Sir Alan Arthur Bates CBE (17 February 1934 – 27 December 2003) was an English actor, who came to prominence in the 1960s, a time of high creativity in British cinema, when he demonstrated his versatility in films ranging from the popular children’s story Whistle Down the Wind to the "kitchen sink" drama A Kind of Loving. He is also known for his tour-de-force with Anthony Quinn, Zorba the Greek, as well as his roles in King of Hearts, Georgy Girl, Far From the Madding Crowd, and The Fixer, which gave him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. In 1969, he starred in the Ken Russell film Women in Love with Oliver Reed and Glenda Jackson. Bates went on to star in The Go-Between, An Unmarried Woman, Nijinsky, and The Rose with Bette Midler, as well as playing varied roles in television drama, including The Mayor of Casterbridge, Harold Pinter's The Collection, A Voyage Round My Father, An Englishman Abroad (as Guy Burgess), and Pack of Lies. He also continued to appear on the stage, notably in the plays of Simon Gray, such as Butley and Otherwise Engaged.
Hamlet
(Claudius)
Zorba the Greek
(Basil)
Far from the Madding Crowd
(Gabriel Oak)
The Mothman Prophecies
(Alexander Leek)
Gosford Park
(Jennings)
Nothing Like a Dame
(Self (archive footage) (uncredited))
Shuttlecock: Sins of a Father
(Major James Prentis (archival footage))
Spartacus
(Antonius Agrippa)
Britannia Hospital
(Macready)
A Kind of Loving
(Victor Arthur 'Vic' Brown)
Whistle Down the Wind
(The Man, Arthur Alan Blakey)
A Prayer for the Dying
(Jack Meehan)
Mister Frost
(Felix Detweiler)
The Statement
(Armand Bertier)
Dr. M
(Dr, Marsfeldt / Guru)
The Go-Between
(Ted Burgess)
Georgy Girl
(Jos Jones)
The Prince and the Pauper
(Re Enrico VIII)
Losing Track
(Henry Sitchell)
The Rose
(Rudge Campbell)
An Unmarried Woman
(Saul Kaplan)
Bertie and Elizabeth
(King George V)
Women in Love
(Rupert Birkin)
A Voyage Round My Father
(John Mortimer)
Quartet
(H.J. Heidler)
King of Hearts
(Charles Plumpick)
The Grotesque
(Sir Hugo Coal)
The Entertainer
(Frank Rice)
Duet for One
(David Cornwallis)
Royal Flash
(Rudi Von Sternberg)
Hollywood North
(Michael Baytes)
The Fixer
(Yakov Bok)
The Caretaker
(Mick)
A Day in the Death of Joe Egg
(Bri)
Secret Friends
(John)
We Think the World of You
(Frank Meadows)
An Englishman Abroad
(Guy Burgess)
The Wicked Lady
(Captain Jerry Jackson)
Nothing But the Best
(Jimmy Brewster)
Separate Tables
(John Malcolm / Maj. Pollock)
The Running Man
(Stephen)
Silent Tongue
(Eamon McCree)
Butley
(Ben Butley)
In Celebration
(Andrew Shaw)
Nijinsky
(Sergei Diaghilev)
The Collection
(James)
One for the Road
(Nicholas)
Uncontrollable Circumstances
(Malcolm Forrest)
Story of a Love Story
(Harry)
102 Boulevard Haussmann
(Marcel Proust)
The Return of the Soldier
(Captain Chris Baldry)
Discovering Hamlet
(Claudius (archive footage))
Nicholas’ Gift
(Reg Green)
Unnatural Pursuits
(Hamish Partt)
Hands Up!
(Self (1981 footage))
Pack of Lies
(Stewart)
Very Like a Whale
(Sir Jock Mellor)
Three Sisters
(Col. Vershinin)
Hard Times
(Josiah Bounderby)
The Trespasser
(Siegmund)
Evelyn
(Thomas Connolly)
Salem Witch Trials
(Sir William Phips)
The Dog It Was That Died
(Blair)
St. Patrick: The Irish Legend
(Calpornius)
Two Sundays
(Charles)
Plaintiffs and Defendants
(Peter)
Mel Gibson Goes Back to School
(Claudius (archive footage))
The Sum of All Fears
(Dressler)
The Story of Jacob and Joseph
(Narrator (voice))
Once Upon a Tractor
(Joe Turrel)
Anthony Quinn: The Final Words
(Self)
Second Best
(Tom)
Meanwhile
The Cherry Orchard
(Gayev)
Shuttlecock
(Major James Prentis VC)
The Shout
(Charles Crossley)
Dr. Fischer of Geneva
(Dr. Alfred Jones)
The Making of 'Gosford Park'
(Self)
Location: Far from the Madding Crowd
(Himself)
Laurence Olivier Presents
The Ray Bradbury Theater
(John Fabian)
Hallmark Hall of Fame
(Stewart)
Oliver's Travels
(Oliver)
Pebble Mill
(Self)
Arabian Nights
(Storyteller)
The Mayor of Casterbridge
(Michael Henchard)
The Graham Norton Show
(Self)
Spartacus
(Antonius Agrippa)
In the Beginning
(Jethro)
Love in a Cold Climate
(Uncle Matthew)
Great Performances
(James)
Hard Times
(Josiah Bounderby)
Unnatural Pursuits
(Hamish Partt)
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
(Self)