Eugene Neil McCarthy (26th July 1932 – 5th February 1985) was an English actor known for his dramatic physical appearance caused by acromegaly.
Early life
Born in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, the son of Sleaford dentist Eugene Charles McCarthy (1899–1954) and Beatrice Annie (née Corney, 1901–1978), McCarthy was educated at Stamford School (where his contemporaries included cricketer M. J. K. Smith and author Colin Dexter) before reading modern languages at Trinity College Dublin, and trained as a Latin and French teacher. He could also speak fluent Greek.
Career
After his teacher training, McCarthy appeared in repertory theatre in Oxford, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and in the West End.
McCarthy's film credits include memorable roles as Welsh soldier Private Thomas in Zulu (1964), as Sergeant Jock McPherson in Where Eagles Dare (1967), as Gates in The Ruffians (1973), as the villain Calibos in Clash of the Titans (1981) and as a robber in Time Bandits (1981). His television credits include: Barnaby Rudge, Man of the World, Danger Man, The Avengers, The Saint, Z-Cars, Dixon of Dock Green, Great Expectations, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased), Catweazle, My Wife Next Door (A Sense of Movement), Softly, Softly: Taskforce, Department S, Who Pays the Ferryman?, Return of the Saint, Doctor Who (in the serials The Mind of Evil and The Power of Kroll), Enemy at the Door, Shogun, The Professionals, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, Only When I Laugh, The Gentle Touch and Emmerdale Farm, and the television adaptation of the Lord Peter Wimsey novel, The Nine Tailors.
He died of motor neurone disease in Fordingbridge, Hampshire in 1985, aged 52.
Selected filmography
Breakout (1959) – Chandler's henchman (uncredited) The Square Ring (1959) Sands of the Desert (1960) – Hassan Barnaby Rudge (1960) – Hugh (TV mini-series) The Criminal (1960) – O'Hara Offbeat (1961) – Leo Farrell Solo for Sparrow (1962) – Dusty The Pot Carriers (1962) – Bracket We Joined the Navy (1962) – Sergeant Two Left Feet (1963) – Ted (uncredited) The Cracksman (1963) – Van Gogh Zulu (1964) – Private Thomas The Hill (1965) – Burton Cuckoo Patrol (1967) – Superman No.2 Great Expectations (1967) – Joe Gargery (TV mini-series) Seven Times Seven (1968) – Mr. Docherty Where Eagles Dare (1968) – Sgt. Jock MacPherson Follow Me! (1972) – Parkinson The Zoo Robbery (1973) – Skipper Steptoe and Son Ride Again (1973) – Lennie Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em (1973) - Take A Break, Take A Husband, aka "The Hotel" (S1 E4) - Mr Bedford (Hotel Manager) Operation Daybreak (1975) – Man at Quarry (uncredited) Side by Side (1975) – Alf (uncredited) Fern, the Red Deer (1976) – Poacher Trial by Combat (1976) – Ben Willoughby The Incredible Sarah (1976) – Sergeant Measure for Measure (1979) – Abhorson Shōgun (1980, TV series) – Spillbergen George and Mildred (1980) – Eddie The Monster Club (1980) – Watson – B-Squad Member The Professionals (1980, TV series) – Sam Armitage Clash of the Titans (1981) – Calibos Time Bandits (1981) – 2nd Robber Nancy Astor (1982, TV series) – Reverend Neve