Vernon Alexandre Dobtcheff (born 14 August 1934) is a French-British character actor, who has appeared in over 300 film, television, and stage productions in a career spanning six decades.[1]Rupert Everett described him as a "patron saint of the acting profession."[2]
Among his many other television roles was as the Chief Scientist in the Doctor Who serial The War Games in 1969, in which he portrayed the first character ever to mention the Time Lords by name. In 1967 he was in The Avengers episode entitled "The Living Dead". He appeared in the Blake's 7 episode "Shadow" as the Chairman of the Terra Nostra in 1979. He has appeared in the Doctor Who audio drama The Children of Seth in which he plays the role of Shamur.[5]
In his 2006 memoir, Red Carpets and Other Banana Skins, British actor Rupert Everett describes an encounter with Dobtcheff on the boat train to Paris, and reveals his extraordinary reputation as the "patron saint" of the acting profession, stating that Dobtcheff "was legendary not so much for his acting as for his magical ability to catch every first night in the country".[2]
