David Ross

British actor David Ross is a veteran of stage, screen, and television. Although he has been performing since the 1960s, he achieved only limited notice from TV and film audiences until he began acting in widely distributed productions in the 1990s. For example, he played to worldwide audiences as Mr. Bumble in the 1999 TV miniseries Oliver Twist, Mr. Sedley in the 1998 TV miniseries Vanity Fair, and the doctor in the 1996 Julia Roberts/John Malkovich film Mary Reilly. In 1962, when he was just 17, Ross decided to act for a living. After learning the rudiments of drama with the Harrogate Rep. Company, he underwent further training at Manchester Polytechnic and later performed for the Manchester Contact Theatre. Then he slowly worked his way up through the ranks, appearing in little-known productions such as Yanks Go Home (TV, 1976), Sherlock Holmes (film, 1984), and Aria (film, 1987). However, he gained a modicum of renown among British audiences between 1988 and 1995 for his guest roles in the Red Dwarf TV series. His film work in the late 20th century included roles in Little Odessa (1994), Eskimo Day (1996), and Basil (1998). Ross has appeared frequently on the stages of U.K. theaters. In the spring of 2002, he began a run at the London Palladium as a "Vulgarian spy" in the Adrian Noble musical adaptation of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. One London newspaper praised his performance as "pantomimically funny." ~ Mike Cummings, All Movie Guide