Stephen Greif

Stephen Greif
Born	Stephen John Greif (1944-08-26)26 August 1944 Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, England
Died	23 December 2022(2022-12-23) (aged 78)
Education	Sloane Grammar School Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1968–2022
Known for	Blake's 7 Citizen Smith Casanova Shoot on Sight
Spouse	Judith Price ​ ​ (m. 1980, divorced)​
Children	2
Website	www.stephengreif.com

Stephen John Greif (/ɡraɪf/; 26 August 1944 – 23 December 2022) was an English actor known for his roles as Travis in Blake's 7, Harry Fenning in three series of Citizen Smith, Signor Donato in Casanova and Commander John Shepherd in Shoot on Sight.

Early life

Greif was born in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, England, in a building originally belonging to Anne Boleyn as a gift from King Henry VIII. Greif was the son of Pauline (née Rubinstein) and Franz Greif. He was of Polish, Russian and Hungarian Jewish descent. He was educated at Sloane Grammar School, where he was school champion in athletics and swimming and represented the school and the county in athletics at the White City Stadium amongst other locales. He briefly attended the Regent Street Polytechnic before entering a variety of jobs including trouble shooter at a TV and radiogram manufacturer and as a negotiator in a boutique West End estate agency before applying for drama school.

Career

Drawing of Greif as Travis in Blake's 7

Greif was an honours graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where he won numerous awards including Best Actor and Most Promising Actor, and was an Associate Member and served on the audition panel. He was a member of the National Theatre Company both at the Old Vic in Laurence Olivier's company and on the South Bank for Peter Hall's company. Among the productions he appeared in were Danton's Death, A Woman Killed with Kindness, The Merchant of Venice (with Olivier), Long Day's Journey into Night (again with Olivier), The School for Scandal, Richard II, The Front Page and Macbeth.

Greif was invited back to appear with them at Queen's Theatre in the West End in the Italian Comedy Saturday, Sunday, Monday, directed by Franco Zeffirelli and Laurence Olivier, where he won a Best Actor nomination in the Critics' Circle Theatre Award. Later, he was invited to join the National again on the South Bank under Peter Hall in the revival of Death of a Salesman, directed by Michael Rudman and with Warren Mitchell winning himself another Best Actor nomination in the Olivier Awards. Grief was back again at the invitation of Nicholas Hytner to join his inaugural season appearing in His Girl Friday, Edmund and the Christmas production His Dark Materials. He acted alongside Elaine Stritch in The Gingerbread Lady, Denholm Elliott in The Paranormalist, Frank Langella in Abracadaver, Albert Finney in Ronald Harwood's Reflected Glory, Felicity Kendal and Frances de la Tour in Fallen Angels, Joseph Fiennes in George Dillon and Lesley Manville in Six Degrees of Separation. He appeared in three plays by his friend Bernard Kops, an East End playwright and poet, at the Jewish Museum, the JW3 and the National Portrait Gallery to celebrate the author's 85th and 90th birthdays.

From 2016 to 2018, together with Fenella Fielding, Greif appeared at Crazy Coqs at Zedel's Brasserie on multiple occasions, and various other venues in David Stuttard's adaptation of drama and comedy from famous ancient Greek literature called Tears, Treachery..and Just a little Murder produced by Simon McKay. The production was revived in 2020/21, with Dame Sian Phillips replacing Fielding, and retitled Savage Beauty, playing again at Crazy Coqs with further shows to come, this time entitled Lovers, Traitors...and bloody Greeks.

Greif appears in many films including Gerry, Risen, Woman in Gold, Bill, D is for Detroit, Lasse Hallström's Casanova, Shoot on Sight, Eichmann, Spartan, The Upside of Anger, Boogie Woogie and Fakers. His many television appearances include Only When I Laugh, Thriller (1 episode, 1976), Howard's Way, Spooks, Mistresses, He Kills Coppers, Silent Witness, the last story of Waking the Dead, The Crown, The Alienist: Angel of Darkness, Doctors and New Tricks.

