Ben Cross

Biography: Ben Cross, born December 16, 1947 is a British actor best known for his portrayal of the British Olympic athlete Harold Abrahams in the 1981 multiple Oscar-winning movie "Chariots of Fire". Ben's was born Harry Bernard Cross in London. In 1970, Cross attended London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA), after graduation Cross performed in several stage plays at Duke's Playhouse. He then joined the Prospect Theatre Company. At Leicester's Haymarket Theatre, Cross played leading roles in Sir Peter Shaffer's Equus, Mind Your Head, and Irma La Douce. Cross's first big screen film appearance was in "A Bridge Too Far". Following "Chariots of Fire" Cross starred in "The Citadel" and "The Far Pavillions". During the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, Cross appeared in a commercial for American Express with 87-year-old Jackson Scholz. In 1986, Cross endorsed the Polar Spectra Camera and was featured in GQ Magazine as one of the annual "Manstyle" winners in Ben Cross, born December 16, 1947 is a British actor best known for his portrayal of the British Olympic athlete Harold Abrahams in the 1981 multiple Oscar-winning movie "Chariots of Fire". Ben's was born Harry Bernard Cross in London. In 1970, Cross attended London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA), after graduation Cross performed in several stage plays at Duke's Playhouse. He then joined the Prospect Theatre Company. At Leicester's Haymarket Theatre, Cross played leading roles in Sir Peter Shaffer's Equus, Mind Your Head, and Irma La Douce. Cross's first big screen film appearance was in "A Bridge Too Far". Following "Chariots of Fire" Cross starred in "The Citadel" and "The Far Pavillions". During the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, Cross appeared in a commercial for American Express with 87-year-old Jackson Scholz. In 1986, Cross endorsed the Polar Spectra Camera and was featured in GQ Magazine as one of the annual "Manstyle" winners in January. Over the next several years Cross had success and starred in several roles: Solomon in 1997, "Solomon"; Captain Nemo in the 1997 CBS movie "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"; vampire Barnabas Collins in the 1991 MGM miniseries remake of "Dark Shadows";1989 USA Network movie "Nightlife"; Sir Harold Pearson in the 1994 Italian production "Caro Dolce Amore"(Honey Sweet Love); Iraq pilot Munir Redfa in the 1988 HBO spy movie "Steal the Sky"; and Nazi SS colonel and certified war criminal Helmut von Schraeder, in the 1989 NBC movie "Twist of Fate". More recent roles include: "The Potato Factory"(2000); in Bruce Graham's play, Coyote on a Fence (2005), 2006 BBC production "Nuremberg: Nazis on Trial"; and the role of Sarek, in the "Star Trek" film (2007) directed and produced by J. J. Abrams

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