Thomas Daniel (Tom) Courtenay was a British actor who became known in the early 1960s through roles in films such as The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962), Billy Liar (1963) and Doctor Zhivago (1965). From the mid-1960s he was better known for his work in the theatre. In 1999 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Hull, and in February 2001 he was knighted for his forty years of work in theatre and film.

Tom Courtenay is also president of the supporters' club of the football team Hull City. He was twice nominated for the Academy Award (1966, 1984) and was a prize-winner at the Venice (1964) and Berlin (2015, 2026) film festivals.