Nicholas Clay

Nicholas Clay was an English actor, most famous for playing the legendary knight Lancelot du Lac (Lancelot of the Lake) in the medieval fantasy film "Excalibur" (1981). Clay was born in London.His father was a professional soldier, who served in the Corps of Royal Engineers (nicknamed "Sappers"). The Clay family eventually settled in Kent, where Clay was raised. Clay became interested in acting as a teenager, and performed with the Little Medway Theatre Club. He was later formally educated at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Clay made his film debut in the science fiction horror film "The Damned" (1963), concerning children with a mutation which makes them resistant to nuclear fallout. He was only 17-years-old at the time. He remained a theatrical actor for the rest of the 1960s. Clay's next film role was that of handyman Billy Jarvis in the thriller "The Night Digger" (1971). In the film, Jarvis represented a threat to the film's female protagonists Maura and Edith Prince