John Nolan obit

Tributes to John Nolan - actor, director and a free spirit

 He was not on the list.

John Nolan (22 May 1938 – 11 April 2026) was a British actor, known for his role as Nick Faunt in Shabby Tiger, Wayne Enterprises board member Douglas Fredericks in Batman Begins, the Gotham Tonight promotional segments for The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises.

Nolan was born in London, England, on 22 May 1938. He has been married to Kim Hartman since 1975; he has a son and a daughter. He was the paternal uncle of brothers Christopher and Jonathan Nolan.

He had a recurring role in his nephew Jonathan Nolan's television series Person of Interest as John Greer, a mysterious British figure connected with Decima Technologies and the main villain from seasons three to five of the show.

Nolan died on 11 April 2026, aged 87.

Classically-trained London-born character actor and stage director, the paternal uncle of film makers Christopher Nolan and Jonathan Nolan. In 1968, he played Clitus in Julius Caesar with the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon, followed by two years of residency. He subsequently appeared in most of the Bard's plays, including The Merry Wives of Windsor, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, The Merchant of Venice and Measure for Measure. Nolan has also played the lead in the Dostoyevsky Trilogy for the Bristol Old Vic (1980-81) and latterly essayed the alcoholic Doc in Tennessee Williams' Small Craft Warnings at the Arcola Theatre in the East End of London.

Nolan made his screen debut in 1967. His first pivotal role in that medium was as the eponymous hero in a famous BBC adaptation of George Eliot's Daniel Deronda (1970). This led to more regular TV work, including as Geoff Hardcastle, one of the Doomwatch (1970) department, and as the artist Nick Faunt in the miniseries Shabby Tiger (1973), set in 1930s Manchester. In addition to diverse TV guest spots, Nolan portrayed Wayne Enterprise board member Douglas Fredericks on the big screen in Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012). As a voice actor, he has narrated documentaries and appeared in ads on TV and radio.

His most high profile screen role to date has been that of ex MI-6 agent John Greer, primary antagonist (from season two) in the compelling sci-fi drama Person of Interest (2011). Greer was the operational head of Decima Technologies, a sinister covert organisation serving Samaritan, an artificially intelligent (but seriously flawed) mass surveillance computer system. The show was created by John's nephew Jonathan, according to whom "the best bad guys are always English. That's just kind of a rule. And so my uncle came on board in exactly the same fashion as all of these actors, as a memorable turn that became a longer story arc."

Since 1975, John Nolan has been married to Kim Hartman, best known on TV for her role as the manipulative seductress Helga Geerhart in the popular BBC sitcom 'Allo 'Allo! (1982).

 

Actor

Emily Watson, Mark Strong, Olivia Williams, and Travis Fimmel in Dune: Prophecy (2024)

Dune: Prophecy

7.3

TV Series

Speaker for the Hall

2024

1 episode

 

Pose (2018)

Pose

8.0

Short

Gary

2018

 

Dunkirk (2017)

Dunkirk

7.8

Blind Man

2017

 

Jim Caviezel and Michael Emerson in Person of Interest (2011)

Person of Interest

8.5

TV Series

John Greer

2013–2016

28 episodes

 

Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Matthew Modine, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotillard, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

The Dark Knight Rises

8.4

Fredericks

2012

 

Batman Begins (2005)

Batman Begins

8.2

Fredericks

2005

 

Amanda Burton, Emilia Fox, Sam Barnard, David Caves, and Genesis Lynea in Silent Witness (1996)

Silent Witness

7.9

TV Series

Mr. O'Gara

2003

1 episode

 

Masterpiece (1971)

Masterpiece

8.6

TV Series

Balthazar

2001

1 episode

 

Following (1998)

Following

7.4

The Policeman

1998

 

Richard Beckinsale, Freddie Fletcher, Bernard Hepton, Arthur Lowe, Jack Rosenthal, and Paula Wilcox in ITV Playhouse (1967)

ITV Playhouse

7.2

TV Series

DoctorRay

1968–1980

2 episodes

 

