Craig McLachlan
Character: Doctor Lucien Blake
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Craig McLachlan is one of Australia's most versatile actors and a household name in both Australia and the U.K. He has been the recipient of the top Australian television accolade, the coveted Gold Logie, and his stage production of Grease held the U.K. West End all-time box office record from 1993 right up to 2010.
He is an actor of huge range who is equally comfortable in film, television or stage productions. He not only carries with him huge personal charisma but is also not afraid to use it, which might account for his singular popularity across a wide range of audience demographics both in Australia and internationally.
Craig McLachlan first appeared on Australian television in a guest role on The Young Doctors. He was cast as Henry Ramsay, brother of Kylie Minogue’s character Charlene, in Channel 10’s Neighbours. After appearing in more than 800 episodes and winning the Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television (1990) and Silver Logie, he was contracted to Seven Network’s Home and Away playing schoolteacher Grant Mitchell.
A singer, guitarist and songwriter, McLachlan enjoyed international success in a concurrent pop music career. He had hits in Australia and the UK with a remake of the Bo Diddleysong “Mona (I Need You Baby)” and with self-penned songs “Amanda”, “One Reason Why” and “On My Own”. He toured the UK and Europe with his band Check 1–2.
In 1993 McLachlan starred as Danny Zuko in the West End revival of the musical Grease alongside Deborah Gibson and Sonia Evans. In his stage musical career he starred as Frank N Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Bob Wallace in White Christmas and Billy Flynn in Chicago.
In the mid-1990s McLachlan starred in three seasons of the BBC television series Bugs and appeared in Catherine the Great alongside Catherine Zeta-Jones and Omar Sharif.
Throughout the first decade of the 21st century, McLachlan appeared in around 20 film and television projects, including the American movie Superfire, as Stuart Diver in the television film Heroes’ Mountain, and Blackjack with Colin Friels. In 2004 he played Michael Chamberlain in Through My Eyes, an account of the Lindy Chamberlain story, and began work in the recurring role of Kane Morgan in McLeod's Daughters. He played Jeff Kennard in the Australian film Hating Alison Ashley, worked alongside Benjamin Bratt and James Franco in The Great Raid. and starred with John Jarratt in Savages Crossing, for which he composed score.
McLachlan appeared regularly in the Network Seven TV series Packed to the Rafters as ageing rocker Steve Wilson and was cast in the fourth season of Rescue: Special Ops as Hayden Bradley. He played the role of Steve, the handsome gay gardener, in the award-winning production At Home With Julia, and appeared in the ABC comedy Lowdown. In 2011 McLachlan had a guest-starring role in an episode of NCIS Los Angeles.
In 2011, British group Rizzle Kicks sampled McLachlan’s version of “Mona” for their single “Mama Do the Hump”, which peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart.
McLachlan returned to Australia in 2012 to work on a then new TV series, The Doctor Blake Mysteries, a period crime drama set in Ballarat in 1950s and 1960s. He plays the title role, Dr Lucien Blake, a medical practitioner with a knack for solving murders and annoying the police. In Feb 2017, it was announced that the ABC had cancelled The Doctor Blake Mysteries. Nearing the end of broadcasting of Series 5 on the ABC, it was announced by Channel 7 that they had rescued The Doctor Blake Mysteries.
In 2013, McLachlan was again cast as Frank N. Furter in a revival of The Rocky Horror Show touring Australia in 2014. In December 2014, McLachlan revealed that he was unable to return to Neighbours for the show's 30th anniversary celebrations due to scheduling conflicts and his involvement in The Doctor Blake Mysteries. However, McLachlan agreed to take part in the documentary special Neighbours 30th: The Stars Reunite, which aired in Australia and the UK in March 2015.
In 2016, McLachlan appeared in the sci-fi thriller Restoration, playing Andrew Majury.
In 2017, it was announced that McLachlan was again cast as Frank N. Furter in upcoming The Rocky Horror Show touring Australia in 2017/2018 to Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth.
2018, fans can look forward to seeing Craig as Frank N. Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, and as Doctor Lucien Blake on Channel 7!
