Geoff Paine is an Australian television and theatre actor from Melbourne. After graduating from drama school Paine secured a role on the soap opera Neighbours, playing the role of doctor Clive Gibbons. He remained in the role for one year before leaving to pursue other projects. He returned to the role briefly in 1989, with the opportunity to appear in a spin-off series based on the character, but no television network would produce the show. Paine continued his career with roles in A Country Practice and the comedy sketch show The Comedy Company. He also concentrated on his stage career gaining roles in productions that toured Australia, including various projects at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
He continued to appear on television with numerous guest roles in dramas. He later started his own production company, then wrote and starred in his own play, Unpack This, which was based on his own experiences. Other regular roles include his appearances as Malcolm Wilson in the Nine Network children's television series Pig's Breakfast and as Malcom Mann in ABC3's Mal.com. In 2017, Paine decided to return to Neighbours as Clive and continued to appear on a recurring basis until the show’s ending in 2022.
Early life Paine studied drama at Victorian College of the Arts (VCA) for three years from 1983 to 1985. Directly following his studies, he was approached by the Neighbours casting department to audition for the series, after they watched him perform in a play at the Victorian Arts Centre.Oram 1988, p. 119
Career
Television In 1986, Paine secured the role of Clive Gibbons in the Australian soap opera Neighbours. This was his first television acting role after he had graduated.
In November 1986, TV Week reported that Paine had quit the series but would remain on-screen until early 1987. In a 1988 interview, Paine stated that he feared he would become typecast in the role and did not regret leaving. The actor later made a brief return to the show in 1989. Clive became popular with viewers and this return was scripted to set up a spin-off series, City Hospital. A pilot was made, but it was not picked up by any television networks.Monroe 1994, p.269. Paine moved to London briefly before returning to live in Australia. Neighbours had achieved success in the United Kingdom and he was often approached by fans in the street.
He went on to appear in episodes of the Seven Network soap opera A Country Practice as Jeff Ryan from 1987 to 1989. Paine began appearing in the sketch show The Comedy Company when it returned for its 1990 season. In 1996, Paine secured the guest role of Roman in Blue Heelers. He found the role "interesting" because Roman "is not what he seems." On 13 November 1997, he appeared in an episode of State Coroner as a farmer, Barry Davis who is murdered. In 1999, Paine secured the role of newsreader Malcolm Wilson in the Nine Network children's television series Pig's Breakfast. He reprised the role for the show's second series.
Other acting credits include guest roles in The Games, The Adventures of Lano and Woodley, Stingers, The Wedge, City Homicide, Wilfred and The Doctor Blake Mysteries. Paine's film roles include The Craic (1999), The Wog Boy (2000) and The Wedding Party (2010).
In early 2011, Paine took the role of Malcom Mann in Mal.com. The show was created for a young audience and Malcom is a television host who is also secretly a robot. The show debuted via ABC3 on 28 October 2011. In 2013, he secured a presenting role on Spontaneous Saturday which featured theatresport-type games. The two episode pilot was produced for the SBS network.
In 2017, Paine reprised his role of Clive in Neighbours, twenty-eight years after he had last been on the show. Paine's return came after he made an enquiry to the Neighbours production team via his agent. He had been asked to return previously, but was unable to because of family and other work commitments. Paine remained with Neighbours on a recurring basis, filming episodic blocks while also working in a university. The role saw him working with Colette Mann, with who he had previously co-starred in theatre work. Paine also secured a guest role in an episode of Nine Network's Bad Mothers.
Theatre Aside from television roles, Paine has also had a career in theatre, securing roles in various national productions. In 1987, he played Michael in The Hope at the Victorian Arts Centre. In 1991, Paine appeared in the stage version of Hair at the Melbourne Athenaeum. He went on to secure a main role in the 1992 Australian tour of Up 'n' Under. In 1993, Paine secured the role of Terry Legge in the production of Big Toys which was held at the Playbox Theatre, Melbourne. That year Paine was appearing in the theatrical comedy titled "Shear Madness", alongside Colette Mann. In April 1996, he played Marlowe in Murder to Die For, which was produced as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. In May 1997, Paine joined his former Neighbours colleague Annie Jones in the production of Effie – Exposed.
In April 2000, Paine starred in the stage production of The Linda Blair Witch Project at the Melbourne Town Hall. He then appeared in theatre production of It's a Dad Thing! for its Australian tour. In 2011, he wrote and acted a play show titled Unpack This, which debuted at the Melbourne Fringe Festival. The show was based on Paine's own experience attending a one day anger management work shop following a dispute with a neighbour. His show then went on tour around Victoria. In 2019, Paine and Mann worked together again creating their own improvisational show Mann Up and Take the Paine. The show, which also served as an acting class, played during the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
Other work Outside of acting, Paine has worked as a content curator and blogger at Monash University since 2016. Other jobs include time as a consultant for ABC and the Seven Network. He also created his own independent production company producing corporate communications for retail, government and non-profit organisations. Paine is the Councillor for Wingrove Ward in the Nillumbik Council and is currently serving the 2020-2024 term.
