An English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner 1962 Billy Liar 1963 and Dr Zhivago 1965 Since the mid1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre Courtenay received a knighthood in February 2001 for forty years service to cinema and theatre Courtenay is the President of Hull City AFCs Official Supporters Club In 1999 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Hull University Description above from the Wikipedia article Tom Courtenay licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia