Tony Barry

Tony Barry (28 August 1941 – 21 December 2022) was an Australian actor and activist best known for his television and film roles.

Tony Barry
Born(1941-08-28)28 August 1941
Ipswich, Queensland, Australia
Died21 December 2022(2022-12-21) (aged 81)
Murwillumbah, New South Wales, Australia
OccupationActor
Years active1977–2018
Children1

Personal life

Barry was born in Ipswich, Queensland, on 28 August 1941.[1][2] He had one son.[2] Barry was an environmental and indigenous rights activist and considered himself "an honorary Kiwi".[1][2] Barry is the only Australian who was featured on a New Zealand postage stamp.[3] He took part in political rallies and was a volunteer for rehabilitation programs for indigenous rights groups.[1][2] He visited high schools where he would promote environmentalism.[1]

Health

Barry was diagnosed with melanoma in the early 2000s.[1] In 2014, between seasons of the television drama series The Time of Our Lives, Barry had his left leg amputated above the knee due to the illness. The loss of his leg was written into the storyline.[4] Due to this illness, he died on 21 December 2022, at age 81, in Murwillumbah, New South Wales.[5][6]

Career

Barry performed in nearly 60 feature films and over 45 television series, across a five-decade career, in both Australia and New Zealand.[1][2] The longevity of Barry's acting career was recognised when he received the 2014 Film Critics Circle of Australia award for his "extraordinary contribution to the Australian film industry".[1]

After acting in the television series The Box from 1975 to 1976, Barry began his film career in 1977 with The Mango Tree.[1][7] Roles followed in a range of acclaimed Australian and New Zealand films, including Newsfront, The Odd Angry Shot, We of the Never Never, Australia and Home for Christmas, for which he won Best Actor in the 2010 New Zealand Film and TV Awards.[1][3][5]

Filmography
YearTitleRoleNotesRef(s)
1977The Mango TreeTommy Smith[1]
Break of Day[7]
1978Newsfront"Greasy"[1]
Little Boy LostConst. O'Day[3]
1980Beyond Reasonable DoubtDetective John Hughes[7]
1981Goodbye Pork PieJohn[1]
1984Pallet on the FloorLarkman[6]
1985The Coca-Cola KidBushman[3]
1988Never Say DieDet Insp Bill Evans[8]
1991Old ScoresBarry Brown[6]
1993Absent Without LeavePeter[9]
1994The Last TattooJames Patrick Carroll
Country LifeLogger[3]
1996CrocadooRufus B. HardacareTV series[10]
1997Road to NhillJim[11]
Doing Time for Patsy ClineDwayne[12]
2003The Night We Called It a DayRalph Blue[13]
2005Lady VengeanceJenny's adoptive father[7]
2006Home by Christmas[2]
SoloLouis[14]
2008AustraliaSergeant Callaghan[7]
2013The Time of Our LivesRay TivoliTV series[1]
Mystery RoadSarge[1]
2018HarrowJack TwineTV series[3]
2019Total ControlPhillip Anderson

Live theatre
YearTitleRoleNotes
2004A Local ManFormer Prime Minister Ben ChifleyOne-person drama on Chifley's last night[15][16]

References
  1. "Losing a leg became part of the script for Australian actor Tony Barry, remembered as a 'hero' by colleagues". ABC News. 23 December 2022.
  2. Echo, The (27 December 2022). "Vale Tony Barry, actor and activist". The Echo.
  3. Rahman, Abid (22 December 2022). "Tony Barry, Veteran Australian Film and TV Actor, Dies at 81". The Hollywood Reporter.
  4. "Star's real-life health crisis impacts storylines of family drama The Time of Our Lives". news.com.au. 17 June 2014. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  5. Jack, Amberleigh (22 December 2022). "Goodbye Pork Pie actor Tony Barry has died". Stuff. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  6. Screen, NZ On. "Tony Barry | NZ On Screen". www.nzonscreen.com.
  7. Holmes, Martin. "Tony Barry Dies: Veteran Australian Film & TV Actor Was 81". TV Insider.
  8. "Goodbye Pork Pie co-star dies at 81". The New Zealand Herald.
  9. "Absent Without Leave".
  10. "Crocadoo series 2 (1998) – The Screen Guide – Screen Australia". screenaustralia.gov.au.
  11. "Road to Nhill". australianscreen.
  12. "Curator's notes Doing Time for Patsy Cline (1997) on ASO – Australia's audio and visual heritage online". aso.gov.au.
  13. Roberts, Jamie (22 December 2022). "Tributes pour in as Australia star Tony Barry dies after longtime health issues". mirror.
  14. Byrnes, Paul (8 July 2006). "Solo". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  15. Keenan, Catherine. "Unearthing our history" The Age, 6 November 2008. Retrieved 27 January 2015
  16. "Ben Chifley on stage in his home town". Charles Sturt University News, 21 July 2004. Retrieved 27 January 2015


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