Ian Douglas Clark (born 7 April 1950) is a British-born Canadian stage and screen actor who works under the name of Ian D. Clark.
Best known for playing Simon Tremayne in the CBC Television series Road to Avonlea in the 1990s,Ian D. Clark, actor, Direct Entertainment, accessed 7 August 2026 Clark has worked mostly on stage and television, but also in films. He won a Toronto Theatre Critics Award in 2014.
Early life Clark was born in 1950 in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England,Peter Hendra, Actor's road to success, thewhig.com, 2 July 2014, accessed 7 August 2026CLARK Ian D / Kenny, FreeBMD, accessed 7 August 2026 but both of his parents were Scots. His father, Dr Douglas Clark, originally from Clarkston, East Renfrewshire, was a recently-arrived general practitioner in nearby Conisbrough, while his mother, Beatrice Kenny, was a nursing sister from Dumfries."CLARK, Beatrice (nee Kenny)", The Globe and Mail, 21 April 2012: "Beloved widow of Dr. Douglas Clark passed away in her 90th year, on April 17, 2012. Born in Dumfries, Scotland, she trained at Glasgow Western Infirmary, rising to become Night Operating Theatre Sister, and later was asked to be private nurse to the family of the U.S. Ambassador.""CLARK, Beatrice", legacy.com, accessed 8 August 2026 He had one younger brother, and until 1966 was educated as a boarder at Gresham's School in Norfolk, then headed by another Scot, Logie Bruce Lockhart.Old Greshamian Club Address Book 1999 (Cromer: Cheverton & Son, 1999), p. 53
In October 1966, after a farewell party, the family visited Scotland,"A farewell party to Dr. Douglas Clark and his wife", South Yorkshire Times and Mexborough & Swinton Times, Saturday 8 October 1966, p. 5: "A farewell party to Dr. Douglas Clark and his wife was held in the new Day Room at Conisbrough Hospital on Monday, Dr. and Mrs. Clark left their home on Tuesday for Scotland prior to emigrating." immediately before emigrating from Conisbrough to Oshawa in Ontario, Canada, about 35 miles from downtown Toronto."CONISBRO’ DOCTOR TO EMIGRATE" South Yorkshire Times and Mexborough & Swinton Times, Saturday, 13 August 1966, p. 12: "Dr. Douglas Clark, M.B., Ch.B., is to emigrate to Canada early in October. Dr. Clark came to the area in May, 1949, and has been in partnership with various doctors in the same practice ever since. With Dr. Clark will go his wife, Beatrice, and his two sons, lan (16) and Colin (11). The two boys will continue their education in Canada." Even before that, Clark had begun to think about acting as a career, after seeing the film Becket (1964), starring Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole. He continued his education at the R. S. McLaughlin Institute, Oshawa,Douglas Bowie, "Ian Clark Profile", douglasbowie.ca, 1 February 2022, accessed 8 August 2026 and then at McGill University, Montreal, where he took a bachelor's degree in English and French and an MA in English literature, intended as a first step towards an academic career. While there, with Fiona Reid and Guy Sprung he acted on stage with a student troupe called Theatre Encounter in Montreal. His MA thesis was deferred for several years, while his acting career began to take off, but it was eventually completed.
In 1977, Clark was given a very small part in Peter Shaffer's film Equus, but he was also hired as stand-in to Richard Burton, taking his place during set-ups. He spent every day for six weeks in studios at Kleinburg, with Sidney Lumet directing a cast which included Burton, Joan Plowright, Peter Firth, Harry Andrews, and Jenny Agutter. Clark has said of this "Acting schools weren’t common then, and I had no formal acting training. I learned on the job, by doing, by watching people who were better than me. And those six weeks on Equus were like a master class with the masters – Burton and Lumet."
