Nick Tate was born in Sydney Australia… to theatrical parents Neva Carr Glyn and John Tate. Stars of their day. …there was never a dull moment in the Tate household many parties and lots of Opening Nights, young Nick could often be found back stage, he loved the rehearsals. At 9 years of age, his most favorite part of “King Lear” was watching the Duke of Gloucester getting his eyes gouged out…night after night , whilst old ladies fainted in the audience..So was it any wonder that he acted in all his school plays. Including Mark Antony in Julius Caesar in High School. Then Nick switched to musical comedy as KoKo in the Mikado and was snapped up by the Sydney Opera Company to play Amahl in Menotti’s light Opera “Amahl and the Night Visitors”.
Then came the singing Telegram boy in Thornton Wilder’s “Skin of our Teeth” Nick’s first taste of Television. Nick was so enthralled by the high tec process of the brand new Australian 1958 ABCTV Productions, that he quit school and joined the brand new ABC television modeled very much on the production values of British BBC TV in fact most of the key personal came from the BBC. He began training as a First Ast , on many shows. 3 years later one of the productions, was a thriller “The Purple Jacaranda“ a new mini series, set in the Northern beaches of Sydney and needed a “surfie” that could act as well as he could ride the waves. Nick had spent most weekends in the Mona Vale Surf Club as a life guard and was an avid surfer and so very helpful at bringing in many of his surfing mates to audition…but the lead actress Margo Lee knew Nick’s family well and told the director that he need not look any further than Nick. He was asked to take off the headphones and audition. Fate or sheer luck steered Nick’s acting career back into full swing once again. Next came several plays in Sydney theatre . Then again, lady luck smiled on Nick when the ABC’s next even bigger TV series was being mounted and they asked Nick to accept the Co. lead in “My Brother Jack”. It became an award winning series. The day it ended he sailed to London to hone his acting skills …and re join his estranged father John Tate, now successfully acting in many British TV series.
A whole new fabulous world…1965 “London’s Swinging Sixty’s” The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Mary Quant, Carnaby St. Nick was in 7th Heaven, he hit the ground running… landing guest roles in shows like “The Trouble Shooters” “Z Cars” also of course the obligatory stint of theatre in Britain and Ireland. Then a nice break the “BBC Wednesday Play” A Pyre for Private James”. In between, ensued many trips to France, Italy, Austria, Spain….an Aussie boy loving Europe . Soon Nick had the pleasure of acting with his father in the BBC TV “Sherlock Holmes”…”The Boscombe Valley Mystery”. Film roles followed with parts in “A Man for all Seasons”, “Submarine X1” and “The Battle of Britain“ before another life changing break, being brought back to Australia with his name in lights, to play Nicholas the Gallant and the Squire, in the musical “The Canterbury Tales” a joy to be singing and dancing in a wonderful smash hit …standing ovations every night, for 18 months. 418 performances. Nick was then asked to stay in Australia and join his father once more as costars in the ABC TV series “Dynasty” about a media Mogul family…no relation to the later US TV series “Dynasty”. Nick also appeared in several episodes of the detective series “Boney” set in Alice Springs, in the hottest heart of Australia, recurring as Sargent, Peter Irwin. More Theatre work involved Nick in productions of “The Real Inspector Hound” and “An Awful Rose”. Then another smash hit comedy playing Don in “Don’s Party” ran for over a year. Followed by the lead in two specials for TV “The Racing Game” and “The Chaser” But a proposed British production of “Don’s Party” had Nick headed back to the UK in 1973.
