
Kenneth Colley
Acting
1937-12-07 - Present
Kenneth Colley (born 7 December 1937) is an English actor. A long-time character actor, he came to wider prominence through his role as Admiral Piett in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.
Colley was born in Manchester. He played Jesus (very briefly indeed) in The Life of Brian, having also appeared in the earlier Monty Python-related production Ripping Yarns episode "The Testing of Eric Olthwaite" alongside Michael Palin. As a Shakespearean actor he played the Duke of Vienna in the BBC Television Shakespeare production of Measure for Measure in 1979.
Colley also held an important role in the Clint Eastwood movie Firefox, where he played a Soviet Colonel tasked with the protection of the Firefox and its secrets.
Colley went on to play SS-Standartenführer Paul Blobel in the World War II drama War and Remembrance. His character was charged with hiding the evidence of the Holocaust, and putting dead victims through "Economic Processing".
According to comments Terry Gilliam (who directed him in Jabberwocky and co-starred with him in Life of Brian) made in the DVD audio commentaries for both films, Colley is a terrible stutterer in real life. When he had a role in a film, however, he could recite the lines perfectly. Stuttering is a character trait, however, in his role as the "Accordion Man" in the 1978 BBC television drama, Pennies from Heaven. He has also recently starred in BBC's HolbyBlue as a drunk and violent father, grandfather and father-in-law.
He currently lives at Hythe in Kent.
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Credits

Return of the JediasAdmiral Piett

The Empire Strikes BackasAdmiral Piett

Life of BrianasJesus

FirefoxasColonel Kontarsky

Hitler: The Last Ten DaysasBoldt

Les MisérablesasPolice Prefect

JuggernautasDetective Brown

Jabberwockyas1st Fanatic

The DevilsasLegrand

The Scarlet and the BlackasCapt. Hirsch

Brassed OffasGreasley

MahlerasKrenek

How I Won the Waras2nd Replacement

I Hired a Contract KillerasThe Killer

La Vie de BohèmeasStreet Sweeper

LisztomaniaasFrederic Chopin

PerformanceasTony Farrell (as Ken Colley)

The Whistle BlowerasBill Pickett

LEGO Star Wars: The Empire Strikes OutasAdmiral Piett (voice)

CasanovaasLe Duc

The RainbowasMr. Brunt

The Blood Beast TerrorasJames

The Music LoversasModeste Tchaikovsky

A Summer StoryasJim

Like Father Like SonasRawsthorne

Robert Rylands' Last JourneyasArchdale

The JokersasDe Winter

The Plot to Kill HitlerasWilhelm Keitel

The Last IslandasNick

Prisoner of HonorasCapt. Dreyfus

The Boy FriendasKing in fantasy sequence (uncredited)

FlameasTony Devlin

Shadow RunasLarcombe

Solomon & ShebaasNathan

Measure for MeasureasDuke Vincentio

The Triple EchoasProvo Corporal
Hold Back the NightasUncle Bob

Giro CityasMartin

Return to WaterlooasThe Traveller

The Secret Life of Arnold BaxasJohn Ireland

A Master of the MarionettesasInspector Tennyson

Dance of the Seven Veilsas

The Testing of Eric OlthwaiteasRobber

I Remember NelsonasVice-Adm. Horatio Viscount Nelson

Scar TissueasWeaver

Three Clear SundaysasNick

Kremlin FarewellasSergej

One Bummer News DayasFrank Benyon

The Danedyke MysteryasThe Major

Seventy Deadly PillsasCovent Garden porter

Unnatural CausesasInspector Gerry Reckless

GreetingsasKen

Dan Hawk Psychic DetectiveasThaddeus Moncrief
Who Pays?asCorbett

Come the RevolutionasBruce Tetley