Michael Pennington
- Acting
- June 7, 1943 · Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
- May 10, 2026
Biography
Michael Vivian Fyfe Pennington (June 7, 1943 - May 10, 2026) was a British actor and director who, together with director Michael Bogdanov, founded the English Shakespeare Company. Although primarily a stage actor, he is best known to wider audiences for his role as Moff Tiaan Jerjerrod, commanding officer of the Death Star in the film Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi and as Michael Foot in The Iron Lady, opposite Meryl Streep.
Known for
Filmography
- Manik da: The Mystique of Pather Panchali · Narrator (Voice)
- Raised by Wolves · The Trust (Voice)
- 1945: The Savage Peace · Narrator (Voice)
- Secrets of the Universe: Great Scientists in Their Own Words · Narrator (Voice)
- RSC Live: Richard II · John of Gaunt
- The Escape Artist · Judge
- Endeavour · Professor Donald Bagley
- Father Brown · Bishop Reynard
- The Iron Lady · Michael Foot
- The Lost World of Communism
- Airborne: The RAF at 90 · Narrator - (Voice)
- Florence Nightingale · Wen
- Lewis · Dr. Melville
- Fragile · Marcus
- Empire Warriors · Narrator
- Colosseum - Rome's Arena of Death · Narrator (Voice)
- State of Play · Richard Siegler
- The Dinosaur Hunters · William Buckland
- Pyramid · Narrator (Voice)
- Dr Terrible's House of Horrible · Priest
- Waking the Dead · Prof Alan Macintosh
- Cracker: White Ghost · Commander Gordon Ellison
- Dalziel and Pascoe · Hartley Culpepper
- Silent Witness · Dennis Morgan
- The Last Bolshevik · Self
- Degas and Pissario Fall Out · Degas
- Between the Lines
- In My Defence · Franz Jagerstatter
- Richard II · Richard II
- Henry IV: Part 1 · Prince Henry of Wales
- Henry IV: Part 2 · Henry Prince of Wales
- Henry V · King Henry V
- Henry VI: House of Lancaster · Earl of Suffolk
- Henry VI: House of York · Jack Cade
- Richard III · Duke of Buckingham
- Summer's Lease · Hugh Pargeter
- The Return of Sherlock Holmes · Sherlock Holmes
- Theban Plays: Oedipus the King · Oedipus Rex
- The Marlowe Inquest · Thomas Kyd
- ScreenPlay · Thomas Kyd
- Forbidden Passion: The Oscar Wilde Movie
- The Mayor of Montemilone · Narrator
- Italians · Narrator
- Freud · Carl Jung
- Playing Shakespeare
- Waving to a Train · Richard
- Cymbeline · Posthumus
- Return of the Jedi · Moff Jerjerrod
- Outside Edge · Bob
- A Last Visitor for Mr. Hugh Peter · John Lilburne
- Danton's Death · Saint-Just
- Mr and Mrs Bureaucrat · E1A
- BBC2 Play of the Week · E1A
- It's Only Rock 'n' Roll · Don Harris
- The Witches of Pendle · Minister
- Playhouse · John Lilburne
- No Exit · Ian Strawson
- The Dolly Scene · Tom
- Mad Jack
- Hamlet · Laertes
- W. Somerset Maugham · Hans
- The Tycoon · Peter Bell
- The Root of All Evil? · Clive Pinner
- ITV Playhouse · Lancelot Wishart
- Callan
- BBC Play of the Month · St Just, Alexei Turbin
- Thirty-Minute Theatre · Martin
- Public Eye · John Sheldon
- The Wednesday Play · Geoffrey Cromlech
- Theatre 625 · Wulfnoth, Alexander
- Drama 61-67 · First youth
- No Hiding Place
- Armchair Theatre · Adrian, Tom