Patrick Bergin
Patrick Bergin | |
|---|---|
| Born | Patrick Connolly Bergin 4 February 1951 Dublin, Ireland |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, singer |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Spouse | Paula Frazier (m. 1992; divorced) |
| Children | 1[1] |
Patrick Connolly Bergin (born 4 February 1951)[2] is an Irish actor and singer perhaps best known for his leading role opposite Julia Roberts in Sleeping with the Enemy (1991), the title character in Robin Hood, terrorist Kevin O'Donnell in Patriot Games and for playing the villainous Aidan Maguire in the BBC soap EastEnders in 2017–2018.
Early life
[edit]Bergin was born in Dublin, where he grew up in Drimnagh. His father, Paddy Bergin, was a Labour Party politician[3][4] who once studied to be a priest with the Holy Ghost Fathers in Blackrock, Ireland.[4] Patrick was one of four sons and one daughter (Pearse, Emmet, Patrick, Allen and Siobhan Bergin).[4][5] He left Dublin for London in 1973,[4] and by the time he was 17 he was in London running a theatre company.[3] He worked on building sites and at a library.[3][4] He studied at night and completed an education degree from North London Polytechnic.[3] He was an English teacher for several years, then formed his own theatrical company because "no one else would have him".[4][5] His brother Emmet Bergin also became an actor, best known for playing Dick Moran in the soap opera Glenroe for its full 1983–2001 run.[6]
Career
[edit]In 1980, Bergin decided to pursue acting full-time and found work in repertory theatre.[7] Despite appearing as the explorer Sir Richard Francis Burton in the critically acclaimed Mountains of the Moon (1990), for much of the 1990s it seemed that no one in Hollywood was interested in him. He accepted diverse acting roles, including a trilogy of Yeats plays; Morphine and Dolly Mixtures, for which he won a BAFTA Cymru Award for Best Actor; Durango, based on John B Keane's novel; hosting TnaG's Suilín Draíochta; and narrating Patrick Cassidy's Famine Remebrance.[4] After Sleeping with the Enemy (1991), he portrayed the title character in Robin Hood, opposite Uma Thurman as Maid Marian. He describes 1996 as the lowest point in his career, a time when he rarely received any calls for movie roles.[4]
Internationally, Bergin's best-known role may be that of the menacing husband of Julia Roberts' character in the thriller Sleeping with the Enemy. He is also known for his role as Irish terrorist Kevin O'Donnell in the film adaptation of Tom Clancy's Patriot Games. He also appeared as Robin Hood in a 1991 film.[8] In 2013 he appeared in the Scottish film The Wee Man playing notorious Glasgow gangster Arthur 'The Godfather' Thompson. He joined the BBC soap EastEnders towards the end of 2017,[9] departing in March 2018.
Music
[edit]Bergin leads the band Patrick Bergin and the Spirit Merchants. They had a top 10 hit in Ireland with their song "The Knacker", released in 2003, which tells the story of a person who recycles horse carcasses and turns them into glue. As a singer, Bergin collaborated with Vlad DeBriansky and appeared on his album Jacks Last Dollar. He also appeared in the video of DJ Steve Mac's song "Paddy's Revenge".[10]
Bergin was onstage singing the Leonard Cohen song "Anthem" as Pope Francis, on his visit to Ireland, arrived in Croke Park for the Festival of Families as part of the World Meeting of Families 2018.[11]
Charity work
[edit]In 1993, Bergin bought an old church in County Tipperary and converted it into a poetry centre. He explained: "I've recently come to feel I can encourage children and teenagers with their writing.[7] I'm continually giving groups money to make videos, but I insist that they have a good script. I do it because it makes the difference between them doing a video or not. It doesn't cost a lot, and it gives kids an incredible boost of confidence."[7] In 1998, in response to the murder of a 14-year-old Tallaght boy, Ben Smyth, Bergin helped to establish a special fund to sponsor young children from Tallaght.[4]
Personal life
