Robert Thomas Powell (/ˈpaʊəl/ POW-əl; born 1 June 1944) is an English actor who is known for the title roles in Mahler (1974) and Jesus of Nazareth (1977), and for his portrayal of secret agent Richard Hannay in The Thirty Nine Steps (1978) and its subsequent spinoff television series.

Other major screen roles have included Tobias "Toby" Wren in the BBC science-fiction programme Doomwatch (1970), David Briggs in the sitcom The Detectives (1993–1997) with Jasper Carrott, and Mark Williams in the medical drama Holby City (2005–2011).

Having been killed off in Doomwatch right at the end of Series One in a bomb explosion, at his request, Powell became a pin-up and a household name, following up with starring roles in several BBC serials, including television adaptations of the novels Sentimental Education (1970) and Jude the Obscure (1971).

The four-part television film had an all-star cast, including Laurence Olivier as Nicodemus, Ernest Borgnine as the Roman Centurion, Stacy Keach as Barabbas, Christopher Plummer as Herod Antipas, Michael York as John the Baptist, Ian McShane as Judas Iscariot, Rod Steiger as Pontius Pilate and James Mason as Joseph of Arimathea.

Powell's distinctive voice is frequently heard on voice-overs and as a narrator of television programmes such as Great Crimes and Trials, The Century of Warfare and World War II in HD Colour.

Powell has also lent his voice to musical works, such as David Bedford's album The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,[6] or the 2002 rock opera The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Clive Nolan and Oliver Wakeman, where he played the role of John Watson.

In early 2005 he became a regular in the UK TV medical drama, Holby City, where he remained for six years before departing to return to theatre.

He said that regular employment in the series helped him make up financial losses caused by the failure of the pension fund he held with The Equitable Life Assurance Society.

[9] On 9 February 2008, he performed as narrator in Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf with the Huddersfield Philharmonic Orchestra with conductor Natalia Luis-Bassa in the North of England.

The series covered 4 segments, each one hour in length dealing with historical elements of the story along with Powell interviewing biblical historians such as Helen Bond and Candida Moss.

The 1977 series starring Powell differed in at least two scenes from the Gospel's historical account: in the film, the Virgin Mary is shown without the angel of the Annunciation and Jesus carries only the horizontal branch of the Holy Cross to Calvary.

[17] Powell provided the narration for Clive Nolan and Oliver Wakeman’s 2002 adaptation of The Hound of the Baskervilles as a progressive rock album.