Steven Berkoff

Posted on by Tony CrawleyCategories:Actors
  1. Emrys James, Doctor Who #112: State of Decay, TV, 1980.        There were 21 potential Aukons and all – except James – had been this way before, standing at the Whoverse portal, awaiting a callback… Berkoff, Peter Arne, Colin Baker, John Carson, David Collings, Peter Gilmore, Michael Gothard, John Hallam, Donald Houston, Martin Jarvis, Michael Jayston, Ronald Lacey, William Lucas, Ian McKellen, John Normington, Patrick Stewart, Anthony Valentine, Peter Vaughan, David Warner, Peter Wyngarde. And Berkoff, the over-powering actor-playwright affectionately (?) known as Jerkoff. 
  2. Patrick Stewart, Lifeforce, 1984.
  3. Michael Gothard, Lifeforce, 1984.
  4. Tom Adams, Doctor Who #130: Warrior s of The Deep, 1984.         Competing for Commander Vorshak in Doc5 Peter Davison’s finale were 13 of the army of 203 candidates for just 18 roles in that year’s Lifeforce movie mess: Berkoff, Kenneth Colley, Michael Craigh, Paul Darrow, Anton Diffring, Del Henney, Martin Jarvis, Ian McCulloch, Patrick Mower, Patrick Stewart, David Warner, Simon Williams and Peter Wyngarde. Plus three outsiders: Brian Blessed, Peter Gilmore, Gareth Hunt.   Berkoff, actor-playwright, never did Whove; he did a Star Trek Deep Space Nine, instead – #18: Business As Usual, 1997, if you must know…
  5. Maurice Colbourne, Doctor Who #133: Resurrection Of The Daleks, TV, 1984.        Producer John Nathan-Turner wanted a name for Commander Lytton… like Meg Bennett, Brian Blessed, Kenneth Cope, Timothy Dalton   (the future Lord President in #202: The End of Time, 2000), Leslie Grantham (not yet Dirty Den in EastEnders), Alfred Lynch, Clive Merrison (BBC Radio’s Sherlock Holmes), Terry Molloy (aka Davros), John Rhys-Davies, Maurice Roëves. Plus many Lifeforcers: Berkoff, Nicholas Ball, Tom Chadbon, Paul Darrow, Michael Gothard, Don Henderson, Del Henney (he became Colonel Archer), Martin Jarvis, Michael Jayston, Edward Peel, George Sewell, Patrick Stewart, Anthony Valentine and David Warner. All 25 up for one role in Doctor Who… preposterous!
  6. Christopher Gable, Doctor Who #135: The Caves of Androzani, TV, 1984.      Mixed signals about Sharez Jek… Rock idols like David Bowie, Roger Daltrey, Mick Jagger and the rockerish Tim Curry – or actors Berkoff, Patrick Allen, Nicholas Ball,    Brian Cox, Christopher Gable, Michael Gambon, Julian Glover, John Hurt, Derek Jacobi, Martin Jarvis, Michael Jayston, Oliver Tobias. Berkoff was also up for two o ther roles…
  7. Maurice Roëves, Doctor Who #135: The Caves of Androzani, TV, 1984.      Regular Whovidersers Berkoff, Patrick Allen, Alun Armstrong, Nicholas Ball, Kenneth Cope, Michel Elphick and outsider Warren Clarke were Stotz candidates.  
  8. Martin Cochrane, Doctor Who #135: The Caves of Androzani, TV, 1984.      Berkoff, Michael Gambon and Julian Glover lost their promotion to General Chellak – to Cochrane. Yes, Martin, not his younger brother, Whoverse regular Michael Cochrane.
  9. Richard Lynch, Invasion USA, 1985.    Brooklyn’s Lynch stepped in where the UK actor-playwright feared to tread. Because of too much violence, Berkoff refused the villaion. Hip-hip hooray! It grieves me to add that until 2007, this Chuck Norris crap was MGM’s second best selling home video after… Gone With The Wind. Unbelievable.
  10. Dennis Hopper, Blue Velvet, 1985.       Auteur David Lynch’s first choice for Frank Booth was the UK actor-playwright. He passed. “Too repulsive and intense… nothing in that part except destruction.” Not so, said Hopper. “I’ve got to play Frank. Because… I am Frank!” He even suggested swiching from breathing helium to amyl nitrite, mainly used to enhance sexual experiences.  Also on the Lynch list: Willem Dafoe, Robert Loggia, Harry Dean Stanton.

  11. Paul Darrow, Doctor Who #141: Timelash, TV, 1985.         Berkoff, Darrow, Andrew Burt, Tom Chadbon, Michael Gothard, Ronald Lacey, Patrick Mower and David Warner were in the frame for Tekker opposite Doc6 Colin Baker. Sex-scandalous producer John Nathan-Turner suggested Darrow play Tekker like his Blakes 7 character, Avon. Darrow had a loftier notion. Richard III.
  12. Ronny Cox, Robocop, 1986.      The cop as a machine – “the future of law enforcement.”    So there had to be a villain. Trouble was Berkoff had played too many.  Cox, none at all. Worked like a dream  As did the movie that every studio in  town had simply  laughed at.
  13. George Sewell, Doctor Who #148: Remembrance of the Daleks, 1988.        Aunty searched for fascist leader Ratcliffe among Joss Ackland, Kenneth Cope, Peter Gilmore, Bernard Hill, Glyn Houston, Stratford Johns… and Lifeforcers  Berkoff, George Baker, Keith Barron, John Carson, Kenneth Colley, Del Henney, Ronald Lacey, TP McKenna, David Warner, Frank Windsor. The difference being that Who was science fiction, Lifeforce was science fart.

 Birth year: Death year: Other name: Casting Calls:  13