# Henri Szeps

Henri Szeps OAM (/hɛnri zɛps/) (born October 2, 1943), also spelled Henry Szeps, is a Swiss-born Australian character actor of theatre and television. He has also featured in films and worked in voice roles, and has worked in productions in the United Kingdom.

## Early life

Henri Szeps was born in 1943 in Lausanne, Switzerland, to Polish parents. Prior to the German invasion of Poland during World War II, his parents fled to France in 1938. His father left the family to join the French Resistance. In 1943, his mother Rose and three-year-old sister Maria made their way to a refugee camp in Lausanne, where Henri was born. In September 1994, having watched babies in the camp become ill, Henri’s mother had him fostered out to a German-speaking Swiss couple in Blumenstein at 11⁄2 months old. In 1946, his mother who had relocated to Paris, reclaimed him when he was three years old, but he returned to the Swiss couple in 1948 when he was 41⁄2, as he couldn’t speak Polish or French and found it hard to communicate with his mother. He was reclaimed by his mother again in 1949, but due to her illness, at the age of six was placed at the Rothschild Orphanage, St Denis, outside Paris.
Szeps came to Sydney, Australia, at the age of eight in 1951 or 1952 with his mother and sister. From 1952, his stepfather Maurice joined then from Paris. His mother worked as a tailor and his stepfather as a presser. They later bought a grocery shop in Surry Hills.
Szeps started attending Greenwich Primary School, where he appeared in numerous school plays. Starting in 1956, he attended North Sydney Technical High School for 9 months, followed by Randwick Boys High School. From 1959 to 1960 he performed in school productions of The Teahouse of the August Moon.

## Career

Szeps studied acting at the Ensemble Theatre during weekends, under the direction of Hayes Gordon (who instilled in him the method acting techniques of Stanislavski) for four years, while gaining science and electrical engineering degrees at Sydney University. In 1963, while undergoing his studies, he appeared every night at the Ensemble Theatre, in a play called The Physicists, which ran for six months. He also performed in George Bernard Shaw’s The Apple Cart, and Woody Allen’s Don't Drink The Water.
His early screen credits include police procedural drama series Homicide, children's series Skippy the Bush Kangaroo and adventure series Riptide as well as the film You Can't See 'Round Corners. In 1968, he starred in a successful stage production of Mart Crowley’s The Boys in the Band, where, during the Sydney season, he met his wife-to-be, NIDA graduate and actress Mary Ann Severne, who had come to watch fellow NIDA friends performing in the play.
Disillusioned by the Australian acting scene, Szeps relocated to England in 1971 together with Severne, in order to hone his acting skills. He initially performed in a production of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure by director Peter Cheeseman, before starring in I, Claudius opposite David Warner, one of the most influential actors at the time. He then toured the UK, the Middle East and the Mediterranean in a Prospect Theatre Company tour of several plays, alongside Derek Jacobi. He also had guest roles in several British television series, including The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes, Spyder's Web, Spy Trap, The Strauss Family, Colditz, Crown Court and Dixon of Dock Green.
Szeps returned to Australia in 1974, where he appeared in the television series Taxi. He played the recurring role of Phillip Chambers in Number 96 in 1976. He then appeared in the TV movies Say You Want Me (1977), Ride on Stranger (1979), The Plumber (1979), A Toast to Melba (1980) and A Step in the Right Direction (1981). Guest roles followed in series such as Chopper Squad, Cop Shop, Kingswood Country and A Country Practice, City West and Carson’s Law. He also performed voiceover work in a number of animated children's classics, including Sherlock Holmes and the Valley of Fear, Sherlock Holmes and a Study in Scarlet and A Tale of Two Cities.
From 1984 to 1994, Szeps played his best known role of selfish dentist Robert Beare, the older son, in the classic Australian television comedy series Mother and Son, with Garry McDonald, Ruth Cracknell and Judy Morris. Another prominent role was in ABC's 10-part series Palace of Dreams, for which he won a Penguin Award for Best Actor in 1985. He then played ill-fated prime minister Harold Holt in the 1987 miniseries Vietnam, alongside Nicole Kidman. He also had further guest roles in drama series Rafferty's Rules, US series Mission: Impossible, medical series G.P. and All Saints, period adventure drama Snowy River: The McGregor Saga and police procedural series Stingers.
Szeps also continued to work extensively in theatre, including several première productions of David Williamson plays – Celluloid Heroes, Dead White Males and Heretic. He played the doctor in the world première of Williamson's Travelling North, and was asked to reprise the role in the 1987 film version with Leo McKern and Graham Kennedy. He has performed in five one-man shows, produced by the Ensemble Theatre, the last three of which were self-penned – The Double Bass (1990), Sky (1992) (written for him by John Misto), I'm Not a Dentist (1997), Why Kids (2003) and Wish I'd Said That (2010).
His final acting role was in the 2015 biographical television miniseries Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door, playing Dee Anthony.
Szeps has also written a book on acting, All in Good Timing: A Personal Account of What an Actor Does (1996), which is used as a reference by drama schools.

## Personal life

Szeps met fellow actress Mary Ann Severne while touring in the Sydney run of the play The Boys in the Band. They married on June 28 1969, and have two sons together, Amos Szeps and ABC broadcaster Josh Szeps.
In 2021, Szeps openly discussed his struggles with early onset dementia on the ABC TV series Just Between Us, alongside son Josh.
Szeps speaks three languages fluently.

## Honours and awards

| Association | Year | Award | Work | Results |
| Penguin Award | | Best Actor in a mini-series | Palace of Dreams | Won |
| Norman Kessell Award | 1997 | Outstanding Performance | I'm Not a Dentist | Won |
| Australian Government | 2001 | Medal of the Order of Australia | "For service to the arts, and to the community through the Australia Day Council and the National Centre for Childhood Grief" | Honoured |
| Helpmann Award | 2003 | Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical | Cabaret | Won |
| Ensemble Theatre | 2014 | The Henri Szeps Green Room | | Honoured |
| Glugs Awards | 2015 | Lifetime Achievement Award | | Honoured |

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Type |
| 1969 | You Can't See 'round Corners | Peter | Feature film |
| 1976 | God Knows Why, But It Works | Dr. Archie Kalokerinos | Film |
| 1980 | Fatty Finn | Mr. Zilch | Feature film |
| 1981 | Run Rebecca, Run | Manuel Cortes | Feature film |
| 1982 | The Best of Friends | Lilo | Feature film |
| 1982 | The Mystery at Castle House | Mr. Wilberforce | Feature film |
| 1983 | The Return of Captain Invincible | Chief Security Officer | Feature film |
| 1983 | Now and Forever | Barry York | Feature film |
| 1983 | Platypus Cove | Winston Bell | Feature film |
| 1985 | Warming Up | Sergeant Peter Sullivan | Feature film |
| 1987 | Les Patterson Saves the World | Dr. Charles Herpes / Desiree Herpes | Feature film |
| 1987 | Travelling North | Saul | Feature film |
| 1987 | The Edge of Power | Steve Traynor | Feature film |
| 1992 | Seeing Red | Louie Leeds | Feature film |
| 2001 | Elixir | Bob Sommerville | Feature film |
| 2009 | No Junk Mail | | Short film |
| 2010 | The Bris | Dobinski | Short film |
| 2012 | Bathing Franky | Rodney | Feature film |
| 2013 | McLean's Money | Edward McLean | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Type |
| 1967; 1969 | Homicide | Peter Scott / Alan Shaw / David Yates | 3 episodes |
| 1969 | Skippy the Bush Kangaroo | Bob | 1 episode |
| 1969 | Riptide | Des Dawkins | 1 episode |
| 1969–1975 | Division 4 | Jeff Taylor / Brian Martin / Jimmy Dunn | 3 episodes |
| 1971 | Misleading Cases | Pierre | 1 episode |
| 1971 | Spyforce | Dingo | 1 episode |
| 1971 | The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes | Laval | 1 episode |
| 1972 | Spyder's Web | Policeman | 1 episode |
| 1972 | Spy Trap | The Frenchman | 1 episode |
| 1972 | The Strauss Family | Edi's Dresser | Miniseries, 1 episode |
| 1973; 1974 | Colditz | De Crossait / Captain Henry LeVevre | 2 episodes |
| 1974 | Barlow | Corsican | 1 episode |
| 1974 | Crown Court | Dr. Herman Abel | 2 episodes |
| 1974 | Armchair Cinema | | Episode 6: "Tully" |
| 1975 | Dixon of Dock Green | Onion Man | 1 episode |
| 1976 | Number 96 | Phillip Chambers | 21 episodes |
| 1976 | Do I Have to Kill My Child? | Doctor | TV movie |
| 1977 | The Dick Emery Show in Australia | Various characters | |
| 1977 | Say You Want Me | Jim Morton | TV movie |
| 1978 | Chopper Squad | Falconio | 1 episode |
| 1978–1981 | Cop Shop | Steven Halliday / Vincent Morelli | 5 episodes |
| 1979 | The Plumber | David Medavoy | TV movie |
| 1979 | Ride on Stranger | Vincent Sladder | 4 episodes |
| 1980 | A Toast to Melba | Thomas Beecham / Buffalo Bill / Mayor of Brisbane | TV movie |
| 1980; 1984 | Kingswood Country | Mr O'Grady / Eric the Postman | 2 episodes |
| 1981 | A Step in the Right Direction | | TV movie |
| 1981 | Daily at Dawn | Joe Parker | TV series |
| 1982 | Wilde's Domain | Shenko | TV movie |
| 1982 | Home Sweet Home | Franco | 1 episode |
| 1982 | M.P.S.I.B | Tran Van | |
| 1982–1983 | A Country Practice | Perc Hobbs / Ralph Bianchi | 6 episodes |
| 1983 | Sherlock Holmes and the Valley of Fear | Voice | Animated TV movie |
| 1983 | Sherlock Holmes and a Study in Scarlet | Voice | Animated TV movie |
| 1984 | A Tale of Two Cities | Voice | Animated TV movie |
| 1984 | City West | Dr. Mikus Kuskis | 7 episodes |
| 1984 | Carson's Law | Wally Martin | 2 episodes |
| 1984–1994 | Mother and Son | Robert Beare | 38 episodes |
| 1985 | Pickwick Papers | Voice | Animated TV movie |
| 1985 | Palace of Dreams | Mick Mendel | Miniseries, 10 episodes |
| 1987 | Vietnam | Harold Holt | Miniseries, 3 episodes |
| 1988 | Rafferty's Rules | Uncle Aniello | 2 episodes |
| 1989 | Hannay | Police Inspector | 1 episode |
| 1990 | Mission: Impossible | Esteban Magdalena | 1 episode |
| 1991 | Hampton Court | Mr. Verstak | 1 episode |
| 1991; 1995 | G.P. | Charlie Cassidy / Ibram Hanaf | 2 episodes |
| 1992 | The Adventures of Skippy | Frank | 1 episode |
| 1996 | Snowy River: The McGregor Saga | Jacob Verkovic | 1 episode |
| 1999; 2009 | All Saints | George Bresnic / Victor McGregor | 3 episodes |
| 2000 | Stingers | Norman Sagar | 1 episode |
| 2001 | Flat Chat | Cardinal Del Gardia | 1 episode |
| 2001 | South Pacific | Benoit | TV movie |
| 2001 | Escape of the Artful Dodger | Dr. Hartman | 3 episodes |
| 2015 | Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door | Dee Anthony | Miniseries, 2 episodes |

