Bill Paterson
Paterson in 2006
Born	William Tulloch Paterson (1945-06-03)3 June 1945 (age 80) Glasgow, Scotland
Education	Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (BA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1967–present
Spouse	Hildegard Bechtler ​ (m. 1984)​
Children	2
Website	billpaterson.co.uk

William Tulloch Paterson (born 3 June 1945) is a Scottish actor. Throughout his career he has appeared regularly in radio drama and provided the narration for a large number of documentaries.

Paterson has appeared in films and television series includingComfort and Joy (1984),Traffik (1989),Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (1986),Truly, Madly, Deeply (1990),The Witches (1990),Wives and Daughters (1999),Sea of Souls (2004–2007),Amazing Grace (2006),Miss Potter (2006),Little Dorrit (2008),Doctor Who (2010),Outlander (2014),Fleabag (2016–2019),Inside No. 9 (2018),Good Omens (2019),Brassic (2020) andHouse of the Dragon (2022). He is a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Scottish BAFTAs.

William Tulloch Paterson was born inGlasgow on 3 June 1945.^[1] Paterson was raised inDennistoun by his father, a plumber, and his mother, a hairdresser.^[2] He states that his interest in acting began with a school trip to theCitizens Theatre in theGorbals in 1961.^[2] However, after school he chose to initially pursue a career based on an interest inarchitecture and spent three years as aquantity surveyor's apprentice before deciding to attend theRoyal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.^[3][2][4][5]

Paterson made his professional acting debut in 1967,^[4] appearing alongsideLeonard Rossiter inBertolt Brecht'sThe Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui at the GlasgowCitizens Theatre.^[2] In 1970, Paterson joined the Citizens' Theatre for Youth. He remained there as an actor and assistant director until 1972, when he left to appear withBilly Connolly in the musical comedyThe Great Northern Welly Boot Show at theEdinburgh Festival in 1972.^[6][2] Paterson would work with Connolly again, some years later, when he performed in Connolly's playAn Me Wi' a Bad Leg Tae. After having seen Paterson perform at the Festival,John McGrath invited him to join his theatre company,7:84, touring the United Kingdom andEurope with plays such asThe Cheviot, the Stag, and the Black Black Oil.^[2][4] He was a founding member of 7:84, and made hisLondon debut in 1976 with the company. He appeared in the Edinburgh Festival and London withJohn Byrne's first play,Writer's Cramp.

He first appeared in theWest End when he took over the lead role inWhose Life Is It Anyway? at theSavoy Theatre in 1979. Paterson's career began to centre as much on television than the theatre. His first appearances in 1978 were as a police Sergeant ofScotland Yard inThe Odd Job^[7] and then inBAFTA award winning dramaLicking Hitler. He then playedKing James in the UK television serialWill Shakespeare the same year. Paterson would later recall that the biggest regret of his career was during this period, when in 1978 he failed to attend an audition for a role in the filmAlien.^[5] He provided the voice of the Assistant Arcturan Pilot in Episode 7 of the originalBBC Radio 4 version ofThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in 1978.^[8] He played Lopakhin in the BBC production ofThe Cherry Orchard in 1981. Paterson did not, however, entirely neglect the theatre, and in 1982, he was nominated for aLaurence Olivier Award for his performance as Schweyk in another Brecht play,Schweik in the Second World War at theNational Theatre. He was in the original National Theatre production ofGuys and Dolls (1982).^[4]

The early 1980s also saw Paterson beginning to appear in films, includingThe Killing Fields,Comfort and Joy^[9] andA Private Function (all 1984).^[4] Other film credits includeDutch Girls (1985) andThe Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1987).

In television, his extensive and award-winning TV career includes a memorable portrayal of property villainAlly Fraser in series 2 ofAuf Wiedersehen, Pet (1986). He also appeared inSmiley's People (1982),The Singing Detective (1986),Traffik (1988).

Paterson performed inDeath and the Maiden at theRoyal Court andDuke of York's (1991–92). Other theatre roles in this period includeIvanov at theAlmeida, London andMaly Theatre, Moscow (1997).