How Craig found out about Doctor Blake
Craig was in Los Angeles, California, getting a Green Card so that he could work in the United States. He was working on an episode of NCIS: Los Angeles. He played Clifford Bosworth on Season 3, Episode 6, Lone Wolf ,when he was made aware of a new series that they were casting for called The Doctor Blake Mysteries. He really wanted this role and went after it .
“When a friend sent him a copy of the script for The Dr Blake Mysteries' first episode, McLachlan saw an opportunity to realize both ambitions in the role of Lucien Blake, a GP and police surgeon in 1950s Ballarat who is haunted by the atrocities he witnessed during World War II.
He knew it would be a tough ask to convince the producers he was appropriate for the part, given the character is in his mid-50s and has a gravitas that was the antithesis of McLachlan's public image.
"Sometimes you get that overwhelming feeling that this is one for you and you just gotta go for it."
McLachlan was in LA, appearing in an episode of NCIS: Los Angeles, so while "having a great time shooting some gritty scenes with LL Cool J" he also prepared an unsolicited audition for Dr Blake.
"I already had the beginnings of a beard, with fair bit of grey in it, and I spent a day filming in the Hollywood Hills without any sun protection and squinting as much as I could to highlight the crow's feet around the eyes.
"By the end of that day I was looking a bit worse for wear and the next morning I got a friend to film me doing five scenes and emailed them to the producers."
Although the first season of The Dr Blake Mysteries only started screening on TV One last week, it played in Australia a year ago. "It was one of the top three or four Australian dramas of last year, which was an exciting thing to achieve. Plus, season one recently screened in the UK on BBC1.
"To have an Aussie show picked up by that channel is quite extraordinary but, as I understand it, it also won its timeslot over there and the BBC have bought season two and are already asking questions about season three, which we haven't even shot yet. So yeah, it's been really satisfying for all of us to see our baby do so well."
Its success aside, McLachlan says the series is "creatively the best gig of my career and gives me the chance to work with a whole bunch of wonderful people", name-checking in particular series.
Creator George Adams and NZ's Joel Tobeck, who plays the local police chief have "become a very close friend who I enjoy working with enormously"
Source: Herald on Sunday by: Nick Grant, 26 Jan, 2014
Source: NZ Herald
Source: IMDb; Wikipedia
He is an actor of huge range who is equally comfortable in film, television or stage productions. He not only carries with him huge personal charisma but is also not afraid to use it, which might account for his singular popularity across a wide range of audience demographics both in Australia and internationally.
Craig McLachlan first appeared on Australian television in a guest role on The Young Doctors. He was cast as Henry Ramsay, brother of Kylie Minogue’s character Charlene, in Channel 10’s Neighbours. After appearing in more than 800 episodes and winning the Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television (1990) and Silver Logie, he was contracted to Seven Network’s Home and Away playing schoolteacher Grant Mitchell.
A singer, guitarist and songwriter, McLachlan enjoyed international success in a concurrent pop music career. He had hits in Australia and the UK with a remake of the Bo Diddleysong “Mona (I Need You Baby)” and with self-penned songs “Amanda”, “One Reason Why” and “On My Own”. He toured the UK and Europe with his band Check 1–2.
In 1993 McLachlan starred as Danny Zuko in the West End revival of the musical Grease alongside Deborah Gibson and Sonia Evans. In his stage musical career he starred as Frank N Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Bob Wallace in White Christmas and Billy Flynn in Chicago.
In the mid-1990s McLachlan starred in three seasons of the BBC television series Bugs and appeared in Catherine the Great alongside Catherine Zeta-Jones and Omar Sharif.
Throughout the first decade of the 21st century, McLachlan appeared in around 20 film and television projects, including the American movie Superfire, as Stuart Diver in the television film Heroes’ Mountain, and Blackjack with Colin Friels. In 2004 he played Michael Chamberlain in Through My Eyes, an account of the Lindy Chamberlain story, and began work in the recurring role of Kane Morgan in McLeod's Daughters. He played Jeff Kennard in the Australian film Hating Alison Ashley, worked alongside Benjamin Bratt and James Franco in The Great Raid. and starred with John Jarratt in Savages Crossing, for which he composed score.