However the “Don’s Party” launch intended for London, was delayed a year and as serendipity would have it, the producer of “The Chaser” (that Nick starrred in months earlier in Sydney )Bruce Gyngell, had also recently arrived in Britain to become Sir Lew Grade’s Head of Entertainment for ITC. Bruce introduced Nick to Gerry and Sylvia Anderson who were just about to start a new Sci Fi TV series. “SPACE1999”. So Nick met with them only to learn all the main roles were already cast. However because Silvia had worked with his dad in “Thunderbirds”, she thought it. might be fun to have Nick come on board to play one of the Eagle pilots who disappears during the nuclear blasts sending the moon spinning into outer space. Coincidentally Nick had auditioned for Nottingham theatre “A Street Car Named Desire” to play Stanley Kowalski….. So serendipity again, Nick’s agent called to tell him that he had landed “Street Car” … his agent felt it would be a better career move to accept the role (that launched Marlon Brando)….than accepting a couple of weeks playing an astronaught who dies in the first episode of a new unproven Sci Fi TV show?. Whilst, Nick loved Theatre and was excited about getting to play Stanley in a production that almost certainly would transfer into the West End of London. He also felt a strong affinity to this “SPACE 1999”…. maybe it would fill the Sci Fi void that “STAR TREK”left 7 years earlier..Was the timing right for another Sci Fi to potentially capture that market?. It was November 1973 and the first man to walk on the moon, had done so only 4 years earlier. So American scientists believed that building a Moon Base was a certainty within the next 5 years …surely a series about that and the drama about “then loosing the moon”… could make this a sensational TV series.
Another life changing decision!? “Street Car” was a certainty and staring in London as Stanley would be a huge opportunity for any young actor. Weighed against the fleeting appearance of an astronaught who was scheduled to die in the first episode of an as yet untested new TV series.. Nick said …I’ve always been a risk taker. So I went against my agents advice…. my gut favored the potential of “SPACE1999”. To make the decision even riskier, Nick was only offered a contract for the first episode. (ITC were hedging their bets )However because it was a very expensive shoot they decided to do a lot of pre shoot tests ( as a result, the pilot episode took over 6 weeks to shoot ) and Lee Katsan the director had plenty of time to get to know his cast and he began noticing Nick. At the same time, the Italian actor contracted to play the Chief Eagle Pilot had …“mysteriously not arrived” ? And there was a line of young Italian looking actors outside the casting directors office. There is a book to be written about what was really going on but you will have to wait for Nick’s memoirs. Save to say Lee Kazan suggested to the Anderson’s that Nick should be elevated to the Chief Eagle pilot.. as his whole persona suited the confident rough and tumble they had planned for the character of Capt. Alfons Cattani, who then became Capt. Alan Carter and Nick was smiling because the pilot episode really worked and ITC must have really liked what they saw, because they then signed Nick for the entire first season.
By the middle of the First Season ITC publicity announced Nick was getting over 5000 fan mail a week. He was then flown to USA to attend a huge Star Trek convention in Pittsburgh Pensilvana, the first time any body from another Sci Fi series had been invited. Many years later, Nick made guest star appearances in two different “StarTreks” Next Gen” and “DeepSpace 9”
At the end of the first season, Nick was invited back to Australia by Fred Schepisi to play one of the lead roles in the award-winning film, “The Devil’s Playground” for which Nick won the 1976 AFI best actor award, as Brother Victor the heavy drinking football and math coach of the Catholic seminary .
Gerry Anderson immediately brought Nick back to England to star as Capt. Harry Masters in “The Day After Tomorrow” a pilot for a potential BBC Sci Fi series. “Into Infinity” also starring the marvelous Brian Blessed. They completed the shoot in two weeks Gerry was thrilled. However ITC had a huge surprise in store … in more ways than one. They needed Gerry to drop this new show. Because he and his crew were going to be very busy with the relaunch of SPACE l999… but with radical changes. Most importantly it would involve an almost totally new cast, the new Producer did not like any of the supporting cast. He wanted a whole new look.
Much has been said about the major changes between season one and season two of “SPACE 1999”. Gerry not only divorced the wonderful Silvia but replaced her as Producer with a man who fired everyone, except the two US stars, Martin and Barbara, both of whom, must have agreed with this major revamp ?… So, no Barry Morse, no Nick Tate, no Prentice Hancock, no Zienia Merton, no Clifton Jones, no Anton Phillips….Why? The answer is one that is hard to believe and but needs to be told, for the millions of fans all over the world… who still have a deep love for the show…. NOW 50+ years later.
Meanwhile… back in 1976, three working days before “SPACE 1999 season 2 was to commence. Nick’s agent called to say Gerry Anderson had asked for Nick to come to Pinewood studios and take a meeting “I had no idea why I was being asked to the set of this new show that almost none of the original cast was to be in? But I went to get the answers. and much more for SPACE 1999 fans will be in my memoirs that Nick is currently writing .
