Name
Geoffrey McGivern
Known For
Acting
Birthday
1952-01-01 (74 years old)
Place of Birth
Battersea, London, England, UK
Biography
Geoffrey M. McGivern is a British actor in film, television, radio and stage, as well as a comedian. He is best known for originating the role of Ford Prefect in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
He played Ford Prefect in the radio series (1978–80) and subsequent LP releases of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams whom he knew from Cambridge University, and reprised the role for the four new series broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 2004 and 2018. A more recent radio broadcast was in The Ape That Got Lucky and he has appeared in TV shows such as Noel's House Party, Press Gang, Chef!, Big Train, Blackadder the Third ("Dish and Dishonesty") as Ivor Biggun, Chelmsford 123, Jonathan Creek, 15 Storeys High, Armstrong and Miller, Toast of London and series three of Peep Show.
McGivern appeared in the first series of the comedy show Big Train in 1998, and later that year for the 1998 radio SciFi drama Paradise Lost in Cyberspace (Colin Swash, BBC) McGivern teamed up with old Hitchhiker's colleague Stephen Moore and Lorelei King (member of cast in the 2005 Hitchhiker's radio show sequel). He later played the Supreme Ruler in BBC2's sci-fi comedy Hyperdrive (2006–2007). In 2007, he appeared in the BBC Radio 4 comedy Peacefully in their Sleeps and in 2008 he appeared as Professor John Mycroft in the BBC2 science sitcom Lab Rats and in the 2008 BBC series Little Dorrit where he played Mr Rugg. He also appeared in episode 5 of series 3 of the TV series A Bit of Fry and Laurie. In 2015, he guest-starred in EastEnders as Dickie Ticker, the crude comic brought in by Mick Carter for Kush Kazemi's stag night. In 2016, he appeared in four episodes of the Disney Channel musical drama The Lodge, as Patrick. McGivern played the narrator Charlie Swinburne in the BBC Radio's 2013 six part dramatisation of G. K. Chesterton's The Club of Queer Trades.
In 2017, he appeared in the Channel 4 sitcom Back, written by Simon Blackwell, alongside David Mitchell and Robert Webb. Later that year, he began portraying the recurring role of Frank in the Netflix series Free Rein.
Since 2019, he has appeared as recurring character Barclay Beg-Chetwynde in the BBC comedy Ghosts. In 2022, he appeared as the main character Russ, in Radio 4 comedy No-Platformed. The show's episode guide contains a humorous note about McGivern's extensive credit list, by starting a list of his credits and then adding "oh, hundreds of things".
In 2024, he appeared as recurring character Lord Rookwood in the Apple TV+ series The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin.
Known For
6.7
Retired bachelor Mr Hoppy is hopelessly in love with his neighbour Mrs Silver, but she is ...
5.7
Experienced New York Police Detective John Harris is sent to London to help a local task f...
3.5
An 11-year-old boy's amazing ability to break wind leads him first to fame and then to dea...
6.3
A fantastical re-imagining of the events of 1979, when Monty Python made Life of Brian and...
6.5
A middle aged house-sitter meets two tearaways, and together they form a surrogate family...
