Biography

Glaswegian-born actor, screenwriter and playwright, the son of Charles Neil Grainger and his wife Elizabeth (née Gall). Grainger was raised in London and trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts. He debuted on stage at the age of thirteen and saw his first play performed some eight years later. His first professional acting gig was with Dundee Rep in 1961 and he later spent many seasons in leading roles at the National Theatre under the direction of Laurence Olivier. These included playing Macduff in 1972 (opposite Anthony Hopkins, as Macbeth) and a starring turn in The Marriage of Figaro in 1974. Grainger also featured on Broadway in the comedy plays The Misanthrope (1975) and There's A Girl in My Soup (1967-68).

On screen from 1952, Grainger worked primarily as a supporting actor. During the 1980s and 90s, he also collaborated on several TV screenplays, as well as adapting one of his own plays (Four to One (1986)) for the BBC. His best-known guest-starring credits have included episodes of Private Schulz (1981) (as Hitler), Docteur Who (1963) (as engineer George Stephenson, 'the father of the railways'), Hercule Poirot (1989) (as a murder suspect), Inspecteurs associés (1996), Les enquêtes de Foyle (2002) (as a hard-nosed DCI) and Inspecteur Barnaby (1997) (as the colourfully-named Lesley Flux, a retired geography teacher).

Grainger was thrice married, latterly to the acclaimed American-born British actress Zoë Wanamaker.

- IMDb mini biography by: I.S.Mowis