by
Ray Walston), on the acclaimed Emmy-winning
drama Picket Fences: Tatort Gartenzaun (1992).
Since the end of the 1970s he has lived and worked primarily in
America. More recently he appeared on stage reviving his outstanding
1993 role as George Bernard Shaw in "The Best of Friends" in 2006. Millennium work included the films Alien Jäger (2003), These Foolish Things (2006), Played - Abgezockt (2006), Go Go Tales (2007). Enjoying a recurring role on the British TV series Life Begins (2004), Roy made his last TV appearances on two 2012 episodes of "Game of Thrones" as Hallyne.
Roy's devoted wife Kay died on August 2, 2007, after 60 years of marriage.
The couple has three daughters (Michele Dotrice, Karen Dotrice and Yvette Dotrice), all whom at
one time or another were actresses. Karen, who is now primarily out of
the business, became the best known perhaps for her childhood Disney
portrayals, notably in
Mary Poppins (1964). Combined, his
daughters have presented him with seven grandchildren. Roy died on October 16, 2017.
