Early life and education
Neame was born in London and educated at King's School in Canterbury, Kent.2 He trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, graduating in 1970.2
Career
British stage and screen (1970-1981)
Neame launched his screen career in the early 1970s with Hammer Horror productions: No Blade of Grass (1970), Lust for a Vampire (1971), and Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972), in which he played Johnny Alucard, a young disciple who resurrects Count Dracula.1 The role established him as a compelling screen villain and remained one of his signature performances.
Concurrent British television work was extensive. He appeared as Lieutenant Dick Player in the BBC wartime drama Colditz (1972-74), and as Kaiser Wilhelm II in the ITV prestige series Edward the Seventh (1975). He played Flight Lieutenant John Curtis in the first series of Secret Army (1977). In 1981 he guest-starred in Blake's 7 as Colonel Quute in the episode "Traitor."2
Most notably for genre audiences, Neame was cast as the villain Skagra in the Doctor Who serial Shada (1979), a story written by Douglas Adams.3 Production was halted mid-shoot by a BBC technicians' dispute and the serial was never broadcast.3 It was eventually released on VHS using available footage and narration, and in 2017 the BBC produced an animated completion of the missing scenes, with Neame returning to provide his voice for the animated version of Skagra.3
American career (1982-present)
Neame relocated to the United States and from the mid-1980s onward built a steady career in American film and television. Film credits include Steel Dawn (1987), D.O.A. (1988), the James Bond film Licence to Kill (1989), Hellbound (1994), and Christopher Nolan's The Prestige (2006).2
His American television appearances spanned the major network and cable franchises of the era. He appeared in The A-Team (1985) as Jack Scarett, played the recurring character Hamilton Stone across three episodes of Dynasty (1988-89), and portrayed Vladimir Lenin in the Northern Exposure episode "Zarya" (1994). In science fiction, he played Knight Two in the Babylon 5 episode "And the Sky Full of Stars" (1994) and Dr. Franklin Bennett in the Earth 2 episode "All About Eve" (1995). In 2004 he appeared in the two-part Star Trek: Enterprise story "Storm Front" as a German General.2
Beyond screen work, Neame has performed with the Los Angeles Theatre Works, the audio theatre company known for its recorded stage productions.4
In 1997 he played the primary antagonist Jerec in Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II, appearing in the game's live-action cutscene sequences.2 He later contributed voice work to Star Wars: The Old Republic (2011).2
Neame is one of a small number of actors to have accumulated credits across Doctor Who, Blake's 7, the Star Trek franchise, Babylon 5, and Earth 2, a distinction he shares with a handful of other prolific genre performers.1
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters II (1989)
In Ghostbusters II, Neame portrayed the Maitre D' at Armand's Restaurant, the upscale Manhattan establishment where Peter Venkman takes Dana Barrett to dinner. The scene turns chaotic when Ray Stantz, Egon Spengler, and Winston Zeddemore arrive at the restaurant still covered in slime from the Psychomagnotheric slime river beneath First Avenue, still wearing their underwear. The Maitre D' calls the police.
The restaurant is referenced in IDW Publishing's Ghostbusters comics as Marquess Armand's, where it is noted as the site of Peter and Dana's "not-a-date."
