John Batchelor (actor)
John David Batchelor is a Singaporean-born Australian television and film actor. He is most known for portraying Chief Petty Officer Marine Technical / Chief Engineer Andy 'Charge' Thorpe on the Australian drama series Sea Patrol, and Peeto in the Australian feature film Red Dog.
Early life
Batchelor was born in Singapore to Australian parents.He nearly died from a bacterial infection at age 3. After passing out from a cardiac arrest in the emergency room in Melbourne Children's Hospital, he was revived with CPR and it took him
3 months to recover.
As a child, Batchelor and his family moved around frequently, as his father was a high-ranking officer in the Australian army. When he turned 7, he moved to Brisbane Australia where he spent most of his childhood. He acted in many plays there including And a Nightingale Sang, Jacques and his Master, Bouncers, Cyrano de Bergerac, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Shaughraun, Sweet Phoebe, Julius Caesar and The Misanthrope. He was awarded 2 State Theatre Awards before returning to Sydney, Australia.
Career
Batchelor graduated from Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art with a degree in Performing Arts in 1992.Besides portraying the regular role of Andy Thorpe on Sea Patrol, Batchelor has had guest roles on numerous TV series including All Saints, Water Rats, Stingers, and Murder Call. He appeared in the 2003 films, Inspector Gadget 2 and Danny Deckchair, and in the 2008 film The Tender Hook.
Batchelor also had a minor role as a bodyguard in the Australian comedy film Fat Pizza.
In 2011, Batchelor starred as Peeto in the Australian film Red Dog and also portrayed the heart wrenching Wally Tomlinson, an associate of underworld figure Kate Leigh in the highly acclaimed Nine Network series Underbelly: Razor.
In 2012, Batchelor's first main role for the year was as policeman Tony Lewandowski in the Nine Network telemovie, The Great Mint Swindle, the tale about the three innocent Mickelberg brothers who became embroiled in one of the most famous heists in Australia's history.
In 2013 Batchelor became a voice over artist and begun his voice work including as the narrator for Air Rescue on Channel 7 and numerous vehicle commercials.