# Peter O'Brien (actor)

Peter O'Brien is an Australian actor, best known for his role as an original cast member in 1985 of Australian soap opera Neighbours as Shane Ramsay. He has also acted in numerous British and American productions.

## Career

O'Brien played a regular role in short-lived soap opera Starting Out (1983), and then had guest roles in Carson's Law in 1983 and Prisoner in 1984 and appeared in The Henderson Kids. He was then cast as Shane Ramsay, a regular original character in soap opera Neighbours on the Seven Network in 1985. He became one of the serial's most popular cast members, continuing in the series until 1987. He then played a leading regular role in drama series The Flying Doctors from 1988 until 1991.
In 1994, O'Brien sent up his soap opera star past by taking a regular role in Psycho Ward 10, a soap opera parody in The All New Alexei Sayle Show.
O'Brien took on the role of surgical registrar Mr. Cyril 'Scissors' Smedley in the popular BBC series Cardiac Arrest through the second and third series between 1995 and 1996.
He later starred in television series Queer as Folk, White Collar Blue and Gossip Girl.
O'Brien has appeared in numerous miniseries, including The Day of the Roses and Through My Eyes (the story of Lindy Chamberlain). He has also guest starred on numerous television series, including Halifax f.p.. For his work, O'Brien has won Australian Film Institute and Logie Awards. He also appeared as Carl Morgan in Spellbinder: Land of the Dragon Lord, and he appeared in the 1998 Australian/Brisbane comedy television series of Minty. In 2009 he played Sydney underworld figure and racing identity George Freeman in the series Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities. He later reprised his role as George Freeman in the follow-up in the Underbelly series The Golden Mile.
O'Brien was part of the cast of BBC television series Casualty as a new consultant called Stitch. He also appeared in ITV police drama The Bill in which he played corrupt Detective Inspector Peter Cavanaugh.
He appeared as Ed in The Waters of Mars, the second of the 2009 specials of Doctor Who.
In 2022, it was announced O'Brien had reprised his role of Shane Ramsay in Neighbours following the news that the serial would be concluding later that year. In November 2024, O'Brien returned to Neighbours for a guest stint.

## Awards

O'Brien has won several acting awards in his career. He won two Logie Awards - one in 1987 for the 'Most Popular Actor' (for his role in Neighbours) and one in 2003 for the 'Most Outstanding Actor' (for his role in White Collar Blue).

## Personal life

O'Brien was in a relationship with his Neighbours co-star Elaine Smith for four years. He married actress Joanna Riding on 24 December 1990, after meeting while they were both starring in a production of The Wizard of Oz in England. Their separation was announced in December 1993.
On 1 January 2003, O'Brien married actress Miranda Otto, after the two had met while performing in A Doll's House. They have one child, a daughter, who was born on 1 April 2005.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1983 | The Mortal Coil | Hugh | Short film |
| 1996 | Hotel de Love | Norman Carey | Feature film |
| 1996 | Michael Collins | Pianist in restaurant (uncredited) | Feature film |
| 1999 | Sally Marshall Is Not an Alien | David Lawson | Feature film |
| 1999 | Sabrina Down Under | Dr. Julian Martin | TV movie |
| 2002 | The Pact | Roy Folksdale | Feature film |
| 2005 | Hell Has Harbour Views | Tim Sullivan | TV movie |
| 2006 | The Return | Terry Stahl | Feature film |
| 2006 | Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America | Alan | TV movie |
| 2009 | X-Men Origins: Wolverine | John Howlett | Feature film |
| 2012 | Dangerous Remedy | Dr. Barry Smith | TV movie |
| 2012 | Hanyut | Kasper Almayer | Feature film |
| 2013 | Love of My Life | Surgeon / Thomas | Feature film |
| 2014 | The Killing Field | Inspector Lachlan McKenzie | TV movie |
| 2016 | Maximum Ride | Jeb | Feature film |
| 2018 | What Still Remains | The Prisoner | Feature film |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1983 | Starting Out | Craig Holt | TV series |
| 1984 | Prisoner | Tim Carter | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1985–87, 2022, 2024, 2025 | Neighbours | Shane Ramsay | TV series, 304 episodes |
| 1988–91 | The Flying Doctors | Captain Sam Patterson | TV series |
| 1991 | The Trials of Oz | James Anderson | BBC dramatisation of the 1971 trial |
| 1992 | Cluedo | Warren 'Axeman' Hackett | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1993 | Taggart | Bill Hamilton | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1994 | The All New Alexei Sayle Show | Dr Scott Jordan | TV series, season 1 (segment: "Psycho Ward 10") |
| 1995–96 | Cardiac Arrest | Mr. Cyril 'Scissors' Smedley | TV series, seasons 2-3 |
| 1997 | The Day of the Roses | Boris Osman | TV miniseries |
| 1997 | Spellbinder: Land of the Dragon Lord | Carl Morgan | TV series |
| 1998 | Minty | Ric da Silva | TV series |
| 1999 | Queer as Folk | Cameron Roberts | TV series |
| 1999 | See How They Run | Don Morton / Cassidy | TV series |
| 2000 | The Knock | Glen Vaughan | TV series, 4 episodes |
| 2000–01 | Water Rats | Matthew Grierson | TV series, 3 episodes |
| 2001 | Relic Hunter | Allan Devaut | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2002 | Young Lions | Daryll Flynn | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2002–03 | White Collar Blue | Detective Joe Hill | TV series |
| 2003 | Code 11–14 | Detective McElroy | |
| 2004 | Through My Eyes: The Lindy Chamberlain Story | Ian Barker Q.C. | TV miniseries |
| 2004 | The Bill | Detective Inspector Peter Cavanaugh | TV series, 6 episodes |
| 2005 | Blue Heelers | Dr. Peter Nelson | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 2006 | Nightmares and Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King | Keenan | TV miniseries |
| 2007 | Gossip Girl | Photographer | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2007 | Casualty | Theo 'Stitch' Lambert | TV series, 18 episodes |
| 2008 | City Homicide | Warren Endicot | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2009 | Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities | George Freeman | TV miniseries, 10 episodes |
| 2009 | A World Away | John | |
| 2009 | Doctor Who | Ed Gold | TV series, 1 episode: "The Waters of Mars" |
| 2009 | Rogue Nation | John Stephen Jr 009 | |
| 2009 | All Saints | Sam Whittaker | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2009 | 30 Seconds | Bill Brooker | TV series |
| 2010 | Underbelly: The Golden Mile | George Freeman | TV miniseries, 3 episodes |
| 2010 | Dance Academy | Sebastian | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries | René Dubois | T V series, 1 episode |
| 2015 | Winter | Detective Inspector Lachlan McKenzie | TV series |
| 2018 | Lake Alice | Greg Thomas | |
| 2018 | GLOW | Rick Hollander | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Tidelands | Bill Sentelle | TV series, 7 episodes |
| 2018 | The OA | Duke | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2019 | Breaker | Finch | |
| 2020 | Wentworth | Tony Cockburn | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2021 | The Unusual Suspects | Nick | TV miniseries |
| 2021 | The Moth Effect | | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2021 | Sola | | |
| 2022 | Grey Nomads | Luca Rossi | TV series, 6 episodes |
| 2022 | Darby and Joan | Chris | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2022 | Riptide | Sean Weston | TV series, 4 episodes |
| 2024 | Ladies in Black | Don Holloway | 1 episode |
| 2024 | Return to Paradise | Artie O'Farrell | TV series 1 episode |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2016 | Battlefield 1 | Frederick Bishop | Video game |

## Theatre

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2003 | A Doll's House | | Sydney Theatre Company |