Alan John Hopgood AM (29 September 1934 – 19 March 2022), also known as Alan Hopwood, was an Australian actor, producer, and writer. He wrote the screenplay for the 1972 film Alvin Purple and made appearances in television shows such as Bellbird, Prisoner and Neighbours.
Early life
Hopgood was born in Launceston, Tasmania, and grew up in the state. He acted in several dramatic roles in his childhood, making his legimiate debut aged 12 in The Winslow Boy in Hobart.
He attended school in Melbourne as a boarder at Wesley Collect. HE studied at the University of Melbourne, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (Hon) and a Diploma of Education.
His first play, Marcus, was produced at Melbourne University while he was working as a school teacher. He left teaching to write full-time and start his acting career.
Career
Scriptwriting and screenwriting Hopgood's first successful play, And the Big Men Fly, was about Australian rules football and was produced in 1963 by the Union Theatre Repertory Company at the Russell Street Theatre in Melbourne with scripts by Brad Hopgood. The play was adapted for TV by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1973 and also a telemovie. In 1964, he followed with The Golden Legion of Cleaning Women. In 1966 he produced Private Yuk Objects, which he said was the first play anywhere in the world on the subject of the Vietnam War.
Hopgood has also written a number of film and television screenplays, including the comedy film Alvin Purple (1973), which was the most commercially successful Australian film of the early 1970s.
Screen actor: Television and film
Hopgood was an actor with the Melbourne Theatre Company for ten years and was an early 'soap' star in Bellbird, in which for six years he played the town doctor. He has also performed in the later soaps, Prisoner (for which he also scripted many episodes) and Neighbours as Jack Lassiter (a role he reprised in August 2013).
As an actor, his cinema credits include My Brilliant Career (1979), The Blue Lagoon (1980), Roadgames (1981), Evil Angels (1988, released as A Cry in the Dark outside of Australia and New Zealand) and The Man from Snowy River II (1988).
He worked with a large number of actors including Frank Thring, Meryl Streep, Brooke Shields, Sam Neill and Judy Davis.
In late 2021, Hopgood appeared in an exclusive interview for the official YouTube channel Talking Prisoner, in which he discussed his life and career. The episode was published in January 2022.
Honours
Hopgood won AWGIE awards for The Cheerful Cuckold and The Bush Bunch and writing several feature films including Alvin Purple and the documentaries The Prophecies of Nostradamus and The Fountain of Youth.
Hopgood was awarded the A.M. (Member of the Order of Australia) in 2005 for his services to the performing arts as an actor, playwright and producer, and to the community through raising awareness of men's health issues.
Personal life Hopgood resided in Melbourne with his wife Gay, with whom he had two children (Fincina and Sam), and four grandchildren (Jackson, Harrison, Ashwyn and Darcy).
Health issues and death Alan Hopgood developed prostate cancer and published a book on the experience titled Surviving Prostate Cancer: One Man's Journey, which was widely praised. He often toured giving humorous lectures on men's health issues.
Hopgood died from prostate cancer at the age of 87 on 19 March 2022 at a hospital in Melbourne.