Greif reprised his Blake's 7 role of Travis from season 1 of the TV series in eleven new audio stories for Big Finish Productions. He voiced Raymond Maarloeve in the video game The Witcher. He voiced and was nominated for best narrator for Sony's PlayStation Video game Puppeteer in addition to many more games and cartoon series including Elliott from Earth for the Cartoon Network.

Greif won the BBC audio books of America award for narrating The Boy with the Magic Numbers by Sally Gardner. He also narrated various documentaries on Channel 5, and in 2021 contributed to and participated in the documentary tribute Alfred Burke is Frank Marker.

Personal life and death

Greif enjoyed golf, and was a member and past President of the Stage Golfing Society. He married in 1980; the marriage produced twin sons in 1982. He resided near Richmond in London.

Greif died on 23 December 2022, aged 78.

Filmography

Film and television

Dates	Title	Roles
2020
TV	The Crown	Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Bernard Weatherill
2019
TV	Angel of Darkness	Judge
2018
F	Gerry	Royston
2016
TV	Doctors	Ian Tilworth
F	Risen	Caiaphus
2015
F	Woman in Gold	Bergen
2013
TV	D is for Detroit	Greg
TV	New Tricks	Peter Russell
VG	Puppeteer	Narrator
2012
TV	Coronation Street	Ron Dent
TV	Silent Witness	Gordon Cairns
2011
TV	Waking The Dead	Bill Knight
2010
VG	Xenoblade Chronicles	Zanza/Arglas
2009
VG	Venetica	Various
F	Boogie Woogie	Bob's Lawyer
VG	Anno 1404	Lord Richard Northburgh
TV	Mistresses	Alexander
TV	The Cold Way	Narrator
2008
TV	Spooks	Claude Denizet
VG	Fable II	Barnum
TV	He Kills Coppers	The Proprietor
VG	Momento Mori	Various
2007
F	Shoot on Sight	Commander John Shepherd
VG	The Witcher	Raymond Maarloeve
F	Eichmann	Hans Lipmann
VG	Doragon	Sir Dick Worthington
TV	Doctor Who	Gurney
TV	Back in Business	Leonidov
2006
VG	Medieval II Total War	Various
F	Sixty Six	Uncle Henry
TV	Judge John Deed	Lorne Michaels
2005
TV	Space Race	Colonel Toftoy/Toftoy
TV	Holby City	Rabbi Ben Silver
F	Casanova	Donato
F	The Upside of Anger	Emily's Doctor
2004
VG	Dragon Quest: Cursed King	Voices/Additional Voices
F	Fakers	Alfonse Potrelli
F	Spartan	Business Man
2002
TV	Shackleton	Valiente
VG	Medieval: Total War	General Kihoto
1993–1998
TV	The Bill	A.C. Lampriere / Neville Juke
1998
TV	Killer Net	Harvey Levin
1997
TV	Crime Traveller	Leonard Gebler
1996
TV	EastEnders	Brian Lassiter
1995
TV	Castles	Adam Robins
TV	Space Precinct	Eric Volker
TV	Stick with Me, Kid	Gordon Lundey
1994
TV	Midnight Movie	Johnny
TV	Lie Down With Lions	Grigor
1992–1994