Stage Clark's early stage career was with the Shaw Festival repertory company, in Niagara-on-the-Lake. In 1982, he played Antipholus of Ephesis in A Comedy of Errors at the Citadel Theatre, Edmonton.John O'Connor, ed., A Directory of Shakespeare in Performance 1970-1990: Volume 2, USA and Canada (Springer, 2019) p. 25 In 1986, he had the title role in Larry Shue's play The Foreigner at the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Toronto.The Foreigner, mirvish.com, accessed 14 August 2026 At the Shaw Festival of 1988, he was noticed in The Voysey Inheritance.John Simon, "Shakespearian Shambles, Festive Shavians" New York Magazine, 5 September 1988, p. 58
Clark has appeared many times at the Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia. In 2001, he was there playing Inspector Rough in Gaslight."Plot twists, fine cast make 'Gaslight' enjoyable theater", Mainline Media News, 28 March 2001, accessed 8 August 2026 In 2003, he was back at the theatre as Peacey in The Voysey Inheritance, and in 2004 played Sandy Lord in The Philadelphia Story.Jessica Boevers Is Tracy Lord in Walnut Street's Philadelphia Story, Playbill.com, 17 March 2004 In 2005, he was there again to star as Finian in a production of the musical Finian's Rainbow.Bernard Havard, Mark D. Sylvester, Walnut Street Theatre (Arcadia Publishing, 2008), p. 125 In 2007, he played Frederick Arnott, a comic turn, in Enchanted April,Kathryn Osenlund, "A CurtainUp Review: Enchanted April", curtainup.com, accessed 9 August 2026 and in 2011 was back as Baron von Swieten in Peter Shaffer's Amadeus."WST’s AMADEUS Slightly Off Pitch", Stage Magazine, February 2011, accessed 8 August 2026 In 2013 he played the Earl of Caversham in a Walnut Street production of Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband.Steve Cohen, "Oscar Wilde's Ideal Husband at the Walnut (2nd review)", Broad Street Review, 2 February 2013, accessed 8 August 2026
In 2006, at the Tarragon Theatre, Toronto, Clark appeared as Jim the Gardener in Charlotte Jones's Humble Boy.Humble Boy, Toronto Theatre Database, accessed 9 August 2026 In 2008 and 2009, he played David Manning and other parts in David Hare’s Stuff Happens at the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Toronto.Stuff Happens, Toronto Theatre Database, accessed 9 August 2026 From April to October, 2011, at the Stratford Festival in Stratford, Ontario, he played Grampa Joad in The Grapes of Wrath and was also understudy for the part of Sam in Harold Pinter's The Homecoming. "Ian D. Clark", abouttheartists.com, accessed 13 August 2026
In 2014, Clark was on stage as both butlers in a Thousand Islands Playhouse revival of The Importance of Being Earnest, with one review calling him "the cast stand-out".Connie Meng, "Theatre Review: The Importance of Being Earnest at the 1000 Islands Playhouse", North Country Public Radio, 1 August 2014, accessed 7 August 2026 Also in 2014, after he had appeared as F in the first Canadian production of Mike Bartlett's play Cock, at the Theatre Centre, Toronto, the part won him the Toronto Theatre Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Play.Glenn Sumi, "Critics' choice", Now, May 22, 2014 In 2015, he played the title role in Tuesdays with Morrie at the Thousand Islands Playhouse.Peter Hendra, A gratifying sentimental journey, thewhig.com, 3 September 2015 In October of the same year, he stepped in at short notice to replace Jamie Farr in Jack of Diamonds at Theatre Aquarius, in Hamilton, Ontario, after Farr had collapsed during a rehearsal.Christina Mancuso, "Jamie Farr Collapses During Rehearsal of JACK OF DIAMONDS; Ian D. Clark to Step In", broadwayworld.com, October 26, 2015 A review noted that the director "had the irrepressible Ian D. Clark waiting in the wings, ready to unleash his own brand of hokum."Gary Smith, "Review: Theatre Aquarius production of Jack of Diamonds sparkles with silliness", The Hamilton Spectator, 2 November 2015, archived at the Internet Archive
In 2020, Clark was at the Ed Mirvish Theatre, Toronto, appearing in Jack Thorne's Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.Ryan McPhee, "Toronto’s Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Assembles All-Canadian Cast ", playbill.com, 11 March 2020, accessed 13 August 2026
Screen An early television role for Clark came in The Newcomers: 1847, filmed in 1977.Blaik Kirby, "The Irish Newcomers – no TV formula here". The Globe and Mail, 6 January 1978Kevin Rockett, The Irish Filmography: Fiction Films, 1896-1996 (Red Mountain Media, 1996), p. 110)
After performing many parts in television movies and shows, from 1993 to 1996 Clark appeared as a leading character in Road to Avonlea , playing Simon Tremayne, the disinherited son of a British duke and the owner of the White Sands Hotel. The location for this was Dalvay-by-the-Sea, and by chance Clark and his family had taken a holiday at the real hotel before emigrating to Canada. After that, Clark had lead roles on other television shows, The Arrow (1997), Little Men (1998), and The Associates (2001).
