Liam McGinnis

Niall was not only an actor but a qualified surgeon.He began his stage career at the age of 19 and used the money he saved to study for a medical degree in London. He qualified just before the war and on the outbreak of hostilities joined the Royal Navy as a Surgeon Lieutenant. After the war still undecided on which career to follow he combined the two taking time off from acting to become a Ship's Surgeon in the Merchant Navy. His interest in medicine was inherited as his father was a doctor and from an early age he found it difficult to make up his mind whether to follow in his father's footsteps or follow his own inclinations to become an actor and succeeded in doing both. He made his professional stage debut in London in 1931 and for the next few years worked in repertory at Sheffield, Wolverhampton and Oxford with occasional appearances at the Gate Theatre in his native Dublin. He made his film debut in 'Turn of the Tide in 1935 and was given leave from the navy to appear in 49th Parallel in 1941. After the war still undecided as to which career to follow he more or less had his mind made up for him by an offer of an attractive role in 'Captain Boycott'. Since then he's combined stage and screen with the emphasis on films such as 'The Shiralee', 'Anna Karenina', and 'Alexander the Great' He lived 17 miles outside Dublin with his wife and daughter and when filming flew home home every weekend.