Gray O'Brien
| Gray O'Brien | |
|---|---|
| Born |
11 August 1968 Glasgow, Scotland |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Partner(s) | Katie O'Brien |
Gray O'Brien (born Gerard O'Brien, 11 August 1968) is a Scottish television and film actor, best known for his portrayal of the villainous Weatherfield businessman Tony Gordon in the popular ITV soap opera Coronation Street from 2007 to 2010, and as Dr Richard McCaig on the BBC medical drama Casualty from 1996 to 1998.
O'Brien was born in Glasgow, the 2nd youngest of seven children, and is a graduate of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Resident for a time in Cumbernauld, he has appeared in many television productions, including Taggart, Peak Practice, River City (as serial womaniser Billy Davies), and the 2007 Doctor Who Christmas special, "Voyage of the Damned". He played Prince Charles's valet in the motion picture The Queen.
O'Brien joined the cast of Coronation Street as the murderous factory boss in September 2007. The actor explained in an interview that he uses sense-memory technique, drawing on "something dark from the past", to emote his powerful performances. Asked about female reaction to his character's on-screen conspiracy to murder love rival Liam Connor, played by pin-up Rob James-Collier, O'Brien joked: "I'm sure most viewers believe that it's just a story." O'Brien won Villain of the Year for the role at the 2009 British Soap Awards.
The Manchester show drew the ire of football fans when, in October 2008, several months after the 2008 UEFA Cup Final riots, in a scripted line, O'Brien's evil character made a jibe about Rangers F.C.. Complaints led to a similar line being cut from the script of a later episode. Professing surprise at the outcry, the star said: "I'm a Celtic supporter but I need to be clear that I certainly wasn't going out of my way to antagonise any Rangers supporters."
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