In 1990, he performed the role of Mr Jenkins, father to a child who gets turned into a mouse in,The Witches (1990). He went on to act inTruly, Madly, Deeply (1990),Chaplin (1992), SirIan McKellen'sRichard III (1995).^[10] In 1997, he appeared as Brian, a cafe owner who knows theSpice Girls, inSpice World.^[11] He also performed inThe Crow Road (1996), a miniseries from the novel byIain Banks^[2] andDoctor Zhivago (2002).

He later performed in the filmsBright Young Things (2003),Miss Potter (2006),How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008) andCreation (2009).^[12] In television, much of his later work has been for theBBC, starring as Dr Douglas Monaghan in three seasons of the supernatural drama seriesSea of Souls (2004–2007).^[2] He also played the role of Dr Gibson in the 1999 production ofWives and Daughters, and appeared in the 2008BBC production of theCharles Dickens novelLittle Dorrit as Mr Meagles, as DS Box in the first series ofCriminal Justice (2008), and as DrJames Niven inSpanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen.

Paterson has also narrated for various television and radio programmes. In 2005, he would take a role as Rob McKenna, a lorry driver and unknowing Rain God, in Fits the 19th, 20th, and 22nd ofThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Quandary Phase. In 2003, Paterson began broadcasting radio stories about his childhood in Glasgow,Tales From the Back Green onBBC Scotland, which led to them being published by Hodder in 2008 and appearances at many book festivals throughout the UK. He narrated the 2009 BBC TV programme1929 – The Great Crash which recalled theWall Street crash of 1929 and compared it to the recent financial turmoil of 2008. From 2009 to 2010, he appeared asGeorge Castle, the head of theCPS inLaw & Order: UK.^[13] He also played the key role of SIS Chief Percy Alleline in the 2009BBC Radio 4 version ofTinker Tailor Soldier Spy.^[14]

In 2010, Paterson starred inDoctor Who as Professor Edwin Bracewell, in the episode "Victory of the Daleks", with his character making a second appearance in the opening half of the season finale, "The Pandorica Opens".^[15][16] Later in the year, Paterson narrated theBBC Four wildlife documentaryBirds Britannia.

In 2011, Paterson starred inFast Freddie, The Widow and Me.^[17] His most recent theatre isEarthquakes in London at the National Theatre in the summer of 2010. He also narrated the BBC's annual coverage of theRoyal Edinburgh Military Tattoo and in 2013 appeared asAdam Smith inThe Low Road at the Royal Court.

Paterson played lawyer Ned Gowan in the 2014Starz period TV series,Outlander.^[18] In 2014, Paterson landed a part as Douglas Henshall's father in TV seriesShetland.^[19]

In 2015, he starred alongsideBrian Cox in a performance ofWaiting for Godot at theRoyal Lyceum Theatre.^[2] In 2015, Paterson was presented with the lifetime achievement of theScottish BAFTAs.^[6][20]

In 2016, he narratedThe Farmers' Country Showdown, a series for the BBC following theagricultural show season and broadcast early in 2017.^[21] In 2016, Paterson performed with his friendSimon Callow inThe Rebel.^[22] He also appeared as the Scottish character Private Frazer in the remake filmDad's Army.^[23][24]

Beginning with the first season in 2016 and ending with the second season in 2019, Paterson played the father of the main character and her sister in the British TV showFleabag.^[2][4] In 2019, Paterson also performed in the four-part BBC dramaGuilt.^[4]

In 2022, Paterson performed in the fantasy dramaHouse of the Dragon as the character LordLyman Beesbury.^[25] He is the narrator of the British TV showThe Repair Shop.^[26]

In 1980, while filmingThe Lost Tribe, Paterson purchased a holiday home inFordyce with fellow actorMiriam Margolyes.^[a][27]

In 1984, Paterson married German stage designerHildegard Bechtler. They have a son and daughter.^[28][2] Since leaving Glasgow he has spent much of his life living inLondon and currently resides in North London nearTufnell Park.^[2][28][10]

Paterson has published a series of book stories, based on his childhood in Glasgow, entitledTales From The Back Green.^[10]

• Official website
• Bill Paterson atIMDb
• Playback/Law & Order Images of Bill Paterson

• 1945 births
• Living people
• Male actors from Glasgow
• Alumni of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
• Scottish male film actors
• Scottish male stage actors
• Scottish male television actors
• Scottish male voice actors

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