[edit]At a wedding in the early 1980s, Bergin met his future wife, Paula Frazier, a British woman of African-Caribbean descent. They married in Trinidad and Tobago in 1992. They have a daughter, Tatiana (Tia).[4] After their divorce, Bergin began dating Helen Goldin.[12]
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Taffin | Mo Taffin | |
| 1988 | The Courier | Christy | |
| 1990 | Mountains of the Moon | Richard Burton | |
| 1991 | Sleeping with the Enemy | Martin | |
| 1991 | Robin Hood | Sir Robert Hode / Robin Hood | |
| 1992 | Highway to Hell | Beezle | |
| 1992 | Love Crimes | David Hanover | |
| 1992 | Map of the Human Heart | Walter Russell | |
| 1992 | Patriot Games | Kevin O'Donnell | |
| 1992 | The Hummingbird Tree | Stephen Holmes | |
| 1993 | All Tied Up | Bartender (uncredited) | Direct-to-Video |
| 1994 | Double Cross | Jack Conealy | Direct-to-Video |
| 1994 | Soft Deceit | Adam Trent | |
| 1996 | Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace | Dr. Benjamin Trace | |
| 1996 | The Proposition | Rhys Williams | |
| 1996 | Angela Mooney | Older Malone | |
| 1997 | The Island on Bird Street | Stefan | |
| 1997 | Suspicious Minds | Jack Ramsey | |
| 1998 | The Lost World | Challenger | |
| 1999 | Treasure Island | Billy Bones | |
| 1999 | Promise Her Anything | Vernon Fry | |
| 1999 | One Man's Hero | General Winfield Scott | |
| 1999 | Eye of the Beholder | Alexander Leonard | |
| 1999 | Escape Velocity | Cal "Captain of the Harbinger" | |
| 1999 | Africa | John Young | |
| 2000 | Press Run | Alex Dodge | |
| 2000 | When the Sky Falls | Mackey | |
| 2000 | Merlin: The Return | King Arthur | |
| 2001 | Cause of Death | Taylor Lewis | |
| 2001 | The Invisible Circus | Gene | |
| 2001 | High Explosive | Jack Randall | |
| 2001 | Devil's Prey | Minister Seth | |
| 2001 | Silent Grace | Peter, IRA man | |
| 2002 | Beneath Loch Ness | Blay | |
| 2001 | Amazons and Gladiators | Crassius | |
| 2003 | Bloom | The citizen | |
| 2003 | The Boys from County Clare | Padjo | |
| 2004 | Ella Enchanted | Sir Peter | |
| 2004 | Berserker | Thorsson | |
| 2004 | High Art, Low Life | Cameron's Driver | |
| 2006 | Johnny Was | Flynn | |
| 2006 | False Prophets | Karl Hawthorne | |
| 2006 | Played | Riley | |
| 2006 | Secret of the Cave | Patrick Wallace | |
| 2006 | The Far Side of Jericho | Jake | |
| 2007 | Casanova's Last Stand | Casanova | |
| 2007 | Babyface | John Roth | |
| 2007 | The Black Pimpernel | US Ambassador | |
| 2007 | Strength and Honour | Papa Boss | |
| 2008 | Dick Dickman P.I. | unknown role | |
| 2008 | Ghostwood | Fr Paul | |
| 2010 | Eva | Oswald | |
| 2011 | The McBrearty Affair | Narrator | Short Film |
| 2011 | A Kiss and a Promise | Detective Anthony Dolan | |
| 2011 | Birthday | Hugo | |
| 2011 | Perfect Day | Rick's Father | |
| 2012 | Eldorado | Roy | Direct-to-Video |
| 2012 | Absolute Fear | Captain Morrow | |
| 2012 | Songs for Amy | Patrick | |
| 2012 | Shark Week | Tiburon | |
| 2012 | Gallowwalkers | Marshall Gaza | |
| 2012 | Angel | Successful Man | Short Film |
| 2013 | The Wee Man | Arthur Thompason | |
| 2013 | Dance of the Steel Bars | Frank | |
| 2013 | The Minnitts of Anabeg | Lord Goode | |
| 2014 | Margery Booth: The Spy in the Eagle's Nest | Standartenfuhrer Kummel | |
| 2015 | Age of Kill | Sir Alistair Montcrief | |
| 2016 | Free Fire | Howie | |
| 2016 | We Still Steal the Old Way | George Briggs | |
| 2016 | Cage | Peter Karl Bradley | |
| 2017 | Native | Irish Man | Short Film |
| 2017 | Roth | John Roth | |
| 2018 | Train Set | Major Julian Muir | |
| 2019 | Odilo Fabian or (The Possibility of Impossible Dreams) | The Mayor of Doubt | Short Film |
| 2020 | The Last Days of American Crime | Rossi Dumois | |
| 2021 | Finding You | Seamus | |
| 2021 | The Kindred | Father Monroe | |
| 2022 | God's Petting You | The American | |
| 2022 | Blackbird | The Head | |
| 2022 | The Ulysses Project | Buck Mulligan / Leopold Bloom | |
| 2022 | Nutcracker Massacre | Dmitri / Toymaker | |
| 2023 | One Ranger | Doc |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Those Glory Glory Days | Spurs Team Member | TV Movie |
| 1987 | Boon | DS Beecher | "Credit Where It's Due" |
| 1987 | Lapsed Catholics | Paul McNally | TV Movie |
| 1988 | Act of Betrayal | Michael McGurk | Miniseries (2 episodes) |
