Ian Mackendrick Hendry (13 January 1931 – 24 December 1984) was an English stage, TV and film actor. He was active from the late 1950s to his death, especially on stage and television.
The series The Avengers was originally conceived as a star vehicle for him in 1961, with Patrick Macnee as his co-star. The first season's production was marred by a strike and Hendry left to pursue movie roles, leaving Macnee as the show's main star. Three and a third of his episodes have been recovered, the rest are considered lost.
He passed away from stomach haemorrhage on Christmas 1984 at age 53.
Selected filmography:
- Sink the Bismarck! (1960) as Officer on the King George V
- Police Surgeon (1960) as Dr. Geoffrey Brent
- The Avengers (1961) as Dr. David Keel
- The New Avengers (1976) as Irwin Gunner
- Repulsion (1965) as Michael
- The Hill (1965) as Staff Sgt. Williams
- Casino Royale (1967) - uncredited bit part
- Vendetta for the Saint (1969) as Alessandro Destamio
- Doppelgänger (1969) as Dr. John Kane
- The McKenzie Break (1970) as Major Perry
- Get Carter (1971) as Eric Paice
- The Lotus Eaters (1972-1973) as Erik Shepherd
- Theatre of Blood (1973) as Peregrine Devlin
- Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter (1974) as Kerro
- The Internecine Project (1974) as Alex Hellman
- The Passenger (1975) (1975) as Martin Knight
- The Sweeney (1975) as Dave Brooker
- Return of the Saint (1978) as Roy Gates
- Damien: Omen II (1978) as Michael Morgan (uncredited)
Tropes & Trivia in his works:
- What Could Have Been: For Get Carter, Hendry was supposed to play Jack Carter, but he was deemed unreliable due to his alcoholism and ill-health, and ended up playing the film's villain. He resented Michael Caine for replacing him, which visibly adds to their characters' animosity.