In the vampire web series Carmilla, Clark plays Baron von Vordenberg.Dana Piccoli, "The Eagerly Anticipated Season 2 of "Carmilla" Premieres Tuesday!", afterellen.com, 1 June 2015, accessed 7 August 2026
In 2024, Clark appeared in The Apprentice, a biopic film of the early career of Donald Trump, playing Mayor Ed Koch.
Films Equus (1977), uncredited Murder by Phone (1982) as First Cop The Boy in Blue (1986) as Aussie"The Boy in Blue", metacritic.com, accessed 2 September 2026 A Nest of Singing Birds (1988), as David Gore"A Nest of Singing Birds", allmovie.com, accessed 14 August 2026 Last Wish (1992) as Dr Kevin BurnsAlvin H. Marill, Movies Made for Television, 1964-2004: 1990-1999 (Scarecrow Press, 2005), p. 296 Treacherous Beauties (1994) as BarryRichard Ness, From Headline Hunter to Superman: A Journalism Filmography (Bloomsbury Academic, 1997), p. 725 Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould (1993) as Phillip BrennanScreen World, Vol. 46 (Theatre World Media, 1996), p. 205 Bach's Fight for Freedom (1995) as Josef Muller"Bach's Fight for Freedom", in Charles P. Mitchell, The Great Composers Portrayed on Film, 1913 through 2002 (McFarland, 2015), p. 14; "Bach's Fight for Freedom", teachwithmovies.org, accessed 7 August 2026 The Michelle Apartments (1995), as Abernathy Lilies (1996) as Father Saint Michel, prison chaplainJohn Greyson, The Perils of Pedagogy: The Works of John Greyson (McGill-Queen's Press, 2013), pp. 432–433; "Lilies, Canada 1996", Sight and Sound, Vol. 8, Issues 1-6 (1998), p. 49 That Old Feeling (1997), as Rufus"That Old Feeling", allmovie.com, accessed 14 August 2026 The Wishing Tree (1999) as Davies The Hunt for the Unicorn Killer (1999) as Denis WeaireAlvin H. Marill, Movies Made for Television, 1964-2004: 1990-1999 (Scarecrow Press, 2005), p. 239 The Chippendales Murder (2000) as Russell Liggott–Jones Cruel Intentions 2 (2000) as Principal Ed Freeman Laughter on the 23rd Floor (2001) as Max's doctor"Laughter on the 23rd Floor", allmovie.com, accessed 14 August 2026 The Piano Man's Daughter (2003) as Coroner's CounselThe Piano Man's Daughter, allmovie.com, accessed 14 August 2026 The Reagans (2003) as Dr. John E. Hutton Jr."The Reagans" in Alvin H. Marill, ed., Movies Made for Television, 1964-2004: 2000-2004 (2005), p. 148 Black Widow (2005) as Minister"Minister played by Ian D. Clark", whatthemovie.com/movie, accessed 10 August 2026 Maneater (2007) as Colonel James Livingston Graham"Maneater", Rotten Tomatoes, accessed 8 August 2026 Georgetown (2019) as Carl Mattingly"Georgetown (2019) – cast", cinema.com/film, accessed 10 August 2026 The Apprentice (2024) as Ed KochTy Burr, "Trump biopic ‘The Apprentice’ avoids taking sides. Good luck with that." The Washington Post, 8 October 2024, accessed 8 August 2026
Personal life Clark met his future wife, Beverly, at the R. S. McLaughlin school in Oshawa, and from there they both went on to McGill University. They were married in 1984 and since then have lived in Kingston, Ontario, where Mrs Clark was a teacher. This is about a three-hour drive from Toronto, which is the main centre for Canadian theatres and auditions. They have one daughter.