Drew Forsythe (born 23 August 1949) is an Australian actor, singer, writer, and comedian. He has appeared on film, stage, and television, as well as in satirical sketch comedy television programs.
Early life
Born in New South Wales to newsagent parents, Forsythe attended Atherton Primary School, far north Queensland. . He caught the acting bug when The Young Elizabethan Players performed Hamlet (featuring Kirrily Nolan as Ophelia) at his Charters Towers high school. Forsythe went on to study acting at National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), graduating in 1969.
Career
Theatre The title roles of the heroic Tonino and the foolish Zanetto in the Nick Enright/Terence Clarke musical, The Venetian Twins, were written for Forsythe. He originated these dual roles for Nimrod Theatre Company in the first Sydney Theatre Company season in 1979, and subsequently in two revivals.
Playwright David Williamson wrote Flatfoot for Forsythe, in which he played eleven different characters and a parrot.
Together with Jonathan Biggins and Phillip Scott, Forsythe was a creator, writer, and performer of Three Men and a Baby Grand which started at the Tilbury Hotel in Woolloomooloo. It went on to tour Australia-wide, at the Edinburgh Festival, and with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and was also adapted as a television series for the ABC. The same team went on to create the Wharf Revue for the Sydney Theatre Company.
Other stage appearances include the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas H.M.S. Pinafore and The Mikado for Essgee Entertainment, receiving a Melbourne Green Room Award as Ko-Ko in The Mikado in 1995.
Film Forsythe appeared in the films Stone, Caddie, Newsfront, Annie's Coming Out, Ginger Meggs, Burke & Wills, Travelling North and Billy's Holiday. He featured as the narrator in the film Ned, which was written and directed by and starred his son, Abe Forsythe.
He received the 1976 Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, for his role in Caddie.
Television Forsythe has featured in television roles on The Miraculous Mellops, The Dingo Principle and Hotel Bordemer. He has also made guest appearances on a number of popular television series, including Cop Shop, A Country Practice, G.P., BackBerner, All Saints, and Packed to the Rafters.
He provided the anonymous, uncredited voice of David Tench, an animated host on Network Ten's short-lived comedy talk show David Tench Tonight. Likewise, he also voiced several characters on the Australian award-winning animated series I Got a Rocket, as well as characters on Fairy Tale Police Department and The Adventures of Blinky Bill.
Radio Forsythe is credited with singing the theme song for the ABC's long-running Sunday morning radio program, Australia All Over, hosted by Ian McNamara. For more than thirty years, when over 2 million listeners spanning every corner of Australia tune in from 5.30 am on Sunday mornings to listen to 'Macca' they are greeted by Forsythe singing - "Macca on a Sunday Morning".
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Type 1973 The Taming of the Shrew Teleplay 1973 How Could You Believe Me When I Said I'd Be Your Valet When You Know I've Been a Liar All My Life? Teleplay 1974 Stone Fred Feature film 1974 Essington TV movie 1975 They Don't Clap Losers Priest TV movie 1976 Caddie Sonny Feature film 1976 Deathcheaters Battle Scene Director Feature film 1978 Newsfront Bruce Feature film 1979 The Hero Auditionee Short film 1981 Around the World with Dot Danny the Swagman (live) / Santa Claus (voice) Animated TV film 1981 Doctors and Nurses Katz Feature film 1982 Ginger Meggs Tiger Kelly Feature film 1983 Dot and the Bunny Koala (voice) Animated TV film 1984 Annie's Coming Out David Lewis Feature film 1985 Burke & Wills William Brahe Feature film 1986 The Movers John TV movie 1987 Travelling North Martin Feature film 1989 Minnamurra (aka Outback or Wrangler) Henry Iverson Feature film 1993 The Nostradamus Kid 'General Booth Enters Heaven' Strolling Player Feature film 1995 Billy's Holiday Sid Banks Feature film 1996 The Mikado Ko-Ko TV movie 1997 H.M.S. Pinafore The Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Porter K.C.B. TV movie 2002 Six Days Straight Arthur Short film 2003 Ned Narrator Feature film 2006 The Last Chip Pit Boss Trevor Short film
Television Year Title Role Type 1974 Three Men of the City Ken Styles TV miniseries, 2 episodes 1974 Behind the Legend Ted Baxter TV series, 1 episode 1975 The Company Men Ken Elliott TV miniseries, 2 episodes 1976 The Emigrants Peter TV miniseries, 1 episode 1981 Cop Shop Sid Moody / Murray Paxton TV series, 4 episodes 1984 Breakout Host Documentary 1984-91 A Country Practice Noel Lewis / Phil Pratt TV series, 3 episodes 1985 Runaway Island Bloat TV series, 2 episodes 1986 Land of Hope Old Frank Quinn TV miniseries 1986 Whose Baby? Bill Morrison TV miniseries, 2 episodes 1987 The Dingo Principle Various characters TV series 1989-93 G.P. Leon Winters TV series, 3 episodes 1990 The Party Machine Various characters TV series, 3 episodes 1991-92 The Miraculous Mellops Ralph TV series, 26 episodes 1994 Three Men and a Baby Grand Various characters TV series 1998 Driven Crazy Sidney Drayton Mousechap TV series, season 1, episode 12: "Mousechap" 2001-05 Fairy Tale Police Department Chief Horace White (voice) Animated TV series, 26 episodes 2002 BackBerner Martin TV series, 1 episode 2002-07 All Saints Ray McCarthy / Dale Caulder TV series, 3 episodes 2004 The Adventures of Blinky Bill Voice Animated TV series, season 3 2005 Hotel Bordemer TV series, 19 episodes 2006 Staines Down Drains Dr Drain TV series, 2 episodes 2006-07 David Tench Tonight David Tench (voice) TV series 2006-07 I Got a Rocket! Ma Ducky / Biffo Ducky / Scuds Ducky / Captain O'Cheese / Pirate (voices) Animated TV series, 23 episodes 2007 Chandon Pictures Graham Tucker TV series, 1 episode 2008 Packed to the Rafters Fred Mackie TV series, 1 episode 2011 At Home with Julia Bob Katter TV series, 1 episode 2012 Devil’s Dust Bob Carr Animated TV series, 2 episodes
As writer Year Title Role Type 1987 The Dingo Principle Writer TV series 1990 The Party Machine Writer TV series, 3 episodes 1994 Three Men and a Baby Grand Writer TV series 1996 The Mikado Additional material TV movie 1997 H.M.S. Pinafore Additional material TV movie
Stage
As actor