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Type1959 Tragedy in a Temporary Town McCarthy TV movie 1969 Dynasty Jacob Goldberg TV movie1959 Antony and Cleopatra First Soldier TV movie1959 Ned Kelly Dan Kelly TV movie1960 Man in a Blue Vase Aaron TV movie1960 The Astronauts Dave Armstrong TV movie 1960 Who Killed Kovali? Jeff Willis TV movie1962 The Teeth of the Wind Frank Andrews TV movie 1962 She'll Be Alright TV movie1962 You Can't Win 'Em All Feliz TV movie 1962 Lola Montez Smith TV movie 1963 Night Stop Gary TV movie1963 And The Big Men Fly JJ Forbes TV movie1969 The Cheerful Cuckold Gareth TV movie1969 The Torrents TV movie1977 The Trial of Ned Kelly Narrator TV movie1979 My Brilliant Career Father Feature film1979 Burn the Butterflies TV movie1980 The Blue Lagoon Captain Feature film1980 The Quick Brown Fox Marley Powers Short film1980 The Coast Town Kids Mick James TV movie1980 Pacific Banana Sir Harry Blandings Feature film 1981 Roadgames Lester Feature film1982 A Shifting Dreaming TV movie1983 A Slice of Life Dr. Williams Feature film1985 Emerging Tom Birchfield TV movie1987 Ground Zero Commissioner #2 Feature film1988 Return to Snowy River Simmons Feature film1988 Rikky and Pete Laughing Uncle Feature film1988 A Cry in the Dark (aka Evil Angels) President Cox Feature film1996 Hotel de Love Ronnie Feature film1998 Two Girls and a Baby Catherine's Dad Short film2002 Dalkeith Mick Feature film 2004 The Gift Man on Bus Short film2004 Stiff Herb Gardiner TV movie2009 Knowing Reverend Koestler Feature film 2011 Magic Grandfather 2011 The Cup Grandfather at Football Feature film2012 The Game Charles Short film2012 Last Dance Mr. Nathan Feature film
Television Year Title Role Type1972–77 Bellbird Dr. Matthew Reed TV series 1973–74 Matlock Police 3 roles-Frank Walsh-Ted Reid-Brian Davis TV series 1973–1975 Homicide 3 roles-John Ford-Paul Markes-Jim Knight TV series1978–80 Cop Shop 2 roles-Doug Bramley-Horrie Gibbs TV series1979 Skyways Edward Fielding TV series, 2 episodes 1980 All the Green Years Mr. Reeves TV series1981–1985 Prisoner Wally Wallace TV series1986 Sword of Honour Stuart Rogers TV miniseries1986, 2013 Neighbours Jack Lassiter TV series1987 The Petrov Affair Alan Reid TV miniseries1989 The Flying Doctors Neil Hutton TV series1990 Flair Harris TV miniseries1991 A Country Practice Tom O'Connell TV series1992 Good Vibrations Cec TV miniseries1993 Phoenix Bill Douglas TV series1994 Wedlocked Father Damien TV series1994 Law of the Land Reg Bates TV series1995 Snowy River: The McGregor Saga Gil Tyson TV series1997 State Coroner Keith Summers TV series1998 Good Guys, Bad Guys Judge Moody TV series1998 Driven Crazy Mr. Tuck TV series1998–00 The Games Radio Newreader (voice only), Database Inquiry Questioner TV series1999 Queen Kat, Carmel and St Jude Lecturer TV miniseries2000–04 Blue Heelers 3 roles-George Ratcliffe QC-Bob Swinburn-Doc Parkinson TV series2001 Round the Twist Cornelius Crenshaw TV series2001 Something in the Air Bill Mackay TV series2001 Halifax f.p. Joshua Lippmann TV series2002 The Secret Life of Us Dr. Morgan TV series2002–03 MDA Dr. Hugo Willard TV series2003 Welcher and Welcher Judge Furphy TV series2003 Stingers Detective Senior Sargeant Bill Skelton TV series2003 The Saddle Club Bud TV series2004 Fergus McPhail Shop Assistant TV series2005 Holly's Heroes Max Peterson TV series2007 City Homicide Harry Mackintosh TV series 2021 Talking Prisoner Himself YouTube special
As writer Year Title Role Type 1963 And the Big Men Fly Writer TV movie 1964 Barley Charlie Writer TV series, season 1 (7 episodes) 1967 Bellbird Writer TV series 1968 The World of Seekers Writer TV movie 1969 The Cheerful Cuckold Writer TV movie (from Australian Plays) 1973 The Barry Crocker Comedy Hour Writer TV special 1973 Alvin Purple Screenplay Feature film 1974 And the Big Men Fly Writer TV series, season 1 (6 episodes) 1974 Alvin Rides Again Screenplay Feature film 1975 The True Story of Eskimo Nell Writer Feature film 1976 Alvin Purple Writer / creator TV series, season 1 (13 episodes) 1979 Gulpilil: Man of Two Worlds Writer TV movie 1979 The Prophecies of Nostradamus Writer Feature film 1980 The Quick Brown Fox Writer Short film 1981 The Man Who Saw Tomorrow Screenplay Feature film 1981 And Here Comes Bucknuckle Writer TV series, season 1 (6 episodes) 1981 Pacific Banana Screenplay Feature film 1981 The Cliffhanger Writer Short TV movie 1981 The Bush Bunch: 1.1 the Cliffhanger Writer TV movie 1982 Breakfast in Paris Screenplay (credited as