| 1990 | The Real Charlotte | Roderick Lambert | Miniseries (3 episodes) |
| 1991 | Screen Two | Terence O'Farrell | "Morphine and the Dolly Mixtures" |
| 1992 | Frankenstein | Dr. Victor Frankenstein | TV Movie |
| 1993 | Children of the Mist | Mark Samules | TV Movie |
| 1994 | Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Lost Classics | Dr. Benjamin Ramsey | TV Movie (segment "Where the Dead Are") |
| 1995 | Triple Cross | Jimmy Ray | TV Movie |
| 1996 | The Witch's Daughter | Mr. Smith | TV Movie |
| 1997 | The Apocalypse Watch | Drew Latham | TV Movie |
| 1997 | Stolen Women, Captured Hearts | Daniel Morgan | TV Movie |
| 1997 | The Ripper | Inspector Jim Hansen | TV Movie |
| 1999 | Durango | Fergus Mullaney | TV Movie |
| 1999 | Expedition Journal | N/A | Assistant Producer (1 episode) |
| 2000 | St. Patrick: The Irish Legend | Patrick | TV Movie |
| 2001 | Jewel | Leston Hilburn | TV Movie |
| 2002 | King of Texas | Mr. Highsmith | TV Movie |
| 2002 | Dracula | Vladislav Tepes / Dracula | 2 episodes |
| 2003 | Brush with Fate | Headmaster | TV Movie |
| 2003 | Smallville | Morgan Edge | "Shattered" |
| 2005 | Icon | Igor Komarov | TV Movie |
| 2005 | Casanova's Love Letters | Casanova | Miniseries (1 episode) |
| 2006 | Driven | Gerald Workman | "#1.1" |
| 2009 | Hustle | Toby Baxter | "Diamond Seeker" |
| 2011 | Ice | Quinn | Miniseries (2 episodes) |
| 2016 | Fir Bolg | Sean Seoige | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | No Offense | Earl Kennedy | "#2.1" |
| 2017 | Red Rock | Jim Tierney | recurring role (7 episodes) |
| 2017–2018 | EastEnders | Aidan Maguire | series regular (32 episodes) |
| 2018 | Quantico | Liam Killoran | "Who Are You?" |
| 2019 | Wild Bill | Frank McGill | "Nothing Behind the Curtain" |
| 2020 | The South Westerlies | Big Mike | recurring role (6 episodes) |
| 2024 | FBI: International | Niall Walsh | "Touts" |
Awards and nominations
[edit]| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | AACTA Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Mini Series | Act of Betrayal | Nominated |
| 1992 | BAFTA Cymru | Best Actor (Yr Actor Gorau) | Screen Two | Won |
| Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Sleeping with the Enemy | Nominated | |
| 2018 | International Filmmaker Festival of World Cinema | Best Supporting Actor | Train Set | Nominated |
| Madrid International Film Festival | Nominated |
References
[edit]- ^ "Taking one breath at a time". independent. 19 December 2010. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ "Happy Birthday: Natalie Imbruglia, 38". The Times. 4 February 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Patrick Bergin's 'Beastly Side' A Boon To His Career". Chicago Tribune. 13 June 1993. Archived from the original on 19 August 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Interview with the vampire". Irish Independent. 29 July 2001. Archived from the original on 7 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Patrick Bergin". People. 4 May 1992.
- ^ Wilson, Jade (19 March 2024). "Actor Emmet Bergin, best known for role in RTÉ series Glenroe, dies". The Irish Times. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
- ^ a b c "Patrick Bergin's 'Beastly Side' A Boon To His Career". Chicago Tribune. 13 June 1993.
- ^ "Fox Network Gets the Jump on Big-Screen Production of 'Robin Hood'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
- ^ "Patrick Bergin joins EastEnders cast". 11 September 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2020 – via www.bbc.com.
- ^ "Patrick Bergin's saucy Irish jig takes web by storm – News, Entertainment". The Belfast Telegraph. 4 September 2008. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
- ^ "Pope Francis Arrives At Dublin's Croke Park To Patrick Bergin Singing Leonard Cohen's Anthem". Cohen Centric. 26 August 2018. Archived from the original on 27 August 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
- ^ Walsh, Niamh (28 May 2018). "Irish actor Patrick Bergin loved up with new girlfriend". EVOKE.ie. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
External links
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| People | |
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