Biography
Colin Friels was born on September 25, 1952, in Scotland. He has spent most of his professional career in Australia. A 1976 graduate of that country's National Institute of Dramatic Art, Colin rapidly found work in all branches of popular entertainment, but was particularly successful in such stage productions as Hamlet, Macbeth and The Man From Muckinpin. He worked constantly in theatre, quickly gathering a reputation as one of Australia's most talented new performers.
He has subsequently appeared in 24 feature films, the first in 1982 in the adaptation of Helen Garner's "Monkey Grip". Entering films in 1983, he made his international mark as a cheeky misfit in Malcolm (1986), a wonderful performance that won him the Australian Film Institute "Best Actor" award.
Additional Australian screen credits include "Mr. Reliable", "Back of Beyond", "Dingo" with jazz legend Miles Davis, "High Tide", "Ground Zero", "Kangaroo" and "Angel Baby". His U.S. film credits include "Class Action" for 20th Century Fox and "Dark Man" for Universal Pictures.
Colin's most recognized TV role was obviously that of Frank Holloway on the popular Australian cop show Water Rats (1996-1999) for which he won a Silver Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actor in Drama Series in 1997 and a People's Choice for Favourite Drama Actor.
Among Colin's other television credits are the Pride episode in "Seven Deadly Sins" for ABC TV, "Stark", "The Burning Piano", "The Last Man Hanged", "For The Term Of His Natural Life", "Hard Corps", a telemovie part of the "Halifax, f.p." series for which he won another AFI award in 1995 and more recently "Marriage Acts" (2000). He has also been acclaimed for his theatre performances, including roles in "The Temple", "The Cherry Orchard", "Hedda Gabler", "Sweet Bird of Youth", and "Macbeth" which he played again in 1999.