Acting
Barry Humphries
John Barry Humphries, AO, CBE (17 February 1934 - 22 April 2023) was an Australian comedian, satirist, dadaist, artist, author and character actor, perhaps best known for his on-stage and television alter egos Dame Edna Everage, a Melbourne housewife and "gigastar", and Sir Les Patterson, Australia's foul-mouthed cultural attaché to the Court of St. James's. He was a film producer and script writer, a star of London's West End musical theatre, an award-winning writer and an accomplished landscape painter. For his delivery of dadaist and absurdist humour to millions, biographer Anne Pender described Humphries in 2010 as not only the most significant theatrical figure of our time … [but] the most significant comedian to emerge since Charlie Chaplin. Humphries' characters, especially Dame Edna Everage, have brought him international renown, and he had appeared in numerous films, stage productions and television shows. Originally conceived as a dowdy Moonee Ponds housewife who caricatured Australian suburban complacency and insularity, Edna had evolved over four decades to become a satire of stardom, the gaudily dressed, acid-tongued, egomaniacal, internationally feted Housewife Gigastar, Dame Edna Everage. Humphries' other major satirical character creation was the archetypal Australian bloke Barry McKenzie, who originated as the hero of a comic strip about Australians in London (with drawings by Nicholas Garland) which was first published in Private Eye magazine. The stories about "Bazza" (Humphries' nickname, as well as an Australian term of endearment for the name Barry) gave wide circulation to Australian slang, particularly jokes about drinking and its consequences (much of which was invented by Humphries), and the character went on to feature in two Australian films, in which he was portrayed by Barry Crocker. Humphries' other satirical characters include the "priapic and inebriated cultural attaché" Sir Les Patterson, who has "continued to bring worldwide discredit upon Australian arts and culture, while contributing as much to the Australian vernacular as he has borrowed from it", gentle, grandfatherly "returned gentleman" Sandy Stone, iconoclastic 1960s underground film-maker Martin Agrippa, Paddington socialist academic Neil Singleton, sleazy trade union official Lance Boyle, high-pressure art salesman Morrie O'Connor and failed tycoon Owen Steele. Humphries died following complications from hip surgery at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney on 22 April 2023.
Filmography
Barry Humphries at the BBC
Film · 2023
Barry Humphries: The Last Laugh
Film · 2023
Barry Humphries - A Life of Laughs
Film · 2023
Parkinson at 50
Film · 2021
Show of Titles
Film · 2021
Dame Edna Rules The Waves
Film · 2019
Standing Up for Sunny
Film · 2019
Magical Land of Oz
Series · 2019
Peter Cook and Dudley Moore: The Missing Sketches
Film · 2016
Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie
Film · 2016
A Granny's Guide to the Modern World
Series · 2016
Blinky Bill the Movie
Film · 2015
Michael McIntyre's Big Christmas Show
Film · 2015
Jack Irish: Dead Point
Film · 2014
The Last Impresario
Film · 2014
Brilliant Creatures
Series · 2014
Justin and the Knights of Valour
Film · 2013
The Great Comic Relief Bake Off
Series · 2013
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Film · 2012
Kath & Kimderella
Film · 2012
Comedy Rocks with Jason Manford
Series · 2010
A Comedy Roast
Series · 2010
Mary and Max
Film · 2009
Salvation
Film · 2009
Making Mary and Max
Film · 2009
We Are Most Amused
Film · 2008
Not Quite Hollywood
Film · 2008
The Man Inside Dame Edna
Film · 2008
Gaybo Laughs Back
Film · 2008
I'd Do Anything
Series · 2008
Who Do You Think You Are?
Series · 2008
Q&A
Series · 2008
Little Britain Down Under
Film · 2007
The Dame Edna Treatment
Series · 2007
The Graham Norton Show
Series · 2007
Telling Schoolgirl Tales: The Making of 'The Getting of Wisdom’
Film · 2006
It Started with Swap Shop
Film · 2006
The One Show
Series · 2006
Betjeman and Me
Series · 2006
The One Show
Series · 2006
Da Kath & Kim Code
Film · 2005
Remember the Secret Policeman's Ball?
Film · 2004
The Tony Danza Show
Series · 2004
Parkinson
Series · 2004
Finding Nemo
Film · 2003
Barry Humphries Presents Back to My Roots and Other Suckers
Film · 2003
QI
Series · 2003
Micallef Tonight
Series · 2003
QI
Series · 2003
Nicholas Nickleby
Film · 2002
The Osbournes
Series · 2002
Welcome to Woop Woop
Film · 1998
Hollywood Squares
Series · 1998
Parkinson
Series · 1998
Pterodactyl Woman from Beverly Hills
Film · 1997
Spice World
Film · 1997
Sir Les And The Great Chinese Takeaway
Film · 1997
Ally McBeal
Series · 1997
The View
Series · 1997
The Leading Man
Film · 1996
Les Patterson 'Has A Stand Up' - Live & Rampant
Film · 1996
Some Interesting Facts About Peter Cook
Film · 1995
Napoleon
Film · 1995
Immortal Beloved
Film · 1994
Selling Hitler
Film · 1993
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Series · 1993
RTL Samstag Nacht
Series · 1993
The Team: A Season With McLaren
Series · 1993
Joan Rivers: Abroad in London
Film · 1992
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
Series · 1992
Dame Edna's Neighbourhood Watch
Series · 1992
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
Series · 1992
A Late Lunch With Sir Les
Film · 1991
Pebble Mill
Series · 1991
Dame Edna's Hollywood
Series · 1991
Boulevard Bio
Series · 1991
An Audience with Jackie Mason
Film · 1990
A Night on Mount Edna
Film · 1990
Single Voices
Series · 1990
One More Audience with Dame Edna Everage
Film · 1988
Barry Humphries: This is Your Lunch
Film · 1988
Les Patterson Saves the World
Film · 1987
The Marsupials: The Howling III
Film · 1987
The Dame Edna Experience
Series · 1987
An Aussie Audience with Dame Edna
Film · 1986
Another Audience with Dame Edna Everage
Film · 1984
A Birthday Tribute to Dame Edna Everage
Film · 1984
Dr. Fischer of Geneva
Film · 1984
Royal Variety Performance 1984
Film · 1984
The Secret Policeman's Other Ball
Film · 1982
Wogan
Series · 1982
Shock Treatment
Film · 1981
A Toast to Melbourne
Film · 1981
The Rocky Horror Treatment
Film · 1981
An Audience with Dame Edna Everage
Film · 1980
Russell Harty
Series · 1980
Friday Night, Saturday Morning
Series · 1979
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Film · 1978
The South Bank Show
Series · 1978
An Audience with...
Series · 1978
An Audience with...
Series · 1978
The South Bank Show
Series · 1978
The Getting of Wisdom
Film · 1977
Pleasure at Her Majesty's
Film · 1976
Side by Side
Film · 1975
The Great MacArthy
Film · 1975
Saturday Night Live
Series · 1975
Barry McKenzie Holds His Own
Film · 1974
Percy's Progress
Film · 1974
The Adventures of Barry McKenzie
Film · 1972
The Naked Bunyip
Film · 1970
The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom
Film · 1968
Bedazzled
Film · 1967
Omnibus
Series · 1967
Omnibus
Series · 1967
The Wednesday Play
Series · 1964
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Series · 1962
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Series · 1962
Le Bain Vorace (Dial P for Plughole)
Film · 1954