TV	The House of Eliott	Abraham Barak
1993
TV	Comics	Tony Fratelli
TV	The Upper Hand	Jason McCloud
TV	Drop the Dead Donkey	Valdez
1991–1992
TV	Trainer	Stavros Mikhalides
1992
TV	Dark Justice	Tony Hastings
F	Leon the Pig Farmer	Doctor
1990
TV	Birds of a Feather	Marcus Green
TV	Rab C. Nesbitt	DI Sergeant
TV	The Gravy Train	Rudolph
TV	Zorro	Torres
TV	Face To Face	Grant Ross
1989
TV	About Face	Neville
TV	Young Gifted and Broke	Colegate
TV	Chelworth	Tony Evrington
TV	Laura and Disorder	Jim Lipthorpe
TV	Ticket To Ride	Capt. Szigismund
1988
TV	Bust	John Evans
TV	Howards' Way	John Reddings
1987
TV	Pretorius	Vaneck
TV	C.A.T.S. Eyes	Jack Brand
TV	Boon	Lomas
TV	Rumpole of the Bailey	Vanberry
1986
TV	The Life and Loves of a She-Devil	Dr Ghengis
TV	Love with a Perfect Stranger	Andrea
TV	Auf Wiedersehen, Pet	Prince Stefano
1985
TV	One By One	Richard Neville
1984
TV	Dempsey and Makepeace	Bernie Silk
TV	Ellis Island	Jesse Lasky
TV	Cold Warrior	Dr Mohammed Riffi
TV	Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense	Clifford Richardson
TV	The Last Days of Pompeii	Sporus
1983
TV	Hart To Hart	Anthony Vlachos
TV	Tales of the Unexpected	Rinaldo
TV	The Cleopatras	Demetrius
1982
TV	The Professionals	Dr Lowe
TV	The Bounder	Count Montefiore
TV	Play For Tomorrow	Shapiro
TV	Minder	Spencer
1981
TV	Goodbye Darling	Victor
1980
TV	Cry Wolf	Professor Ion Porphiriou
1979
TV	Only When I Laugh	Nicos
1977–1979
TV	Citizen Smith	Harry Fenning
1979
TV	Kids	David Newman
TV	Dick Turpin	Major Walther Von Gerhardt
TV	Thomas & Sarah	Pocock
F	The Great Riviera Bank Robbery	Rocco
1978
TV	Famous Five	Pottersham
TV	The Sandbaggers	DI Gomez
TV	Return of the Saint	Masrouf
TV	Blake's 7	Space Commander Travis
TV	Armchair Thriller	Juan
1977
TV	Treasure Island	Job Anderson
TV	Target	Duroy
TV	Spaghetti Two-Step	Luigi
1976
TV	The New Avengers	Juventor
1975–1976
TV	Play for Today	Gerry Joe Marks
1976
TV	Killers	Stinie Morrison
1975–1976
TV	Thriller Thriller	Ben Kroom / Enrico
1974–1976
TV	Dixon of Dock Green	DCI. Basset / Charles Negri / Tony
1974
TV	The Aweful Mr Goodall	Doctor
TV	A Little Bit of Wisdom	Jacques
1970–1974
TV	Special Branch	Finch / Mikhali Joanides
1974
TV	Intimate Strangers	Doctor
F	Soft Beds, Hard Battles	Colonel Hiller
1973
TV	The Protectors	Policeman at Cafe
TV	The Merchant of Venice	Prince of Morocco
F	No Sex Please, We're British	Niko
1971
TV	The Persuaders!	Krilov
F	Nicholas and Alexandra	Martov
TV	Eyeless in Gaza	Young Englishman
TV	The Tragedy of King Richard II	Mowbray / Glendower
1970
TV	Edward II	Earl of Pembroke
1968
TV	Boy Meets Girl	Lounge Lizard