Alfred Burke, Simon Cadell, Adolf Hitler, Bernard Horsfall, and Martin Jarvis in Enemy at the Door (1978)

Enemy at the Door

7.9

TV Series

Paddy Burke

1980

1 episode

 

The World Is Full of Married Men (1979)

The World Is Full of Married Men

4.4

Joe

1979

 

Don Henderson, Diane Keen, Peter Sallis, and Don Warrington in Crown Court (1972)

Crown Court

7.4

TV Series

Inspector FlemingAidan Reilly

1977–1979

3 episodes

 

Ian Ogilvy in Return of the Saint (1978)

Return of the Saint

6.7

TV Series

Corvis

1979

1 episode

 

Terror (1978)

Terror

5.2

James Garrick

1978

 

Christopher Benjamin, Kenneth Colley, Vivien Heilbron, Philip Madoc, Patrick Mower, Ron Pember, Brendan Price, Sandy Ratcliff, and Maurice Roëves in Target (1977)

Target

7.4

TV Series

Scott Taylor

1978

1 episode

 

1990 (1977)

1990

7.4

TV Series

Tomson

1978

1 episode

 

Peter Jones and Miriam Karlin in The Rag Trade (1975)

The Rag Trade

6.9

TV Series

Roberto

1977

1 episode

 

Ian Hendry, Carole Mowlam, and Maureen Pryor in The Sunday Drama (1977)

The Sunday Drama

4.8

TV Series

Milos

1977

1 episode

 

Dickens of London (1976)

Dickens of London

7.2

TV Mini Series

Willis

1976

1 episode

 

General Hospital (1972)

General Hospital

7.5

TV Series

Dr. Keith Bedford

1976

1 episode

 

Clifford Rose and Mollie Sugden in Six Days of Justice (1972)

Six Days of Justice

6.8

TV Series

Dr. Bryant

1975

1 episode

 

John Thaw and Dennis Waterman in The Sweeney (1975)

The Sweeney

8.1

TV Series

Bernie Conway

1975

1 episode

 

Marked Personal (1973)

Marked Personal

8.2

TV Series

Sean Carter

1974

2 episodes

 

Brian Blessed, Diana Dors, Sinéad Cusack, Don Henderson, Freddie Jones, Nyree Dawn Porter, Robert Powell, and Dennis Waterman in Thriller (1973)

Thriller

7.8

TV Series

Marty Fuller

1974

1 episode

 

The Water Margin (1973)

The Water Margin

8.1

TV Series

(voice: English version)

1973–1974

4 episodes

 

Prunella Gee and John Nolan in Shabby Tiger (1973)

Shabby Tiger

7.9

TV Mini Series

Nick Faunt

1973

7 episodes

 

The Nelson Affair (1973)

The Nelson Affair

6.4

Captain Blackwood

1973

 

Joby Blanshard, John Paul, and Robert Powell in Doomwatch (1970)

Doomwatch

7.3

TV Series

Geoff Hardcastle

1970–1971

10 episodes

 

Robert Hardy and Martha Henry in Daniel Deronda (1970)

Daniel Deronda

7.1

TV Mini Series

Daniel Deronda

1970

6 episodes

 

Kaz Garas, Anthony Quayle, and Anneke Wills in Strange Report (1969)

Strange Report

8.1

TV Series

Cliff Hunt

1969

1 episode

 

Gerald Harper in Hadleigh (1969)

Hadleigh

7.1

TV Series

Mick

1969

1 episode

 

The Prisoner (1967)

The Prisoner

8.4

TV Series

Young Guest

1967

1 episode

 

Thanks

US (2022)

US

4.0

Short

special thanks

2022

 

Shein Mompremier and Travis Burns in A Christmas Princess (2019)

A Christmas Princess

5.5

TV Movie

special thanks to

2019

 

Archive Footage

Mehmet Açar in Film Önü / Arkasi (2019)

Film Önü / Arkasi

5.8

TV Series

Self (archive footage)

2020

1 episode

 

Jim Caviezel and Michael Emerson in Person of Interest (2011)

Person of Interest

8.5

TV Series

John Greer (archive footage, uncredited)

2016

1 episode