Brian Bedford

Brian Bedford (16 February 1935 – 13 January 2016) was an English actor. Known for his work on stage and screen, he was an actor and director in various Shakespearian productions. Bedford was nominated for seven Tony Awards for his theatrical work, winning once.

He served as the voice of Disney's Robin Hood from the 1973 animated film of the same name.

Brian Bedford was born in Morley, West Riding of Yorkshire, on 16 February 1935, the son of Ellen (née O'Donnell) and Arthur Bedford, a postman. He attended St Bede's Grammar School in Bradford, leaving at the age of 15. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London from 1952 to 1955. At RADA, he was in the same class as Albert Finney, Alan Bates and Peter O'Toole.

Primarily a stage actor, he appeared in English-speaking interpretations of the French playwright Molière, including Tony Award nominated performances in Tartuffe, The Molière Comedies (a double bill of the short plays The School for Husbands and The Imaginary Cuckold) and The School for Wives, for which he received the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play.

He performed Shakespearean work, such as Ariel in The Tempest opposite John Gielgud's Prospero in 1958, and at the Stratford Festival in Ontario, Canada including Angelo in Measure for Measure, Malvolio in Twelfth Night and the title role in Richard III directed by Robin Phillips, and The Public Theater's New York Shakespeare Festival Shakespeare in the Park productions of As You Like It (as Jacques), and Timon of Athens (as Timon) on Broadway, with the National Actors Theatre in 1993. Bedford's additional Broadway credits include The Seven Descents of Myrtle, Private Lives, Two Shakespearean Actors, London Assurance and Jumpers.

Bedford appeared with James Garner in the 1966 film Grand Prix, and in 1967 he was a regular on the CBS series Coronet Blue. He provided the voice of the title character in the 1973 Disney film Robin Hood, which director Byron Howard credits as a major inspiration for the Academy Award-winning animated film, Zootopia. In 1988, he appeared as Mr. Stone, the head of the consortium that owns Cheers, and would later appear (as a different character) in its spin-off, Frasier, in 2000. In 1997 Bedford was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame. Other honours include the Obie Award, the Outer Circle Critics Award, the Drama Desk Award, and the L.A. Drama Critics Award.

In 2009, Bedford starred as Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest, marking 27 seasons of acting and/or directing, at the Stratford Festival in Canada.

He repeated the role in 2010 (in a double role as both actor and director) for the Roundabout Theatre in New York, which earned him a 2011 Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play.

Bedford shared homes in Stratford, Ontario, and in Santa Barbara, California, with fellow actor Tim MacDonald, his partner from 1985 and husband from 2013 until his death.

Bedford died of cancer on January 13, 2016, in Santa Barbara, California, at the age of 80; his remains were cremated.

Tony Awards

• 1971 Best Leading Actor in Play – The School for Wives (winner)
• 1992 Best Leading Actor in Play – Two Shakespearean Actors (nominee)
• 1994 Best Leading Actor in Play – Timon of Athens (nominee)
• 1995 Best Leading Actor in Play – The Molière Comedies (nominee)
• 1997 Best Leading Actor in Play – London Assurance (nominee)
• 2003 Best Leading Actor in Play – Tartuffe (nominee)
• 2011 Best Leading Actor in Play – The Importance of Being Earnest (nominee)

Drama Desk Awards

• 1969 Outstanding Performance – The Misanthrope (winner)
• 1970 Outstanding Performance – Private Lives (winner)
• 1971 Outstanding Performance – The School for Wives (winner)
• 1974 Outstanding Performance – Jumpers (winner)
• 1992 Outstanding Actor in a Play – Two Shakespearean Actors (winner)
• 1994 Outstanding Actor in a Play – Timon of Athens (nominee)
• 2011 Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play – The Importance of Being Earnest (winner)

Obie Awards

• 1965 Outstanding Performance – The Knack (winner)