Mark Burns (actor)

Mark Burns (30 March 1936 – 8 May 2007)^[1] was an English film and television actor.^[2]

Burns was born in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire and educated at Ampleforth College, North Yorkshire.^[1] He originally planned to enter the priesthood, but after a short-service commission with the 15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars (1955–57), in which he served in Malaya and Northern Ireland, he became an actor.^[1] His career began in 1960 with the film Tunes of Glory followed by the TV series Lorna Doone (1963) and Rupert of Hentzau (1964).^[2] One of his most prominent roles was as the male lead in the cult 1966 mystery film Death Is a Woman.^[3] Burns also appeared in The Saint episode "The Scales of Justice", and The Prisoner episode "It's Your Funeral" as Number Two's assistant.^[4][5]

He played William Morris in The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968), Bernie in A Day at the Beach (1970), the pianist Alfred in Death in Venice (1971) and Hans von Bülow in Ludwig (1972).^[2] Mark Burns obtained a lead role in House of the Living Dead by Ray Austin in 1974 and won the prize for best actor in 1974 at the Sitges Film Festival.^[6] In 1975, together with Lynne Frederick he did A Long Return by Pedro Lazaga. He also appeared in Count Dracula (1977) and The Bitch (1979).^[7] His career stagnated in the 1980s and 1990s, his last film being Stardust (2007). He died from lung cancer.^[1]

• Mark Burns at IMDb