Between the two series. Nick had won the Australian AFI award for his portrayal of a sport loving hard drinking Catholics teaching brother in “The Devils Playground” The AFI then helped fund a new Film, if Nick was to star in it…“Summerfield” 1976, written by another AFI award winner Cliff Green. Ken Hannam directed this very beautiful eerie mystery. Alexander Walker, renowned film critic of London’s Evening Standard, stated that “Summerfield” was perhaps his most favourite of a wonderful line up of Aussie films from the mid 70s, playing on BBC TV for Christmas including “Picnic at Hanging Rock” and “Newsfront”, (a stella group to belong to)
Thereafter Nick continued to commute regularly between the UK and Australia with parts in films like “Summerfield” and “The year my Voice Broke”. “The Men” and the television appearance in “Danger UXB”, “ Number on End”, and the “Gentle Touch” and theater roles in “Duty-Free” and “Winter Journey”. It was while touring in “Duty-Free” September 1977, Nick married Hazel Butterfield at Dulwich College Chapel UK. Hazel gave birth to their son, Thomas in 1979
By 1981 with little Tommy growing they wanted the joy of an Australian family life. Luckily Nick had been offered the lead in “Holiday Island” a new Australian TV series. So back to Australia again. It did two seasons and during this period, Nick made many other television appearances in such series as the”Scales of Justice”, “A Country Practice” “Sons and Daughters” and “The Flying Doctor”. He also landed film roles in “The Coolangatta Gold,” a.k.a. ”The Gold and the Glory” for the USA, “The Empty Beach”, and Richard Attenborough‘s “Cry Freedom” and “The Return from the River Kwai”. Nick also embarked on a 5 city tour playing the lead role in the hysterically funny US play “The Foreigner” it was riot. Hazel gave birth to their second child Jessie Josephine Tate 1986 a little after midnight on Saturday night. I made it to the Hospital just in time to see my beautiful Jessie come into the world.
In recent years, Nick has achieved a strong level of international recognition with films such as “A Cry in the Dark”, with Meryl Streep, directed by Fred Schepisi in 1989. Then after completing the CBS/Paramount series”Dolphin Cove” Paramount invited Nick to the USA to try out for Fox’s new sitcom “Open House”, this success relocated Nick, and family to Los Angeles where his career has flourished in both television and film and theater. He appeared in Steven Spielberg “Hook” as Noodler, and then “The Public Eye” with Joe Pesci and Barbara Hershey, and then “A Bed of Roses”. His US television career became very active, productions like “Murder She Wrote” (two episodes) playing totally different characters. Then “Matlock”, and “Civil War”, “Party of Five”..“ FX “, and “Dr. Quinn” medicine woman, “JAG”, “The X Files”,”Star Trek Next Generation” then“StarTrek DeepSpace 9”, “Dick Van Dyke Diagnosis Murder”, “Lady Boss”,“The President Child”, “Attack on the Queen”, “Seconds to Spare”, More recently“The Pacific”, ”Lost”, “Pretty Little Liars”, ”Junction Boys”, “ Killer Elite”, “The Blacklist”.
Additionally, Nick has an extremely successful career as one of Hollywood’s premier Voice Over artists, running concurrently with his TV and film appearances. He’s become one of a handful of VoiceOver artists to be regularly featured on movie trailers for major motion pictures …his voice can be heard in the trailers of such Blockbusters as “Jurassic Park” “Braveheart”, “Goldeneye”, “The Lost World”, “Schindler List”, “Independence Day”, “G.I Jane”, “Tomorrow Never Dies”, “The Edge”, “Deep Impact”,“Small Soldiers”,”The World is not Enough” and literally hundreds more.
He also writes…completed two screen plays and now onto his memoirs. Both Nick and Hazel have been together successfully for over 50 years. They love their two wonderful children, Tom and Jessie, now adult parents and their three equally wonderful grandchildren …so far. Nick is also passionate about, golf, dogs and building houses…started helping friends London 1967. His high school aptitude test said he should be an architect. He loved technical drawing and carpentry. So over the last 58 years since, he has designed and built 7 of their own homes. Nick says he’s “The actor that builds”
For access to many film clips of Nick’s career, plus his Movie Trailer narrations … go to www.nicktate.com