Personal life Paine is the youngest of six children. Paine is the father of twins.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes 1997 Kangaroo Palace Keith TV movie 1999 The Craic Russell Feature film 2000 The Wog Boy Nick Feature film 2006 Wil Dr. Fleiglebaum Film2010 The Wedding Party Colin Feature film Pisces, Arise! Eddie Short film 2011 Remake Steve Short film 2012 The Anti-Social Network Sarge Short film
Television Year Title Role Notes 1986–1987, 1989, 2017–2022 Neighbours Clive Gibbons Regular role; 336 episodes1987 In Between Uncredited Guest role The D-Generation Various Guest role 1987–1989 A Country Practice Jeff Ryan Recurring role 1988 The Gerry Connolly Show Queen's Aide / Surgeon Guest role1989 Acropolis Now Jason Felfy Guest role The Flying Doctors Steve Patterson Guest role Mission: Impossible Michael Skelton Guest role 1990 The Comedy Company Various Regular role 1993 Snowy Geoff Williams Guest role1994 Blue Heelers Arthur Lock Guest role Breaking News Mike Moore Impersonator Guest role A Country Practice Robbie McIntyre Guest role Sky Trackers Space Camp Counsellor #2 Guest role1995 Halifax f.p. Bill Doyle Guest role The Man from Snowy River James Duncan Guest role1996 Pacific Drive David Guest role Blue Heelers Roman Kellerman Recurring role1997 Good Guys, Bad Guys Arnold Tilson Guest role State Coroner Barry Davis Guest role 1998 The Games Brett Paine Guest role1999 The Adventures of Lano and Woodley Garth Delancey Guest role Pig's Breakfast Malcolm Wilson Regular role The Mick Molloy Show Various Guest role 2003 Stingers Jack Devereaux Guest role 2005 Holly's Heroes Lenny Cropper Guest role 2006 The Wedge Various Guest role 2007 City Homicide Jim Conway Guest role2008 Canal Road Joffa Degan Guest role Very Small Business Lloyd Recurring role Wilfred Show Host Guest role 2010 City Homicide Geoff Parnell Guest role 2011 Mal.com Malcom Mann Regular role 2016 The Doctor Blake Mysteries Noel Foster Guest role 2019 Bad Mothers Tony Guest role Sources:
Theatre
As actor Year Title Role Venue / Co. 1985 Legends Fairfax Studio, Melbourne with VCA for Next Wave Festival As You Like It Oliver Grant Street Theatre 1987 The Hope Michael Studio Theatre, Melbourne, Playhouse, Perth & WA tour with Playbox & Western Australian Theatre Company 1987–1988 Dizzy Spells Various characters The Last Laugh 1990 Pigments of the Imagination La Mama, Melbourne with Flying Pig Theatre Company 1991 Hair – The Tribal Love-Rock Musical Claude / Leonard Universal Theatre, Melbourne, Melbourne Athenaeum1992 Up 'n' Under Steve Edwards Australian tour Dark of the Moon Victoria College, Melbourne 1993 The Real Live Brady Bunch – and the Real Live Game Show Doug Simpson Comedy Club, Melbourne for Melbourne International Comedy Festival Shear Madness Nick Comedy Club, Melbourne 1993; 1994 Big Toys Terry Legge Malthouse Theatre, Melbourne, Ford Theatre, Geelong, Monash University, George Jenkins Theatre, Frankston, West Gippsland Arts Centre, Her Majesty’s Theatre, Ballarat, Monash University with Playbox 1994 Hey Jack! Jack La Mama, Melbourne for Melbourne International Comedy Festival Jaws The Musical Dan O'Bannon Victorian Arts Centre 1994; 1996 Romeo and Juliet Paris Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne with Australian Shakespeare Company 1995 Putting it Together Narrator Flinders Park, Melbourne 1996 Murder to Die For Marlowe Fairfax Studio for Melbourne International Comedy Festival X Files Unplugged Smoulder The Last Laugh Happy End Bill Cracker St Martins Youth Arts Centre, Melbourne1997 The La Mama 30th Birthday Celebration La Mama, Melbourne The New Rocky Horror Show Brad Majors Hong Kong Lyric Theatre with Adelaide Festival Centre Trust Effie X-posed Phil Universal Theatre, Melbourne 2000 The Linda Blair Witch Project Various characters Melbourne Town Hall 2002; 2003 Kissing Frogs Various characters Australian tour 2005 Control Freaks Comedian Duckboard House, Melbourne for Melbourne International Comedy Festival2006 A Kind of Hush Cinema Nova, Melbourne It's a Dad Thing! Various characters Australian tour with TML Entertainment 2007; 2009; 2010 Spontaneous Broadway Chad Bradley Australian tour Do You Know the Way to Ipanema VCA 2011 It's a Dad Thing! Various characters State Opera Studio, Adelaide for Adelaide Fringe Festival 2011; 2014 Unpack This! Geoff / Nguyen / Nicholas Melbourne Fringe Festival & Victorian tour, Mt Compass War Memorial Hall with Redskin Productions 2016 Chad's Back in Yack Yackandandah Hall 2017 Credentials Stephen / Bruce La Mama, Melbourne 2019 Mann Up and Take the Paine Comedian Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2022 Hearth Father La Mama, Melbourne
As writer / director Year Title Role Venue / Co. 2006 It's a Dad Thing! Writer / Director Australian tour with TML Entertainment 2011 It's a Dad Thing! Writer State Opera Studio, Adelaide for Adelaide Fringe Festival 2011; 2014 Unpack This! Writer / Director Melbourne Fringe Festival & Victorian tour, Mt Compass War Memorial Hall with Redskin Productions 2019 Mann Up and Take the Paine Creator Melbourne International Comedy Festival Sources:
References
External links Official website