## Stage
### As actor

| Year | Title | Role | Type |
| 1962 | Cecile and the Bespoke Overcoat | Cecile | University of Sydney |
| 1963 | The Physicists | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| | Paint Your Wagon | | Arts council tour |
| 1964 | An Entertainment: The Canterville Ghost / A Programme of Folk Song | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1966 | The Death of Bessie Smith | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1966 | The Apple Cart | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1968 | Don't Drink the Water | Axel Magee | Independent Theatre, Sydney |
| 1968–1970 | The Boys in the Band | Harold | Australian tour with Harry M. Miller |
| 1970 | When We Are Married | | Phillip St Theatre, Sydney |
| 1970 | Alice in Wonderland | | Phillip St Theatre, Sydney |
| 1971 | Measure for Measure | | Stoke-on-Trent |
| 1972 | I, Claudius | | Queens Theatre, London |
| 1972–1973 | The Royal Hunt of the Sun | | The Old Vic UK tour |
| 1972–1973 | Twelfth Night | | The Old Vic UK tour |
| 1972–1973 | Mother Goose | Demon Discontent | Theatre Royal, Windsor with Windsor Theatre Company |
| 1963–1974 | Pericles | Fisherman 1 | Nottingham Playhouse, Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds, Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, Middle East & Mediterranean tour, Oxford Playhouse, Her Majesty's Theatre, London with Prospect Theatre Company |
| 1974–1975 | Savages | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Theatre Royal, Hobart |
| 1975 | The Good Doctor | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Playhouse, Canberra, Monash University, Melbourne |
| 1976 | The Beast of Belgrave Square | Gilbert Mortlock | Neutral Bay Music Hall, Sydney |
| 1977 | Funny Peculiar | Desmond Ainsley | Theatre Royal Sydney, Comedy Theatre, Melbourne with J. C. Williamson's |
| 1977 | The Prisoner of Second Avenue | Harry Edison | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1978 | The Comedy of Errors | Egeon / Balthasar | Nimrod, Sydney |
| 1978 | Gone with Hardy | Jock McTavish | Nimrod, Sydney |
| 1979 | Tribute | Lou Daniels | Theatre Royal Sydney, Newcastle Civic Theatre |
| 1979 | Travelling North | Saul | Nimrod, Sydney, Melbourne Athenaeum |
| 1980 | The Death of Bessie Smith | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1980 | Sexual Perversity in Chicago / Reunion | Bernie | Nimrod, Sydney |
| 1980 | Reunion | Bernie | Nimrod, Sydney |
| 1980 | A Little Brown Hairy Eye | One-man show | Nimrod, Sydney, Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1980–1981 | Celluloid Heroes | Gary Brady | Nimrod, Sydney, Theatre Royal Sydney |
| 1982 | Oklahoma! | Ali Hakim | Festival Theatre, Adelaide, Theatre Royal, Sydney, Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne |
| 1984 | Stage Struck | | Marian St Theatre, Sydney |
| 1984 | Two | | Marian St Theatre, Sydney |
| 1984 | The Prisoner of Second Avenue | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1985 | The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui | | Seymour Centre, Sydney |
| 1986 | Glengarry Glen Ross | | Sydney Opera House, London |
| 1987 | Hamlet / Henry IV, Part 1 | | Sydney Theatre Company |
| 1987 | Shepherd on the Rocks | Dean Bartholomew Shute / Ern / Nat Wormald | Playhouse, Adelaide with STCSA |
| 1988 | Rough Crossing | Alex Gal | Playhouse, Adelaide, Sydney Opera House, Playhouse, Canberra with STCSA & Gary Penny Productions |
| 1989 | Speed-the-Plow | | Space Theatre, Adelaide with STCSA |
