Richard Huggett (born 3 December 1965) is an Australian film, television and theatre actor. After graduating from NIDA in 1988, Huggett guested in an episode of Home and Away, before he was cast as villain Sonny Bennett in E Street. Huggett's character killed four of the show's regulars, before taking his own life, bringing in strong ratings for the soap. Huggett went on to win the Logie Award for Most Popular New Talent in 1991 for his portrayal of Sonny. Huggett next played Glen Donnelly in another soap Neighbours from 1990 until 1992. He only stayed for a year, as he wanted more to pursue more demanding roles. In 1994, Huggett joined short-lived soap Paradise Beach as Sam Dexter and police drama Blue Heelers as supporting character Sean Neale. He has also made guest appearances in various television shows, including Col'n Carpenter, All Saints and Out of the Blue. He appeared in the Australian film Aiyai: Wrathful Soul in 2020 and re-joined the cast of Neighbours as Glen in 2021. In addition to his television and film work, Huggett has also appeared in a number of theatre productions.
Early life
Huggett's parents emigrated to Australia from London, UK. He was born in Brisbane and holds dual Australian and British nationally.[2]
Huggett appeared in Home and Away in 1989.[5] He came to prominence as villain Sonny Bennett in E Street. The soap's creator Forrest Redlich cast Huggett after spotting him in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.[6] Sonny was introduced as the "bad seed" brother of Lisa Bennett (played by Alyssa-Jane Cook) at a time the storylines were becoming darker in order to keep the show's male audience interested. Sonny had been to prison for robbery, took drugs, and tried to kill Constable Max Simmons (Bruce Samazan).[7] In his final months, Sonny killed four main characters and then himself, which was a critical and ratings success for E Street.[8][7] For his performance as Sonny, Huggett won the Logie Award for Most Popular New Talent in 1991.[9] He also received a nomination for the Logie Award for Most Popular Actor in Australia.[10]
Following his departure from E Street, Huggett joined the cast of Neighbours as Glen Donnelly, the illegitimate son of Jim Robinson (Alan Dale).[11] Huggett had to relocate from Sydney to Melbourne for the role, which negatively impacted his personal life.[12] He was branded the show's new "heart-throb" by the press.[11] During his time in the show, Glen had an incestuous relationship with his half-sister Lucy Robinson (Melissa Bell). Scenes featuring the pair together was edited for broadcast by the BBC in the UK.[13] In September 1991, Chrissie Camp of TV Week confirmed that Huggett had decided to quit Neighbours and not renew his one-year contract, which ran out in November.[14] Huggett stated that a year was enough and, while he enjoyed playing Glen, he wanted more demanding roles.[14]
While he was appearing in Neighbours, Huggett made a guest appearance in an episode of Col'n Carpenter.[15] Huggett later admitted that he was not comfortable with the level of fame he received from his two biggest roles.[16] After leaving Neighbours, he went travelling and appeared in various theatre productions in England,[2][16] including Anzacs Over England at the Swan Theatre,[17] and the pantomime Sleeping Beauty in Leeds in December 1992.[18]
In 1994, Huggett joined the Nine Network soap opera Paradise Beach as Sam Dexter, who became a love interest for Kimberley Joseph's character Cassie Barsby.[5] He was billed as "An enigmatic – and dangerous – professional protester, Dexter is the kind of man who travels the world looking for lost causes."[5] Kevin Sadler of The Sydney Morning Herald noted that while Sam would call himself an "environmental crusader", Paradise Beach viewers would soon describe him as a "terrorist".[5] That same year, he appeared in Blue Heelers as Sean Neale.[16] Huggett called his character "very methodical and logical". He enjoyed working on Blue Heelers, saying "it forces you to think a bit. After working for so long on soaps, these scripts are amazing."[19] In 1996, Huggett starred in a production of James McLure's Lone Star at the Belvoir Downstairs.[20]
Huggett later chose to step back from his acting career and he became a shearer in New South Wales.[16] He has also worked as a personal trainer and a truck driver, before relocating to Brisbane and working for an events company.[21] He appeared in All Saints in the early 2000s,[16] and the Australian soap opera Out of the Blue in 2008.[22] Huggett had a supporting role in Home and Away in 2012, as Gary Reed.[23] In 2017, Huggett had a small guest role in the Nine Network miniseries House of Bond.[21] The following year, he starred in an advertisement campaign for the Brisbane Broncos.[24] Two years later, Huggett appeared in the Australian mystery thriller film Aiyai: Wrathful Soul.[25]
Huggett re-joined the cast of Neighbours in 2021. He told Fiona Byrne of the Herald Sun that it felt like he was coming home and he was looking forward to "the twists and turns ahead" for Glen.[16] Glen's storylines included reuniting with his half-brother and his daughter, as well as a relationship with Terese Willis (Rebekah Elmaloglou). Huggett remained with the serial until its cancellation in 2022.[26] Huggett confirmed that he had been attending auditions for new roles and planning his move back to Brisbane.[26] In 2023, Huggett made a guest appearance in NCIS: Sydney.[27]
