Patrick Joseph McGoohan (March 19, 1928 – January 13, 2009)
was an
American-born
actor, raised in
Ireland and
England, with an extensive stage and film career, most notably in the 1960s
television series
Danger Man (renamed
Secret Agent when exported to the
US),
and
The Prisoner.
McGoohan wrote and directed several episodes of
The Prisoner himself, occasionally using the
pseudonyms Joseph Serf and Paddy Fitz.
He subsequently appeared in
David Cronenberg's
Scanners, and in
Mel Gibson's
Braveheart as
Edward Longshanks.
Early life
McGoohan was born in
Astoria, Queens,
New York City, to Thomas McGoohan and Rose Fitzpatrick, who were living in the
United States after emigrating from Ireland to look for work. Shortly after he was born, McGoohan's parents moved back to Mullaghmore,
County Leitrim,
Ireland, and, seven years later, they moved to
Sheffield,
England. McGoohan attended
St Vincent's school in Sheffield,
[Langley, R: Patrick McGoohan, pages 12-13. Tomahawk Press, 2007.] but following the outbreak of
World War II he was
evacuated to
Loughborough,
Leicestershire. There he attended
Ratcliffe College, where he excelled in mathematics and
boxing.
Acting career
McGoohan left school aged sixteen and returned to Sheffield where he worked as a chicken farmer, a bank clerk and a lorry driver before getting a job as a stage manager at
Sheffield Repertory Theatre. When one of the actors became ill, McGoohan filled in, launching his acting career.
