 bernard hill (born 17 december 1944) is an english film, stage and television actor. he is known for playing yosser hughes, the troubled 'hard man' whose life is falling apart in alan bleasdale's groundbreaking 1980s tv drama boys from the blackstuff. he is also known for roles in blockbuster films, including captain edward smith in titanic, king thÃ©oden in the lord of the rings film trilogy and as the warden of san quentin prison in the clint eastwood film true crime. ==early life== hill was born in blackley, manchester. he was brought up in a catholic family of miners.http://oxfordstudent.com/2012/06/07/the-oxstu-talks-titanic-daniel-day-lewis-and-more-with-film-star-bernard-hill/ hill attended xaverian college, and then manchester polytechnic school of drama at the same time as richard griffiths. he graduated with a diploma in theatre in 1970. ==career== ===boys from the blackstuff=== thumb|left|bernard hill as yosser hughes hill first came to prominence in britain through his yosser hughes, a liverpool working class man ultimately driven to the edge by an uncaring system, in alan bleasdale's bbc play for today, the black stuff and its more famous series sequel (also by bleasdale), boys from the blackstuff. his character's much-repeated phrase gizza job ("give us a job") became popular with protesters against margaret thatcher's government, because of the high unemployment of the time. with his bemused brood of kids never let out of his sight, bernard hill's powerful depiction of a man crumbling before the audience's eyes brought him numerous awards but, as he later reveale
1944_births 20th-century_English_male_actors 21st-century_English_male_actors English_male_film_actors English_male_stage_actors English_male_television_actors Living_people Male_actors_from_Manchester Outstanding_Performance_by_a_Cast_in_a_Motion_Picture_Screen_Actors_Guild_Award_winners People_from_Blackley People_from_Suffolk