Coltrane moved into acting in his early twenties, adopting the stage name Coltrane (in tribute to jazz saxophonist
John Coltrane) and working in theatre and comedy. He appeared in the first stage production of
John Byrne's
The Slab Boys, at the
Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh (1978). His comedic abilities brought him roles in
The Comic Strip Presents (1982–2012) series as well as the comedy sketch show
Alfresco (1983–1984). In 1984 he appeared in
A Kick Up the Eighties (Series 2) and
Laugh??? I Nearly Paid My Licence Fee, and is credited as a writer for both.Coltrane moved into roles in films such as
Flash Gordon (1980),
Death Watch (1980),
Balham, Gateway to the South (1981),
Scrubbers (1983),
Krull (1983),
The Supergrass (1985),
Defence of the Realm (1985),
Absolute Beginners (1986),
Mona Lisa (1986), and appeared as "Annabelle" in
The Fruit Machine (1988). (a role he later reprised in the more serious ''
Boswell and Johnson's Tour of the Western Islands'' (1993)),
LWT's The Robbie Coltrane Special (1989, which he also co-wrote), He co-starred with
Eric Idle in
Nuns on the Run (1990) and played the Pope in
The Pope Must Die (1991). His roles continued in the 1990s with the TV series
Cracker (1993–1996, returning in 2006 for a one-off special), in which he starred as forensic psychologist Dr. Edward "Fitz" Fitzgerald. The role won him three
BAFTA awards. Coltrane also presented a number of documentary programmes for the British
ITV network based around his twin passions for travel and transportation.
Coltrane in a Cadillac (1993) saw him cross North America from Los Angeles to New York City behind the wheel of a 1951
Cadillac Series 62 coupe convertible, a journey of , which he completed in 32 days. In 1997, Coltrane appeared in a series of six programmes under the title ''Coltrane's Planes and Automobiles,'' in which he extolled the virtues of the
steam engine, the
diesel engine, the
supercharger, the
V8 engine, the
two-stroke engine, and the
jet engine. In these programmes he dismantled and rebuilt several engines. He also single-handedly removed the engine from a
Trabant car in 23 minutes. In September 2006, Coltrane was voted No. 11 in ITV's
TV's 50 Greatest Stars and sixth in a poll of 2000 adults across the UK to find the 'most famous Scot', behind the
Loch Ness Monster,
Robert Burns,
Sean Connery,
Robert the Bruce, and
William Wallace. Coltrane voiced characters in several animated films, including
The Tale of Despereaux (2008) and
Pixar's
Brave (2012), as well as the title roles of
Gooby and
The Gruffalo (both 2009). In 2016, Coltrane starred in
National Treasure, a four-part drama in which he played a former comedian accused of historic sexual offences. He was nominated for Best Actor at the
2017 British Academy Television Awards, and won in the category at the
Royal Television Society Programme Awards. ==Personal life==