Ian McElhinney
Ian McElhinney was a prominent British film and TV actor who became well known to American audiences for playing Barristan Selmy on fantasy drama "Game of Thrones" (HBO 2011- ). Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1948, McElhinney did not begin acting professionally until he was well into his 30s with small roles in British films like "Angel" (1982), "Anne Devlin" (1984), and "A Prayer for the Dying" (1987). By the early '90s, McElhinney started adding television roles to his growing list of screen credits, and started nabbing recurring roles on shows like "Hearts and Minds" (Channel 4, 1995), "Wokenwell" (ITV, 1997), and "Maisie Raine" (BBC1, 1998-99), a short-lived British cop show. McElhinney's prolific TV career continued into the 2000s, with hefty roles on shows like the medical drama "The Clinic" (RTÉ One, 2003-09), as well as Irish drama "Single-Handed" (RTÉ One, 2007-10). By the 2010s, McElhinney had racked up dozens of credits on various British films and TV shows, but was a relatively unknown actor in the United States, despite appearing in American films such as "Leap Year" (2010) and the historical TV drama "The Tudors" (Showtime 2007-2010). However, McElhinney would become more prominent to American audiences when he landed the role of the respected warrior Barristan Selmy on HBO's hit fantasy series, "Game of Thrones." Although the sprawling cast of "Game of Thrones" numbered in the hundreds, McElhinney was one of the few cast members to appear in most episodes of the series until his character's unexpected death in the midst of the show's fifth season.
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Ian McElhinney
Filmography
Movies
Credit | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
67% |
|
The Last Rifleman | Tom Malcolmson (Character) | - | 2023 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Dave Allen at Peace | Unknown (Character) | - | 2018 |
88% |
|
Zoo | Mr. Shawcross (Character) | - | 2017 |
92% |
|
Bad Day for the Cut | Eamon (Character) | - | 2017 |
67% |
|
The Journey | Rory McBride (Character) | $152.5K | 2016 |
29% |
|
Sacrifice | D.I. McKie (Character) | - | 2016 |
86% |
|
A Patch of Fog | Unknown (Character) | - | 2015 |
No Score Yet |
|
An Old-Fashioned Christmas | Sean (Character) | - | 2010 |
24% |
|
Leap Year | Priest (Character) | $25.9M | 2010 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Make It New John | John (Character) | - | 2010 |
No Score Yet |
|
Triage | Ivan (Character) | - | 2009 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Swansong: Story of Occi Byrne | Skip (Character) | - | 2009 |
No Score Yet |
|
The Front Line | Mikey (Character) | - | 2006 |
88% |
|
Omagh | Stanley McCombe (Character) | - | 2004 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | No Tears | Padraig McFadden (Character) | - | 2002 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Mapmaker | Inspector Devlin (Character) | - | 2002 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Durango | Vestor McCarthy (Character) | - | 1999 |
53% |
|
A Love Divided | Reverend Hamilton (Character) | - | 1999 |
No Score Yet |
|
Hornblower: The Examination for Lieutenant | Captain Hammond (Character) | - | 1998 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Touch and Go | Clive Bevan (Character) | - | 1998 |
No Score Yet |
|
This Is the Sea | Da Stokes (Character) | - | 1997 |
95% |
|
Hamlet | Barnardo (Character) | $4.4M | 1996 |
60% |
|
Small Faces | Uncle Andrew (Character) | $160.7K | 1995 |
No Score Yet |
|
Blind Justice | Father Malone (Character) | - | 1994 |
92% |
|
The Playboys | Joe Cassidy (Character) | $4.9M | 1992 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | You, Me & Marley | Reggie Devine (Character) | - | 1992 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Grasscutter | Brian Devlin (Character) | - | 1990 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Reefer and the Model | Unknown (Character) | - | 1989 |
No Score Yet |
|
Lamb | Maguire (Character) | - | 1985 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The End of the World Man | Architecht (Character) | - | 1985 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Anne Devlin | Maj Sirr (Character) | - | 1984 |
TV
Credit | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
86% | 82% | The Outlaws | John Sr (Character) | 2021-2022 2024 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | High Country | Unknown (Character) | 2024 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Celebrity Antiques Road Trip | Guest | 2023 |
91% | 82% | Unforgotten | Tony Hume (Character) | 2023 |
99% | 95% | Derry Girls | Granda Joe (Character) | 2018-2019 2022 |
76% | 91% | The Split | Ronnie (Character) | 2020 2022 |
71% | 71% | Bloodlands | Adam Corry (Character) | 2021 |
67% | 50% | The Deceived | Hugh (Character) | 2020 |
80% | 68% | Krypton | Val-El (Character) | 2018-2019 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Silent Witness | Pat Walsh (Character) | 2019 |
91% | 89% | Mrs Wilson | Father Timothy (Character) | 2018 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Kat & Alfie: Redwater | Lance Byrne (Character) | 2017 |
40% | 83% | Rebellion | Edward Butler (Character) | 2016 |
89% | 85% | Game of Thrones | Barristan Selmy (Guest Star) | 2011 2013-2015 |
94% | 91% | Ripper Street | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2013-2014 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Holby City | Brian Chapman (Character) | 2003 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | No Tears | Padraig McFadden (Character) | 2002 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Maisie Raine | Unknown (Character) | 1998-1999 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Between the Lines | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1993 |