Theatre

Date/Venue	Show	Role/Director
2012
Globe Theatre, Bankside	Prince of West End Lane, Kerry Shale	Role: Otto / Dir: Matthew Lloyd
2011
Royal Shakespeare Theatre	Maydays, David Edgar	Role: Teddy Weiner / Dir: Polly Findlay
2010
The Old Vic	Six Degrees of Separation, John Guare	Role: Dr Fine / Dir: David Grindley
2006
Comedy Theatre (The Harold Pinter)	George Dillon, John Osborne	Role: Barney Evans /Dir: Peter Gill
2003/2004
National Theatre	His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman	Roles: The President and John Faa / Dir: Nick Hytner
National Theatre	Edmund, David Mamet	Roles: The Interrogator and Hotel Clerk / Dir: Edward Hall
National Theatre	His Girl Friday, John Guare	Role: Louis / Dir: Jack O’Brien
2002
Hampstead Theatre	Benchmark, Bud Shrake & M Rudman	Role: Ginsberg / Dir: Michael Rudman
2000/2001
Apollo Theatre	Fallen Angels, Noël Coward	Role: Maurice / Dir: Michael Rudman
1999
Hampstead Theatre	Immaculate, Carl Djerassi	Role: Menachem / Dir: Gordy Greenberg
1994
Vaudeville Theatre	Reflected Glory, Ronald Harewood	Role: Robert / Dir: Elija Moshinsky
1992
Almeida Theatre	The Life of the World To Come, Rob Williams	Role: Don Strohmeyer / Dir: Derek Wax
1990
Wyndham's Theatre / Theatre Royal Windsor	Abracadaver, Allan Scott & David Ambrose	Role: Chief Insp Scott / Dir: Richard Olivier
1985
Theatre Royal Windsor/ Old Vic	A View from the Bridge, Arthur Miller	Role: Marco / Dir: Peter Coe
1982
Greenwich Theatre	The Paranormalist, Jonathan Gems	Role: Cedric / Dir: Alan Strachan
1979/1980
The National Theatre	Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller	Role: Biff (Nom. Best Supporting Actor – Olivier Awards) / Dir: Michael Rudman
1976
Derby Playhouse	View from The Bridge, Arthur Miller	Role: Eddie Carbone / Dir: Patrick Lau
1974/1975
National Theatre at the Queen's Theatre	Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Eduardo De Fillipo	Role: Luigi / Nom. Best Supporting Actor – Critics' Circle Theatre Award / Dir: Franco Zeffirelli, Laurence Olivier
Theatre Royal Windsor	The Gingerbread Lady, Neil Simon	Role: Lou
1971/1973
National Theatre at the Old Vic	The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare	Role: Prince of Morocco / Dir: Jonathan Miller
National Theatre at the Old Vic	A Woman Killed with Kindness, Thomas Heywood	Role: Sir Francis Acton / Dir: John Dexter
National Theatre at the Old Vic	The Front Page, Hecht & Macarthur	Role: Diamond Louis / Dir: Michael Blakemore
National Theatre at the Old Vic	The School For Scandal, Sheridan	Role: Moses / Dir: Jonathan Miller
National Theatre at the Old Vic	Long Day's Journey into Night, Eugene O'Neill	Role: Edmund / Dir: Michael Blakemore
National Theatre at the Old Vic	Richard II, William Shakespeare	Role: Willoughby, Dir: David William
National Theatre at the Old Vic	Macbeth, William Shakespeare	Role: Caithness / Dir: Michael Blakemore
National Theatre at the Old Vic	Danton's Death, Georg Büchner	Role: Bertrand / Dir: Jonathan Miller
1970
Forum Theatre	Henry IV, Part 1, William Shakespeare	Role: Hotspur / Dir. Brian Shelton
1969/1970
Piccadilly Theatre	Richard II, William Shakespeare	Role: Mowbray / Dir: Richard Cotterel
Mermaid Theatre	Edward II, Christopher Marlowe	Role: Pembroke / Dir: Toby Robertson
1968/1969
Royal Shakespeare Company	King Lear, William Shakespeare	Role: Edmund's Captain / Dir: Trevor Nunn
Royal Shakespeare Co & North American Tour	Dr Faustus, Christopher Marlowe	Role: Valdes, Wrath / Dir: Clifford Williams
Royal Shakespeare Co & North American Tour	Much Ado About Nothing, William Shakespeare	Role: Soldier / Dir: Trevor Nunn
Royal Shakespeare Co & North American Tour	As You Like It, William Shakespeare	Role: Forester / Dir: David Jones
Royal Shakespeare Co & North American Tour	The Duchess of Malfi, John Webster	Role: Antonio / Dir: Christie Dickason
Royal Shakespeare Company	Troilus & Cressida, William Shakespeare	Role: Prologue / Dir: John Barton

