Mike Sarne

Michael Sarne (born 6 August 1940) is a British actor, writer, producer and director, who also had a brief career as pop singer Mike Sarne. He is of Czechoslovakian descent.

Music career

Sarne was born Michael Scheuer at St Mary's Hospital, Paddington, London. Active in the 1960s as singer, he is best known for his 1962 UK novelty chart topper, "Come Outside" (produced by Joe Meek), which featured vocal interjections by Wendy Richard. He had three more releases which made the UK Singles chart: "Will I What?", in 1962, which featured Billie Davis; "Just for Kicks", in 1963; and "Code of Love", also in 1963.

TV and film career

In the mid-1960s Sarne introduced the ITV children's quiz series Junior Criss Cross Quiz.

As an actor he has appeared on television, in British series including The Avengers, Man in a Suitcase, Jonathan Creek and The Bill. Sarne also appeared in an episode of Minder as Billy Beesley, an amateur safe blower. His film credits include a starring role in the 1963 film A Place to Go with Rita Tushingham, directed by Basil Dearden, and he also appeared in Invasion Quartet (1961), Every Day's a Holiday (1965), Two Weeks in September (1967), Moonlighting (1982) and Success Is the Best Revenge (1984) for Polish director Jerzy Skolimowski, and the Hercule Poirot film Appointment with Death (1988). He later appeared in The Fourth Angel (2001), as Valery in the crime thriller Eastern Promises (2007), and in 2011 he was the voice of Karla in the spy film Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. In 2012 he played Father Mabeuf in the film of Les Misérables.