Morris Dalton) Feature film 1982 Prisoner Writer TV series, season 4 (1 episode) 1983 A Slice of Life Screenplay Feature film 1985 Fountain of Youth Writer TV movie 1985 From Opera with Love Writer TV movie 1988–91 The Flying Doctors Writer TV series, seasons 3-5 & 9 (6 episodes) 1989 Sugar and Spice Writer TV series, season 1 (8 episodes) 1989–91 Pugwall Scriptwriter TV series, seasons 1 & 2 (42 episodes) 1990 Flair Writer TV miniseries (2 episodes) 1991 Chances Writer TV series, season 1 (3 episodes) 1994 Blue Heelers Writer TV series, season 1 (1 episodes) 1998–01 Neighbours Writer TV series, seasons 14–17 (22 episodes)
Theatre
As actor Year Title Role Type 1947 Saint Joan Playhouse, Hobart 1953 Slaves of Duty Puckapunyal Army Base 1953 The Shoemaker's Holiday Lord Mayor of London University of Melbourne 1956 Of Mice and Men George University of Melbourne 1956 The Madwoman of Chaillot The Rag Picker University of Melbourne 1956 Golden Boy University of Melbourne 1956 The Troublemakers University of Melbourne 1956 Thieves' Carnival Harlequin University of Melbourne 1957 Much Ado About Nothing University of Melbourne 1957 Arsenic and Old Lace Lieutenant Rooney University of Melbourne 1957 A View from the Bridge First Officer / Neighbour University of Melbourne 1957 Speak of the Devil University of Melbourne 1958 The Making of Moo William University of Melbourne 1958 A Hatful of Rain Polo Pope University of Melbourne 1958 Lola Montez Smith University of Melbourne, Her Majesty's Theatre, Brisbane, Elizabethan Theatre 1958 The Threepenny Opera Smith University of Melbourne 1958 Look Back in Anger Cliff Lewis Elizabethan Theatre 1959 Marcus University of Melbourne with The Marlowe Society 1960 Long Day's Journey into Night Edmund Tyrone St Martins Theatre 1961 Stop Press Phillip Street Theatre 1962 The Fantasticks Narrator Russell Street Theatre 1963 The Man Who Came to Dinner Banjo Russell Street Theatre 1963-65 And the Big Men Fly J.J. Forbes Russell Street Theatre, Arts Theatre Adelaide, Wangaratta Town Hall, Broken Hill Town Hall, Playhouse Perth, Albury, Theatre Royal Hobart, Twelfth Night Theatre 1964 After the Fall Quentin Russell Street Theatre 1964 Night of the Auk University of Melbourne 1965 Entertaining Mr Sloane Russell Street Theatre 1965 Bandicoot on a Burnt Ridge Russell Street Theatre 1965 Tiny Alice Butler University of Melbourne 1965 Inadmissible Evidence University of Melbourne 1965 The Homecoming Lenny University of Melbourne 1966 A Break in the Music Derek Playhouse Theatre Perth 1966 The Owl and the Pussycat Russell Street Theatre 1967 The Servant of Two Masters Truffaldino Russell Street Theatre 1968 The Crucible Giles Corey Russell Street Theatre, Canberra Theatre, Tasmania 1968 Three Sisters Captain Solyony Russell Street Theatre 1968 Everything in the Garden Russell Street Theatre 1969 Henry IV, Part 1 Poins Octagon Theatre Perth, Murdoch Court Melbourne 1986 A Kind of Justice Masonic Hall, Perth 1993-94 Emperor of the Ghetto Rumkowski Fairfax Studio Melbourne, Lion Theatre Adelaide with Bay Street Productions 1995 It's My Party (And I'll Die if I Want To) Arts Theatre Adelaide 1997 For Better, for Worse Des Chapel Off Chapel with Bay Street Productions 2007 Four Funerals in One Day Clarrie Bay Street Productions 2007-08 Visiting Mr. Green Mr Green Whitehorse Centre, Drum Theatre Dandenong, Kingston Arts Centre Moorabbin, Clocktower Centre Moonee Ponds 2008 The Peppercorn Tree Jonah 2008 Never Too Old Fred Monash University, Chapel Off Chapel with Bay Street Productions 2012 Hear Me Doctor International Incident Disclosure Conference with Bay Street Productions 2017 Never Too Old Fred at ACMI, Federation Square for Melbourne International Comedy Festival with Bay Street Productions 2019 Never Too Old Fred Glen Eira Town Hall for Glen Eira Storytelling Festival with Bay Street Productions 2020 The Carer George Parker Online with The Sugden Society with Bay Street Productions
As writer / director / crew