Radio and audiobooks

Date/Venue	Name	Role
2020
BBC R4	Keeping The Wolf Out	Sandor Farkas
2017
BBC R4	The Carter Mysteries	Phil
2015
BBC R4	Waterloo: The Ball at Brussells	Prince Tallyrand
2013
BBC R4	The Letters of JKF	Krushchev
BBC R4	Second Body	Jacobin
BBC R4	Austerlitz	Narrator
2011
BBC R4	Life & Death, Vasily Grossman	Karimov
BBC R4 Extra	The Man in Black, Mathew Collins	Mr Rubinstein
BBC R4	Small Acts of Kindness, Trevor Preston	Charlie
2010
BBC R4	Harry and the Angels, Bernard Kops	Harry
BBC R4	The Art of Deception, Philip Palmer	Stefan Hunt
USA Radio	Charlie's Choice	Sir Philip
2009
BBC R4	Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, John le Carré	Polyakov
BBC R4	The Grand Babylon Hotel, Arnold Bennett	Felix Babylon
USA Radio	The Captive	Kanye
2008
BBC R4	The Babbington Plot, Michael Butt	Narrator
BBC R4	Peter Lorre V Peter Lorre, Michael Butt	Peter Lorre
BBC R4	Beat the Dog in His Own Kennel, Gary Brown	Avi
BBC Wales	Blake's 7 Interview	Himself as Travis
BBC R3	The Devil was Here Yesterday, Colin Teevan	Hector
2007
BBC R4	Take Away, Gary Brown	Narrator
BBC R4 Classic Serial	Witness, Nick Warburton	John The Baptist
BBC R4 Classic Serial	Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernières	Dr Iannis
BBC R4	The Iceman, Simon Bovey	Supt. Malpacket
BBC R4 Classic Serial	Down and Out in Paris and London, George Orwell	Boris
BBC R4	Hooligan Nights, Mike Walker	PC91
2006
BBC R4	Speed and Silver, Catherine Bailey	Ch. Insp. Collinson
Pre-2006
BBC R4 (1987–92)	Flying The Flag	The American Ambassador
BBC R4	The Nine Tailors, DL Sayers	Nobby Cranton
BBC R4	Call for the Dead, John le Carré	Dieter Frey
BBC R2	Hinge & Bracket, Gerald Frow	Roberto
BBC R4 (1985–1986)	Brogue Male	Count Laszlo Stroganoff
Audiobooks
AudioGo	"The Tractate Middoth", M R James	Narrator
AudioGo	Dr Palfrey of Westminster (5 books), John Creasey	Narrator
AudioGo	The Siege of the Villa Lipp, Eric Ambler	Narrator
The Story Circle Random House	His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman	Metatron
Isis	He Kills Coppers, Jake Arnott	Narrator
Isis	In a True Light, John Harvey	Narrator
Isis	Seeking Robinson Crusoe, Tim Severin	Narrator
Isis	The Lowlife, Alexander Baron	Narrator
Isis	The Sergeant's Tale, Bernice Rubens	Narrator
BBC Audio	The Match King, Frank Partnoy	Narrator
BBC Audio	Bad Dog and all that Hollywood Hoo Haa, Martin Chatterton	Narrator
BBC Audio (Won BBC Audio Books USA Earphones Award)	The Boy with the Magic Numbers, Sally Gardner	Narrator
BBC Audio	The Pianist, Wladyslaw Szpilman	Narrator
BBC Audio	The Darkness of Wallis Simpson, Rose Tremain	Narrator (With Eleanor Bron)

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result
2013	Navtgr Awards	Best Narrator	Puppeteer	Nominated
2008	BBC Audio Books	Best Narrator	Boy with the magic No's	Won
1979	Oliver Awards	Best Supporting Actor	Death of Salesman	Nominated
1975	Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor	Sat, Sun, Mon	Nominated

External links

• Official website
• Stephen Greif at IMDb
• Stephen Greif discography at Discogs