After school, he did his national service in the British Army, serving in the Coldstream Guards, then joined the Unity Theatre, London.

He adopted the stage name of Tom Adams and taught English and drama at the Cardinal Griffin secondary modern school, Poplar, in the 1960s between acting jobs with repertory companies.

[4][5] He appeared in television series such as The Avengers, Maigret and Ghost Squad as well as films from 1961 and made his West End debut, supporting Anton Walbrook and Peter Sallis, in Masterpiece at the Royalty in 1961.

[7] His first big screen break was a role as Nimmo in The Great Escape (1963),[8] in which the salary from the film allowed him to buy his first car.

Adams' television credits include Emergency Ward 10 where he played Dr Guy Marshall from 1964 to 1967 and later the similar Dr Guy Wallman in General Hospital between 1975 and 1978; starred as Major Sullivan in the BBC counter-espionage drama Spy Trap from 1973 to 1975, The Onedin Line as Daniel Fogarty (1977–79); Doctor Who as Vorshak in Warriors of the Deep (1984); and Emmerdale Farm (1987) as Malcolm Bates.