| 1989 | The Price | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1989 | Just Between Ourselves | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1990–1991; 1993 | The Double Bass | One-man show | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Playhouse, Perth, Fairfax Studio, Melbourne, Glen St Theatre, Sydney |
| 1992 | Same Time, Next Year | | Glen St Theatre, Sydney, Playhouse, Perth |
| 1992 | Sky | Rococo Betoni (One-man show) | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Universal Theatre, Melbourne, Playhouse, Perth, Glen St Theatre, Sydney, Q Theatre, Penrith |
| 1994 | Three Hotels | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1995 | Dead White Males | Martin Judd | Sydney Opera House, Glen St Theatre, Sydney, Playhouse, Melbourne, His Majesty's Theatre, Perth with STC & MTC |
| 1995–1998 | I'm Not a Dentist | One-man show | Australian tour |
| 1996 | Heretic | Rick Cooper | Australian tour with STC & MTC |
| 1997 | After-Play | | Marian St Theatre, Sydney with Northside Theatre Company |
| 1998 | The Sunshine Boys | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1999–2000 | The Hobbit | Gandalf | Australian tour with Anketell Theatre Productions |
| 2001 | The Price | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 2002 | After the Ball | | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Theatre Royal Sydney |
| 2002–2003 | Cabaret | Herr Schultz | Australian tour with IMG Productions |
| 2003; 2006 | Why Kids | One-man show | Australian tour |
| 2004 | Twelve Angry Men | Juror 9 | Playhouse, Brisbane, Sydney Theatre, Melbourne Athenaeum with Adrian Bohm Presents |
| 2005 | Operator | Douglas | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 2005 | President Wilson in Paris | President Wilson | Australian tour with HIT Productions |
| 2005 | Love Letters | Andrew Makepeace III | NIDA Parade Theatre, Sydney |
| 2006 | Charitable Intent | Brian | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 2007; 2010 | Halpern & Johnson | Halpern | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Casula Powerhouse |
| 2008 | QED | Feynman | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 2008 | Codgers | | Glen Street Theatre, Sydney & Australian regional tour |
| 2010–2011 | Wish I'd Said That | Joe Bleakley (one-man show) | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, The Street Theatre, Canberra |
| 2011 | Four Flat Whites in Italy | Harry | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, The Street Theatre, Canberra |
| 2013 | It's My Party (and I'll Die if I Want To) | Ron Patterson | Lennox Theatre, Parramatta with HIT Productions |
| 2013 | Freud’s Last Session | Freud | Theatre Royal Sydney |
| 2014 | Cruise Control | Sol Wasserman | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |

### As playwright / director / crew

| Year | Title | Role | Type |
| 1975 | The Good Doctor | Composer | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Playhouse, Canberra, Monash University, Melbourne |
| 1980 | A Little Brown Hairy Eye | Playwright | Nimrod, Sydney, Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |
| 1990–1991; 1993 | The Double Bass | Translator | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Playhouse, Perth, Fairfax Studio, Melbourne, Glen St Theatre, Sydney |
| 1995–1998 | I'm Not a Dentist | Playwright / Director | Hakoah Club, Bondi, Effie Crump Theatre, Perth, Ensemble Theatre, Sydney, Monash University, Melbourne |
| 2003; 2006 | Why Kids | Playwright / Devisor | Australian tour |
| 2010 | Wish I'd Said That | Playwright | Ensemble Theatre, Sydney |