- 2007 Magicians as Magic Shop Manager
- 2018 Tower-D as Alexander
- 1997 Gobble as Geoffrey Lester
- 1986 Mr. Pye as Harry Portiner
- 2015 Roald Dahl's Esio Trot as Shop Keeper
- 2008 Hancock & Joan as Billy Marsh
- 1992 In Dreams as Journalist/Emperor
- 2017 The Ghoul as Morland
- 1989 Wilt as Mr. Yeo
- 2016 Here Boy as Des
- 1993 The Young Americans as Brian Carver
- 2003 Blackball as Brian Cronk
- 1999 Onegin as Andrey Petrovitch
- 2011 Holy Flying Circus as Dog Walker /Petitioner /Man Whose Wife Malcolm Muggeridge Said Made a Lovely Breakfast
- 1974 Cambridge University 1974 Footlights Revue as Various
- 2007 Half Broken Things as Jack
- 2008 Margaret Thatcher: The Long Walk to Finchley as Dartford Returning Officer
- 2020 Stardust as Mr Jones
- 2002 Thunderpants as Metallurgist
- 1988 Alas Sage & Onion
- 1993 Chef ( 7 episodes ) as Bank Manager
- 2020 Semi-Detached ( 6 episodes ) as Barry
- 2019 This Time with Alan Partridge ( 1 episode ) as Old Lady
- 1998 Stressed Eric ( 13 episodes )
- 2010 This Is Jinsy ( 16 episodes ) as Trince
- 1990 Ben Elton: The Man from Auntie ( 12 episodes )
- 2012 A Touch of Cloth ( 2 episodes ) as Andy Preacherman
- 1998 Big Train ( 1 episode ) as Policeman
- 2022 Sister Boniface Mysteries ( 1 episode ) as Malise Bonham Crane
- 2015 Together ( 1 episode ) as Douglas the Neighbour
- 1997 Jonathan Creek ( 4 episodes ) as Barry Opper
- 2008 Lab Rats ( 6 episodes ) as Professor John Mycroft
- 2014 Outlander ( 1 episode ) as Dr. Simms
- 2013 Plebs ( 1 episode ) as Simeon
- 2006 Hyperdrive ( 2 episodes ) as Supreme Ruler
- 2017 Quacks ( 6 episodes ) as The Pub Landlord
- 1983 Blackadder ( 1 episode ) as Ivor Biggun
- 2017 Back ( 6 episodes ) as Uncle Geoff
- 1990 Rita Rudner ( 6 episodes )
- 2021 The Larkins ( 1 episode ) as Station Master Fox
- 1993 Eye of the Storm ( 1 episode ) as Customs Officers
- 1992 Heartbeat ( 1 episode ) as Denzil Arcourt
- 2011 Episodes ( 1 episode ) as Bob
- 1992 Heartbeat ( 1 episode ) as Harry
- 2019 Ghosts ( 1 episode ) as Barclay
- 2013 Blandings ( 1 episode ) as Sir Roderick Glossop
- 2016 Upstart Crow ( 1 episode ) as Sir Thomas
- 2024 The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin ( 4 episodes ) as Lord Rookwood
- 2003 Peep Show ( 1 episode ) as Gerard
- 2007 Benidorm ( 2 episodes ) as Beverley Westwood
- 1986 Noel's Christmas Presents ( 1 episode )
- 2020 Quiz ( 2 episodes ) as Lieutenant Colonel Village
- 2012 A Young Doctor's Notebook ( 1 episode ) as Pharmacist
- 2019 Ghosts ( 5 episodes ) as Barclay Beg-Chetwynde
- 1989 Birds of a Feather ( 1 episode ) as Mr Blair
- 2002 15 Storeys High ( 1 episode ) as Neville
- 2002 15 Storeys High ( 1 episode ) as Sergeant Hamilton
- 1990 Drop the Dead Donkey ( 1 episode ) as Geoff
- 1990 Drop the Dead Donkey ( 1 episode ) as TV Announcer
- 1990 Drop the Dead Donkey ( 1 episode ) as Voice Over (voice)
- 1990 Drop the Dead Donkey ( 1 episode ) as Repeat introductions (voice) (uncredited)
- 1996 Annie's Bar ( 10 episodes ) as Stiggy Bedford-Bounds
- 2014 Grantchester ( 2 episodes ) as Archdeacon
- 1988 Chelmsford 123 ( 1 episode ) as Blind Man
- 1988 Chelmsford 123 ( 5 episodes ) as Wolfbane
- 2002 Look Around You ( 1 episode ) as Schoolmaster
- 2008 Little Dorrit ( 14 episodes ) as Rugg
- 2004 Doctors and Nurses ( 4 episodes ) as Walt
- 2013 Vicious ( 1 episode ) as Antonio St Alexis
- 2017 Decline and Fall ( 1 episode ) as Mr Wilson
- 1998 In the Red ( 1 episode ) as Clarence Twist
- 1986 Mr Pye ( 1 episode ) as Harry Portiner
- 2013 The Mimic ( 3 episodes ) as Kingsley
- 1992 Absolutely Fabulous ( 1 episode ) as Customs Officer
- 1991 Lazarus and Dingwall ( 1 episode ) as Film Director
- 1993 Joking Apart ( 1 episode ) as Dave
- 1991 Murder Most Horrid ( 1 episode ) as Mason
- 1991 Murder Most Horrid ( 1 episode ) as Guy
- 1991 Murder Most Horrid ( 1 episode ) as Security Man
- 2014 Siblings ( 1 episode ) as Frank
- 2004 The Worst Week of My Life ( 1 episode ) as Santa