McLachlan appeared regularly in the Network Seven TV series Packed to the Rafters as ageing rocker Steve Wilson and was cast in the fourth season of Rescue: Special Ops as Hayden Bradley. He played the role of Steve, the handsome gay gardener, in the award-winning production At Home With Julia, and appeared in the ABC comedy Lowdown. In 2011 McLachlan had a guest-starring role in an episode of NCIS Los Angeles.
In 2011, British group Rizzle Kicks sampled McLachlan’s version of “Mona” for their single “Mama Do the Hump”, which peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart.
McLachlan returned to Australia in 2012 to work on a then new TV series, The Doctor Blake Mysteries, a period crime drama set in Ballarat in 1950s and 1960s. He plays the title role, Dr Lucien Blake, a medical practitioner with a knack for solving murders and annoying the police. In Feb 2017, it was announced that the ABC had cancelled The Doctor Blake Mysteries. Nearing the end of broadcasting of Series 5 on the ABC, it was announced by Channel 7 that they had rescued The Doctor Blake Mysteries.
In 2013, McLachlan was again cast as Frank N. Furter in a revival of The Rocky Horror Show touring Australia in 2014. In December 2014, McLachlan revealed that he was unable to return to Neighbours for the show's 30th anniversary celebrations due to scheduling conflicts and his involvement in The Doctor Blake Mysteries. However, McLachlan agreed to take part in the documentary special Neighbours 30th: The Stars Reunite, which aired in Australia and the UK in March 2015.
In 2016, McLachlan appeared in the sci-fi thriller Restoration, playing Andrew Majury.
In 2017, it was announced that McLachlan was again cast as Frank N. Furter in upcoming The Rocky Horror Show touring Australia in 2017/2018 to Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth.
2018, fans can look forward to seeing Craig as Frank N. Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, and as Doctor Lucien Blake on Channel 7!
How Craig found out about Doctor Blake
Craig was in Los Angeles, California, getting a Green Card so that he could work in the United States. He was working on an episode of NCIS: Los Angeles. He played Clifford Bosworth on Season 3, Episode 6, Lone Wolf ,when he was made aware of a new series that they were casting for called The Doctor Blake Mysteries. He really wanted this role and went after it .
“When a friend sent him a copy of the script for The Dr Blake Mysteries' first episode, McLachlan saw an opportunity to realize both ambitions in the role of Lucien Blake, a GP and police surgeon in 1950s Ballarat who is haunted by the atrocities he witnessed during World War II.
He knew it would be a tough ask to convince the producers he was appropriate for the part, given the character is in his mid-50s and has a gravitas that was the antithesis of McLachlan's public image.
"Sometimes you get that overwhelming feeling that this is one for you and you just gotta go for it."
McLachlan was in LA, appearing in an episode of NCIS: Los Angeles, so while "having a great time shooting some gritty scenes with LL Cool J" he also prepared an unsolicited audition for Dr Blake.
"I already had the beginnings of a beard, with fair bit of grey in it, and I spent a day filming in the Hollywood Hills without any sun protection and squinting as much as I could to highlight the crow's feet around the eyes.
"By the end of that day I was looking a bit worse for wear and the next morning I got a friend to film me doing five scenes and emailed them to the producers."
Although the first season of The Dr Blake Mysteries only started screening on TV One last week, it played in Australia a year ago. "It was one of the top three or four Australian dramas of last year, which was an exciting thing to achieve. Plus, season one recently screened in the UK on BBC1.
"To have an Aussie show picked up by that channel is quite extraordinary but, as I understand it, it also won its timeslot over there and the BBC have bought season two and are already asking questions about season three, which we haven't even shot yet. So yeah, it's been really satisfying for all of us to see our baby do so well."
Its success aside, McLachlan says the series is "creatively the best gig of my career and gives me the chance to work with a whole bunch of wonderful people", name-checking in particular series.
Creator George Adams and NZ's Joel Tobeck, who plays the local police chief have "become a very close friend who I enjoy working with enormously"
Source: Herald on Sunday by: Nick Grant, 26 Jan, 2014
Source: NZ Herald
Source: IMDb; Wikipedia