Fred Parslow

Frederick Henry "Fred" Parslow AM (14 August 1932 – 26 January 2017) was an Australian actor of theatre, television and film

Parslow was a member of the Melbourne Theatre Company (MTC) for nearly thirty years, joining when it was founded as the Union Theatre Repertory Company, and making his first performance with the company in a touring production of Twelfth Night in 1955.

Whilst a dominant figure on the Melbourne theatre scene, Parslow was generally reluctant to take on television roles. He made some television appearances in the 1960s, in comedy and variety sketches with theatre colleagues on The Ray Taylor Show and In Melbourne Tonight. In the mid-1970s, he was intrigued by an offer to appear in the new series The Sullivans, and appeared in 46 episodes as the shady Mr. Jarvis. Minor roles in other Crawfords productions included appearances in Bluey, Skyways, and Cop Shop.

Parslow's film roles were also fairly infrequent, although he made two significant film appearances in the 1970s: as Alvin's father in Alvin Purple (1973), and as the Reverend Burton in Peter Weir's 1977 film The Last Wave.

In 1961, Parslow married fellow MTC actor Joan Harris, who predeceased him by five months in September 2016.

Parslow was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1987, for service to the performing arts.

• Alvin Purple (1973) – Alvin's Father
• The Last Wave (1977) – Rev. Burton
• The Humpty Dumpty Man (1986) – Symes
• Minnamurra (1989) – James Richards